Joseph Bruno's Blog, page 28
September 10, 2014
Amazon Best Selling Author Joe Bruno has 5 out of the top 11 ranked books on Amazon.com in the category “Hot New Releases in Law Enforcement Biographies & Memoirs.”
“New York City’s Five Points: The Most Dangerous and Decadent Neighborhood Ever!” is ranked highest at # 2.
Product Description:
AMAZON/USA #2 BEST SELLER IN “HOT NEW RELEASES IN LAW ENFORCEMENT BIOGRAPHIES & MEMOIRS”
AMAZON/USA #3 BEST SELLER IN “HOT NEW RELEASES ORGANIZED CRIME TRUE ACCOUNTS”
AMAZON/USA TOP 5 BEST SELLER IN “LAW ENFORCEMENT BIOGRAPHIES & MEMOIRS”
AMAZON/USA TOP 10 BEST SELLER IN “ORGANIZED CRIME TRUE ACCOUNTS”
AMAZON/UK TOP 50 BEST SELLER IN “ORGANIZED CRIME TRUE ACCOUNTS”
“The Five Points is personal to me. In 1914, my mother was born at 104 Bayard Street, the youngest of 12 children. I grew up around the corner at 134 White Street, corner of Baxter. During my youth, the area was called Little Italy. But at the time of my mother’s birth, it was still called the Five Points
The term the “Five Points” was derived in the early part of the Nineteenth Century because its Ground Zero was a five-point intersection formed by Orange Street (now Baxter Street), Cross Street (First Park and now Mosco Street – Frank Mosco was my Little League coach), Anthony Street (Now Worth), Little Water Street (which no longer exists), and Mulberry Street.
In the early-1800s, the Five Points neighborhood bounded by Centre Street on the west, and the Bowery/Chatham Square on the east. Canal Street was the northern border and Park Row – the southern border. The boarders of the Sixth Ward have since lengthened on the north side, going as far as Houston Street.
Across the street from the front entrance to my tenement building and close enough to touch with three or four leaping bounds, was the ominous-looking city prison called the Tombs. The dark and dreary structure was the third incarnation of this monstrosity; the first two being located one block to the west on Centre Street. The Tombs played an integral part of the Five Points sordid history. Hundreds of dastardly individuals were hung at the Tombs, and hundreds of thousands more had the Tombs as their mailing address, some permanently.
In 1896, at the prodding of journalist Jacob Riis, the hideous Mulberry Bend was demolished by the city, and Columbus Park was built in its stead. Before then, the Five Points was predominantly Irish, and it is estimated that 10,000 – 15,000 people, mostly Irish, lived in horrendous squalor in the four square blocks that comprised “The Bend.” When The Bend’s buildings were razed, the Irish were displaced. Most moved north to Hell’s Kitchen, the area bounded by 42nd Street and 59th Streets, and 7th to 12th Avenues.
After the demolition of Mulberry Bend, the Five Points became the domain of Italian Immigrants sprinkled with a few hundred Chinese, who claimed parts of Mott, Pell, and Doyers Streets as their turf. In fact, over the first two decades of the Twentieth Century, the Five Points district evolved into two intertwining neighborhoods: Little Italy and Chinatown.
It wasn’t until the mid-1920s that the term “Five Points” started to fade from the vocabulary of the area’s residents. In fact, as a child growing up, when I spoke to my aunts and uncles, the term “Five Points” came up quite often and never in favorable terms.
Most remnants of the original Five Points have long been gone. But the names of its former inhabitants still flicker across the lips of many New Yorkers, never in a flattering context.
In this book, the history of the Five Points is detailed in alphabetical order; not in chronological order, which I found overlapped to such a degree to make it unwieldy.
So, fire up your Kindle and read about some of the most distasteful creatures ever to roam the face of the earth. They all inhabited my old Five Points neighborhood in times gone by.”
http://www.amazon.com/gp/new-releases/digital-text/6361568011/ref=zg_bs_tab_t_bsnr
September 8, 2014
“Mobsters, Gangs, Crooks, and Other Creeps-Volume 4″ is on sale today for only 99 cents! That’s a 67 %, saving over the normal sale price of the book ($2.99)!
To grab your Kindle copy, click on the link below.
Product Description:
“Mobsters, Gangs, Crooks, and Other Creeps – Volume 4 ” is the fourth in a series of Joe Bruno’s “Mobster” books.
