Notorious New Jersey: 100 True Tales of Murders and Mobsters, Scandals and Scoundrels (Paperback)

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Key Phrases: mob paradise, ransom drop, New Jersey, New York, Jersey City (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"100 tasty bites ... a gift for the reader who loves history, colorful crime stories and the state second to none when it comes to spectacular political corruption." -- The Trentonian

"Blackwell has a keen eye for the amusing, the intriguing and, ultimately, disturbing side of New Jersey's past. Each of the 100 stories is a tightly packed case of dynamite that highlights irony and poetic justice. ... History may repeat itself, but there is hardly a dull moment " -- Asbury Park (N.J.) Press

"Definitely take the tour--a bullet-riddled ride you won't forget." -- Rob Polner, coauthor, New York Notorious: A Borough-By-Borough Tour of the City's Most Infamous Crime Scenes

"Jon Blackwell takes a walk on the wild side of New Jersey history to introduce the reader to the Garden State's leading crooks, con men, killers, and other lowlife, all described in fast paced, entertaining style. You wouldn't want to invite these characters into your living room, but they make for a lively reading experience." -- Marc Mappen, coeditor of the Encyclopedia of New Jersey

"There's a reason Tony Soprano is from New Jersey. In "Notorious New Jersey," author Jon Blackwell shows the state's reputation for hard cases is well deserved." -- New York Post

Product Description

It's a common complaint in New Jersey: We're not taken seriously. New York City is the place of skyscrapers, glitz, and glamour; New Jersey gets mocked as the land of swamps and malls. But there is one area in which our often-overlooked state deserves to be recognized for total supremacy. It is second to no place for spectacular corruption and crime.

Notorious New Jersey is the definitive guide to murder, mayhem, the mob, and corruption in the Garden State. With tabloid punch, Jon Blackwell tells riveting accounts of Alexander Hamilton falling mortally wounded on the dueling grounds of Weehawken; Dutch Schultz getting pumped full of lead in the men's room of the Palace Chop House in Newark; and a gang of Islamic terrorists in Jersey City mixing the witch's brew of explosives that became the first bomb to rock the World Trade Center. Along with these dramatic stories are tales of lesser-known oddities, such as the nineteenth-century murderer whose skin was turned into leather souvenirs, and the state senator from Jersey City--David Friedland--who faked his death in a scuba accident in the 1970s in an effort to avoid prison. Blackwell also sheds light on some historical whodunits--was Bruno Hauptmann really guilty of kidnapping the Lindbergh baby? Who was behind the anthrax attacks of 2001? And could Jimmy Hoffa's body really be under the end zone at Giants Stadium? Not forgotten either are notorious characters who may actually be innocent, including Rubin "Hurricane" Carter, and those who have never been convicted of wrongdoing although they left office in scandal, including Robert Torricelli and James McGreevey. Through 100 historic true-crime tales that span over 300 years of history, Blackwell shows readers a side of New Jersey that would make even the Sopranos shudder.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 424 pages
• Publisher: Rutgers University Press (October 29, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0813541778
• ISBN-13: 978-0813541778
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #138,948 in Books (See Bestsellers 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 Betcha didn't know!, January 3, 2008

By	C-Reader "c_a_reader" (North NJ, United States) - See all my reviews

If you're a fan of true crime, mysteries, trivia, politics, New Jersey, weird tales, and everything in between, you'll enjoy these 100 well-told stories of the Garden State's crimes and mysteries, past and present. The author is clearly passionate about his subject, and had some fun telling these tales. Even the captions are entertaining and sometimes tongue-in-cheek.

The stories range from a former Jersey City assemblyman who faked his own drowning to a possible "Jack the Ripper" suspect who moved to NJ following the London crimes (betcha didn't know that!!) In fact, there is a lot you probably didn't know about New Jersey in this comprehensive book.

