New LCNBios: Santini and Prisco (2004)

[Benandjosh]

Jiggs, what was the deal with the meldish brothers. We’re they related to any mob guys or were they just street thugs who were still street dealing in their 50s/60s.

[SILENT PARTNERZ]

Strongly agree.

Me too...

JIGGS

Jiggs, if you have insights/stories about Tony Salerno and his crew,
please share them. I enjoy reading your posts. Thanks, SP

[JIGGS]

Thanks for the info Jiggs, I know that the South Brooklyn boys were as just as tough, all the gangs by the docks. How do you think they compare?

I couldn't tell you. Brooklyn was Brooklyn. The Motherland. But Harlem was Harlem. All I can tell you is my perspective of what I seen. The way gangs worked was evident by way of their rumbles. You might have a showdown with the Jokers versus the Redwings. The Jokers were smaller than Redwings so, like any other gang, they would typically form an alliance with any other clubs that had a hard on for the Redwings. Jokers weren't shit so everyone wore their own colors. Whereas when the Redwings had a Warlord pow wow with the more bigger gangs like the Baldies or Mau Mau Chaplains, all the Italian clubs in Manhattan, some from the Bronx, would wave the Redwing flag. It would be a sea of Red jackets. That's how you determine who had the respect. In Brooklyn, there was a club from Sackett Street that I thought was THE club to beat in Brooklyn. They all had cars, for starters. A car for any teenager was the gateway to pussy. They also had real guns. Which automatically made them intimidating. Not those flaky zips that often blew up in your hand.

My point in expressing this was that no one can tell or measure one club over another. Because when shit hit the frying pan, who you thought was powerful was actually 5-6 different clubs that, out of respect, wore the colors of the club they were rumbling in favor of. For all I know Sackett Street boys could have been 16 guys with guns. But when 5-6 other clubs were on record with SS for the fight, the perception transforms into there were 125 SS'ers that had guns.

JIGGS

[JIGGS]

Strongly agree.

Me too...

JIGGS

Jiggs, if you have insights/stories about Tony Salerno and his crew,
please share them. I enjoy reading your posts. Thanks, SP

Do we know each other?

Can't think of any. One thing that pops up is that in all the time I was in Harlem, Tony Salerno was hardly ever there. The books, newspapers make it seems like "Oh the Depalma boys club is the HQ for 116." But clubs abounded in Harlem. 1st Avenue especially. Mr. Salerno sitting in a chair in front of a social club was not a common sight.

JIGGS

[SonnyBlackstein]

What about ‘the warriors’ Jiggs?

And can you comment on the Orphans and the Baseball Furies?

[Angelo Santino]

What about ‘the warriors’ Jiggs?

And can you comment on the Orphans and the Baseball Furies?

I was next in line to take over the Gramercy Riffs.

[SonnyBlackstein]

What about ‘the warriors’ Jiggs?

And can you comment on the Orphans and the Baseball Furies?

I was next in line to take over the Gramercy Riffs.

Officially the coolest gang name. Ever.

[JeremyTheJew]

Strongly agree.

Me too...

JIGGS

Jiggs, if you have insights/stories about Tony Salerno and his crew,
please share them. I enjoy reading your posts. Thanks, SP

Do we know each other?

Can't think of any. One thing that pops up is that in all the time I was in Harlem, Tony Salerno was hardly ever there. The books, newspapers make it seems like "Oh the Depalma boys club is the HQ for 116." But clubs abounded in Harlem. 1st Avenue especially. Mr. Salerno sitting in a chair in front of a social club was not a common sight.

JIGGS

When he was there was it known that he was there??

[JIGGS]

Strongly agree.

Me too...

JIGGS

Jiggs, if you have insights/stories about Tony Salerno and his crew,
please share them. I enjoy reading your posts. Thanks, SP

Do we know each other?

Can't think of any. One thing that pops up is that in all the time I was in Harlem, Tony Salerno was hardly ever there. The books, newspapers make it seems like "Oh the Depalma boys club is the HQ for 116." But clubs abounded in Harlem. 1st Avenue especially. Mr. Salerno sitting in a chair in front of a social club was not a common sight.

JIGGS

When he was there was it known that he was there??

