The Mafia Encyclopedia [Hardcover]

Carl Sifakis (Author), Carl Sifakis (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 2005 | ISBN-10: 0816056943 | ISBN-13: 978-0816056941 | Edition: 3

Written by a veteran crime reporter, this bestseller is the most complete and up-to-date source available on this fascinating subject. In this "Who's Who" of crime, readers will find the full flavor and substance of Mafia culture, customs, and characters presented in more than 400 articles. More than ninety-five black-and-white photographs help capture Mafia history from the birth of the brotherhood and the major underworld figures who created it, to the law enforcement agents and organizations who have triedand failedto destroy it.

The Mafia Encyclopedia includes biographical entries of both well- and less well-known wise guys, their criminal specialties, career highlights, friends and enemies, eccentricities, peccadilloes, and frequently dramatic demises.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

They're all there, starting with Anthony Joseph Accardo (1906-1992), the Chicago mob leader known as Tony to crime pals, Mr. Accardo to underlings, Joe Batters to his subordinates, and as "having more brains before breakfast than Al Capone had all day" to syndicate supporters, and working through the alphabet to Abner "Longy" Zwillman (1899-1959), a crime-syndicate founder and New Jersey boss, one of the most feared of the Jewish Mafia, known as the "Al Capone of new Jersey," and much revered for his love affair with Jean Harlow.

Between Accardo and Zwillman, Carl Sifakis explores the lives, reputations, exploits, and subcultures of more than 450 Mafia perpetrators and personalities. Sifakis describes the individuals, codes of behavior, misdeeds, legal scrapes, rivalries, and flamboyant lifestyles associated with the world of organized crime--an entity whose existence J. Edgar Hoover denied for 30 years. Sifakis's research is thorough, and his subjects are nefarious and riveting. It's his feel for storytelling, however, that makes his encyclopedia so enjoyable. He writes about infamous characters such as Al Capone (who felt his bootlegging was merely a public service) and John Gotti (a.k.a. the Teflon Don, who's now serving a life sentence) as well as the Mafia Social Clubs, Donnie Brasco (the FBI agent who infiltrated the mob and sent more than 100 mobsters to prison), and the importance of slot machines to the post-Prohibition welfare of organized crime.

With nearly 100 pictures and illustrations, Sifakis's mob opus is required reading for Mafia buffs, and a remarkably engaging guide for anyone interested in a factual report on organized crime. --Stephanie Gold --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

From Library Journal

Since former crime reporter Sifakis's excellent Mafia Encyclopedia was first published in 1987, mob bosses John Gotti and Vinny "the Chin" Gigante have gone to jail and informer Sammy "the Bull" Gravano has reached the best sellers lists. Such Mafia shakeups have necessitated this extensive revision, which now boasts nearly 450 discerning entries covering the whole mobster universe from "Making Your Bones" to money laundering and the "Buckwheats" (painful murder methods); loansharking and the "Concrete scam"; favorite Mafia social clubs, restaurants, and burial grounds; and even an entry on Midnight Rose's, the Brooklyn candy store where so many of Murder, Inc.'s killings were planned. Sifakis's prose is free of the typical platitudes about "honor" or "blood oaths." He points out that the most important Mafia figure was not Al Capone but Lucky Luciano, who, along with Meyer Lansky, "Americanized" and transformed the Prohibition-era booze rackets into "a national crime syndicate, a network of multi-ethnic gangs...which has bled Americans of incalculable billions over the years." Sifakis relishes the Mafia's vivid folklore without subscribing to it. The infamous score-evening slaughter of 1931 called the "Night of the Sicilian Vespers," in which dozens of Luciano's enemies were said to have been simultaneously eliminated nationwide, turns out to be mythology. And while Chicago and Vegas mobster John Roselli was probably not the JFK hitman (as alleged in Bill Bonanno's Bound by Honor, LJ 3/15/99, his accomplishments did include taking $400,000 from Phil Silvers, Zeppo Marx, and others in a famous rigged card game. For all crime collections.ANathan Ward, "Library Journal"
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 448 pages
• Publisher: Facts on File; 3 edition (June 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0816056943
• ISBN-13: 978-0816056941
• Product Dimensions: 11.2 x 8.5 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (27 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,729,656 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An historian's viewpoint, but storytellers well of ideas., June 26, 2002

