The Real Wolf of Wall Street: Jordan Belfort Followed Windex, Gatorade, and Sauce Diet
The confident and beautiful Leonardo DiCaprio portrayed Jordan Belfort in The Wolf of Wall Street, but according to a former business partner, the real Belfort had major body image issues.
New York Post is citing Michael Peragine, "a former business associate and friend," who says that Belfort took very extreme measures to curb his appetite.
"He has the lowest self-esteem in the world," Peragine said.
According to Peragine, Belfort would stop himself from eating too many leftovers by coating the food in his refrigerator with Windex. In addition, the business mogul allegedly lived off of Gatorade. Even pasta was not a normal meal for Belfort, as the newspaper reports that Belfort preferred to slurp the tomato sauce out of the dish rather than the eat the pasta itself.
As if this extreme diet is not enough, Peragine said that Belfort, who the New York Post reports is 5'7'', used to put boosts in his customized Ferragamo shoes to make himself look taller.
Peragine reportedly worked with Belfort in the early 2000s at a mortgage brokerage in Long Island. Although Belfort was sober and working to get reduced prison time at the time, Peragine was still not happy with how Belfort treated him.
"I got screwed," he told the newspaper. "... He asked to make sure that I come and spend time with him at least once a week, bring his kids up when I could and take care of his bills."
While Belfort was in jail, Peragine said he helped him with his memoir and that Belfort promised him half of the book and film's profits.
"Then, after he's out of the halfway house, he tells me that it's his life ... I can't own his life," Peragine said.
Peragine said he has yet to see The Wolf of Wall Street. He now resides in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. and is running for a position on City Council.