Card Shark

I wish Paulson could speak with Karyn Ricke, a Lake Worth graphics artist who sued Barham after she provided a design for the cards and he refused to pay. This past October, after Barham didn't show up in court, a judge awarded her $3,000 in damages. "I don't know if this guy has a pot to piss in," says her lawyer, Scott Chapman. "A lot of people are probably after his assets."

Despite all the press, it seems most likely that Barham's 9/11 escapade will fail miserably. His friends and business associates will be left holding the bag, as they have been in the past. At least one investor, though, isn't particularly bothered by the prospect of losing money. Bill Healey, who lives in San Francisco, says he has plowed more than $25,000 into the project. He doesn't believe the project is in bad taste, pointing out that these aren't really trading cards. If people receive duplicates, the company will replace them, he says. "I probably put in the first $25,000 because Kingsley is a friend," Healey says. "He has had a pretty tough time of it in the last 20 years. I'd like to see him have some security."

Colby Katz

Kingsley Barham at the house of cards

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Barham says his tawdry record has no bearing on the 9/11 project. He contends that a chain of grocery stores in Pennsylvania and northern New Jersey recently agreed to sell the cards. And they are doing well on the Internet. "There is no question that I have gotten some bad advice, but I have never set out to harm or hurt or financially wound someone," he concludes. "Most of the people who have been hurt by me have been worth a lot of money."

East Bay Express Intern Helene Blatter contributed to this report.