You knew more when people not from around there were around there. Because they made it real obvious. Tony made Nightline or 20/20 around '81 or '82 or so and the Avenue began to receive 'visitors' during the day (because at night they wouldn't dare. It was still very much a dangerous area. Even worse for any White men or women strolling near or around there). When I say 'visitors' in this case I'm not talking Feds or plainclothes NYPD. I'm talking about "tourists" (local NYers who never thought of heading in that direction until they saw the ABC report) and curiosity seekers. Some asshole launched a walking tour scam and was bringing the bagel babies and fan boys pointing out to them how 2nd Avenue was the home base of the Mafia, and over here was the laundromat Lucky Luciano's mother worked at, etc. Total bullshit. But all them paying cable TV subscribers ate it up. They would usually disappear in the early afternoon. And they rarely made their way towards Pleasant. Even the so-called uppity ups who had a table at Rao's didn't hang around. Rao's was their $16 whore that had some good pussy but even better stories. They were in an out. A car would bring them to the front of the restaurant and they would walk right in, spend who knows on how much on both time and money, and call the car from inside. Car would turn the corner, park out front, the A lister comes out and disappears back to neverland USA. They never did any exploring. It was in and out. Just like a skifuza.

Before that when the effects of the drug trade became really visible in the '60s and back when I was a kid, Pleasant Avenue, much like Paladino Avenue as you moved past 120th st, were pretty desolate areas. Quiet. By 6pm it was a cemetery. If you were a professional crook that's where you wanna operate. That all changed in the 70s onward. The infamy of the Heroin epidemic, french connection scandal, couple of murders both in and around the area, and guys like Tony being nationally profiled, made it notorious.

I knew Depalma boys was Tony's domain the same way Chinks in California knew. It was all over the media. One time in the early 80s I saw three men standing in front of the space. Tony was nowhere in sight. That was my sum total experience of Tony Salerno at dePalma boys. To this day I don't know how those guys got caught being seen or taped having a conversation there. Especially the Lucchese boss being photographed out front with Tony Salerno. It boggles my mind considering the scrutiny they was under. Funzi had just been RICO convicted, they literally named Cockeyed Phil the new acting boss on national tv, and here are these two following it up with a public meet. Granted there's plenty of examples of bosses or administration of different families being caught palling around in public. But I found it so fucking brazen they would be out in public. Seated outside a then notorious social club. Discussing their crew business. Why not go to the roof? They might have caught a crackhead or two but still. Anyway they must have still felt like the area was a no man's land. Creatures of habit. Another time the gate was up real early and while at the diner I frequented on 1st Avenue a cop of all things told me he was there, using Tony's nick the media made famous. By the time I got back around 12:30pm, the gate was down. Did the neighborhood "know" when the don of the Genovese was there? (I'm being sarcastic). Now you're in Johnny Carson territory. Swami shit. I can't answer that question. If they did know they wasn't blabbing about it. And I wouldn't have known anyway. This was in the '70s and early '80s that Tony became associated with 115th Street off Pleasant Avenue. Today its what he is known for entirely. But when I was a kid, Tony was not a member of the East Harlem community. He had interests there definitely. But to my knowledge he didn't actually live there. Nor his brothers.

DePalma boys wasn't Tony's club. He inherited it or made it his in the 1970s. Before that I only ever remember the 116 crew congregating at Trigger Mike's club in the old days, and I found out years later that Ben Turpin ran it in his day, or was known as being "his". DePalma's was run by a guy named Joe Morelli who I don't think was in the life or wasn't a heavy who was related to Sammy Black somehow. Some said he was the cousin, others said a half-brother. I don't know. It became Bucaloo's club. When Bucaloo took over he made his base "Ben's" club and was always seen at the Delightful on 116. (Probably because he owned it. You know who the source for that is? The late Tommy deMarco (rip). The moderator from the old Real Deal! Ain't that a pisser?) and then I guess when Tony got promoted dePalma's became known as his joint.

Sorry I couldn't be more exciting with my response to your question. But I'm just being honest with my own experience. I never saw Anthony Salerno or his brothers on the block, on 116, nowhere. Obviously running a policy network must have forced him to come around. But I never saw him when I was growing up or even when he became associated with the dePalma Boys Social club. I was chasing tail so maybe that's why.

JIGGS

[JIGGS]

What about ‘the warriors’ Jiggs?

And can you comment on the Orphans and the Baseball Furies?

You tell me. I don't play GangsterBb. That's your bag.

JIGGS

[Costigan]

I think it was the Palma Boy's Social Club, not DePalmas. But I'm not from Italian Harlem.

[Cheech]

5. Interesting Leo and Prisco were Purple and by all accounts got along. now he comes home and hes on the outs.

Because they weren't Purple.

