Roberto Saviano's life mirrors that of the mobsters who have vowed to kill him: He has gone into hiding, even from his neighbors.
Saviano, 29, is the author who fingered the Camorra Mafia in a bestseller. Last year, Italian police learned of what they call a credible plan to murder him.
The reason: His book "Gomorrah: A Personal Journey Into the Violent International Empire of Naples' Organized Crime System," drew attention to the crime bosses of the Campania region and its capital, Naples. "Gomorrah" has sold almost 2 million copies in 33 countries; the U.S. edition, translated by Virginia Jewiss, has just been published in paperback (Picador, $15). A movie based on the book captured the Grand Prix at the Cannes Film Festival and has been nominated for a Golden Globe.
Sitting in a brown-leather armchair in his publisher's office in Rome, Saviano discusses his plans for a new book and his life in isolation under armed guard. His crown is bald; black stubble covers his jaw. He wears three silver rings, a local custom symbolizing the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. His security detail waits in two dark sedans outside.
Can you describe your life on a typical day?
I've lived with five bodyguards and two armored cars for two years. I don't have a home, and that's the hardest part. People won't rent a house to me because they're afraid.
There's a horribly negative opinion of me in Campania and in southern Italy. Many think I defamed their territory and drove away tourists. When a landlord rented me one place, the neighbors forced me to leave. Now I live in a house where I have to hide. I return home in the evenings after setting out early in the morning. I'm living as if I were a fugitive - as if I committed some crime.
I've read in court documents how Mafia fugitives cope with this life. When things are really bad, I pile all the furniture in the center of the room and run laps. I learned that from them.
Are friends able to visit you?
Sometimes. When I'm in Naples, I often stay in the military-police barracks. It's hard to have people over when I stay there. In Rome, people visit me, but it's difficult. I'm trying to reconstruct my life. I dream of starting a family.
Is there a greater danger of Mafia infiltration of the economy now, during the financial crisis?
During a crisis, people lower their guard. Studies show that two markets never suffer during a crisis: the criminal market and the art market. I'm convinced that this crisis is bringing huge advantages to criminal syndicates.
Organized crime is a capitalist force that is restructuring the free market. European authorities will notice what criminal capital is doing only when it's too late. Not just capital coming from Italy, but also from Serbia, Russia, Albania and Nigeria. Several investigations demonstrate that criminal cartels are investing in Romania, in Poland. They're buying sovereign bonds. Half of Europe is already in their hands.
Will the whole world start looking like the bleak Naples suburb seen in the movie?
My intention wasn't to tell the story of Naples to the world, but to tell the story of the world through Naples. The screenwriters were careful not to create just a slice of Naples. If you didn't know the film was set in Italy, you might think it shot in Rio de Janeiro, Johannesburg, the suburbs of Istanbul or parts of Spain and Greece.
The movie and the book are very different.
The big difference between the movie and the book is that I'm obsessed with money and with telling the story of the economic network, while the director is obsessed with the faces, the environment. But the stench of money is missing. The movie didn't betray the book; it simply took a different path.
Will your next book be about organized crime?
I think so, though not about Italy's or not only about Italy's, definitely not about the Camorra. I'm studying the Mexican and African crime syndicates.
Thanks to Steve Scherer
Sunday, January 04, 2009
Saturday, January 03, 2009
Al Capone the Golfer, Is that a Golf Driver or a Tommy Gun?
MOB boss Al Capone used Scottish caddies to improve his golf - and hid guns with his clubs.
The infamous gangster - known as Scarface - hired bagmen and professional players from the home of golf when he ruled the streets of Chicago in the 1920s and 30s.
Capone ran his criminal empire at a time when Scots were flooding America and pioneering the game there. And the mobster - whose racketeering during the Prohibition era involved illegal booze, gambling and prostitution - made sure some of them joined up to 20 henchmen on the course for the weekly rounds at "his" Chicago clubs.
A new book reveals that Capone and members of his outfit hid tommy guns and revolvers in the Scots' golf bags.
Billy Kay
, author of The Scottish World: A Journey Into the Scottish Diaspora, studied the role Scots played in US golfing history.
