This WASP (white, anglo-saxon, protestant) who became the Dean of the underworld in Tampa, Forida didnt have the usual rough upbringing associated with American mobsters. Read Next: Ke Huy Quan, Stephanie Hsu, Saweetie and More Honored on Gold Houses 2023 A100 List, Adele Lim Directing Ashley Park in Untitled R-Rated Comedy for Lionsgate, Point Grey (EXCLUSIVE), Netflix Delaying The Gray Man Production Amid Surging California COVID-19 Cases, Millie Bobby Brown to Star in the Russo Brothers Sci-Fi Film The Electric State, Only Murders in the Building Season 3 Premiere Date Revealed by Steve Martin and Martin Short at Comedy Show (EXCLUSIVE), Jock Zonfrillo, MasterChef Australia Judge, Dies at 46, Matthew Lawrence: 'My Agency Fired Me' After I Refused to Take My Clothes Off for an Award-Winning Director, Willie Nelsons 90th Birthday Is Smoking, With Snoop Dogg, George Strait and Neil Young Among the Party Favorites at the Hollywood Bowl, Super Mario Bros. Movie Officially Smashes $1 Billion Globally, COVER STORY | How a Sex Scandal, Big Egos and Putin Led to Jeff Shells Sudden, No Payout Exit From NBCU, Ryan Goslings Greta Gerwig Barbie Tee and Margot Robbies Pink Two Piece Embrace Barbiecore, The Brilliance of Harry Belafonte in 12 Songs, Bob Odenkirk Joins The Bear Season 2 (EXCLUSIVE), Is This 'Beau Is Afraid' Character a De-Aged Joaquin Phoenix? Featherstone plead guilty to one racketeering charge and was soon released for his cooperation. He became known as Jimmy C. As we said last week, Jimmy C. took over the Hells Kitchen Irish mob after he made a deal with Gambino member Roy Demeo to kill the previous boss, Mickey Spillane, in 1977. You can contact the show to be a guest or to interview me!For general business inquiries: bloodontherazorwire@gmail.comIn today's video, I talk about the expriencies I've had with my brother and other various subjects. T.J. English described Cummiskey as, "curly black hair, piercing blue eyes, and the cockiness of a bantam rooster, Cummiskey looked and sounded like a gangster from the 1920s". 1991)", "7 Westies Given Sentences Of Up to 75 Years in Prison", "Prosecutor Says Gang Terrorized Hell's Kitchen", James and Edna Coonan's 1989 appeal brief, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=James_Coonan&oldid=1151269070, 75 years' imprisonment and a $1 million fine, This page was last edited on 22 April 2023, at 23:47. Two, he made his money via illegal gambling. Adlers producing credits include Valkyrie, Superman Returns, Constantine and Starsky and Hutch. Baldwin also wrote an untitled Gregory Hoblit project, set up at Castle Rock, and an untitled Pierre Morel Tokyo thriller for Paramount. According to lore, the carton contained Dugan's penis, which was later rumored to have been placed in a pickle jar and kept in a refrigerator. 2 Westie Francis Mickey Featherstone, said the gang had even shot a union leader as a favor to reputed Gambino boss John Gotti. During this incarceration Featherstone was injected with Thorazine. Your email address will not be published. Today. James Coonan is currently serving his 60 year sentence in Lewisburg Federal Penitentiary in Pennsylvania. He got a sweet deal in a pea bargain and was released in late 1971 and continued his war on Mickey Spillane. McCarthy, Adler and Baldwin are also collaborating on an adaptation of Ken Bruen and Reed Farrel Colemans Tower that Baldwin is penning. Very few mobsters live a long, stress-free life and die of old age. Edward was born in 1934. He passed the money to a girl who remembered seeing his name tattooed on his forearm. This was a broken man. Maybe Amato. He now lives under an assumed name somewhere in the USA.