mountebank ˈmau̇n-ti-ˌbaŋk noun
: a flamboyant deceiver; one who attracts customers with tricks or jokes
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The word mountebank has appeared in 11 articles on NYTimes.com in the past two years, including on April 13, 2018, in “Is Stan Lee Being Held Prisoner by Real-Life Villains?” by Ben Widdicombe:
On Tuesday The Hollywood Reporter published an investigation that said that Mr. Lee, 95, is the victim of “elder abuse,” partly at the hands of his 67-year-old daughter, Joan Celia Lee. The Daily Beast reported last month that Mr. Lee, who is said to be worth around $50 million, was “surrounded by a panoply of Hollywood charlatans and mountebanks” and being “picked apart by vultures.”
A radio talk show in Orlando, Fla., even aired a rumor that he is being “held captive” by handlers who “have him basically locked up in the house.”
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