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Mafia buff thread

billfromlaketravis

By billfromlaketravis
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billfromlaketravis

billfromlaketravis 11330

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@Harrison Bergeron and @lateshow get in here. I also expect Lobo to make an appearance to tell us all mobsters are regards. 

I'd recommend this podcast from Scott Bernstein. Link: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/original-gangsters-a-true-crime-talk-podcast/id1467014230

The episode from August 19, 2021 "Today's American Mafia Families" is fascinating. Bernstein and his co-host go around the country to discuss each city with mafia activity. He categorized each city into 4 categories : Thriving, active, on life support and defunct. Some highlights : 

- Buffalo : Thriving. This one was the most interesting city to me. Joseph Todaro is the reputed boss with his nephews running his operations on the street. Todaro is restaurateur, and chicken wing magnate. He's made millions legitimately, but the Buffalo FBI is convinced he's in the life and is working hard to put a case on him and his nephews. Todaro has appeared on popular Barstool Pizza Review channel on YouTube. Pretty funny watch if you have 10 minutes. 

- New York. Of course thriving, but the Gambinos and Genovese are the dominant families. Bernstein thinks the Lucchese, Colombos, and Bonanos are on life support. 

- Philly: Active to thriving. Skinny Joey Merlino is the boss. Despite living in Florida, Bernstein is convinced Merlino is still running things through emissaries. 

- Tampa/Miami: Open state, lots of mafia activity but the Trafficante Family is defunct. 

- New Orleans: Open city, but the Marcello Family is defunct. Bernstein believes the Gambinos are active there, kind of interesting. 

- Cleveland : Life support to active. This one surprised me. I thought the Cleveland Mafia died after the war with Danny Greene in 1977, but Bernstein believes some of the old Mayfield Road Crew still runs some gambling operations in Cleveland.

- Chicago: Quietly thriving. Bernstein says there's a group of guys in their 50s that run street operations while the much older are schooling them. He said the Outfit is much larger than most people think. Many members are currently unknown and not on law enforcement's radar. He said it's similar to Detroit in that many mobsters moved out to the suburbs during White Flight. 

Detroit: Thriving to active. Bernstein is from/based in Detroit, and I'd say he's an expert. He says it's an older family that probably has a shelf life of another 15-20 years, but their numbers won't be replenished by a large Italian American community. Very influential in legitimate businesses. Very difficult to prosecute because it consists of a very close circle of Italian families. No outsiders and they know how to stay out of the papers. 

- Los Angeles: Open city. The Dragna Family is very defunct. Bernstein thinks there's a lot of New York guys in LA doing their own thing. 

- St. Louis: Defunct. 

- Kansas City: Life support. 

- Milwaukee : Defunct. Bernstein believes the Outfit runs street operations. 

- Boston/Providence : Active. Bernstein believes the Providence faction of the Patriarca Family is on life support. Boston runs things now. 

- Springfield, Massachusetts: Active. Genovese faction, but operate with some autonomy. 

 

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Deej

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A friend of mine is this guy's granddaughter.

Joseph Magliocco, also known as "Joe Malayak" (June 29, 1898 – December 28, 1963) was a New York mobster and the boss of the Profaci crime family (later to become the Colombo crime family) from 1962 to 1963. Magliocco participated in an audacious unsuccessful attempt to kill other family bosses and take over the Mafia Commission

 

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billfromlaketravis

billfromlaketravis 11330

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7 minutes ago, Deej said:

A friend of mine is this guy's granddaughter.

Joseph Magliocco, also known as "Joe Malayak" (June 29, 1898 – December 28, 1963) was a New York mobster and the boss of the Profaci crime family (later to become the Colombo crime family) from 1962 to 1963. Magliocco participated in an audacious unsuccessful attempt to kill other family bosses and take over the Mafia Commission

 

My cousin did some research, and he's convinced our relatives ran a crew/gambling operation in San Antonio in the early 20th century. I'm skeptical, but who knows? 

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Celery Man

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24 minutes ago, billfromlaketravis said:

Great song. 

