Synopses & Reviews
In the Godfather Garden is the true story of the life of Richie andldquo;the Bootandrdquo; Boiardo, one of the most powerful and feared men in the New Jersey underworld. The Boot cut his teeth battling the Jewish gang lord Abner Longy Zwillman on the streets of Newark during Prohibition and endured to become one of the East Coastandrsquo;s top mobsters, his reign lasting six decades.
To the press and the police, this secretive Don insisted he was nothing more than a simple man who enjoyed puttering about in his beloved vegetable garden on his Livingston, New Jersey, estate. In reality, the Boot was a confidante and kingmaker of politicians, a friend of such celebrities as Joe DiMaggio and George Raft, an acquaintance of Joseph Valachiandmdash;who informed on the Boot in 1963andmdash;and a sworn enemy of J. Edgar Hoover.
The Boot prospered for more than half a century, remaining an active boss until the day he died at the age of ninety-three. Although he operated in the shadow of bigger Mafia names across the Hudson River (think Charles andquot;Luckyandquot; Luciano and Louis andldquo;Lepkeandrdquo; Buchalter, a cofounder of the Mafia killer squad Murder Inc. with Jacob andldquo;Gurrahandrdquo; Shapiro), the Boot was equally as brutal and efficient. In fact, there was a mysterious place in the gloomy woods behind his lovely gardenandmdash;a furnace where many thought the Boot took certain people who were never seen again.
Richard Linnett provides an intimate look inside the Bootandrsquo;s once-powerful Mafia crew, based on the recollections of a grandson of the Boot himself and complemented by never-before-published family photos. Chronicled here are the Prohibition gang wars in New Jersey as well as the murder of Dutch Schultz, a Mafia conspiracy to assassinate Newark mayor Kenneth Gibson, and the mob connections to several prominent state politicians.
Although the Boot never saw the 1972 release of The Godfather, he appreciated the similarities between the character of Vito Corleone and himself, so much so that he hung a sign in his beloved vegetable garden that read andldquo;The Godfather Garden.andrdquo; Thereandrsquo;s no doubt he would have relished David Chaseandrsquo;s admission that his muse in creating the HBO series The Sopranos was none other than andldquo;Newarkandrsquo;s erstwhile Boiardo crew.andrdquo;
Review
The true-life account of a mob trial so bizarre that it could pass for fiction . . . [Rudolph] has captured the longest and most expensive mob trial in U.S. history in all of its behind-the-scenes intrigue and courtroom lunacy. . . meticulously reported by a veteran journalist.
Review
[An] absorbing story of how the FBI developed a new mode of attack on the New Jersey crime family--and then failed to make its case in court. . . . Richly served up and dotted with absurd moments as the fat cats go free and the feds eat their shoes.
Review
The dialogue is so frank at times that the reader wonders if the tale is fiction or fact.
Review
An incisive who's-who in the ranks of organized crime. . . . a major portrayal of how a trial went wrong, of how a system of justice failed, of how the bad guys became the good guys . . . one of those books you won't want to put down until the end.
Review
Rudolph is a journalistic stylist of the highest order.
Review
The case described here involved 20 alleged members of the Lucchese crime family led by Newark, New Jersey mob boss Anthony Accetturo. . . . Readable and entertaining. Recommended for Mafia buffs.
Review
A good read. Library Journal
Review
The bizarre untold story of how federal authorities let the 'big one' get away. The Houston Chronicle
Review
andquot;Marc Mappen proves an adept storyteller as he takes readers beyond 'Boardwalk Empire.' Mappen spins some good yarns about the gangsters, dominated by New Yorkers, whose rise was triggered by the 18th Amendment, which took effect in 1920, and who proved that, at times, crime not only pays, but pays very well.andquot;
Review
andquot;Prohibition created an enormous economic opportunity for a generation of young criminals. As chronicled by Marc Mappen, the true, violent, and extravagant lives of these men make dramatizations like Boardwalk Empire look tame by comparison. A must -read for anyone interested in the origins of organized crime in America.andquot;
Review
andquot;Kudos to Marcand#160;Mappen for producing so riveting a study aboutand#160;a generation of gangland mobsters who usedand#160;National Prohibition to grab lots ofand#160;money and petty power for themselves.and#160;A big winner of a book aboutand#160;a bunch of lousy looting losers. . . . Fascinating reading.and#160; Highly recommended!andquot;
Review
andquot;A well researched, historical overview of the major Prohibition era gangsters. These men became the founding fathers of modern organized crime.andquot;
Review
andquot;Richard Linnettandrsquo;s riveting, eloquent account of a larger-than-life man, his family, and an era is testimony to the truism among crime writers that nothing we create can ever equal realityandmdash;a page turner.andquot;
Review
andquot;In the Godfather Gardenand#160;is a compassionate and remarkable story. This is a deeply-researched and beautifully written tale of a true-life character, straight out of classic tragedy.andquot;
Review
andquot;A book about the Prohibition gangsters should be a fascinating and exciting read. Mappen does not disappoint. His fast-moving but
authoritative narrative takes readers through the Prohibition years and beyond as he traces the careers of such underworld luminaries as John Torrio, Al Capone, Lucky Luciano, Meyer Lansky, Legs Diamond, and Dutch Schultz. Mappenandrsquo;s book is a splendid introduction to the story of a generation of criminals who captured the American imagination.andquot;