By 

Victoria Tarrani "writer, editor, artist, des... (Florida, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Mafia Encyclopedia (Facts on File) (Paperback)

Carl Sifakis is a crime reporter and freelance writer who, because he is a journalist and has connections, provides a unique perspective into the secret world of the Mafia. Mario Puzo brought to life the families behind the secret society, and Sifakis describes the events, terminology, members, murders, techniques, locales, and pawns of the most significant criminal organization in the world. Although most of the crime families have been publicly decapitated through imprisonment or death of the leaders, studying criminal compositions and actions provide an outline for criminal structures that can be found in terrorist groups today. Today there are different names, different motives, but follow the money, follow the murders, and history is repetitious.

Each letter of the alphabet begins a new heading, making this an easy to access reference book. A plethora of photographs, which include wanted posters, group 'shots' (sorry, just could not resist the pun), weapons, drawings, and home add to the knowledge base. As a writer, I find it extremely useful to study the picture and then write the description.

"Don Vito Cascio Ferro (1862-1932) is often called the 'greatest' of the Maria leaders in Sicily." The scheme of the protection payoffs in the USA is one of his masterpieces. Joseph Petrosino, New York police detective, went to Sicily (where Vito had established the key Mafia band) to gather information to bring La Familia before the law. He was killed before he accomplished his objectives. One of the theories is that the Mafia chieftain did the job himself. A rumor he espoused showing his power even over the NYPD.

Before 1915 the 'Five Iron Men: Kansas City crime rulers' had corrupted the political structure with only a small number of contingents; few cities west of Chicago could match their control. Paul Kelly showed that the Italian Mafia could work with other gangsters in the quest for money. At the demise of the group, their graduates (Torrio, Capone, Luciano, Yale, etc.) went on to "raise the highest criminal power during the Prohibition era."

The Volstead Act of 1919, commonly known as Prohibition, created new opportunities for criminals to make millions. Gangsters slaughtered old allies to take over the bootlegging rackets. Gunshots and explosions were too common in almost every American community of any size.

This book is rich and extraordinary. Sifakis is a good writer, and the encyclopedia is interesting to read. There are 354 pages of information followed by a good index. Names are linked to families, locations, and timeframes. Five stars.

Victoria Tarrani

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very good and filled with information, June 28, 2002

By 

David West (Omaha, NE USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Mafia Encyclopedia (Facts on File) (Paperback)

The Mafia Encyclopedia has really been a fun read. Little known facts about everyone from Al Capone down to some of the goons that worked for John Gotti are all described in detail, as are some of the more famous events in Mafia history. I have yet to find a more comprehensive book about the Mafia.

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The mafia in a whole new light!, December 17, 1999

By 

Michael J Woznicki "Michael J Woznicki" (Holland, MA USA) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Mafia Encyclopedia (Facts on File) (Paperback)

Ever stop and think about how powerful the mafia is? Ever wonder who made the mafia what it is today? Do movies accurately portray the crime bosses or is what you see all hype? The Mafia Encyclopedia will help clear up these questions and more.

Over 400 pages covers the A to Z listing of the Who's who in the mafia. The book have over 95 illustration and over 450 listings, something for everyone. You read about Capone, Niti, Gotti and so many others.

Find out who ran Murder, Inc. Read about how the change in power was accomplished, who may the orders and who carried them out. Along with all that you'll catch a glimpse of the rituals used by the mafia.

The book is well researched and very detailed. I was impressed by how much information was contained in the book. I like the price and this is certainly going to be a nice addition to my library.