 

Bruce version is great but I love Levon singing it

 

I read Five Families years back. Not a huge mafia buff but I go down a rabbit hole whenever I watch a Scorsese movie or the Sopranos. I think the chicken man’s kid had an interesting story too.

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billfromlaketravis

billfromlaketravis 11330

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1 minute ago, Celery Man said:

Bruce version is great but I love Levon singing it

 

I read Five Families years back. Not a huge mafia buff but I go down a rabbit hole whenever I watch a Scorsese movie or the Sopranos. I think the chicken man’s kid had an interesting story too.

Selwyn Raab is still alive. 87 years strong. Good for him. 

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ztejas

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9 minutes ago, Celery Man said:

Chicken Man

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_Testa

 

Son

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salvatore_Testa

i would have assumed his mother was a gravel pit but it would appear not

Springsteen wrote that song in '81. I wonder if "last night" is close to literal and he thought of those opening lines right after hearing/reading about it. 

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billfromlaketravis

billfromlaketravis 11330

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1 hour ago, billfromlaketravis said:

@Harrison Bergeron and @lateshow get in here. I also expect Lobo to make an appearance to tell us all mobsters are regards. 

I'd recommend this podcast from Scott Bernstein. Link: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/original-gangsters-a-true-crime-talk-podcast/id1467014230

The episode from August 19, 2021 "Today's American Mafia Families" is fascinating. Bernstein and his co-host go around the country to discuss each city with mafia activity. He categorized each city into 4 categories : Thriving, active, on life support and defunct. Some highlights : 

- Buffalo : Thriving. This one was the most interesting city to me. Joseph Todaro is the reputed boss with his nephews running his operations on the street. Todaro is restaurateur, and chicken wing magnate. He's made millions legitimately, but the Buffalo FBI is convinced he's in the life and is working hard to put a case on him and his nephews. Todaro has appeared on popular Barstool Pizza Review channel on YouTube. Pretty funny watch if you have 10 minutes. 

- New York. Of course thriving, but the Gambinos and Genovese are the dominant families. Bernstein thinks the Lucchese, Colombos, and Bonanos are on life support. 

- Philly: Active to thriving. Skinny Joey Merlino is the boss. Despite living in Florida, Bernstein is convinced Merlino is still running things through emissaries. 

- Tampa/Miami: Open state, lots of mafia activity but the Trafficante Family is defunct. 

- New Orleans: Open city, but the Marcello Family is defunct. Bernstein believes the Gambinos are active there, kind of interesting. 

- Cleveland : Life support to active. This one surprised me. I thought the Cleveland Mafia died after the war with Danny Greene in 1977, but Bernstein believes some of the old Mayfield Road Crew still runs some gambling operations in Cleveland.

- Chicago: Quietly thriving. Bernstein says there's a group of guys in their 50s that run street operations while the much older are schooling them. He said the Outfit is much larger than most people think. Many members are currently unknown and not on law enforcement's radar. He said it's similar to Detroit in that many mobsters moved out to the suburbs during White Flight. 

Detroit: Thriving to active. Bernstein is from/based in Detroit, and I'd say he's an expert. He says it's an older family that probably has a shelf life of another 15-20 years, but their numbers won't be replenished by a large Italian American community. Very influential in legitimate businesses. Very difficult to prosecute because it consists of a very close circle of Italian families. No outsiders and they know how to stay out of the papers. 

- Los Angeles: Open city. The Dragna Family is very defunct. Bernstein thinks there's a lot of New York guys in LA doing their own thing. 

- St. Louis: Defunct. 

- Kansas City: Life support. 

- Milwaukee : Defunct. Bernstein believes the Outfit runs street operations. 

- Boston/Providence : Active. Bernstein believes the Providence faction of the Patriarca Family is on life support. Boston runs things now. 

- Springfield, Massachusetts: Active. Genovese faction, but operate with some autonomy. 

 

I forgot one: 

- Pittsburgh/Youngstown: Defunct. Bernstein thinks there's one old timer from the Youngstown Crew with a small gambling operation in Pittsburgh, but that's it. 

