Greg Scarpa

So, I have been reading up on this guy lately. He has to be one of the more interesting mobsters I have ever read about. They could make a movie about this guy. It's interesting he is not well known.

Respected/feared mobster, who happens to be an informent for most of his mob career, wacked dozens of people, breaks one of the biggest cases in the cival rights era via torcher, survives multiple Colombo family wars(in which he was a heavy instigator), gets HIV, in the final Colombo war at 63 frail and in declining health is driving around going Rambo on rivals blowing fools away, breaks his house arrest agreement to have one final shootout in which he loses an eye from a bullet wound.. the 63 year old grandpa dying of AID's is such a badass that he is considered too dangerous to be out on the streets. Finally dies of AID's a few years later.

I mean what the actual fuck? Is there any mobster, that even approachs that sort of rollercoaster of a career and mob life? It's insane, I am seriously surprised they haven't made a movie about this guys life. I just ordered thd book Deal with the Devil, hoping its a good read. Im just surprised this guy isn't discussed more when people discuss mob history.

Deal with the Devil is kind of dry but it's probably the best account of the Persico-era of the Columbo family in print.

Right on, so it goes a little in depth on what was happening within the family during that time? The book is fairly new, does it give a lot of info on things we hadn't known till now? Or is it kinda like things that have been known but just a little more detail?

Well, the book is a republishing of Six Six Six: The FBI Agent, the Mob Killer, and the Bloody Alliance the Feds Tried to Hide which was published in 2008. The current title is much better, IMO.

I don't think that it reveals a ton of what wasn't already available in FBI files, court reports, etc., but it does put it all together for us in a neat package.

So, yeah, kind of like things that have been known but just a little more detail.

Does anybody have any ideas about the alleged Orena/Amato frame-up by Scarpa? If it was him and not them to do the murder, why did some gangster (don't remember if it was Maffattore or Bonfiglio) get recorded complaining for not being rewarded by Amato for the hit? If Amato was involved, could he have acted without Orena's sanction?

All of this stuff is a clusterfuck who really knows what's what.. All sorts of rumors and speculation.. Like the fbi planting a bunch of guns and vests at the house vic orena was captured at. I think the third colombo war is very interesting.. I bet no one could make any fucking money during that time period. I heard wild bills crew would stand out on the sidewalk on 11th ave in front of his club all packing mac 10's and the other side would only drive by.
Shit if I was involved in any of that I would have locked myself inside for a year. People were getting shot non stop.

Scarpa was all about self-preservation and playing both ends against the middle to keep his ass out of jail and keep profiting. The fact that he was able to do it for so long is what is amazing. His involvement in gaining confessions in the civil rights murders is kind of cool if you're interested in clandestine gov't ops. In the end though, he left his crime and blood families in ruins and everyone he was involved with suffered.

I can say this about the 90's columbo war for fact the persico faction were fighting for amusement and recognition keeping control of the family was never a concern. On the other hand the arena faction was fighting for survival those fellas felt the heat and always had extra diapers on hand.

There are many that come down hard on Carmine.
(And with good reason)
But if not for Scarpa sr. that hole family would have had a totally different history.
Scarpa ratted on so many good men to get then out of his way ,and others he killed or had killed ,the rest he setup ..

Him alone with out a doubt changed the course of that family forever.
The chance of them ever recovering is nill.......

He did not make Carmine defennd himself and be his own attorney.

He did not stop the Chin from killing his boy in the windows case.

And i dont think he had anything to do with the concrete club.

But if you look at most of the people that died or went to prison or just flat out retired or shelved ,he in some way was behind it....
I am not sure but i think the number is around 100 men..

there is a movie about his life in works right now. its called scarpa and will be starring Stallone as scarpa. and the writer is none other than Nicholas Pileggi!

Like snakes said deal with the devil is prob the best book about scarpa and the colombos , it he whole tommy ocera murder and who did it ordered it is puzzling to say the least

Haven't read deal with the devil. But mafia son
By scarpa jr is a very good look into what a self
Serving pos sr was

I agree. His whole story is incredible. I don't think there's any LCN member with such a colorful background and story behind them, not like Greg anyway. I remember hearing about the shootout back when he lost his eye, coming back home and putting some scotch on the wound... meanwhile the house arrest beeper had been going off, and soon the police arrived while he'd tell them that everything was okay. What a scene that must have been.

Yep like him or not his story has proved it was very interesting on both ends. I'm still not sold on the movie being good but hopefully it surprises me.

........how the heck is Greg freakin Scarpa "Not well known"? we're talking about arguably the most storied, revered American Mafia hitman of all time, right? Same guy?

Anyways, Stallone is too old to play him. Unless they're going to profile the end of his life? Which would be a waste of time, no one cares about that. We wanna see prime Scarpa, when he was really racking them up. They need someone younger.

I was watching the Mafias Greatest Hits on AHC about Joe Colombo the other night and i thought it was funny to see Scarpa talking to the news reporter while he's standing in front of FBI headquarters picketing for the Colombo rally, meanwhile he was on the feds payroll at the time.

Maybe among mob enthusiasts.. Because a lot of things that happened to the American mafia as a whole, come back to Scarpa. The more I read, the more I realise what a significant figure he was. For the average person down the street a guy like Roy DeMeo is more well known, which he shouldn't be. Then you have the Luciano's, Capone's, Gotti's. I bet if you asked people to name 10 gangsters most people wouldn't name Scarpa. Most probably never heard of him.

I read about the movie, and am annoyed they picked Stallone of all people to play him.. Why? The guy to me is a one dimensional actor, and he is not even good at that dimension. How can he play a character like Scarpa that has so many layers to his character? That is terrible casting.

Honestly, even though he is not Italian, I think Josh Brolin would play the character perfectly. But I'm pretty sure they would want a full blooded Italian, and im struggling to think of anyone who is italian, young and talented enough to play him that I could take serious. I say young enough, because I think/hope they would cover atleast to right before he being an informant, through the rest of his life.

Walkner : All that can hope for is they have a young guy do the civil rights era 60's..
Then a different guy do the 70,s and maybe just maybe ,with the magic of Hollywood ,we can get Sly do 80's ,cos he will be alright with the 90's ,when that fuck was in his 60's

I watched a documentary on him last night. It said that because of his northern Italian heritage the Profacis had concerns about having him become a made guy. I wonder if at the time all the families thought like this. I'm not sure if it would matter now.

Good question.

Always wondered whether if in the early days the 5 were ethnically regionally mainly comprised.

I know that alot of Bonnano's were Sicilian.

Were other families similary regionally orientated? EG Westside more Campania? Columbo's from Puglia? Luchesse Calabrians etc etc?