Posted on 23 Sep 2024
Organized crime is everywhere, hidden in plain sight. Tales from the underworld have been mythologized by Hollywood, but the reality can be even stranger than fiction.
From the golden age of the American mafia to today’s cocaine empires, from the shadowy links between organized crime and terrorism to the twilight of the Yakuza, in this series Mark Shaw, the director of the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime, discusses non-fiction books on organized crime and the illicit economy with the authors themselves. He asks about their backgrounds and investigations, but also about the challenges of writing about this murky world.
Episode 1
For a long time, the words ‘organized crime’ conjured up images of the American mafia, the Five Families of New York, with notorious figures such as Charles ‘Lucky’ Luciano, Giuseppe ‘Joe the Boss’ Masseria and Salvatore Maranzano. These characters rose through the ranks of the Mob to form The Commission, which ruled over organized crime in New York and beyond. Louis Ferrante, a former associate of the Gambino crime family, lived ‘the life’ but also paid the price by being sent to prison for his criminal activities. In prison, he began reading 18 hours a day, every day. After serving his time, Louis left the Mob but never turned against his former associates. Now he is a successful author, including a three-part series on the history of the American mafia called Borgata.
You can find the series on Youtube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify or elsewhere.
The History of the American Mafia: How the Mob Built Its Empire in the US, with Former Gambino Crime Family Associate, Louis Ferrante.
In this episode, Mark sits down with former Mob associate Louis Ferrante to discuss his book, Borgata: The Rise of Empire: A History of the American Mafia.
The history of the American Mafia, known as La Cosa Nostra or simply "The Mob," is well known. Prohibition in the United States during the Roaring Twenties saw the rise of characters who have since been mythologized in Hollywood: Charles "Lucky" Luciano and his close confidant Meyer Lansky, Al "Scarface" Capone, Arnold "The Brain" Rothstein, Dutch Schultz, Giuseppe "Joe the Boss" Masseria, and Salvatore Maranzano.
What makes Borgata different is that it was written by someone who lived "The Life," providing a unique perspective. Lou discusses the formation of The Commission, an underworld ruling council that controlled the Five Families of New York (now known as the Gambino, Genovese, Lucchese, Bonanno, and Colombo), The Outfit in Chicago, and the Philadelphia Mafia.
Lou talks about the rules, the use of violence, and how the US government looked to tackle the growing power of organized crime, spearheaded by the likes of prosecutor Thomas E. Dewey.
We also hear about Lou's own life in La Cosa Nostra and how he and his crew committed some of the most successful heists in US history, which ultimately landed him in prison.
In prison, he began to read everything he could get his hands on, including history, philosophy, and the great classics of literature. He never turned on his former associates, but when he left prison, he also left "The Life." Now he speaks about his experiences with the Mob and has become a successful author (Unlocked: A Journey from Prison to Proust), including his new a huge three-part history of the American Mafia.
In this episode, Mark and Lou discuss the first book, Borgata: The Rise of Empire: A History of the American Mafia.
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Louis Ferrante's book 'Borgata: The Rise of Empire: A History of the American Mafia' is available here: https://a.co/d/cDcxOQ2
Audible version: https://a.co/d/2VHu3Ht
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