Review
andquot;Marc Mappen far outstrips his fellow crime writers [when] describing mob activity in smaller U.S. cities. Chicago and New York have been examined enough, so Mappen turns his eye on the Purple Gang of Detroit, the Pendergast machine in Kansas City, and the bootleg wars of Cleveland.andquot;
Review
andquot;A fascinating and often riveting book about Richie and#39;the bootand#39; Boiardo and his exploits with an amazing cast of characters from the annals of organized crime in New Jersey andhellip; This is an excellent book, and highly recommended for anyone with an interest in organized crime.andquot;
Synopsis
Of all the extraordinary stories to emerge about the war on organized crime, none is quite so bizarre as the U.S. government's 1988 prosecution of the notorious Lucchese crime family, the mob that claimed to "own" New Jersey. Federal authorities called it the most ambitious legal attack ever mounted against underworld figures--a sixty-five-page indictment capping a ten-year investigation that would take out an entire organization, from godfather to street soldier, in one knockout blow. The two-year proceeding became the longest Mafia trial in American history--but it took the jury less than two days to render its verdict: not guilty. On all counts. It was a devastating blow for the government. How did this happen? Robert Rudolph, the only reporter to cover the story from start to finish, answers that question in a book that turns courtroom drama into a rollicking theater of the absurd. At its center are defendants like Jackie "Fat Jack" DiNorscio, the career criminal representing himself, who began the trial by announcing, "I'm a comedian, not a gangster," and then proceeded to turn the legal system on its ear; mob boss Anthony Accetturo, a man of almost unlimited luck, who once avoided prosecution by claiming to have Alzheimer's disease, only to experience a miraculous "cure" when he slipped and fell in the shower after the case against him was dropped; and the philosophy-spouting underboss, Michael Taccetta, who brazenly debated his FBI nemesis on the morals of the underworld and how they applied to the teachings of Socrates and Machiavelli. And there are lawyers, like Vincent "Grady" O'Malley, who'd never lost a case until quarter-backing a government offensive that aimed too high and took too long; and Michael Critchley, who led a Mission Impossible-style defense team that succeeded in putting the government itself on trial. Here is the full story behind what should have been the government's shining hour, and how it turned into one of the most embarrassing.
Synopsis
Based on FBI and other government files, trial transcripts, and the latest scholarship, this book provides a lively narrative of shootouts, car chases, courtroom clashes, wire tapping and rub-outs in the 1920s, the 1930s, and beyond, acknowledging how the Prohibition generationandmdash;Al Capone, Lucky Luciano, and Dutch Schultz, among othersandmdash;forever transformed organized crime from loosely associated gangs of the pre-Prohibition era into sophisticated, complex syndicates. It applies a generational perspective to the gangsters who came to power with the Eighteenth Amendment.
Synopsis
Master story teller Marc Mappen applies a generational perspective to the gangsters of the Prohibition eraandmdash;men born in the quarter century span from 1880 to 1905andmdash;who came to power with the Eighteenth Amendment.
On January 16, 1920, the Eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution went into effect in the United States, andldquo;outlawing the manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors.andrdquo; A group of young criminals from immigrant backgrounds in cities around the nation stepped forward to disobey the law of the land in order to provide alcohol to thirsty Americans.
Today the names of these young menandmdash;Al Capone, Lucky Luciano, Dutch Schultz, Legs Diamond, Nucky Johnsonandmdash;are more familiar than ever, thanks in part to such cable programs as Boardwalk Empire. Here, Mappen strips way the many myths and legends from television and movies to describe the lives these gangsters lived and the battles they fought. Placing their criminal activities within the context of the issues facing the nation, from the Great Depression, government crackdowns, and politics to sexual morality, immigration, and ethnicity, he also recounts what befell this villainous group as the decades unwound.
Making use of FBI and other government files, trial transcripts, and the latest scholarship, the book provides a lively narrative of shootouts, car chases, courtroom clashes, wire tapping, and rub-outs in the roaring 1920s, the Depression of the 1930s, and beyond. Mappen asserts that Prohibition changed organized crime in America. Although their activities were mercenary and violent, and they often sought to kill one another, the Prohibition generation built partnerships, assigned territories, and negotiated treaties, however short lived. They were able to transform the loosely associated gangs of the pre-Prohibition era into sophisticated, complex syndicates. In doing so, they inspired an enduring iconandmdash;the gangsterandmdash;in American popular culture and demonstrated the nationandrsquo;s ideals of innovation and initiative.
View a three minute video of Marc Mappen speaking about
About the Author
MARC MAPPEN, PhD, teaches at Rutgers University. He is the coeditor of the award-winning Encyclopedia of New Jersey and author of Jerseyana: The Underside of New Jersey History (both Rutgers University Press). He has written articles for the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, Rutgers Magazine, and other publications and has appeared on the History Channel and National Public Radio.