Carmine the Snake: Carmine Persico and His Murderous Mafia Family
About this audiobook
In this blistering street-level account, “Mafia survivor” Frank DiMatteo teams up with true-crime master Michael Benson to take down one of the most notorious figures in the American La Cosa Nostra. This is the real inside story of Carmine “the Snake” Persico, from his crime-filled childhood on the streets of Brooklyn to the long-term jail sentences that didn’t stop him from controlling his criminal empire, with the help of his brother—the equally kill-crazy Alphonse “Allie Boy” Persico.
This is the story of his deadly teen years as leader of the fearsome Garfield Boys; his recruitment into the Profaci—later the Colombo—crime family; his bloody betrayal of the Gallo brothers; his role in the hair-raising ambush and slaying of Albert Anastasia—the Lord High Executioner of Murder, Inc.—as he sat in a barbershop chair getting a shave; the terror he struck into the hearts of the New York Mafia’s other families, and even his own crews; and the many courtroom trials where Persico walked after witnesses came down with sudden cases of “amnesia.”
Today, Persico schmoozes with Ponzi king Bernard Madoff behind bars. There, at age eighty-four, his legend—packed as it is with coldblooded brutality—continues to inspire goodfellas everywhere.
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About the author
Frank Dimatteo is a lifelong Brooklynite, Mafia “survivor,” and publisher of Mob Candy magazine. He is the author of the acclaimed memoir, The President Street Boys: Growing Up Mafia, as well as Mob Candy’s Brooklyn Gangsters and Manhattan Gangsters.
Michael Benson is the author of more than sixty books, including the true crime books Betrayal in Blood, Killer Twins, and Mommy Deadliest. He also wrote Who’s Who in the JFK Assassination, Inside Secret Societies, and most recently, The Devil at Genesee Junction.
Johnny Heller is an award-winning narrator and one of the most sought-after voiceover coaches in the nation. An ALA Odyssey Award winner, AudioFile Golden Voice, and a Grammy nominee, he has narrated over 1,000 titles in almost every genre. A multiple recipient of Booklist and Publishers Weekly Starred Reviews, Publishers Weekly Listen Up Awards, and AudioFile Magazine Best Voice of the Year recognitions, he is regularly nominated for Earphones and Audies and is a multi-award winner of both.