I just listened to them tapes on that blog and found it ironic. Everybody knew who the Priscos were. When he says they (Gambinos) ruined the life because of their ego and implying the flashiness, it the pot calling the kettle black. Angelo was the "Johnny Boy" ( Gotti Sr) of his domain during the period the DEA says there was a "Purple Gang."

Everybody knew who the Priscos were.

I lived in East Harlem my entire life until only recently, the fucks. You know when I first heard the name Daniel Leo? When Capeci introduced him as new acting boss all them years ago in the Sun. Before that? Never.

Leo was invisible. Everybody knew the Priscos.

Angelo was in and out of prison. Like he said in them tapes. Since he was a kid. From what Jerry wrote about him Leo was barely on the local cops radar much less the Feds before he got outed as the acting. Dollars to donuts, Leo steered clear of Angelo Prisco. Who was every bit as "loud" as John Gotti was back in the day. I'm not the least bit surprised that the powers that be "distanced" Angelo from his crew. I also wouldn't be surprised if it came from Cirillo, who acted on the Chin's say. Angelo was "hot." Especially after that pardon by the finook governor of the state.

That wikipedia entry for Purple Gang is a joke. Whoever wrote it is really dumb and drawing straws. The only Italian American gang in E. Harlem were the Red Wings. How come nobody writes about them? That was the real farm team for the Harlem Lucchese-Genovese generation. Purple Gang is make believe like the Westies.

JIGGS

thanks Jiggs. Looking back any Giglio photo Angelo is pretty easy to spot if you know what i mean. what youre saying makes sense to me

[JIGGS]

I think it was the Palma Boy's Social Club, not DePalmas. But I'm not from Italian Harlem.

You don't have to be obviously.

JIGGS

[JIGGS]

5. Interesting Leo and Prisco were Purple and by all accounts got along. now he comes home and hes on the outs.

Because they weren't Purple.

I just listened to them tapes on that blog and found it ironic. Everybody knew who the Priscos were. When he says they (Gambinos) ruined the life because of their ego and implying the flashiness, it the pot calling the kettle black. Angelo was the "Johnny Boy" ( Gotti Sr) of his domain during the period the DEA says there was a "Purple Gang."

Everybody knew who the Priscos were.

I lived in East Harlem my entire life until only recently, the fucks. You know when I first heard the name Daniel Leo? When Capeci introduced him as new acting boss all them years ago in the Sun. Before that? Never.

Leo was invisible. Everybody knew the Priscos.

Angelo was in and out of prison. Like he said in them tapes. Since he was a kid. From what Jerry wrote about him Leo was barely on the local cops radar much less the Feds before he got outed as the acting. Dollars to donuts, Leo steered clear of Angelo Prisco. Who was every bit as "loud" as John Gotti was back in the day. I'm not the least bit surprised that the powers that be "distanced" Angelo from his crew. I also wouldn't be surprised if it came from Cirillo, who acted on the Chin's say. Angelo was "hot." Especially after that pardon by the finook governor of the state.

That wikipedia entry for Purple Gang is a joke. Whoever wrote it is really dumb and drawing straws. The only Italian American gang in E. Harlem were the Red Wings. How come nobody writes about them? That was the real farm team for the Harlem Lucchese-Genovese generation. Purple Gang is make believe like the Westies.

JIGGS

thanks Jiggs. Looking back any Giglio photo Angelo is pretty easy to spot if you know what i mean. what youre saying makes sense to me

X-ZAC!

I'm pretty surprised at Capeci. Who has expressed in the not so distant far away past that he is a stickler for accuracy and was always "outing" Ernie Volkman for being more of a used car salesman than a tireless investor in analyzing the data available on organized crime. That he would legitimize a East Harlem "Purple Gang."