[2]. By 1976, Coonan and Featherstone were engaged in taking over Spillane's territory, culminating in the 1977 shooting of Spillane, for which Featherstone was arrested and acquitted, and the death of Stein. In retaliation and to set Mickey Featherstone up to take the fall, Billy Bokun, Johns brother got a car identical to Mickey Featherstones and put on a long haired wig and fake mustache to look like Featherstone. In addition, the jury found Coonan participated in most of the racketeering acts charged against him, including seven murders. His younger brother is Richard Coonan. Scan this QR code to download the app now. In this case, he was found not guilty due to insanity. In the 1970s Coonan worked as an enforcer and bodyguard for loanshark named Ruby Stein. Prosecutors Mary Lee Warren and David Brodsky had contended the six men and two women on trial were the violent core of the Westies, which they said seized control of the neighborhood once known as Hells Kitchen and maintained their rule with horrible and ghoulish acts of murder., Witnesses testified that in at least three murders, the victims body was cut up and disposed of in what Ms. Warren called the nightmarish signature crime of the Westies.. 3.0 out of 5 . Thats my son there.. Since his death, and the slaying of other prominent Greek mobsters in the 80s, the Greek mob has struggled to regain any foothold in the American underworld.[6]. Shane McCarthy, Gil Adler (Superman Returns) and Frank Baldwin are developing a feature version of T.J. Englishs mob tale The Westies and will produce through McCarthys Blue Engine Entertainment and Gil Adler Prods. Variety is a part of Penske Media Corporation. The following day, Coonan and Cummiskey went out for a drink with Billie Beattie at the Sunbrite Bar. Crime, of course. Ken Eto recovered and proceeded to testify, allowing for the state to get 15 mobsters in prison along with a clutch of corrupt cops. Born July 31, 1965, Hell's Kitchen. Coonan authorized the hit of Michael Holly while Billy Bokun was dressed as Mickey Featherstone. You can contact the show to be a guest or to interview me!For general business inquiries: bloodontherazorwire@gmail.comIn today's video, I talk about the exp. Mickey Spillane, known as "the last of the gentleman gangsters,' and Jimmy Coonan, who led the much-feared Westies. Tony the Greek claims he told the FBI in 1986 that Hoffa was killed by alleged Irish mob boss Jimmy Coonan in a house near the Detroit suburb of Mount Clemens. The main differences between most early 20th century American businessmen and Holstein? [11][a], "The last few years had been good to Jimmy Coonan. He and the others dismember Steins corpse and dumped it in the Hudson River. He was discharged on medical grounds in 1967, claiming to be experiencing hallucinations. Featherstone and Coonan were tried for the murder of a Hells Kitchen barman in 1979 but were acquitted, not for want of evidence; one juror perjured himself at trial and a key witness just so happen to take his own life riiiight. Islam Comes to Britain. Among other members of the Westies arrested were Jimmy McElroy, a top enforcer, who was sentenced to 60 years and Richard Ritter, a loan shark and drug dealer, who was sentenced to 40 years. The judge sentenced Featherstone to 6 years and he did time in the Medical Center for Federal Prisoners in Springfield Missouri in the psychiatric ward. There is a documentary somewhere on YouTube from the early 90s where Mickey is in disguise but talks about his days in the Westies. Coonan and Featherstone dragged a guy out of a bar and forced him into a van and masturbated on him as a form of intimidation. Jimmy was ashamed that his father was treated like this and he swore revenge against Mickey Spillane. He became known as "Jimmy C." As we said last week, Jimmy C. took over the Hell's Kitchen Irish mob after he made a deal with Gambino member Roy Demeo to kill the previous boss, Mickey Spillane, in 1977 . Well, whatever the correct Japanese terminology, Chicago-based mobster Ken Eto blabbed to the feds about the Chicago Outfit. Spillane was the mob boss who ran Hells Kitchen and was said to have pistol whipped Coonans father before kidnapping and beating him. We hope you enjoy the video!We also have new memberships! Featherstone became a valued contract killer for the Westies, working under the direct order of gang leader Jimmy Coonan. Dont worry pop, Im all right, Bokun shouted across the courtroom before being led back to jail. Apr 01, 2003 #15. Knapp scheduled sentencing for April 18. . He became known as "Jimmy C." As we said last week, Jimmy C. took over the Hell's Kitchen Irish mob after he made a deal with Gambino member Roy Demeo to . He drove up and shot and killed Michel Holly on the street in front of witnesses. The hit was probably ordered by his greatest rival, famous Florida gangster Santo Trafficante Sr.