The historian said: "Scottish professionals profoundly influenced the development of American golf.
"During the boom period, nearly all the professionals and caddies at burgeoning clubs all over the States were Scots.
"Every city had gangsters but the country clubs were built and financed by the social elite and gangsters were not allowed near. "But Chicago was a unique set-up. Al Capone and his gang ran the golf clubs in Chicago.
"There, mobsters like Capone drew protection money from the country clubs and they had access to the golf courses.
"Capone would have thought of himself as part of the elite and used the Scots pros and caddies. He would have needed protection around him and they concealed their machine guns in their golf bags."
Bruce Oswald's dad Roland emigrated to Chicago as a golf pro in 1927. The Scot told how his father took mob money after finding it lying on a golf course.
Bruce explained: "One of the courses he worked at had some notorious members. "And their golf bags came equipped with more than clubs. Caddies were expected to carry around certain weapons.
"We are talking machine guns and other side arms. These were high rollers, people with a lot of cash.
"One morning, my father was out playing and he and the caddie looked down and found a huge wad of dollar bills in large denominations. The guy in the tractor had gone over it.
"He said, 'There wasn't anyone in front of us at the time, I didn't know whose it was and I knew if I told anybody that would be more trouble - so we split the bills'."
Capone was behind one of the most notorious gangland killings of the 20th century - the 1929 St Valentine's Day Massacre in Chicago. Seven members of crime rival "Bugs" Moran's gang were slaughtered. And the guns and police uniforms used by Capone's thugs to dupe their rivals are said to have been buried at Burnham Woods Golf Course in Chicago.
Capone is said to have played there up to twice a week. His usual partner was Jack "Machine Gun" McGurn, the main architect of the St Valentine's Day massacre. He would also be joined by the hitman Sam "Golf Bag" Hunt, who liked to track victims with a shotgun in a golf bag.
Once, Capone is said to have taken a shot in the leg from a revolver hidden in a bag and was in hospital for a week.
Thanks to George Mair
The infamous gangster - known as Scarface - hired bagmen and professional players from the home of golf when he ruled the streets of Chicago in the 1920s and 30s.
Capone ran his criminal empire at a time when Scots were flooding America and pioneering the game there. And the mobster - whose racketeering during the Prohibition era involved illegal booze, gambling and prostitution - made sure some of them joined up to 20 henchmen on the course for the weekly rounds at "his" Chicago clubs.
A new book reveals that Capone and members of his outfit hid tommy guns and revolvers in the Scots' golf bags.
Billy Kay
, author of The Scottish World: A Journey Into the Scottish Diaspora, studied the role Scots played in US golfing history.The historian said: "Scottish professionals profoundly influenced the development of American golf.
"During the boom period, nearly all the professionals and caddies at burgeoning clubs all over the States were Scots.
"Every city had gangsters but the country clubs were built and financed by the social elite and gangsters were not allowed near. "But Chicago was a unique set-up. Al Capone and his gang ran the golf clubs in Chicago.
"There, mobsters like Capone drew protection money from the country clubs and they had access to the golf courses.
"Capone would have thought of himself as part of the elite and used the Scots pros and caddies. He would have needed protection around him and they concealed their machine guns in their golf bags."
Bruce Oswald's dad Roland emigrated to Chicago as a golf pro in 1927. The Scot told how his father took mob money after finding it lying on a golf course.
Bruce explained: "One of the courses he worked at had some notorious members. "And their golf bags came equipped with more than clubs. Caddies were expected to carry around certain weapons.
"We are talking machine guns and other side arms. These were high rollers, people with a lot of cash.
"One morning, my father was out playing and he and the caddie looked down and found a huge wad of dollar bills in large denominations. The guy in the tractor had gone over it.
"He said, 'There wasn't anyone in front of us at the time, I didn't know whose it was and I knew if I told anybody that would be more trouble - so we split the bills'."
Capone was behind one of the most notorious gangland killings of the 20th century - the 1929 St Valentine's Day Massacre in Chicago. Seven members of crime rival "Bugs" Moran's gang were slaughtered. And the guns and police uniforms used by Capone's thugs to dupe their rivals are said to have been buried at Burnham Woods Golf Course in Chicago.
