Gaspipe: Confessions of a Mafia Boss » (Bargain)

Philip Carlo was born and raised on the mean streets of Bensonhurst, Brooklyn—the same streets Tommy Pitera hailed from. There, Carlo earned a Ph.D. in street smarts, and he escaped a life of crime by writing about it with unusual insight. He is the author of the bestsellers The Night Stalker, about notorious serial killer Richard Ramirez, and The Ice Man, about infamous Mafia contract killer Richard Kuklinski. Carlo lives with his wife, Laura, in New York City.

For the first time ever, the head of a major crime family tells all to the bestselling author of The Night Stalker and The Ice Man.

Publishers Weekly

One of the most dangerous, intriguing Mafia chieftains ever, Anthony "Gaspipe" Casso served as an apprentice thief and killer before rising to boss of the infamous Lucchese crime family, according to Carlo, a childhood neighbor of the South Brooklyn native. Carlo (The Ice Man) depicts a violent teen doted on by his gangster father and his mob godfather, Sally Callinbrano, groomed in the art of the kill and Cosa Nostra values. As his enterprises in hot goods and drugs prospered, Casso became the chief enforcer and mob royalty, able to buy a stylish lifestyle as well as an assortment of crooked cops and FBI agents. Tucked away in this book's blood-drenched pages is a picture-perfect love story between Anthony and his wife, Lillian Delduca. And for Mafia-obsessed readers, there are fascinating tidbits from the now jailed Casso about mob bosses John Gotti and Paul Castellano, Sammy "The Bull" Gravano, Hoover's FBI, the Russian mob and several thug rubouts. This powerful story is required reading for anyone with a yen for the Mafia, the criminal underworld and a law enforcement system struggling to keep up. 8 pages of b&w photos. (July)

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Bk. I The Making of a Boss

Ch. 1 A Man of Respect 3

Ch. 2 Street Smart 8

Ch. 3 First Blood 13

Ch. 4 Last Standing 17

Ch. 5 Readin', Writin', 'Ritmatic 21

Ch. 6 A Very Close Shave Indeed 23

Ch. 7 Irrationally Violent 28

Ch. 8 When You Steal Without Hurting Anyone, It's a Lot of Fun 37

Ch. 9 Larceny-Hearted 39

Ch. 10 The Opposite Sex 42

Ch. 11 True Love 44

Ch. 12 Bensonhurst 47

Ch. 13 The Carlos 50

Ch. 14 Dreams 52

Bk. II Stone Cold

Ch. 15 Making Bones 61

Ch. 16 The Burn Bar 67

Ch. 17 Casso's Crew 70

Ch. 18 A Blessed Event 73

Ch. 19 A Backstabbing Backstabber 78

Ch. 20 Straightened Out 83

Ch. 21 Rising Star 87

Ch. 22 Mia Figlia 92

Ch. 23 Anthony Junior 95

Ch. 24 Bad Apples 97

Ch. 25 Family Affair 101

Ch. 26 Crimes Pays 106

Ch. 27 The Forbidden Fruit 108

Bk. III La Vendetta

Ch. 28 Inside Info 113

Ch. 29 Kennedy Airport 116

Ch. 30 Newfound Wealth 119

Ch. 31 The Seeds of the Windows Case 122

Ch. 32 The Secret Sweeper 125

Ch. 33 Double, Double, Toil and Trouble 131

Ch. 34 Great Usurper 134

Ch. 35 Sparks Steakhouse 138

Ch. 36 Justice, Mafia Style 141

Ch. 37 Toys "R" Us 144

Ch. 38 A Curse from the Grave 149

Ch. 39 Mean Streets 151

Ch. 40 Hssssssst 156

Ch. 41 The Golden Ox Incident: Gotti's Revenge? 158

Ch. 42 Honor Thy Father 163

Ch. 43 "You're Under Arrest" 167

Ch. 44 The Bull 171

Ch. 45 Housekeeping 176

Ch. 46 The Chin 181

Ch. 47 The Commission 187

Ch. 48 Sanitation 190

Ch. 49 Sausage Fingers 193

Ch. 50 Starter 196

Ch. 51 The Killing of Vinnie Albano 199

Ch. 52 Racketeering 202

Bk. IV Gone With the Wind

Ch. 53 Gaspipe's Crystal Ball 209

Ch. 54 Underground 213

Ch. 55 The FBIComes Knocking 215

Ch. 56 Fat and Skinny 221

Ch. 57 Light on His Feet Pete 224

Ch. 58 Backfire 232

Ch. 59 Et Tu, Brute? 238

Ch. 60 Escape 243

Ch. 61 Tight-Lipped Vic 246

Ch. 62 King Gaspipe 249

Ch. 63 No, You Come Up 252

Ch. 64 Earthquake Rocks Mafiadom 257

Ch. 65 The 302s 269

Ch. 66 The Teflon Don 277

Ch. 67 Anathema 280

Ch. 68 A New Regime 283

Ch. 69 Contraband 286

Ch. 70 A New New Lease 289

Ch. 71 Gaspipe Meets the United States Senate 295

Ch. 72 No Comment 299

Bk. V The Living Dead

Ch. 73 Hellhole 303

Ch. 74 Impartial Observation 304

Ch. 75 Chinese Torture 305

Ch. 76 Dumb Fuck 307

Ch. 77 Reconciliation 311

Ch. 78 No More Pain 317

Ch. 79 The World Suddenly Turned Upside Down 319

Ch. 80 Phoenix 321

Ch. 81 The Death of La Cosa Nostra 325

Postscript 329

Casso's Neighbors 333

Gaspipe Revelations 335

Appendix "Government Witnesses: Getting More - or Less - Than They Bargained For?" Joshua L. Dratel Dratel, Joshua L. 339