Mafia Men

An anthology of some of history's greatest mobsters and mafia dons...From Paul Castellano to Juan Raul Garza, this is an all-star book of mafiosi who used any method necessary to acquire power and wealth. DANNY GREENE One of the Midwest's most notorious organized crime figures, Danny "The Irishman" Greene started out with various criminal operations – gambling, racketeering, and loan-sharking – and earned himself a coveted spot as a mob strongman. Still, Greene managed to avoid facing real persecution up until his death in 1977, which has triggered speculation that he might have also worked as an FBI informant. TONY SPILOTRO Mafia enforcer Anthony "Tough Tony" Spilotro was the main muscle protecting the Chicago mafia's illegal casino profits in Las Vegas in the 1970s and 1980s, until his death in 1986. Spilotro's time in Las Vegas, and the circumstances surrounding his murder, inspired the memorable character Nicky Santoro, played by Joe Pesci in Martin Scorsese's 1995 film Casino. "Ya know, he just – he was just a man, and got caught up in some things that maybe he shouldn't have," said Spilotro's son Vincent, "but he lived it the way he lived it." At only five feet six inches tall and weighing no more than 160 pounds, Spilotro didn't have the look of an intimidating gangster. In fact, he seemed more like a businessman than a mob boss, earning nicknames like "Tony the Ant" and "The Little Guy." But the detached confidence that lurked menacingly behind his blue eyes betrayed the darkness hidden just below the surface. While he managed to quickly claw his way to the top of the Chicago mafia ranks in spite of his somewhat meek physical appearance, Spilotro's reign came to an end just as fast. After just a decade and a half as the "overlord of Sin City," he wound up falling victim to his own paranoia, ambition, and violent disposition. THE PREACHER Clarence "Preacher" Heatley struck fear into the hearts of New Yorkers for over a decade. He was the vicious, ruthless leader of the Preacher crew, a gang that specialized in drug trafficking, extortion, and intimidation. The gang allegedly called Heatley "Preacher" because of his dazzling way with words, and ability to manipulate people into following and fearing him. Heatley didn't only rule the streets through speeches, though. He threatened and intimidated his rivals and enemies. Dissenters would be beaten or murdered. Heatley became a local legend. Although nobody could describe him or knew his movements, everyone knew who he was and everyone was afraid of him. His name on the streets became The Black Hand of Death. ALBERT ANASTASIA Albert Anastasia was one of the most ferocious Cosa Nostra mobsters in the history of the American Mafia. He created both the American Mafia and Murder, Inc while becoming the overlord of the Gambino crime family. "Anastasia loved to look his victim's in the eyes while killing them slowly just to show his ruthlessness. Anastasia would kill anybody, he would kill police, judges, prosecutors, politicians, mayors, governors, even federal agents in a heartbeat, which he did, he did not care who he killed, he just loved to kill. Nobody got on the wrong side of Albert Anastasia and got away with it." PAUL CASTELLANO The American Mafia is a criminal society that is highly organized. It can be otherwise known as the American-Italian Mafia, since so many of its members come from Italian immigrants, or American-Italian people. Most people, however, simply refer to it as the Mob for short.