She Knew Keith Before He Was Vanguard: ‘He Never Wanted to Work for a Living!’

Nancy Durkin knew Keith Alan Raniere before he was the Vanguard. She knew him during his Consumers’ Buyline days and actually was a guest at his house at 3 Flintlock with Pam Cafritz and Karen U.  She never slept with him but she got a good close at him, when he was conning her boss into surrendering his business, to be subsumed by the wily Raniere. Nancy’s insights are valuable for she saw him as a con artist even before he created his most elaborate con- Nxivm.

Nancy Durkin

By Nancy Durkin

I think a lot of people are drawn to seemingly energetic groups full of “tips” for living a better life – especially in a “cheerful” environment.

I know in the Consumers’ Buyline days, Keith Alan Raniere had many awed (snowed) by his ability to present himself as a genius, including my old boss at Purchase Power.

I had an innate dislike of MLMs, but Keith had even ME thinking for a bit – briefly – … that maybe he’s on to something!

He was very persuasive.

It ought to be clear by now that his goal was always money, adulation, unlimited sex and control.

Raniere is talented on many levels, although for some reason, he unduly exaggerated those talents.

The chilling part is that his talents were used solely to further his sociopathic and destructive aims.

I have always theorized that Raniere’s goals were actually very simple:

1) He should not have to work for a living, and others should support him and wait on him;

2) He is special and so should be revered, honored, and obeyed without question; and

3) Because he is special, societal rules and values do not apply to him, so he can deceive, cheat, con, and lie to others, abuse trust, and have as much sex, pleasure, and satiation as he desires – all while living in a pedestrian, suburban house in a quiet subdivision.

A wolf in sheep’s clothing, indeed!

I mourn for those who loved and trusted him, only to be betrayed and (some) possibly killed by poison, starvation, or some form of “suicide.”

I have asked many times on this website – can anyone point to one, and I mean ONE, example of a decent, philanthropic act that KAR did, ever?

Handing out blankets?

Food drives?

Donations (other than to political parties)?

Scholarships?

Beautification projects?

Clearly, he was out for Keith and Keith alone.

If anyone has information to the contrary, I would love to hear it and consider it.

Clue: “A ten day birthday party for my wonderful self, for which my loyal, devoted followers have the privilege of paying $2K each to attend and give me gifts.”

Sounds like a strident five-year old to me.

It is so easy to now cast stones, but most of us haven’t been in a position to be affected by his spell or carefully practiced spiel.

Imagine how much energy it takes to perpetrate a lifelong fraud. I never knew his parents, but I nonetheless feel sorry for them, I am certain they did not seek to raise this kind of person. Early on, they were probably tickled to have a talented, cute, precocious,handsome only son. Thankfully it does not seem they lived long enough to see the whole truth.

Shout-out to NXIVM survivors: (I say: “Nexit-ers”) – Hang in there!

We have all done things we regret in this life. Healing is out there. Reach out to Frank; I venture to say he will help you in some fashion – if only to hear you.

When he was just a beginning Vanguard.

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    • The author takes no responsibility. He was a client of my company and I had no control over that.

  • He Never Wanted to Work for a Living!’

    Kind of like Jacob Blake of Kenosha Wisconsin.
    Jake Blake, the clown who raped a woman and was shot in the back by cops, fathered several children out of wedlock.
    Both Jake Blake and Keith Raniere were Professional sperm donors fathering children out of wedlock and leaving it to taxpayers to pay the child support bills.

  • “I have asked many times on this website – can anyone point to one, and I mean ONE, example of a decent, philanthropic act that KAR did, ever?” I’ve answered many times on this website – Raniere probably helped young girls with their school work, right before he raped them – does that count? LOL How about the scene from the HBO special “The Vow,” where he helped develop a program to overcome Tourette’s Syndrome? LOL Or are two things too many to think about? How about a third one, many of the students who took only a course or two of his teachings reported improvements in their lives, as did Vicente and Edmondson? LOL

    Durkin had an opportunity to be on Scott’s show a couple of years ago and like Rhiannon helping the police, she [redacted]. LOL

    • Nancy is one of my favorite people to read on FR. Her turning down your gracious offer to appear on the pobcast of Pete Mingles solidified this.

    • Durkin has no direct knowledge of any criminal activities. LOL Only that MLMs suck in general. Nothing to add to Scott’s (your) show.

    • —Durkin had an opportunity to be on Scott’s show a couple of years ago and like Rhiannon helping the police, she [redacted]. LOL

      What an amazing opportunity…….

      …..Mr. LOL

      Besides your immediate family, who else listens to your show?

About the Author

Frank Parlato is an investigative journalist.

His work has been cited in hundreds of news outlets, like The New York Times, The Daily Mail, VICE News, CBS News, Fox News, New York Post, New York Daily News, Oxygen, Rolling Stone, People Magazine, The Sun, The Times of London, CBS Inside Edition, among many others in all five continents.

His work to expose and take down NXIVM is featured in books like “Captive” by Catherine Oxenberg, “Scarred” by Sarah Edmonson, “The Program” by Toni Natalie, and “NXIVM. La Secta Que Sedujo al Poder en México” by Juan Alberto Vasquez.

Parlato has been prominently featured on HBO’s docuseries “The Vow” and was the lead investigator and coordinating producer for Investigation Discovery’s “The Lost Women of NXIVM.” Parlato was also credited in the Starz docuseries "Seduced" for saving 'slave' women from being branded and escaping the sex-slave cult known as DOS.

Additionally, Parlato’s coverage of the group OneTaste, starting in 2018, helped spark an FBI investigation, which led to indictments of two of its leaders in 2023.

Parlato appeared on the Nancy Grace Show, Beyond the Headlines with Gretchen Carlson, Dr. Oz, American Greed, Dateline NBC, and NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt, where Parlato conducted the first-ever interview with Keith Raniere after his arrest. This was ironic, as many credit Parlato as one of the primary architects of his arrest and the cratering of the cult he founded.

Parlato is a consulting producer and appears in TNT's The Heiress and the Sex Cult, which premiered on May 22, 2022. Most recently, he consulted and appeared on Tubi's "Branded and Brainwashed: Inside NXIVM," which aired January, 2023.

IMDb — Frank Parlato

Contact Frank with tips or for help.
Phone / Text: (305) 783-7083
Email: frankparlato@gmail.com

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