Capone is said to have played there up to twice a week. His usual partner was Jack "Machine Gun" McGurn, the main architect of the St Valentine's Day massacre. He would also be joined by the hitman Sam "Golf Bag" Hunt, who liked to track victims with a shotgun in a golf bag.
Once, Capone is said to have taken a shot in the leg from a revolver hidden in a bag and was in hospital for a week.
Thanks to George Mair
Thursday, January 01, 2009
Wayne Newton Talks About Past Mafia Allegations and Frank Sinatra
This year marks the fiftieth anniversary of Wayne Newton's first Las Vegas, Nevada performance.A quick story about Sinatra. A contemporary of his, another singer, brought his new album to Frank one night and said, "Frank, when you get some time, I want you to listen and tell me what's wrong with it." Frank said, "I can tell you before I listen." Frank wouldn't hurt people by being mean-spirited, but if you ask him, be prepared for his answer. The guy said, "What?" And Frank said, "Some singers are connected between the throat and the heart, which is the way it should be. You're not connected anywhere." This was probably 1984 or so, and Frank had just had it with bullshit. Everybody reaches that point eventually.
In the late 1970s, I made a bid to buy the Aladdin. And someone started the rumor that I had the backing of the Mafia. Those were the days that if you had your picture taken with somebody who was undesirable in the gaming industry, then of course you were guilty by association. That wasn't a problem for me, 'cause I was a guy from Virginia, half Native American, half German and Irish, so my background totally precluded me having any involvement with the Mafia. I was sitting in my TV room when the first report came on NBC News. My mother left the room in tears. And I was livid. Your first thought is, Where did they come up with this crap? Over a period of nine months, there were three broadcasts. One rumor was that Wayne Newton was going to be the star witness against the Mafia in Rhode Island or Connecticut. So my life is in danger. All of a sudden I get a call from Frank Sinatra, and he said, "Kid, just keep your nose clean and let us see if we can find out what this is all about." About three weeks later, I get a call from an FBI agent, and he said, "Your name has been removed from the hit list, go home." It took me seven years, but I won that lawsuit against NBC. Frank never mentioned it again.
Another quick story about Frank. He was working a place in Philadelphia, and one night the place was packed and young girls were screaming. I would later work at the same place, and the owner told me that it was a rainy night and Frank was late. It was a two-story building, and he walked out onto the porch above the alley to see if Sinatra was on his way. He said, "Right then, I see Frank jump out of a cab and run like hell down the alley, and when he got a hundred feet from the stage door, he stopped, took off his coat, hung it over his shoulder, straightened his hat, and slowly walked in." Now that's a picture worth remembering.Thanks to Mark Warren
ATP Tennis Influenced by Organized Crime Claims Former Mobster
Former mafia crime boss Michael Franzese says top-level tennis matches are being influenced by gamblers and the sport would be his prime focus were he still in the business of impacting outcomes.
Franzese, a former boss in the Colombo crime family, serves as a consultant and speaker regarding his days with the mob and has spoken with ATP players about the methods that are used to spread corruption in sport.
"It's definitely going on," Franzese said. "If I were in this business now, tennis would be my major target because one player can impact the game. That's all you need."
An FBI probe in the 1980s and a decade in prison helped push Franzese to change his ways and help those who safeguard the integrity of sport, but his crime contacts lead him to believe organized crime remains involved in tennis.
"I have to believe they are, certainly from the feedbacks I've gotten since I got involved with the ATP," Franzese said. "Sports has become such an incredibly lucrative racket, so to speak, for guys on the street."
Franseze, 57, has spoken with National Basketball Association, Major League Baseball, tennis stars and elite US college athletes about the dangers of match-fixers, often counseling newcomers on how to avoid being ensnared in gambling woes.
His talks included a March 2007 session with ATP players.
"They told me there's a problem in the sport. It is something that has to be addressed," he said. "Mainly, I told them how damaging and dangerous it could be for them to get involved in gambling and get around the wrong people.