It really comes down to your own common sense. Picture this. It's 1969 through 1971. I'm moving "H" on 122nd between 2nd & 3rd, 118 bet. 2nd & 3rd, 119th between 3rd & Lexington and run a shooting gallery on 110th Street & Lex, a basement on 116 bet. 3rd & Lex, and move the money to a candy store on 2nd, an apartment above it, and an apt. on 125th and 1st. A whole mini-network of distro. Baggers, counters, runners, dealers, handful of enforcers, recon, spotters. The Priscos are doing the same thing and are also making themselves available as muscle (extortion). The Meldisch's are known as enforcers and are robbing dealers who give up runners who tell them where the goods are. Frankie Caserta puts in money and gets a high total of points on a package. That package is robbed. I'm the guy whose goods was robbed and who owes Frankie his money. I tell Frankie I know who can find them. If he helps out, I owe him for the package and for this. He reaches out to his old man who in turn reaches out to who Rudy P. and Angelo are "with." They come in, explain the Meldisch's value, if any. A deal gets made. The brothers keep the "H" on the condition they move it, give me my cut, so I can pay back Frankie's investment, plus extra. Now if anyone ever fucks with my shit or encroaches on any of the spots, I can call Caserta, who calls Rudy, who tells Angelo to sic the Meldisch's on them. Let them move it, give the Prisco's and Caserta their cut, and I get my money.

It's all a fictionalized narrative but its based on a real scenario. Within that narrative I never meet the Priscos or the Meldisch's. Frankie is the buffer. For the Meldisch's, the buffer are the Priscos. They don't know Caserta or me. In this context Frankie holds all the power. He can roll on me and the Priscos. There's no buffer in between and can link all to a conspiracy.

Why the fuck would anyone in any of those positions, and within that small network, be thinking "Let's call ourselves the "Purple Gang?" Nobody thinks like that, see? Not on that level. You're not trying to brand yourself, least of all with people you barely know, are not your loyal friends, are connected to you by way of convenience. For all I know Frankie could have been in cahoots with the Priscos. Because that's how they make their money. You're not trying to tag yourself and be lumped together with a psycho like Joe the Russian. (Joseph Meldisch's nick.). So where does that shit come from? It's the media. Who in cahoots with the keystone coppers trying to get "upped" in their own pyramid structures, they run with this whole notion of a gang, naming the players illustrated in my above scenario, that's in line with this "Black Mafia" BS they were spinning during that era, and make the group into some organized threat to Cosa Nostra, but who also works with them and do contract killings, etc.

No Italians branded themselves publicly. Made or not. "Blue Thunder" was the brainchild of a wholesale broker. Not who supplied Vinny Gorgeous.

It was the Mulinyan who started the whole branding of junk. Giving it exotic names. "Sexy Lady," "Super Fly," "Foxy Brown," "Good Times," shit like that. The earliest guy I can recall was the guy that no one has managed to track down to this day. Matthews. If that was even his real name. If he's even still breathing.

Erase Purple Gang from the pantheon on N.Y. mob lore. Unless someone can show hard proof that there was such an entity, committing crimes they've been heralded with, and thru criminal prosecutions charging "Purple Gang" as a continuing illegal enterprise, then it's as fugazy as it gets. I mean c'mon if this was a real peppers and eggs group, the J. Edgar Hoovers and junk task force would have built a case in no time. The same way the DEA was all over Gigi the Whale, Matty Madonna, Louis Cirillo, Ernie Boy, Angelo Ruggiero, Gene, Carneglia, etc. They busted the Demeo crew, Coonan & Co., Jimmy Burke and Vario crew, Bergin crew, etc. How come the Purple Gang was never brought to justice? Because there was no PGN. It was aaaall a dream.

JIGGS

[John W]

5. Interesting Leo and Prisco were Purple and by all accounts got along. now he comes home and hes on the outs.

Because they weren't Purple.

I just listened to them tapes on that blog and found it ironic. Everybody knew who the Priscos were. When he says they (Gambinos) ruined the life because of their ego and implying the flashiness, it the pot calling the kettle black. Angelo was the "Johnny Boy" ( Gotti Sr) of his domain during the period the DEA says there was a "Purple Gang."

Everybody knew who the Priscos were.

I lived in East Harlem my entire life until only recently, the fucks. You know when I first heard the name Daniel Leo? When Capeci introduced him as new acting boss all them years ago in the Sun. Before that? Never.

Leo was invisible. Everybody knew the Priscos.

Angelo was in and out of prison. Like he said in them tapes. Since he was a kid. From what Jerry wrote about him Leo was barely on the local cops radar much less the Feds before he got outed as the acting. Dollars to donuts, Leo steered clear of Angelo Prisco. Who was every bit as "loud" as John Gotti was back in the day. I'm not the least bit surprised that the powers that be "distanced" Angelo from his crew. I also wouldn't be surprised if it came from Cirillo, who acted on the Chin's say. Angelo was "hot." Especially after that pardon by the finook governor of the state.