AMAZON #5 IN “HOT NEW RELEASES – ORGANIZED CRIME”
AMAZON #20 IN “ORGANIZED CRIME”
AMAZON TOP 50 IN “CRIMINALS”
AMAZON TOP 100 IN “CRIME AND CRIMINALS”
*****
Joe Bruno’s “Mobsters, Gangs, Crooks, and Other Creeps” finished in second place (runner up) in the 2013 eFestival of Words Best of the Independent Ebook Awards in the category “Nonfiction.”
*****
Mobsters, Gangs, Crooks, and Other Creeps – Volume 4” is not exactly like the previous three volumes, but in my opinion, it’s even better.
This book starts off with a five-thousand word article on Johnny “Dio” Dioguardi, whom Bobby Kennedy called “The Master Labor Racketeer.”
Dio’s career in crime started in the 1930’s, when he and his uncle “Jimmy Doyle” Plumeri held a stranglehold on the Garment Workers Union. By the 1950’s, Dio was in cahoots with Jimmy Hoffa as they sought to use the Teamsters Union as their own personal piggy bank.
Syndicated news reporter, Victor Riesel, started snooping into Dio and Hoffa’s activities, and this resulted in Dio ordering one of his thugs to throw lye in Riesel’s face, rendering him blind for life. Through chicanery and intimidation, Dio was never convicted in the Riesel assault, but Dio was forever known as “The Man Who Blinded Victor Riesel.”
“Mobsters, Gangs, Crooks and Other Creeps – Volume 4” then segues into the present, with scores of columns on true crime events throughout the years 2011 and 2012.
First on board is the arrest and subsequent machinations perpetrated by the prosecution and the defense concerning Whitey Bulger and his gal-pal Catherine Greig, following their arrest in Santa Monica, Cal., after sixteen years on the run.
Then we have the 2011 murder of Hells Angels Jeffrey Pettigrew and Jonathan Bacon, followed by several other Hells Angels slayings – revenge killings perpetrated by pals of Pettigrew and Bacon.
“Mobsters, Gangs, Crooks, and Other Creeps – Volume 4” also details the recent epidemic of crooked New York City cops, who for some reason have lost their way under Police Commissioner Ray Kelly. Under Kelly’s watch, cops have been arrested for crimes, as trite as fixing parking tickets. However, but also there have been numerous arrests of New York’s Finest for “flaking” (planting drugs on innocent people), and even for “gun running.” Since the buck stops at the top (Kelly), why Kelly still has a job is puzzling to me.
“Mobsters, Gangs, Crooks, and Other Creeps – Volume 4” also notes the escapades of criminals across “The Pond,” and beyond. Vicious gangsters like the UK’s “Fat Freddy” Thompson are highlighted here, as well as crooks and murderers from all over Europe. We even detail bad guys from “Down Under” – specifically Matthew Charles Johnson, who viciously murdered the equally-murderous Carl Williams in an Australian prison.
All in all, “Mobsters, Gangs, Crooks, and Other Creeps – Volume 4” is a delightful romp throughout the brutal underbelly of society, where bullets and blood abound in the decadent past, the dubious present, and unfortunately – in the foreseeable future.
*****
AS GOOD AS A HISTORY BOOK! – RJ Parker “Best Selling Author”
Mobsters, Gangs, Crooks, and Other Creeps – Volume 4 by Joe Bruno is a masterpiece of New York City’s history of crimes and criminals, and even disasters. Many of these people were the dregs of society who Bruno dug up from the sewers of NYC and placed in a book.
This is the second book I’ve read by the author and have added him to my favourites. I like his style and the substance of his material. Good as a history book. Highly recommended.
Mobsters, Gangs, Crooks, and Other Creeps-Volume 4
September 7, 2014
“Virginia Hill – Bugsy Siegel’s Girl, Or Married to the Mob? Did She Committ Suicide, or Was She Murdered?” is on sale today at Amazon.com.
PRODUCT INFORMATION:
Virginia Hill was a knock-around broad who bedded down the biggest gangsters of her time. It was said Hill spent more time on her back, than Leonardo da Vinci did painting the Sistine Chapel. The word on the Las Vegas streets was that she was the exclusive property of mobster Bugsy Siegel, and it was plain to everyone in the know that Bugsy was just crazy about Hill.
