Cosa Nostra News

Nick Christophers wrote the following, which is based on his reporting, research, and interviews with several former associates of organized crime, including former Gambino associates John Alite and Andrew DiDonato, former Outfit scion Frank Calabrese Jr., and ex Colombo associate Kenji Gallo. (More on Nick at the end.) By Nick Christophers  There is a saying that if you take one man out there are two in the wings to replace him and if you take out two there are four in the wings. This may be the case for some situations but when it comes to the life-line of the mafia that theory goes out the window. The once awesome and untouchable traditional mafia has lost its “talent pool” that was at once abundant. It is believed since the fall of John Gotti the mob has went underground and has attempted to stay out of the spotlight and the headlines. Frank Calabrese Sr. on right in surveillance image There are many rumors that they have been recruiting men from Sicily to replenish the ranks ...

Neil G. Clark is the author of Dock Boss: Eddie McGrath and the West Side Waterfront ; the real-life story of the preeminent racketeer on Manhattan's lucrative waterfront and the bloodshed that long haunted the ports of New York City. The book is available now at all major retailers. And Neil is getting some strong kudos, too, for Dock Boss -- including from TJ ENGLISH ! In    addition to  Scott Deitch e, who has written quite a few books about the Mafia, including Cigar City Mafia: A Complete History of the Tampa Underworld , and The Silent Don: The World of Santo Trafficante Jr. , and our old friend Dennis Griffin, who wrote Andrew DiDonato's book on life as a Gambino associate under Little Nicky Corozzo , Surviving the Mob: A Street Soldier's Life Inside the Gambino Crime Family , a must-read for anyone interested in the New York Mafia in the 1990s, a period of incredible violence. Before becoming a waterfront power, Eddie McGrath started out as a low-level...

New York’s mob families are truly living undercover these days, in a manner that almost seems to hearken back to the pre-Apalachin years . An interesting report was quietly published following Vincent Asaro's startling acquittal t hat took a look at how the mob is trying to "invisibly" earn today. “They don’t want the notoriety they once had ," Inspector John Desenopolis, Commanding Officer of the NYPD’s Organized Crime Investigation Division, known as OCID, told the PIX report .  “These are secret societies that have learned,” Desenopolis added. “We were able to put people away for long periods of time. They realized, and learned how to adapt.”

Renee Graziano, courtesy of Instagram. (She lost a lot of weight!) While doing research, I caught a few "news" headlines that invited scrutiny.  I honestly still wonder what the world's coming to....  Every single one of the stories was from the blog I have previously mentioned , which I am now certain is written and not edited by half wits so obviously biased about the VH1 reality show "Mob Wives" that it's ridiculous. 

Philadelphia's Natalie Guercio will soon be joined by Philadelphia's Natalie DiDonato on the VH1 reality show Mob Wives. We don't know when the new Natalie will appear but she's rolled out her social media accounts and has been stomping on Natalie Guercio's guts.... and deleting at least one earlier tweet that noted a family connection, specifically that "Frankie Flowers" was her cousin. Natalie Didonato Joseph "Uncle Joe" Ligambi allegedly "made his bones" by killing DiDonato's cousin -- assuming Frank "Frankie Flowers" D'Alfonso is her cousin.

Andrew DiDonato 's downfall was already under way before he even realized it. But he knew without a doubt that his boss and cohorts were sizing him for a body bag. Experience taught Andrew how to find the traps. This was a skill quickly cultivated by Mafia associates who planned on living a long life, especially associates who took to the life with DiDonato's vigor. Former Gambino associate Andrew DiDonato. Ultimately, Andrew never killed anyone. To this day he is thankful that he never crossed that line. Andrew's book (written with true-crime writer Dennis N. Griffin , Surviving the Mob: A Street Soldier's Life in the Gambino Crime Family ) is dense with details of his many years on the street as a Gambino associate in the crew run by capo Nicholas "Little Nick" Corozzo. DiDonato made enemies out of major leaders in two crime families (in the end, three, including his own) during his years on the street. He once shot another man point blank in the head...

Dennis Griffin has written several books on organized crime in America. Dennis Griffin writes about a lot of things, perhaps most notably, the Mafia (see story on Andrew Didonato , about whom Denny wrote Surviving the Mob , one of my favorite mob books ). When I interviewed him recently, one of my first questions was: "What do you consider the most difficult part of the book-writing process?" I expected a few possible responses, one or two involving a firearm. "Promotions," he said immediately as if that answer had been lurking on the tip of his tongue all along. I nearly fell out of my chair. "What about the research?"

Andrew DiDonato Andrew DiDonato 's downfall was well under way when he suddenly realized his boss and cohorts were sizing him up for a body bag. Andrew was a shrewd character and his experience had taught him where the traps where. This was a skill acquired quickly by Mafia associates who plan on living a long life -- or at least associates who took to the life with DiDonato's vigor. He was a cowboy: an earner and a shooter. It is only by the grace of God he hasn't killed anyone. Andrew is very much aware of this and thanks God to this day that he never crossed that line. Andrew's book (written with noted true-crime writer Dennis N. Griffin ),  Surviving the Mob: A Street Soldier's Life in the Gambino Crime Family , is dense with details of Andrew's years on the street as a Gambino associate who was a member of  the crew overseen by capo Nicholas "Little Nick" Corozzo .

Andrew DiDonato 's downfall was already under way before he even realized it. Andrew Didonato, former Gambino associate The onetime former Gambino associate knew his boss and cohorts were sizing him for a body bag. Andrew's book (written with true-crime writer Dennis N. Griffin , Surviving the Mob: A Street Soldier's Life in the Gambino Crime Family ) is dense with details of his many years on the street as a Gambino associate in the crew run by capo Nicholas "Little Nick" Corozzo. DiDonato made enemies out of major leaders in two crime families (in the end, three, including his own) during his years on the street. He once shot another man point blank in the head. The man stumbled onto the ground, surviving the first shot. He would not have survived the next shot, which DiDonato crouched down to administer. He pressed the gun's muzzle to the wounded man's head and was set to squeeze the trigger -- when he noticed a witness staring ...