That wikipedia entry for Purple Gang is a joke. Whoever wrote it is really dumb and drawing straws. The only Italian American gang in E. Harlem were the Red Wings. How come nobody writes about them? That was the real farm team for the Harlem Lucchese-Genovese generation. Purple Gang is make believe like the Westies.

JIGGS

thanks Jiggs. Looking back any Giglio photo Angelo is pretty easy to spot if you know what i mean. what youre saying makes sense to me

X-ZAC!

I'm pretty surprised at Capeci. Who has expressed in the not so distant far away past that he is a stickler for accuracy and was always "outing" Ernie Volkman for being more of a used car salesman than a tireless investor in analyzing the data available on organized crime. That he would legitimize a East Harlem "Purple Gang."

It really comes down to your own common sense. Picture this. It's 1969 through 1971. I'm moving "H" on 122nd between 2nd & 3rd, 118 bet. 2nd & 3rd, 119th between 3rd & Lexington and run a shooting gallery on 110th Street & Lex, a basement on 116 bet. 3rd & Lex, and move the money to a candy store on 2nd, an apartment above it, and an apt. on 125th and 1st. A whole mini-network of distro. Baggers, counters, runners, dealers, handful of enforcers, recon, spotters. The Priscos are doing the same thing and are also making themselves available as muscle (extortion). The Meldisch's are known as enforcers and are robbing dealers who give up runners who tell them where the goods are. Frankie Caserta puts in money and gets a high total of points on a package. That package is robbed. I'm the guy whose goods was robbed and who owes Frankie his money. I tell Frankie I know who can find them. If he helps out, I owe him for the package and for this. He reaches out to his old man who in turn reaches out to who Rudy P. and Angelo are "with." They come in, explain the Meldisch's value, if any. A deal gets made. The brothers keep the "H" on the condition they move it, give me my cut, so I can pay back Frankie's investment, plus extra. Now if anyone ever fucks with my shit or encroaches on any of the spots, I can call Caserta, who calls Rudy, who tells Angelo to sic the Meldisch's on them. Let them move it, give the Prisco's and Caserta their cut, and I get my money.

It's all a fictionalized narrative but its based on a real scenario. Within that narrative I never meet the Priscos or the Meldisch's. Frankie is the buffer. For the Meldisch's, the buffer are the Priscos. They don't know Caserta or me. In this context Frankie holds all the power. He can roll on me and the Priscos. There's no buffer in between and can link all to a conspiracy.

Why the fuck would anyone in any of those positions, and within that small network, be thinking "Let's call ourselves the "Purple Gang?" Nobody thinks like that, see? Not on that level. You're not trying to brand yourself, least of all with people you barely know, are not your loyal friends, are connected to you by way of convenience. For all I know Frankie could have been in cahoots with the Priscos. Because that's how they make their money. You're not trying to tag yourself and be lumped together with a psycho like Joe the Russian. (Joseph Meldisch's nick.). So where does that shit come from? It's the media. Who in cahoots with the keystone coppers trying to get "upped" in their own pyramid structures, they run with this whole notion of a gang, naming the players illustrated in my above scenario, that's in line with this "Black Mafia" BS they were spinning during that era, and make the group into some organized threat to Cosa Nostra, but who also works with them and do contract killings, etc.

No Italians branded themselves publicly. Made or not. "Blue Thunder" was the brainchild of a wholesale broker. Not who supplied Vinny Gorgeous.

It was the Mulinyan who started the whole branding of junk. Giving it exotic names. "Sexy Lady," "Super Fly," "Foxy Brown," "Good Times," shit like that. The earliest guy I can recall was the guy that no one has managed to track down to this day. Matthews. If that was even his real name. If he's even still breathing.

Erase Purple Gang from the pantheon on N.Y. mob lore. Unless someone can show hard proof that there was such an entity, committing crimes they've been heralded with, and thru criminal prosecutions charging "Purple Gang" as a continuing illegal enterprise, then it's as fugazy as it gets. I mean c'mon if this was a real peppers and eggs group, the J. Edgar Hoovers and junk task force would have built a case in no time. The same way the DEA was all over Gigi the Whale, Matty Madonna, Louis Cirillo, Ernie Boy, Angelo Ruggiero, Gene, Carneglia, etc. They busted the Demeo crew, Coonan & Co., Jimmy Burke and Vario crew, Bergin crew, etc. How come the Purple Gang was never brought to justice? Because there was no PGN. It was aaaall a dream.

JIGGS

Jiggs I read this and thought of you straight away mate

https://www.thedailybeast.com/will-new- ... ese-family