But was Virginia Hill really a Trojan horse in Siegel’s camp; put there by the mob to make sure Bugsy was giving them an honest count on their Las Vegas ventures?
The answer is not that cut and dried.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00NDFAO32
September 6, 2014
Another Five star review for “Mobsters, Gangs, Crooks, and Other Creeps – Volume 5 – Girlfriends and Wives.”
5.0 out of 5 stars
All these books are great and Informative,
August 29, 2014
By Rita Moore – See all my reviews
This review is from: Mobsters, Gangs, Crooks, and Other Creeps – Volume 5 – Girlfriends and Wives (Mobsters, Gangs, Crooks and Other Creeps) (Kindle Edition)
True to form. All these books are great and Informative.
Product Description:
In bed with every criminal is his wife, or his goomara, or sometimes even both. Joe Bruno’s “Mobsters, Gangs, Crooks, and Other Creeps – Volume 5 – Girlfriends and Wives” details the trial and tribulations of women who were the love interests of some of the worst human beings God has ever created.
“JULIUS AND ETHEL ROSENBERG – SPIES OR SCAPEGOATS?: YOU MAKE THE CALL”is now ranked # 11 on Amazon.com in the category “Best Sellers in Law Enforcement Biographies & Memoirs,” and #13 in the category “Best Sellers in Espionage True Accounts.”
Product description:
I lived in Knickerbocker Village from 1964-1996, the same Lower East Side housing project where the Rosenbergs resided when they were arrested in 1950.
During the time of the Rosenbergs, Knickerbocker Village housed over 1500 families; most of them of Jewish, Italian, or Irish descent. But, by the time I moved to Knickerbocker Village the demographics had changed significantly. Following the Rosenbergs’ arrests, many Jewish families, for whatever reason, moved out of the neighborhood, and they were replaced mostly by Italian/Americans. Now, Knickerbocker Village, due to the recent increase in New York City’s Chinese population and the close proximity of Chinatown, is predominantly Chinese.
Over the years, I’ve heard people, who lived in Knickerbocker Village at the same time as the Rosenbergs, talk about the Rosenbergs and not always in a kind way. People generally spoke favorably about Ethel . But, as far as I can determine, Julius was disliked by practically everyone.
The $64,000 question is – were both Rosenbergs Soviet spies? Or, was being the faithful wife of Julius Rosenberg Ethel’s biggest crime?
The truth, as we shall see, is somewhere in the middle.
JULIUS AND ETHEL ROSENBERG – SPIES OR SCAPEGOATS?: YOU MAKE THE CALL
September 4, 2014
“Mob Rats – Gangsters Who Squeal – Volume 1″ is on sale today for only $1.99. That’s a 60% savings over the regular price of $4.97.
“Mob Rats – Gangsters Who Squeal – Volume 1″ is presently ranked # 3 on Amazon.com in the category “Best Sellers in Law Enforcement Biographies & Memoirs,” and #14 in the category “Best Sellers in Organized Crime True Accounts.”
To grab your copy, click the link below.
*****
Product information:
AMAZON/USA TOP 3 BEST SELLER IN “HOT NEW RELEASES IN LAW ENFORCEMENT BIOGRAPHIES & MEMOIRS”
AMAZON/USA TOP 3 BEST SELLER IN “HOT NEW RELEASES ORGANIZED CRIME TRUE ACCOUNTS”
AMAZON/USA TOP 10 BEST SELLER IN “LAW ENFORCEMENT BIOGRAPHIES & MEMOIRS”
AMAZON/USA TOP 15 BEST SELLER IN “ORGANIZED CRIME TRUE ACCOUNTS”
*****
What Makes a Rat, a Rat?
Mathew J. Mari – New York City Criminal Attorney for 37 years
Contrary to popular opinion, rats are born and not made.
People think law enforcement ‘turns’ people into rats by persuading them to ‘turn state’s evidence,’ as the old saying goes. There is a difference between the verb ‘rat,’ which is what a lot of people do, and the noun ‘rat,’ which is what a lot of people are.
Real men don’t rat because they still have to look at themselves in the mirror. The reason they don’t rat is not because of some oath of silence (omerta), or because they are afraid of being killed, but because they simply ARE NOT RATS. The people who rat (the verb) do it because they ARE RATS (the noun). The people who rat were born rats and simply do what they were born to do when the circumstances benefit them.
