BOOKS THREAD

I've become interested in reading about organized crime, especially the stories of the individuals. Any suggestions?

 

If you have any interest in JFK assassination theories as they relate to the mob, I recommend Mafia Kingfish: Carlos Marcello and the Assassination of John F. Kennedy by John H. Davis. I read it a long time ago, but I really liked it. Carlos Marcello was the New Orleans mob boss in the 60s.

 

Read "Accardo, The Genuine Godfather" by William Roemer Jr.

Before he became an author, Roemer was a former FBI agent in Chicago who crossed paths with much of the Chicago mob's notable figures during his career. He tried for years to put the Big Tuna away, with no success.

It's an interesting, albeit a bit self-serving, read. When Roemer's not interjecting his ego, it makes for a pretty good page-turner.

He's written a couple other books, most notably on former Chicago mob enforcer and Las Vegas emissary Tony "The Ant" Spilotro. But the one on Accardo is the best one of his I've read.

 

I've read that book. I know a guy whose grandfather gets several mentions in it.

 

a couple of old books which your library might have, but I think they would provide a good start.

The first is the book about Joe Valachi by Peter Maas. Valachi was the first mobster who acknowledged the mob and the term "Cosa Nostra". The book explained the structure of the mob and talked about Valachi's background. Valachi turned informer on the mob when he learned they were going to kill him. Valachi talks about his background growing up and I think his story might be the most honest and least self-serving of any mob guy telling his story.

Another book is "The Mafia is Not an Equal Opportunity Employer" by forner New York Times writer Nicholas Gage. This is more of a book from the outside by somebody who covered mobsters.

I think those books are good because they deal with New York mob guys and New York is the main area of the mob... there were five Mob families and New York mob guys had influence all over the USA.

 

If I'm not mistaken, didn't they also become more influential and powerful than the original Sicilian Mafia?

 

It's not a traditional organized crime story, but I heard good things about "Bad Bet on the Bayou." It's subtitle is something along the lines of "The Rise of Gambling in Louisiana and the Fall of Edwin Edwards." That's what it's about.

 

It's a sequel. It's not quite as good as Missing Links (which I actually really like), but it's not bad. I still contend that Stick (Reilly's main character) screwed up in the first book by choosing Dannie over Maddy, but Maddy makes an appearance in this one. It's a quick read (you could finish it in a day, or on a long plane ride) and worth your time, for the most part. I expected to be disappointed, but it turned out alright.

Maybe Rick can use me to blurb the paperback version.

"A quick read. Worth your time, for the most part." -- Double Down

 

Read "Black Mass" - story of Irish mob and FBI - a true story that is huge black eye for the FBI. Much of story is about Whitey Bulger ( brother of fmr Mass speaker of house - Billy Bulger) Whitey was FBI informant that went bad and has been on lamb for about 10 years. He is on FBI 10 most wanted - right there with Osama.

 

Toward that end, there's also "Paddy Whacked. The Story of the Irish American Gangster" by TJ English. Great book that mentions in the concluding chapter the tale about the Bulgers and the FBI agent who became compromised.

 

Just mowed through this last week.

The writing is amateurish and it's marred by some unfortunate typos (published by a very small house), but it's done from the insider perspective of a native Clevelander and professional accountant who labored for Modell as vice president/treasurer of the Cleveland Stadium Corporation. Chronicles many of Modell's bumblings and the systemic failure of the state and city politicians, civic leaders and the banks to keep the Browns from bolting town. More a bookkeeper's 21-year diary of fuck-ups than anything else.