The Canary Sang but Couldn't Fly: The Fatal Fall of Abe Reles, the Mobster Who Shattered Murder, Inc.'s Code of Silence [Hardcover]

Edmund Elmaleh (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 7, 2009

It remains one of the most enduring mysteries in gangland lore: in 1941, while Abe Reles and three other key informants were under round-the-clock NYPD protection, the ruthless and powerful thug took a deadly plunge from the window of a Coney Island hotel. The first criminal of his stature to break the underworld’s code of silence, he had begun “singing” for the courts—giving devastating testimony that implicated former cronies—with more to come. With cops around him day and night, how could Abe have gone out the window? Did he try to escape? Did a hit man break in? Or did someone in the “squealer’s suite” murder him? Here’s the gripping story, packed with political machinations, legal sleight-of-hand, mob violence—and, finally, a proposed answer to the question: How did Abe Reles really die? 

 

Murder mysteries:

Why didn’t police investigate the mysterious sounds they heard on the night that Reles died?

 

Why did the lead investigator fail to gather crucial evidence at the hotel—or follow police procedure for interviewing witnesses and securing the crime scene?

 

What do previously classified FBI documents reveal about Brooklyn DA William O’Dwyer, who had plans to run for mayor of New York?

 

Why was the note “Withhold information by order of D.A.” scribbled on Reles’s autopsy report?

 

Why was Abe’s widow so bitterly opposed to reopening the case?

 

Why doesn’t the official story add up?

 

 

 

 

 

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

True crime conspiracy buffs have debated for years the 1941 death of Abe Reles, the mafia squeal who fell out a hotel window while in police custody. Years of shoddy investigation and cover-ups have made it impossible to determine exactly what happened to the "most effective mafia informer" law enforcement ever held, but it was clear that every mobster in America wanted him dead. In his only book, recently deceased crime writer Elmaleh (1959-2008) collects evidence from multiple investigations to piece together the events of November 12, 1941. The result is an exhaustive report heavy on detail, but light on excitement. Offering no revelations or climactic discoveries, Elmaleh instead sifts through conjecture and hypotheses that only serve to disprove the theory that Reles killed himself-an explanation none but the most naive accepted in the first place. Still, mob history buffs will be pleased with Elmaleh's attention to detail and hefty collection of transcripts. Unfortunately, it's beyond Elmaleh to satisfy casual true crime readers, if only because the Reles case remains far from solved.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Elmaleh re-examines the case of Mob torpedo Abe “Kid Twist” Reles’ fatal 1941 fall from a window in the hotel in which he was under 24-hour police guard to ensure his testimony in the prosecution of New York mobsters. Several ludicrous theories regarding how Reles came to his splattery end were advanced, but several investigations yielded little proof, let alone plausibility. Elmaleh also explores the Kid’s career. Growing up in Brooklyn’s tough Brownsville neighborhood, Reles was a hardened killer by early adulthood. Able to murder without regret, he and other young toughs constituted the labor contingent of Murder, Inc., the fancifully named service overseen by Albert Anastasia and others. By the time Reles turned state’s evidence, he was uniquely qualified to tell not only where the bodies were buried—having personally buried a significant number of them—but also who had ordered the hits in the first place. That being the case, he was safer in custody than on the street. Did he die trying to escape? Elmaleh has thoughts and evidence anent that question. --Mike Tribby

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: Union Square Press (April 7, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1402761139
• ISBN-13: 978-1402761133
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.8 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #928,181 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Murder But Not A Crime, September 20, 2009

By 

Rose Keefe "author" (Canada) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: The Canary Sang but Couldn't Fly: The Fatal Fall of Abe Reles, the Mobster Who Shattered Murder, Inc.'s Code of Silence (Hardcover)

When mob informer Abe Reles fell out a hotel window while in protective custody, an investigation followed that has never been completely laid to rest. Did he die while trying to escape? Or was he murdered?

Abe `Kid Twist' Reles was once the most dreaded contract killer in Brooklyn. As part of the Murder Inc hit team, he shot, stabbed, and strangled with unholy enjoyment. But when confronted with evidence that could strap him into the electric chair, he made a deal with Brooklyn D.A. William O'Dwyer that sent many mob heavyweights to Old Sparky in his place. When he plunged out his bedroom window at Coney Island's Half Moon Hotel in November 1941, a collective sigh of relief could be heard throughout the New York underworld.

Edmund Elmaleh spent over a decade studying the sinister and puzzling circumstances surrounding Reles' death. He examined previously classified FBI documents and zeroed in on inconsistencies in the official record. While Elmaleh does not offer any new or shocking insights into what most agree was a mob-directed murder, he has written the most authoritative account so far of what probably happened to the man that every gang boss in the state wanted silenced. He did a better job than I would have thought possible, given the fact that the authorities made no serious effort to solve the case. Even Reles' widow was unforthcoming when questioned about a conversation she had with her husband just before his death.

"The Canary Sang But Couldn't Fly" is an entertaining and chilling analysis of one of gangland's greatest mysteries. Highly recommended.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Solved at Last?, April 10, 2009

By 

Michael A. Coluccio (New York, N.Y.) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Canary Sang but Couldn't Fly: The Fatal Fall of Abe Reles, the Mobster Who Shattered Murder, Inc.'s Code of Silence (Hardcover)

I found the enigmatic death of gangland squealer Abe "Kid Twist" Reles so compelling that I didn't want this book to end. Reles' violent life is traced from his birth in the Lower East Side of Manhattan in 1906 to his fatal plunge from a sixth-floor window in Coney Island's Half Moon Hotel thirty-five years later, on November 12, 1941. Was Kid Twist's death murder or accidental? The reader will have to draw his own conclusion based on the voluminous evidence uncovered by the author, who spent ten years researching the subject matter. Various scenarios are presented, all of which are quite plausible. Although literally thousands of pages have been written over the years about Murder, Incorporated, and its most celebrated "canary," I don't believe such a thorough, in-depth examination of the mysterious circumstances surrounding Reles' demise has come forth until now. Highly recommended.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great story for a movie, December 7, 2009

By 

David Goldwich "author, trainer, and speaker" (Singapore) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Canary Sang but Couldn't Fly: The Fatal Fall of Abe Reles, the Mobster Who Shattered Murder, Inc.'s Code of Silence (Hardcover)

This book is a great and entertaining read, and very hard to put down once you get started. Aside from the fascinating facts and detail, the story is told in a film noir voice that sets the perfect tone. Yet this does not come off as gimmicky, as the work is a meticulously researched piece of crime scholarship that is clearly laid out. Even readers who are not hard-core crime buffs can follow it and enjoy it. In all fairness I should mention that I went to school with the author (recently deceased), and can vouch for the fact that he was a serious student of history who greatly respected the art and science of historical research methods.

While the truth behind Abe Reles' fatal plunge may never be known, this book lays out the facts and theories as best as can be expected. Someone should make this into a movie.