It’s really that simple.”
Mob Rats – Gangsters Who Squeal – Volume 1
September 3, 2014
“Joe Bruno’s Mobsters – Eight Volume Set” is on sale today for only $2.99.
That’s 85% off the price of these books if they were purchased individually. And more than 50% off the usual price of the boxed set.
To grab your copy, click the link below.
“Joe Bruno’s Mobsters – Eight Volume Set” includes:
“Mobsters, Gangs, Crooks, and Other Creeps Volumes 1-4,” and “Mobsters, Gangs, Crooks, and Other Creeps – Volume 5 – Girlfriends and Wives.”
It also includes “Murder and Mayhem in the Big Apple – From the Black Hand to Murder Incorporated,” “The Wrong Man: Who Ordered the Murder of Gambler Herman Rosenthal and Why,” and “Mob Wives – Fuhgeddaboudit!”
“Mobsters, Gangs, Crooks and Other Creeps – Volumes 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5″ have all been consistently ranked in the top 100 in Amazon.com categories “Gangs,” and “Organized Crime,” as has “Murder and Mayhem in the Big Apple.” Volume 1 has reached as high as #1 in “Gangs.”
According to New York City criminal attorney Mathew J. Mari, “Joe Bruno’s Mobsters are a composite of characters and events that entwine the denizens of the underworld with the rich history of America from the early 1800’s until today.”
Joe Bruno's Mobsters Eight Volume Set
September 1, 2014
Another 5-star review for Joe Bruno’s “Mobsters, Gangs, Crooks, and Other Creeps – Volume 5 – Girlfriends and Wives.”
5.0 out of 5 stars
All Joe Bruno’s books are great and Informative,
August 29, 2014
By Rita Moore
Verified Purchase
This review is from: Mobsters, Gangs, Crooks, and Other Creeps – Volume 5 – Girlfriends and Wives (Mobsters, Gangs, Crooks and Other Creeps) (Kindle Edition)
True to form. All these books are great and Informative.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CJWTV5M
August 31, 2014
Labor Day Weekend Special! The two-book boxed set “Chinatown Mob Wars -Snakeheads – Asian Illegal Immigrant Smugglers and Big Fat Fanny – The Biggest Mafia Killer Ever!” is on sale today at only $1.99. That’s 50% off the regular price!
For your Kindle copy, Click the link Below.
Product Description:
“Since the start of the 20th Century, the Italians and Chinese in the Little Italy/Chinatown area of New York City have endured an uneasy truce.
In the first three quarters of the century, the Italians ruled the neighborhood with an iron fist. But starting in the 1970’s, the dynamics began to change, as Italians moved out of the neighborhood, and droves of Chinese flowed into Chinatown from China; some illegally.
“Snakeheads” is a taut drama in screenplay form, and “Find Big Fat Fanny Fast” is a comedy/satire novel.
Although both have different tones and textures; they have one thing in common: both take place in New York City’s Chinatown/Little Italy, and both display the inner fighting between the Italian mob and the Chinese gangs to control the profits from the neighborhood’s illegal activities: gambling and drugs.”
Another 5-star review for ” Mobsters, Gangs, Crooks, and Other Creeps – Volume 5 – Girlfriends and Wives.”
*****
Product Information:
In bed with every criminal is his wife, or his goomara, or sometimes even both. Joe Bruno’s “Mobsters, Gangs, Crooks, and Other Creeps – Volume 5 – Girlfriends and Wives” details the trial and tribulations of women who were the love interests of some of the worst human beings God has ever created.
*****
Joe Bruno’s “Mobsters, Gangs, Crooks, and Other Creeps” finished in second place (runner up) in the 2013 eFestival of Words Best of the Independent Ebook Awards in the category “Nonfiction.”
AMAZON/CANADA #1 BESTSELLER IN “GANGS”
AMAZON/CANADA #1 IN BESTSELLER “ORGANIZED CRIME”
AMAZON #5 IN “HOT NEW RELEASES – ORGANIZED CRIME”
AMAZON #20 IN “ORGANIZED CRIME”
AMAZON TOP 50 IN “CRIMINALS”
5.0 out of 5 stars
All these books are great and Informative,
August 29, 2014
By Rita Moore – See all my reviews
Verified Purchase (What’s this?)
True to form. All Joe Bruno’s books are great and Informative.
