by Juice Terry » Thu Apr 24, 2025 1:23 pm
Anybody here read John Pearson's One Of The Family: The Englishman And The Mafia? It's a biography of English criminal and ex-manager of Black Sabbath, Wilf Pine.
Pine was very close friends with Joe Pagano, whom he met through the music business. In fact Pagano was even Best Man at Pine's wedding. Pine could be regarded as an associate of the Pagano crew. He was a messenger for Joe, travelling around the country delivering envelopes etc.
There's an incident in the book in which Pine supposedly saves infamous British music manager Don Arden, the self-styled 'Al Capone of Pop' from being killed by Pagano.
Arden had been in negotiations with one of Pagano's crew over a music-related deal. The meeting got a bit heated and Pagano's name was mentioned. Arden: "Whose Joe Pagano? Fuck him! He's a faggott!...etc" Next thing you know Pine, who was in NY, is getting a call from a furious Pagano wanting to know who this Arden is, and telling Pine to bring him to a certain restaurant in Manhatten the next day.
Pine gives Arden the message, and the next day Pine, Arden and Arden's son turn up at the restaurant, only to find it closed. Straight away Pine starts to get a bad feeling. They are let into the empty restaurant and take seats. After a short wait, the doors burst open and in strides a very angry Pagano and a few of his crew, including a notorious Genovese hit man, who proceeds to stand right behind Arden. Pagano immediately starts on Arden: "You call me a fuckin faggot?!!". Arden is lost for words and his son is visibly shitting himself. Pine, knowing what is about to go down, pulls Pagano to one side and explains that Arden is an idiot loudmouth but a good earner. He can make Joe a lot of money if he let's him apologise.
Such was Pagano's respect for Pine that he let it slide and, eventually he and Arden became business partners and good friends.
It's been a while since I read the book but I believe that's how it went down. Pine is no longer with us but he was also friends with Danny Pagano, whom he visited a number of times in jail.
Don Arden, an ex-wrestler, managed the Small Faces, ELO and Jerry Lee Lewis amongst others. He employed underworld tough guys to make sure his acts got paid and that their records were played on the radio. Peter Grant, the notorious manager of Led Zeppelin, was his one-time bodyguard and driver, as was Pine. He once threatened to throw the Bee Gees manager Robert Stigwood out of a high-rise window after Stigwood tried to poach the Small Faces from him. The surviving Small Faces believe Arden ripped them off big time.
Anybody here read John Pearson's One Of The Family: The Englishman And The Mafia? It's a biography of English criminal and ex-manager of Black Sabbath, Wilf Pine.
Pine was very close friends with Joe Pagano, whom he met through the music business. In fact Pagano was even Best Man at Pine's wedding. Pine could be regarded as an associate of the Pagano crew. He was a messenger for Joe, travelling around the country delivering envelopes etc.
There's an incident in the book in which Pine supposedly saves infamous British music manager Don Arden, the self-styled 'Al Capone of Pop' from being killed by Pagano.
Arden had been in negotiations with one of Pagano's crew over a music-related deal. The meeting got a bit heated and Pagano's name was mentioned. Arden: "Whose Joe Pagano? Fuck him! He's a faggott!...etc" Next thing you know Pine, who was in NY, is getting a call from a furious Pagano wanting to know who this Arden is, and telling Pine to bring him to a certain restaurant in Manhatten the next day.
Pine gives Arden the message, and the next day Pine, Arden and Arden's son turn up at the restaurant, only to find it closed. Straight away Pine starts to get a bad feeling. They are let into the empty restaurant and take seats. After a short wait, the doors burst open and in strides a very angry Pagano and a few of his crew, including a notorious Genovese hit man, who proceeds to stand right behind Arden. Pagano immediately starts on Arden: "You call me a fuckin faggot?!!". Arden is lost for words and his son is visibly shitting himself. Pine, knowing what is about to go down, pulls Pagano to one side and explains that Arden is an idiot loudmouth but a good earner. He can make Joe a lot of money if he let's him apologise.
Such was Pagano's respect for Pine that he let it slide and, eventually he and Arden became business partners and good friends.
It's been a while since I read the book but I believe that's how it went down. Pine is no longer with us but he was also friends with Danny Pagano, whom he visited a number of times in jail.
Don Arden, an ex-wrestler, managed the Small Faces, ELO and Jerry Lee Lewis amongst others. He employed underworld tough guys to make sure his acts got paid and that their records were played on the radio. Peter Grant, the notorious manager of Led Zeppelin, was his one-time bodyguard and driver, as was Pine. He once threatened to throw the Bee Gees manager Robert Stigwood out of a high-rise window after Stigwood tried to poach the Small Faces from him. The surviving Small Faces believe Arden ripped them off big time.