[10]. this awesome character was inspired by one of the most fascinating men in 20th century African American history: Casper Holstein. In September 1986, Judge Alvin Schlesinger overturned Featherstones conviction in the murder of Michael Holly. He allegedly murdered Mike "The Yugo" Yelovich claiming he had to because Yelovich had accidentally shot Cummiskey in the shin bone with a rifle. This Serbian mobster turned journo was an arch opportunist, driven in part by the love he held for his native Serbia, (along with his love of stealing shiny objects). A year after his release in 2010, Engs wife Lori was murdered by another Flying Dragon member, David Chea, who killed himself (probably in order to avoid Johnny Engs retribution).[9]. After Coonan took over as boss of the Westies, he had Stein murdered to gain control of his gambling and loansharking customers. McCarthys also producing When Corruption Was King, set up at Paramount with Temple Hill Entertainment and based on a screenplay by Baldwin that made the 2009 Blacklist; and Havana Nocturne, for Eric Eisners L + E Pictures. But the key verdict was the jurys decision that the Westies did exist, that it constituted a racketeering enterprise and that the convicted defendants had participated in its activities to further the gangs criminal goals. [3][4], Coonan was the bodyguard/apprentice of loan shark Charles (Ruby) Stein according to The New York Times article that alleged he was "known and feared on the West Side as a murderer and kidnapper". if you want to support the channel, we have multiple options for you. The body, Frankos said, was. In 1969, Police arrested Coonan on kidnapping and murder beefs. Coonan failed to murder Spillane and his followers, not even wounding one man, but Spillane got the message. Featherstones wife, Sissy, wore a wire and engaged other Westies in incriminating conversations to help her husband get out of jail. He left for England and acquired an English accent years ago. His son, Pavle (pictured), followed in his fathers criminal and journalistic footsteps, spending 16 years in jail over two stints and now covering criminal stories for publications such as The Washington Post and online work with The Daily Beast.[7]. The Genovese crime family took over Spillanes construction business, and all of his organized crime businesses, and from that point on the Genovese crime family also ruled all of Hells Kitchen with an iron fist. A Westie named John Bokun went to Hollys bar and shot him. Featherstone committed several mob killings before he was convicted in 1986 of a murder he had not committed. The way he became part of Al Capones Chicago Outfit is pretty amazing, tantalisingly lacking in enough key info to render the tale legendary as opposed to simply a footnote in mob history. This new friendship was not to Spillane's liking; however, he did not act on his anger as he did not yet want to risk severing ties with Cummiskey, one of his heaviest hitters. Unfortunately we do not know the nature of their meeting, but we do know that usually any person dragged into a meeting with Capone wouldnt leave with his legs intact (and may even leave through the back door in a carpet). Almost three months after the Curley murder on November 17, 1975, Coonan and Cummiskey called Paddy Dugan in under the pretense of a hit against the Spillane crew, claiming they needed Dugan to be the wheelman in the murder. He was with the Colombo's in NY and went out to work in NYC I think. Engs brutal reign came to an end in 1993 when he was sentenced to 24 years in jail, having to pony up $3.5 million in fines and giving up his massive Pennsylvania estate as further punishment. All Rights Reserved. After his release he resumed power, but in 1988 was convicted of racketeering under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) and sentenced to 75 years in prison with the judge's recommendation of denying parole. With the bad blood between Coonan and Featherstone, Coonan decided to set Featherstone up for murder. Francis T. "Mickey" Featherstone (born September 2, 1948) is a former Irish American mobster and member of the Westies, an organized crime syndicate from Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan in New York City, led by James Coonan. Roy DeMeo, his Gambino contact, was murdered and Coonans Gambino family connection became Daniel Marino, a capo from Brooklyn. The Westies went on to kidnap, torture, and murder members of Hells Kitchen until Spillane had to go into hiding and turn over power of Hells Kitchen to Coonan. Featherstones violence caught the eye of Coonan. Several Westies owed money to Stein and were looking to escape these debts. Shondor Birns managed to survive the 'golden age' of gangster historythe 20s and 30sand succeeded in the equally violent 50s and 60s. When autocomplete results are available use up and down arrows to review and enter to select. When Coonan was 18 his father was kidnapped by local mobster Mickey Spillane. Mickey Spillane: The Gentleman Gangster/Jimmy Coonan and the Westies Gang: Directed by Datha Keane. After his death, Cleveland went on to suffer many more bombings in the wake of Birns assassination, getting dubbed Bomb City, USA in the press, with 36 bombings in 1976 alone.[1]. Like. Cummiskey would further himself from the Spillane-led faction of the Hell's Kitchen Irish Mob known as The Spillane Gang and become more and more a member and follower of the young Jimmy Coonan. He was allegedly involved in the kidnapping of Genovese crime family bookmaker Paul (Eli) Ziccardi as well as later participating in the gang war between Spillane and Coonan during the mid-1960s. Spillane went to Coonan's father, slapped him around and told him to get his son under control. . Jimmy Coonan, John Moe, Robert Herman, Kevin Kelly, Sean Ryan, and who else? In 1977 when Mickey Spillane was killed outside his apartment, Featherstone was arrested but acquitted for his killing. To subscribe on iTunesclick here,give me a review and I will send you a link to see the film for free. Privacy Policy. Coonan, 41, was found guilty of attempted murder, murder conspiracy, loansharking, extortion and income tax evasion among other crimes. The younger Bokun, 30, of Manhattan, who was convicted of drug dealing as well as racketeering, tried to comfort his weeping, cursing father. When Benicio Del Toro has been cast to play a real-life figure, you know that person is bound to be a badass. That was the one thing that stood out to me in the book. However, Cummiskey was part of the Spillane crew and Dugan was part of the Coonan crew, and Spillane forbade violence against the Coonan gang unless they struck against his men first. Phillips is a storyteller, actor and writer living in rural West Wales. One of the most compelling characters in HBOs prohibition-era drama Boardwalk Empire was Dr. Valentin Narcisse, a Marcus Garvey-supporting pillar of his community that also indulges in some nefarious gangster behaviour, portrayed by the amazing Jeffrey Wright . In addition to the racketeering convictions, some of the defendants, including reputed Westies boss James Jimmy Coonan, were found guilty of crimes ranging from attempted murder and loansharking to drug dealing and tax evasion. Jimmie Grayson Coan. Then, it was finally time to begin building the Jacob Javits Center in Hell's Kitchen, which would turn into a tremendous money maker. Upon his return, Coonan and Cummiskey instructed him to leave the bar and get rid of the contents of the carton. Heres a list of hitmen, buttonmen and bagmen who are most certainly not Italian. Last edited on 22 September 2022, at 01:02, Learn how and when to remove this template message, New York City Department of Environmental Protection, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Edward_Cummiskey&oldid=1111624835, This page was last edited on 22 September 2022, at 01:02. In addition to the Coonans, both of Hazlet, N.J. and Bokun, the others convicted of racketeering and racketeering conspiracy were: James Jimmy Mack McElroy, 42; Richard Muggsy Ritter, 50; Thomas Collins, 53, and his wife Florence, 52, all of Manhattan. Shondor Birns managed to survive the golden age of gangster historythe 20s and 30sand succeeded in the equally violent 50s and 60s. Paul Castellano, who was the Godfather of the Gambinos, requested a meeting in an Italian restaurant with the leader of the Westies, Jimmy Coonan, in an attempt to reel