Born to the Mob: The True-Life Story of the Only Man to Work for All Five of New York's Mafia Families

by Frankie Saggio, Fred Rosen

Frankie Saggio reminisces about the era of true wise guys like his Uncle Philly -- a contemporary of Al Capone. After all, it was Frankie's uncle who "taught him the value of a dollar and how to steal it from someone else." Uncle Philly was from a day when being in a mafia family meant being bound by blood and honor, not like modern day families whose only concern is money. For Frankie, the only way to avoid the modern mob treachery is to avoid getting involved with any single mob family, working "freelance" for all five. Frankie can do this because he is one of the biggest earners in the business, pulling down millions and kicking a share upstairs to the bosses. Though he fights the decision, Frankie is tied by blood to the Bonanno family, Uncle Philly's family, and current home to Philly's murderer. Soon after joining the Bonannos, Frankie narrowly escapes an assassination attempt and is busted for a major scam. With little choice, and even less loyalty to the Bonannos, Frankie turns himself over to the Feds on the one condition that he will tell the feds everything, but will not squeal on his own relatives.

Genres: True Crime, Crime, Biography, Nonfiction, Biography Memoir

224 pages, Paperback

First published May 24, 2004

Reviews

[Stefanie Robinson · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was about the life and times of Frankie Saggio. He worked for all five families in New York, refusing to be tied to any specific family as a way to keep business going and keep himself safe. He eventually turned informant, which really came as no great surprise. I really wanted to like this book. I did not. I thought it was boring and self serving, though that last part was no great surprise either.

[LuAnn · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fascinating story about a true mob member who turned FBI informant in the late 90's and is now living under a new identity. I found the book to be a bit "choppy" at times and had trouble keeping track of all the crime family names and which mobsters belonged to which family. Definitely interesting to hear about his family life growing up and his road to the crime underworld.