Johnny "Dio" Dioguardi: The Mobster Who Controlled the Union HallMost gangsters built their power with guns, gambling parlors, and protection rackets.Johnny "Dio" Dioguardi built his with contracts.While the public imagination…
Paul Castellano: The Quiet King Behind the Concrete MansionPaul Castellano did not look like the kind of gangster who needed to order a murder.He looked like a businessman.Behind the expensive…
Harry "Happy" Maione: Murder, Inc.'s Smiling ExecutionerThe nickname didn't fit the work.Harry "Happy" Maione carried a grin that friends remembered and enemies rarely forgot, but there was little happiness in…
Jacob "Gurrah" Shapiro: The Muscle Behind the Garment DistrictBefore the Mafia became a national institution, before Las Vegas glittered with mob money, and before organized crime perfected the art of…
Joe Adonis: The Charming Prince of the UnderworldJoe Adonis loved luxury the way some gangsters loved violence.Silk suits. Imported cigars. Champagne. Nightclubs glowing beneath Manhattan neon. Expensive women. Faster cars.…
Joe Profaci: The Godfather Who Ruled Through Fear, Faith, and Tribute Joe Profaci looked less like a gangster than a stern village patriarch transported from Sicily into twentieth-century Brooklyn. He…
Carlo Gambino: The Silent Emperor of the American MafiaCarlo Gambino understood something many gangsters never learned:The less the public knows about you, the more dangerous you probably are.He avoided flashy…
Al Capone: The King of ProhibitionAl Capone became the face of American organized crime because America secretly wanted one.He arrived at the perfect moment: a violent new century intoxicated by…
Vincent Gigante: The Madman Who Outsmarted the Mafia, the FBI, and AmericaVincent “The Chin” Gigante wandered the streets of New York City in a bathrobe.That was the image most Americans…
Owney “The Killer” Madden: The Gentleman Killer of BroadwayOwney Madden dressed like a nightclub owner, spoke with polished confidence, and carried himself with the smooth elegance of a man born…
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