in the gang's worst excesses. Mr. Coonan's wife, Edna, who prosecutors said had helped run the Westies while her husband was in jail on other charges, was sentenced to a total of 15 years on two counts of racketeering and . Turn on post notifications so you dont miss a video! Having left his native California (after a stint, like many Japanese Americans, in an internment camp in the 40s), Eto moved to Chicago in 1949. Coonan forged a strong alliance with the Gambino crime family in the late 70s, and became their hit-squad and enforcement arm for the next 10 years. Pinterest. Is this the same man I know? The latest Tweets from Jimmy Coonan (@jimmy_coonan): ""The acid test of materialism is not how much I have or don't have, but my preoccupation and concern over it." Chip Ingram" By his teenage years, Coonan stood five feet, seven inches tall and had a stocky build, with broad shoulders and a thick neck. Coonan, looking for a more feared and respected gangster like Cummiskey on his side, decided to use Dugan to lure in Cummiskey. They are reputed to have said that "Although he fucked up, he was still a good Irishman". Jimmy Coonan is currently being held at Lewisburg Federal Penetentiary, he is 59 years old and is Inmate Number 13874-054 his projected release date is November 6th, 2036, he'll be like 89 or some shit if he lives that long. To rent Gangland Wire, the documentary,click here. During his time as boss of the Westies, they gained a reputation as a vicious crew of murderers. Beattie was then instructed to go over to Dugan's apartment and bring down the carton of milk from the refrigerator. Adler is also producing the latter, which Matt Cirulnick is adapting from the bestselling T.J. English book about organized crime in Cuba in the 1950s. Dash cam tour of Hells Kitchen Manhattan, taking you to the murder site of infamous New York City mob loanshark Ruby Stein and headquarters of the westies Irish mob that rivaled the Italian mafia,. Gmail. The Genovese crime family wanted to run all mob activity associated with the convention center. Investigators assume the killing had Gambino approval. Even former gang members testifying for the prosecution said the name Westies was created by the police and the news media to describe Irish- American hoodlums on Manhattans West Side. While serving time in an upstate New York prison, Cummiskey learned the trade of butchery and became a butcher with the Amalgamated Meat Cutters, allowing him to take advantage of his sentence to perfect a new and gruesome murder method. [1] An amateur boxer and street fighter, he dropped out of school aged seventeen and embarked on a career in organized crime. His wake was held at the former Buckley Funeral Home at 445 West 43rd Street (now Crestwood Funeral Home and Cremation Services) in Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan and the funeral was held at Holy Cross Church (Manhattan) and he was buried in Saint Raymond's Cemetery (Bronx). He passed out and when he awoke, he found they had given him a circumcision. He left for England and acquired an English accent years ago. Variety and the Flying V logos are trademarks of Variety Media, LLC. I know John Thomas Coonan personally. He was raised in a five-room walk-up apartment on West 49th Street. Jimmy on the left & Larry Sessa, a Colombo Crime Family mobster. The police and FBI suspected him of a series of mob contract killings. He was blond haired and baby-faced. Because the construction site was in Hell's Kitchen that made it Mickey Spillane's territory, but, the Genovese family front boss Anthony "Fat Tony" Salerno did not like that, so, he sent a freelance Irish hit man from Queens by name of Joseph "Mad Dog" Sullivan to get rid of some of Spillane's main men. Explore. Wall was from a wealthy family, his father was a respected physician and his mother was the daughter of the former mayor of Tampa. The son of an accountant for famous mobsters, Coonan was no stranger to the criminal lifestyle. Cookie Notice Edward "Eddie The Butcher" Cummiskey Jr. (1934 Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan to August 20, 1976 Chelsea, Manhattan) was a New York mobster who served as a mentor to Jimmy Coonan, leader of the Westies. Defense lawyers had contended