Portrait of Victor Lustig

Birthday profile

Victor Lustig

Czech fraudster (1890–1947)

Born
January 4, 1890
Died
March 11, 1947
Zodiac sign
Capricorn
Birth year
1890

About Victor Lustig

Victor Lustig (German pronunciation: [ˈvɪktoːɐ̯ ˈlʊstɪç]; 4 January 1890 – 11 March 1947) was a con artist from Austria-Hungary, who undertook a criminal career that involved conducting scams across Europe and the United States during the early 20th century. Lustig is widely regarded as one of the most notorious con artists of his time, and is infamous for being "the man who sold the Eiffel Tower twice" and for conducting the "Rumanian Box" scam. On his first day of infant school, Lustig was immediately expelled for obscenity, after telling a female teacher "Leck mich am Arsch" ("Kiss my ass"). By age thirteen, Lustig had taken up boxing and despite chronic health issues, such as recurring migraines and breathing difficulties due to sinus swelling, he had an unbroken attendance record.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

The world when Victor Lustig was born

Victor Lustig was born in 1890. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Headlines and milestones

  • Top headlineWounded Knee Massacre — last major conflict with Native Americans
  • Technology milestoneElectric chair used for first execution
  • Notable inventionElectric chair
  • World population~1.5B

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderBenjamin Harrison
  • U.S. population63.0M

1890 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Victor Lustig's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure18902026
Postage stamp$0.02$0.73
Population63.0M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, Library of Congress. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.