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DonkeyCigars

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11 minutes ago, billfromlaketravis said:

I forgot one: 

- Pittsburgh/Youngstown: Defunct. Bernstein thinks there's one old timer from the Youngstown Crew with a small gambling operation in Pittsburgh, but that's it. 

What about Dallas or Texas in general? I assume defunct, but I can remember a time when everyone had a Campisi story.

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DonkeyCigars

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Also and maybe it's own thread as it's only tangentially related, but I've been reading up a lot about Motorcycle Gangs and the players there with their geographic spheres of influence and the "Big 4" and it's fascinating stuff. Every city has MC's running drugs and murders and they have their clubhouses and meetings and colors and patches and just party all the time-- it sounds like being in a fraternity forever. I get the appeal tbh.

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billfromlaketravis

billfromlaketravis 11330

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1 minute ago, Celery Man said:

What was the deal with the…. Gambino boss who was murdered last year? Was that a hit or just some weird thing that happened?

QAnon bro who thought Frank Cali was part of the deep state. Yes, really. 

I don't think we'll see many mob murders going forward. A retired Kansas City PD Detective Gary Jenkins believes if the mafia isn't committing murders, and sticking to gambling/racketeering that law enforcement isn't very interested in pursuing criminal investigations. Jenkins host the Gangland Wire podcast. Worst production quality maybe in the history of podcasts/radio. Good information if you can sit through it. I might look for some transcripts of his pods and just read them. 

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billfromlaketravis

billfromlaketravis 11330

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7 minutes ago, DonkeyCigars said:

Also and maybe it's own thread as it's only tangentially related, but I've been reading up a lot about Motorcycle Gangs and the players there with their geographic spheres of influence and the "Big 4" and it's fascinating stuff. Every city has MC's running drugs and murders and they have their clubhouses and meetings and colors and patches and just party all the time-- it sounds like being in a fraternity forever. I get the appeal tbh.

Bernstein has a couple episodes on The Outlaws. His guests don't think there's an alliance with The Outfit. 

You're basically correct. The Outlaws aren't really a criminal organization. Some members are criminals, but they're often acting by themselves or with a few members. They basically exist to have a good time, and dominate biker bars. One Outlaw guest said the Sons of Anarchy is a load of BS. 

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billfromlaketravis

billfromlaketravis 11330

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1 minute ago, NorthLoop said:

I always heard that the Austin/SA shit was run by Greeks. Particularly the strip clubs and Mr Santikos himself. 

There's not many books in print on it, but Houston during Prohibition and onward was allegedly run by the Greeks as well. Galveston and the Maceo Bros being a notable exception. 

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conVINCEd

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1 hour ago, billfromlaketravis said:

I forgot one: 

- Pittsburgh/Youngstown: Defunct. Bernstein thinks there's one old timer from the Youngstown Crew with a small gambling operation in Pittsburgh, but that's it. 

Grandma on my dad’s side was from Youngstown.  The hatred she had for the DeBartolo family was something to behold.  

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MaybeACoordinator

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2 hours ago, billfromlaketravis said:

There's not many books in print on it, but Houston during Prohibition and onward was allegedly run by the Greeks as well. Galveston and the Maceo Bros being a notable exception. 

The Maceos bought off the Houston cops to keep Houston clean so Houstonians would have to go to Galveston....And when people would try to break up that arrangement, bad things happened. Tony Vallone's grandfather tried to set up a Houston crew, independent of the Maceos. It didn't end well. Prob just a coincidence that he was riddled with bullets in his car. 

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MaybeACoordinator

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The Maceos really were something else. It's like they turned Galveston into Sicily, but with no competition. They kept everyone happy because they were just bringing money to Galveston by the truckload and sharing it with everybody. They never got too greedy. They were very judicious with their whackings too. You had to get way, way out of line, like Tony V's grandfather, or Rose Maceo's ex-wife. 

