Sammy "The Bull" Gravano - "Underboss" book

Has anyone ever read this?

I read it when it first came out, jeez, it must've been 10-15 years ago. I was just a kid when I bought it (it was in the bargain bin and I was a voracious reader!), and it really started my love of all things mafia-related. Man, I've probably read it at least 7 or 8 times, at least.

The way everyone is portrayed in that book - Gotti, the other families, Sammy himself - is it accurate?

Do you think things really were the way Sammy made them out to be, or was he just, um, 'embellishing'?

Cheers,
Mozzer

(and are all mobsters really that womanizing? ha)

I read it, Some was prob. embellishing, and some was accurate

I read it too, I believe what the books says. After all, Sammy became a "talker". So he had nothing to lose. Neither loyalty to keep...

Good question, Mozzer.
All autobiographies and "tell-alls" are self-serving. Mobsters have more motivation than any others to embellish. They're breaking omerta and therefore have to "justify" their violation of their "oath" by whipping up a rationale for being a rat.

Probably a lot of the circumstantial stuff Gravano revealed was accurate because, in order to get his plea-bargain, he had to solve murders that the Feds who cut him his break needed to have solved. So, I believe him when he said he did or was complicit in 19 murders--those murders were on record. I also believe a lot of the construction rackets he talked about--standard Mafia stuff, and he was a very entrepreneurial gangster. I also believe a lot of the stuff he said about Gotti because Gotti was a publicity hound, and it was in the public record.
But there's a lot of BS in there, too. For example, he derides Castellano as a mere "racketeer," while he and Gotti were (gosh!) gangster! Yet he repeats every kudo the hated Castellano ever threw his way. And he brags about his "loyalty" to "Mafia," meanwhile jumping to the Feds' side as soon as it looked like Gotti was going to exercise his Don's prerogative by making Sammy fall on his sword. Some "Mafia" guy.

Gravano saw Castellano as more of a businessman then a gangster.

Gravano flipped when he heard Gotti on the tapes.

One who made millions.

I read the book years ago. Gravano always struck me as a complete hypocrite. To the feds, he tried to appear contrite and cooperative after deciding to become a protected witness. Yet, in the book, he was often boastful of his crimes and did not seem to have much sympathy for anyone of his victims.

The best story was how enraged Sammy became after a drug dealing, gun-toting Columbian aimed his gun at Sammy. This was after the two worked out a deal for Sammy to sell a nightclub to the drug dealer. Similar to Joe Pesci's "Goodfellas" character after the encounter with Billy Batts, Sammy left the scene fuming. Sammy came back later that night and killed the drug dealer, while also keeping much of the money that was paid for the nightclub.

On top of that, the a-hole cuts the deal of the century with the Feds, then leaves the Witness Protection Program, enters the Ecstacy business with his wife and family--and gets caught. He'll never see the sun shine again. Good for him!

One of the things that intrigued me about the book was the numerous times Gravano claimed to have detailed conversations with Castellano about business, up to and including hits.

It could be bunk of course but why would a boss want to have direct discussions with a soldier about what that soldier was doing? I mean Gravano was known as a moneymaker but still..

I don't know if Castellano really was that reckless or if Gravano was just making up those portions of his story.

That's what I meant earlier when I posted about his hypocrisy: deriding Castellano but bragging about all the time and attention he got from him.

Yup. Like a lot of things in the book, it doesn't add up. I know it was a different time and the Families didn't quite have the problems with informants and surveillance they do today but good grief, if I'm the boss of a Family there's no chance I'm discussing ANY criminal activities with low level soldiers.. that's why we would have buffas!