that there was no such organization as the Westies. Two of Coonan's hoods were Dennis "Rhinestone Cowboy" Curley and Patrick (Padd)y Dugan, both lifelong best friends. During the early 1970s, Cummiskey took on a young protg by the name of James "Jimmy C" Coonan, a violent younger generation Irish hoodlum who wanted to take out the old-timer Mickey Spillane. The verdict came on the eighth day of jury deliberations. Eto entered the witness protection programme, relocated to Georgia where he lived a long, event free life. His father was an accountant and not involved in criminal activity. (completely optional)Chad's Book: https://www.amazon.com/Blood-Razor-Wire-Prison-Memoir/dp/B08NJR548L/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1\u0026keywords=blood+on+the+razor+wire\u0026qid=1625283431\u0026sr=8-1Check out our website:www.myfreedomfighters.comPaypal.me/ChadMarks2020Cashapp: $ChadMarks102 There was also testimony by several witnesses that the Westies had forged an alliance with the Gambino organized crime family, said to be the largest and most powerful Mafia group in the country. Pinterest. Coonan learned how to dismember murder victims from Edward Cummiskey, a fellow Westies member, prison-trained as a butcher.. During the late 1970s, Coonan and his Westies allied themselves with the Gambino family and his main contact was Roy DeMeo. This murder between friends rocked the entire neighborhood, violent as it was known for being. 2023 Variety Media, LLC. James Michael Coonan (born December 21, 1946), nicknamed "Jimmy C", is an Irish-American mobster and racketeer from Manhattan, New York who, served as the boss of the Westies gang, an Irish mob group based in Hell's Kitchen, from approximately 1977 to 1988. He held sway over the citys illegal gambling rackets for years, making millions and allowing him to gain political connections that solidified his position. McCarthy founded production-financing company Blue Engine to focus on developing crime stories for film and TV. Duing this time, Jimmy Coonan was in jail on gun possession charges. [8][9] Coonan was first eligible for parole in 1998. Dont tell me to shush 3/8 John Bokun angrily told a marshal. Helpful. James Coonan was a baby boomer born December 21, 1946. John Gotti began running the Gambino Crime Family after Roy DeMeo had died and he used Coonans Westies as a killer squad for the family. Top 10 Movies About Italians That Dont Involve The Mafia. Why AI Has Some Viewers Asking Which Film Actors Are Real. In another bar room fight in 1971, he shot and killed a guy named Linwood Willi. He testified against Jimmy Coonan and other gang members. Thats when the Westies, a ruthless gang of Irish American extortionists, racketeers and contract killers, took in the violent young Featherstone and put him to work. In 1989, hitman-turned-informant Donald "Tony the Greek" Frankos told Playboy magazine that Hoffa was killed in Mount Clemens, Mich., by Irish mobster Jimmy Coonan. Required fields are marked *. Facebook. Featherstone achieved neighborhood fame for single-handedly running a group of toughs from New Jersey out of a Hells Kitchen bar with a rifle. On Feb. 11, 1984, two Westies drove Leone to New Jersey, pulled over to offer him a hit of cocaine, and shot him in the head. Jimmy Coonan brought the Westies into the 20th Century and presided over the most bloody and violent gang in New York City history. Humphries quickly falling into to the favourite pastimes of early twentieth century kids in Chicagofist fighting and burglary. He had also spent almost a year on the FBI most wanted fugitive list after being a stowaway on an International Longshoremen's Association freighter to Itagua, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil to avoid a murder charge. he was slain during the wild 1970s, blown up along with his fancy Lincoln Continental by a bomb planted (purportedly) by the Hells Angels, contacted by his former enforcer Danny Greene. During the early 1970s, Coonan recruited a gang of young Irish hoods and they began kidnapping, beating, and murdering any Spillane loyalists. he is the son of the notorious gangster Jimmy Coonan of the Westies, the Irish Mob in New York.
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