Volume One The Early Years In 1944 Brooklyn, newborn Michael J. Hardy is rejected by his mother so she can run with gangster Bugsy Siegel, Hardy’s godfather. Shirley Rook rose to the top of the criminal ranks. As the Queen of New York City crime, she laundered Mob money, ran the city’s largest bookmaking operation, and handed payouts to dirty cops, politicians, and judges. To win his mother’s love and respect, Hardy became a fearless … [Read more...]
Matthias McCarn
Matthias McCarn is a professional writing consultant and published author. He currently lives in Chicago, IL, holds a BA and MA in English from DePaul University, and is certified by The University of Chicago as an editor. When he’s not riding his Harley Davidson, he’s loading up on espresso and writing about true crime. McCarn has teamed up with Emma, Joe, and Nick Seifert to write DEADLY ASSOCIATES: A True Story of Murder, Survival, and … [Read more...]
DEADLY ASSOCIATES Photo Gallery
View the Seifert family and crime scene photos below and find out more about the book here. … [Read more...]
DEADLY ASSOCIATES: A True Story Of Murder, Survival, and Bringing Down the Chicago Mob
Coming January 29th to REELZChannel™! The DEADLY ASSOCIATES documentary! Step into Chicago during the 1960s and ‘70s, where mobsters influence everyone from strip-club owners to Teamsters, aldermen, judges, and local police. It is a world where good men are corrupted by the irresistible lure of money and power, and families are shattered by lies, violence, and tragedy. Danny Seifert, a street-smart and ambitious young man, follows his … [Read more...]
OPERATION FAMILY SECRETS
by: Matthias McCarn Chicago’s Organized Crime Roots Al Capone once said, “Some call it racketeering. I call it a business.” While most people are familiar with Chicago and New York mobsters such as Capone, Gambino, and Gotti, what citizens in the United States would become to know as “La Cosa Nostra” actually started in New Orleans’ 2nd District back in 1869. The Sicilian immigrants came into the US through New … [Read more...]
Richie Salerno
In my young days back on the streets in Brooklyn, I never thought I could be a writer. My mind was always fixed on how to make a buck. Writing was for the guys in the news, and as for books, well, let’s just say I never had a thing for books. Now, playing horses and shooting craps, that was my game. The Made Men in the neighborhood never had to push me to it. Once I got horses up my nose there was no stopping me. Back then, the years I spent … [Read more...]
FROM THE MOB TO THE MOVIES: How Richie Salerno Escaped The Mafia And Became A Hollywood Actor
The public knows him as the character Tony Darvo in the movie Midnight Run, but Richie Salerno was born into the world of the Brooklyn Mafia during the heyday of the New York mob and for a time it looked like he'd get caught up in a life of crime. After all, some of the most notorious figures in the gangster world he knew as uncles, aunts, cousins and family friends. During a stint in prison for theft, Richie turned his life around using the … [Read more...]
Book Trailer for From the Mob to the Movies
True Crime Book Trailer for From the Mob to the Movies: How I Escaped the Mob and Landed in Hollywood by Richie Salerno. Available in ebook and paperback: wbp.bz/mobtomovies "Richie Salerno has an amazing story to tell and he does in From The Mob To The Movies, taking readers from the streets of Brooklyn to Hollywood. Truly a must read." - Dennis N. Griffin, award-winning author of A 'FAMILY' BUSINESS and THE RISE AND FALL OF A 'CASINO' … [Read more...]
Denny Griffin Looks Back On His Time With Co-Author And Friend Frank Cullotta
WildBlue Press author and former gangster, Frank Cullota died on August 20, 2020. Although he had a fearsome reputation from his days as a hitman for Mob boss Tony Spilotro, many others knew a different side--gentle, warm, engaging. Among them was his frequent co-author and friend Denny Griffin with whom he wrote the bestselling book, "THE RISE AND FALL OF A 'CASINO' MOBSTER: The Tony Spilotro Story Through A Hitman's Eyes." They were … [Read more...]
WRONG NUMBERS: A Gripping True Story Of Call Girls, Hackers, And The Mob In Las Vegas
"Wrong Numbers is an intriguing and well-researched crime story detailing the intersection of big money and quick sex in the city that contains a lot of both." - Jack Sheehan, author of Skin City Was a hacker diverting phone calls meant for Las Vegas escort services? The FBI wanted to know, and so did associates of a New York Mafia family. In one of the most unusual undercover operations ever, the FBI had an agent … [Read more...]