Cosa Nostra News

Some claims made in the press seem suspicious to us. A remake of a 1974 film was also based on the story of the Ray Merolle crew, a Staten-Island-based car-theft ring? Sounds preposterous to us, and yet.... If you have read about new Mob Wife Love Majewski, chances are you will have seen a little anecdote in the story that goes something like this:    Love Majewski and Ray Merolle, the man famous for running the "Untouchables" car-theft operation, were the inspiration for the film " Gone in Sixty Seconds ," with Angelina Jolie playing a character based on Love. [Does that mean ol' Nic Cage was playing Ray?]

Roy DeMeo, hunting -- game this time, it would appear. Ray Merrole and his crew considered themselves as untouchable car thieves -- and even claimed a big budget Hollywood movie was based on their exploits (we strong disagree with this, as we noted ) Roy DeMeo, who also ran a stolen-car ring, had a much bigger operation than Ray did. Roy's went all the way up to mob boss Paul Castellano, who was actually on trial for this auto-theft operation when he was whacked by John Gotti and company. Big Paul, not trusting Roy to "stand up," had had him whacked months earlier.

If you are going to do something, you might as well learn how to do it from the best. Keeping that thought it mind, the news that a News Corp. unit used Mafia films to motivate employees and crush rivals is quite revealing. This represents "the latest arm of Rupert Murdoch’s media empire to be swept up in a probe that began with hacking and bribery allegations," reports The Washington Post . "Already the subject of inquiries in America and the U.K. of police payoffs and illegal voicemail access by its British newspapers, News Corp. has been asked by U.S. investigators for documents relating to its News America Marketing Group, which places in-store ads in supermarkets and retailers worldwide, according to a person familiar with the matter," the Post writes. The marketing unit, "rivals claimed in court papers, has expanded by flouting antitrust laws, and in one case, computer hacking. News America’s CEO, also publisher of the New York Post, testified in ...