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conVINCEd

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1 minute ago, MaybeACoordinator said:

The Maceos really were something else. It's like they turned Galveston into Sicily, but with no competition. They kept everyone happy because they were just bringing money to Galveston by the truckload and sharing it with everybody. They never got too greedy. They were very judicious with their whackings too. You had to get way, way out of line, like Tony V's grandfather, or Rose Maceo's ex-wife. 

Very judicious with their whackings is a great line.

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conVINCEd

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1 hour ago, DCA_HORN said:
2 hours ago, conVINCEd said:
Grandma on my dad’s side was from Youngstown.  The hatred she had for the DeBartolo family was something to behold.  

Surprised the NFL let one of them in the club.

There was probably  some Cowboys vs. 49ers shit going on, but I got the feeling that it ran a little deeper than that.

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deadshank

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A really good read and interesting story on the most unlikely mob boss in Texas is the story of Benny Binion (yes, as in Binion’s Horseshoe / original WSOP in Vegas).   Binion’s control of the Dallas’ rackets and eventual move to Vegas is chronicled in Blood Aces.  
 

It is quite amazing how he got away with so much. 

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MaybeACoordinator

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1 minute ago, TonyTexas said:

Didn’t Carlos Marcello pretty much control Texas?

No, not Galveston / Houston. Maceo whacked a few of Marcello's guys when they would try to horn in and Marcello came to realize the Maceos were too entrenched. He would be fighting not just the Maceos but also the Galveston cops and courts. 

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Dennis Taylor

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15 hours ago, billfromlaketravis said:

@Harrison Bergeron and @lateshow get in here. I also expect Lobo to make an appearance to tell us all mobsters are regards. 

I'd recommend this podcast from Scott Bernstein. Link: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/original-gangsters-a-true-crime-talk-podcast/id1467014230

The episode from August 19, 2021 "Today's American Mafia Families" is fascinating. Bernstein and his co-host go around the country to discuss each city with mafia activity. He categorized each city into 4 categories : Thriving, active, on life support and defunct. Some highlights : 

- Buffalo : Thriving. This one was the most interesting city to me. Joseph Todaro is the reputed boss with his nephews running his operations on the street. Todaro is restaurateur, and chicken wing magnate. He's made millions legitimately, but the Buffalo FBI is convinced he's in the life and is working hard to put a case on him and his nephews. Todaro has appeared on popular Barstool Pizza Review channel on YouTube. Pretty funny watch if you have 10 minutes. 

Wife used to work for a giant food distributor in the poultry division, and La Nova was a supplier she worked with. They had her up there for a meeting, went to a Sabres game etc. She met Joe, Joey, and Little Joey. They had tunnels running underground between the restaurant and offices and shit like that...it was all the mob stereotypes turned up to 11.

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lateshow

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Subscribed!

 

csb: My great-grandfather used to play piano in Hot Springs, and the speaks around that area, for Capone and various other mafioso that frequented the area. Sometimes, they'd pick him up in Hot Springs, blindfold him, and drive him out to whatever hideout/juke joint they were hanging out in that particular weekend. 

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NorthLoop

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2 hours ago, lateshow said:

Subscribed!

 

csb: My great-grandfather used to play piano in Hot Springs, and the speaks around that area, for Capone and various other mafioso that frequented the area. Sometimes, they'd pick him up in Hot Springs, blindfold him, and drive him out to whatever hideout/juke joint they were hanging out in that particular weekend. 

Fidelio

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BrickHorn

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18 hours ago, billfromlaketravis said:

- St. Louis: Defunct.

I read an interesting article on the St Louis mafia a few years back, but can no longer find it online. Apparently, what was once a thriving criminal organization is now just a few old gangsters running bingo games for other geezers. It’s like a nursing home gang. 

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billfromlaketravis

billfromlaketravis 11330

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53 minutes ago, BrickHorn said:

I read an interesting article on the St Louis mafia a few years back, but can no longer find it online. Apparently, what was once a thriving criminal organization is now just a few old gangsters running bingo games for other geezers. It’s like a nursing home gang. 

They had a casino on the Vegas strip into the late 1970s.

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