''Man Overboard: The Counterfeit Resurrection of Phil Champagne'' is a non-fiction biography and true crime book by author Burl Barer that was released in 1995 by Northwest Publishing. It is the story of Champagne's life after his faked death.

Plot

Champagne, a construction developer, disappeared in 1982 while aboard a 45-foot yacht that was sailing off the

Olympic Peninsula The Olympic Peninsula is a large arm of land in western Washington that lies across Puget Sound from Seattle, and contains Olympic National Park. It is bounded on the west by the Pacific Ocean, the north by the Strait of Juan de Fuca, and the ...

. He was presumed dead after a 13-hour search by the

U.S. Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, multi ...

. A $1.5 million life-insurance business policy, taken out by his brother as co-partner in a construction firm with Champagne, paid out $700,000 to his grieving family."Champagne Book Takes Look At Life After Fake Death"
''

The Spokesman-Review ''The Spokesman-Review'' is a daily broadsheet newspaper based in Spokane, Washington, the city's sole remaining daily publication. It has the third-highest readership among daily newspapers in the state, with most of its readership base in ...

'', July 23, 1995 After the accident when Champagne realized everyone thought he had drowned, he stole the identity of Harold Stegeman, an 8-year-old boy who died in 1945.">''The Spokesman-Review'', "Man who faked own death admits printing counterfeit bills," May 2, 1992 - Google News Archive Search
/ref> Champagne lived as Stegeman, a Washington restaurateur, for the next 10 years until his arrest for counterfeiting US currency in an Idaho garage. Champagne pleaded guilty to giving false statements during a bankruptcy hearing, a loan application and passport application. In addition, he served 21 months in federal prison for charges of counterfeiting and passport fraud. Barer, an

Edgar Award The Edgar Allan Poe Awards, popularly called the Edgars, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America, based in New York City. Named after American writer Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849), a pioneer in the genre, the awards honor the bes ...

winner, profiles Champagne in ''Man Overboard'', republished by Wild Blue Press in a 20th Anniversary Special Edition featuring a new preface by the author, a new afterword by Phil Champagne and several new photographs. Wild Blue Press also made available audiobook and electronic editions. The first page of the book includes a synopsis of how the new identity began:

"Phil Champagne died Aug. 31, 1982, in a tragic boating accident off Lopez Island, Washington. He was 52. Champagne was survived by his wife of 28 years, four grown children, an octogenarian mother and two despondent brothers. Phil didn’t know he was dead until he read it in the paper. All things considered, he took it pretty well."

Awards and citations

In 1996, ''Man Overboard'' was a nominee for an

Anthony Award The Anthony Awards are literary awards for mystery writers presented at the Bouchercon World Mystery Convention since 1986. The awards are named for Anthony Boucher (1911–1968), one of the founders of the Mystery Writers of America. Among the m ...

in the Best Crime & Mystery Books of 1995 in the true crime category at the

Bouchercon Bouchercon, the Anthony Boucher Memorial World Mystery Convention, is an annual convention of creators and devotees of mystery and detective fiction. It is named in honour of writer, reviewer, and editor Anthony Boucher, and pronounced the way ...

World Mystery Convention. ''Man Overboard'' is included in the book ''The Essential Mystery Lists'' under "Best True Crime."Sobin, Roger: ''The Essential Mystery Lists'', pg. 57. Poisoned Pen Press. December 2007.
/ref>

References

External links

''Gather'', "The Non-Fiction Novel"''Seattle Times'', "Literary Pleasures - Books, Lectures And Author Readings Spice Up Cool Autumn Days," October 1995
{{DEFAULTSORT:Man Overboard 1995 non-fiction books American biographies Non-fiction crime books