Of course, there are the cases that were so famous that they spawned TV movies and national attention: the Lindbergh kidnapping, the murderous Cherry Hill rabbi, the Glen Ridge rapists, the "Baby M" saga (one of the rare entries that isn't about crime, but is still a notorious case) and others.

What's creepy is that in some of the cases, the perpetrator is still at large.

There are more than 400 pages in this paperback, but the writing style is so breezy and fun, and the passages are separated into categories, that it's an easy and delightful read. It might even make a good gift.

And there are also the requisite mob stories in here, if you're a "Sopranos" fan. A very well-done read.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Infamous Characters From The Garden State, April 12, 2008

By	C. W. Emblom "Bill Emblom" (Ishpeming, Michigan USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

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Author Jon Blackwell treats us to a variety of categories in his 100 true tales from my favorite section on mob bosses to corrupt politicians, terrorists, spies, and other infamous characters that make up the shady history in New Jersey. The reader is taken back to relive "old rascals" such as Aaron Burr's duel with Alexander Hamilton in Weehawken, a fight to the death between Ambrose Harris and Robert "Mudman" Simon, "The Mad Hatter" dies in the chair (barber), "Richie the Boot" Boiardo and his mysterious house, and so many others are gruesomely fascinating. I also learned that Richard "The Iceman" Kuklinski's exploits may not be all that they are cracked up to be in the recent book entitled "The Iceman." The book covers a lot about crooked politicians and other shady characters I've never heard of while I would have liked to have more of the book devoted to the mobsters. Nevertheless the book is one to add to your true crime collection.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Jersey at its Notorious best!!!!!!, February 2, 2008

By	C. Webster (Jresey shore, NJ) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Jon Blackwell has summed up New Jersey's notorious past in one neatly bundled 400+ page volume.

Notorious New Jersey: 100 True Tales of Murderers and Mobsters, Scandals and Scoundrels provides a perfect read for anyone who wants to understand why New Jersey deserves its laughingstock slogan from former Gov. Richard Codey: "Welcome to New Jersey: Come See For Yourself."

After reading Notorious New Jersey you won't need to go "see for yourself" -- you'll have read the book (good enuf!!) -- and can stay alive in the relative safety of your own home.

Everybody knows at least a dozen New Jersey jokes, but Blackwell has pulled together most of the reasons for all the cringes that are synonymous with almost anything completely Jersey -- murders (too numerous to name so check the FBI files), mobsters -- The Sopranos (need I say more), scandals -- (a gay-American governor and the long line of his cronies are just the newest additions) and scoundrels (if you eliminate this category Jersey would go from the most densely populated state to a vast wasteland of emptiness, well maybe).

In "Notorious New Jersey", Blackwell cordons off the scoundrels, creeps and human debris that have made the Garden State a place to avoid in the minds of many. The chapters in the book are delineated into areas titled Old Rascals, Dead Wrong, Mob Paradise, Power Corrupts, Enemy Action and Cause Celebres, and is filled with the stories that have made headlines in New Jersey, and around the world, for more than three centuries.

In Blackwell's Notorious New Jersey you'll learn why the state could well be best described as the "Serial Murderer State" or the "Murder Capital of the World". In New Jersey they just do it right -- killing is the name of the game it seems.

But murder isn't New Jersey's only commodity. Blackwell reaches into the archives to refresh our memories about why the state was the perfect place to film the TV show "The Sopranos" with page after page of stories about New Jersey's notorious mobsters.

People in New Jersey have always known that there is always a "New Jersey connection" to any national newspaper headline or TV breaking news story -- just think the Unibomber, 1993s World Trade Center bombing, anthrax, and on and on and on...

Blackwell has done a superb job in pulling together all the great stories about Notorious New Jersey.

Buy this book!!! You'll be reading it for years to come, and shaking your head in disbelief every time you hear about a news story with a New Jersey connection. And you'll have Jon Blackwell to thank for that bit of reality.