From: moghal@aludra.usc.edu (Nadeem Moghal)
Newsgroups: misc.invest.real-estate
Subject: Re: Tom Vu, anyone?
Date: 3 Jan 1993 03:03:59 -0800
Organization: University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA
Distribution: usa
NNTP-Posting-Host: aludra.usc.edu

Hi all:

In article <JSC.93Jan2192331@monolith.mit.edu> jsc@monolith.mit.edu (Jin S Choi) writes:
>
>I'm not sure if this is the proper place for this, but I was wondering
>if anyone knew anything about this guy.
>
>There's this Vietnamese guy that was on TV late last night here in
>California hocking his seminars as a way to quick wealth in real estate.
>He gives these seminars throughout the US and Canada, 

His paid commercial is only to attract you to the seminar. Then, once
you get there, he entices you with all sorts of sale gibberish, and
offers you some sort of a membership. How much does he charge for that?
Well, when I attended, it was $1550. And he was gracious enough to announce 
a special deal for all us "special people" who were there with him on that
memorable day of 1990. He let us have the program forr ONLY $1450.

Really! What a man!

>Does anyone have any interesting information about him or his scheme?
>Would anyone recommend his seminars?

I remember attendeding his seminar some time in late '90. It was in a 
big hotel in downtown Los Angeles, and I went because 

(1) it was free;

(2) I had nothing to do ('twas one of those hard-to-find week-day
afternoons when there were no classes scheduled, and all the assignments
were done!); and 

(3) his claims on the teevee sure did pique my curiosity.

It was, over all, an inteersting experience. (My first such "seminar" 
in this country.) The things that he talked about were rather common
knowledge, and anyone with some basic sense of property management
and evaluation of the changing trends would find them nothing out of
the ordinary.

This is, however, not to belittle those who do go and see him "perform." 
It is always useful to get some perspective from different people. To
date, I have attended three such seminars (if there have been more, 
I will have to get back about the rest):

1. Tom Vu
2. Milin or Milan (Husband and Wife team)
3. Russ Whitney

On all these three occasions, I did learn something worthwhile. 

It is wise to take along a notepad to make notes.

>I hear he's
>been parodied on Saturday Night Live. He deals in "distressed" housing.

I am not surprized. In fact, I have heard many people imitating his
style .and. what he says. FOr example, 

1. (Point towards the camera and say, "You are a looser." Arsenio Hall 
   did it in October '92.

2. His "famous" three words. In his teevee infomercial, he repeatedly
   talks of his three "secret" words that he would not reveal there;
   you have to make an effort to go and attend the seminar to learn
   those words. As far as my memory serves me, they were something in
   the region of "Believe, hardwork,..." So, what's new you'd ask, and 
   would nod in agreement!

3. His bikini-clad "companions." This guy has a real attitude, and 
   people were making fun of him. In the seminar, he ran segments
   of his infomercial, adnd whenever he would be on the yacht or 
   in a convertible, a scantily-dressed blonde would be by his side.
   And people were laughing not with him but at him, and he was 
   too dumb to notice!

Anyways, good luck with your efforts.

>
>-Jin
>
>--
>Jin Choi
>jsc@athena.mit.edu
>


Nadeem Moghal

moghal@aludra.usc.edu
University of Southern California