"Gambling is a very serious business. If you put yourself in a gambling situation, you're most likely going to attract the wrong people because those same people are watching you. They want to find out who's got a gambling problem."
Less than five months after Franzese spoke came a match in Sopot in which unusual on-line betting patterns were registered about Russian Nikolay Davydenko's loss to Argentina's Martin Vassallo-Arguello.
An ATP investigation into the match concluded last September that there was no wrongdoing by Davydenko or his rival.
"He is a pretty top player. Something else is going on there. Somebody has a hook on him," Franzese said.
Franzese claims first-hand expertise at influencing athletes to drop a match to satisfy gamblers, including threats of bodily harm for failure to comply.
"None of these players want to do it. They do it because they're put in a situation," he said. "It's sad because they're doing it against their will. They have no way out. They all regret it. And that's why it's so damaging to their career. Psychologically, it gets to them.
"I've seen it happen so many times. They just can't perform the same. It does affect them. It affects their careers. Sometimes it's irreversible."
The impact on the sport could be as damaging as on the players. If supporters feel betrayed and have no faith the match results are legitimate, interest is likely to fade.
"All of them have a fear of gambling. All of them are not quite sure how to deal with it because they know it can happen at any time," Franseze said.
"In this country, we've had dog fighting incidents, a massive steroid scandal in baseball. They can overcome those things. They will not be able to overcome a major gambling issue.
"Once people start to believe that sports are fixed, that it becomes staged, forget it, the sport is done. Every pro sport knows that."
Franzese, a former boss in the Colombo crime family, serves as a consultant and speaker regarding his days with the mob and has spoken with ATP players about the methods that are used to spread corruption in sport.
"It's definitely going on," Franzese said. "If I were in this business now, tennis would be my major target because one player can impact the game. That's all you need."
An FBI probe in the 1980s and a decade in prison helped push Franzese to change his ways and help those who safeguard the integrity of sport, but his crime contacts lead him to believe organized crime remains involved in tennis.
"I have to believe they are, certainly from the feedbacks I've gotten since I got involved with the ATP," Franzese said. "Sports has become such an incredibly lucrative racket, so to speak, for guys on the street."
Franseze, 57, has spoken with National Basketball Association, Major League Baseball, tennis stars and elite US college athletes about the dangers of match-fixers, often counseling newcomers on how to avoid being ensnared in gambling woes.
His talks included a March 2007 session with ATP players.
"They told me there's a problem in the sport. It is something that has to be addressed," he said. "Mainly, I told them how damaging and dangerous it could be for them to get involved in gambling and get around the wrong people.
"Gambling is a very serious business. If you put yourself in a gambling situation, you're most likely going to attract the wrong people because those same people are watching you. They want to find out who's got a gambling problem."
Less than five months after Franzese spoke came a match in Sopot in which unusual on-line betting patterns were registered about Russian Nikolay Davydenko's loss to Argentina's Martin Vassallo-Arguello.
An ATP investigation into the match concluded last September that there was no wrongdoing by Davydenko or his rival.
"He is a pretty top player. Something else is going on there. Somebody has a hook on him," Franzese said.
Franzese claims first-hand expertise at influencing athletes to drop a match to satisfy gamblers, including threats of bodily harm for failure to comply.
"None of these players want to do it. They do it because they're put in a situation," he said. "It's sad because they're doing it against their will. They have no way out. They all regret it. And that's why it's so damaging to their career. Psychologically, it gets to them.
"I've seen it happen so many times. They just can't perform the same. It does affect them. It affects their careers. Sometimes it's irreversible."
The impact on the sport could be as damaging as on the players. If supporters feel betrayed and have no faith the match results are legitimate, interest is likely to fade.
"All of them have a fear of gambling. All of them are not quite sure how to deal with it because they know it can happen at any time," Franseze said.
"In this country, we've had dog fighting incidents, a massive steroid scandal in baseball. They can overcome those things. They will not be able to overcome a major gambling issue.
"Once people start to believe that sports are fixed, that it becomes staged, forget it, the sport is done. Every pro sport knows that."
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