Murder, Inc.: The Story of "the Syndicate"

Rating:
Summary: too draggy
Review: "Murder Inc." was written by a former Assistant District Attorney in Brooklyn, New York-Burton Turkus. In the years just preceding WW2, Mr. Turkus successfully prosecuted several members of the national crime organization he terms the Syndicate. Seven went to the electric chair at Sing Sing prison in Ossining, New York. The author believed that the Mafia, as we now know the term, did not then exist. There are both weak and strong points to MI. Weak points include the author's breezy style, with which this reviewer was initially uncomfortable. At the outset, Turkus wrote as if his readers were as knowledgeable of the subject as he. I found it difficult to keep up with the both the story and the cast of characters. These are not the Gottis, Colombos, Gallos or Gambinos of a more current era. These guys are of the 1930s and early 40s and comparatively unknown-especially to non native New Yorkers. They are not even all Italian. We are introduced to Harry Strauss ("Pittsburgh Phil"), Louis Buchalter ("Lepke"), and Abe Reles ("Kid Twist"). I will save the infamous-and embarrassing! - tale of the Kid's demise for those who buy the book. We are introduced to Italian criminals as well: Albert Anastasia (the boss of the waterfront), the notoriously powerful Frank Costello ("The Ambassador") and the cover boy Joey Adonis, who even the author respectfully calls "Mister A". Midway through the text, this reviewer felt a shift! MI got stronger! Perhaps I warmed up to Turkus' style. Perhaps an anonymous editor took charge of the text. Perhaps I became used to the characters-and "characters" they are! I loved the painstaking recounting of various rubouts. These guys planned! I appreciated the savvy courtroom tactics needed to convict the accused mobsters, all defended by top-notch counsel. Turkus explains the delicacy of using information provided by informants, the ever- present danger of a mistrial or reversal of a conviction on appeal. Like a good professor, he drums into his readers the import of CORROBORATION at trial. Sadly, he recounts that not all in government, including his one time boss (the future Mayor O' Dwyer!) shared his zeal to bring these criminals to justice. Significantly, the author goes to lengths to demonstrate that the crimes relived here are decidedly not "victimless". As a suggestion, I might hope that future editions of the reprinted MI carry an epilog explaining what happened to those still standing at the tale's end. I know Mr. Anastasia met his violent demise in 1956-in his favorite barbershop at the old Park Sheraton Hotel on 55th Street and 7th Avenue. Minor point. The end result is a very satisfying story for those who bear down and read it through. Those who claim to like "True Crime" can't go wrong with MI. This is criminality at it truest and rawest!

Rating:
Summary: Interesting topic, poor writing
Review: I'm a big fan of the gangster era and had high hopes for this book. Unfortunately, I was disappointed by the writing; books about gangsters are usually very exciting but with _Murder, Inc_ I often fell asleep mid-read.

Rating:
Summary: Classic Early Mob Work
Review: If you're looking for a good near contemporary work on the origin of the modern Mob, this book is probably as close as you'll ever find. There's a lot of uncorroborated gossip here (i.e., the long rumored "Mafia Purge" of 1931, which never happened) but there's also a ton of info here from Abe "Kid Twist" Reles, "the canary who could sing but couldn't fly," as translated by Burton Turkus, the crusading prosecutor who broke the "Murder Inc." case. ...in those pre-Valachi days little was really known of the Mob's organizational structure or that Mafia "families" as we know them today even existed. The average Mafia books of the '50's are bad jokes and largely fictional. On the other hand, the testimony of Abe Reles and other informers in this case not only solved hundreds of murders but also sent Louis "Lepke" Buchalter and other mobsters to the electric chair, while no one ever even went to prison as the direct result of Joe Valachi's highly publicized testimony of two decades later. A lot of the stuff reported here is erroneous but much more is true and it's the best available for its time. Before The Valachi Papers or anything else, read "Murder, Inc."

Rating:
Summary: A Book Review of MURDER INC.
Review: MURDER INC. is an excellent informative source on the subject of organized crime in the United States and murder in New York City in particular. The book is written by the authors in plain english and legalese is avoided. The book reads like a whos who in the world of the Syndicate. The reader must be cautioned that this book contains intricate details of actual murders and may not be suitable to all, particularly individuals offended by material of this nature.

The author makes his arguments well and is persuasive enough to have the reader wondering if murders which appear in the daily papers as unsolvable, could possibly be related to the world of organized crime. In addition it makes one wonder about many political decisions being made by our elected officials today and if these officials have in some manner been influenced by crminal organizations such as the Syndicate.

The author clearly justifies his argument that the Brookly faction of MURDER INC. was a gang of violent thugs who employed almost every conceivable method to carry out their chosen trade. Mr. Tukus further points out that this faction is not unique to the syndicate as a national organization.The book describes among other methods, murder by ice pick, drowning, hacking by cleaver, and strangulation. The murders, as argued by the author, seem to be performed for the purposes of ensuring continued criminal operations.

This book is well written and is highly recommended to all who are serious students in the field of Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement as well as anyone interested in just reading an entertaining history of crime in the U.S. and New York City.

Rating:
Summary: Amazing!
Review: One of my the many things that history has given me is the myths and legends of the underworld and the mafia. Murder, Inc. is the answer to the myriad of question history class never answered.

For over 20 years I have been reading about men like Lucky Luciano, Meyer Lansky, Buggsy Siegel, Frank Costello, Johnny Torio and Albert Anastasia, and until this book I was misinformed about a number of things.

From the early 30's and into the 40's and 50's, follow along and watch the trail of over 1,000 brutal and horrific murders were committed by one the most ruthless groups of individuals ever assembled.

Read along and watch Murder Inc. bring and end to prohibition, and how this same group was taken down as the author, a former Brooklyn DA, sent seven of the men to the chair. This book ranks number 2 in my reviews for 1999!

Rating:
Summary: Riveting
Review: The collaborative work of Burton B. Turkus (who was the Assistant District Attorney of Kings County, Brooklyn during the original Murder, Inc. investigations) and veteran journalist Sid Feder, Murder, Inc.: The Story Of The Syndicate is the factual chronicle and history of an infamous and feared American criminal organization that prospered in the 1930's and 40's, making their mark in American criminal history for their efficient and utterly ruthless means of eliminating rivals and enemies; controlling and corrupting local, state, and federal officials; and for resisting prosecution by the law until one of their members (Abe "Kid Twist" Reles, known for his habit of strangulation) turned state's evidence and exposed to public view a secret and lethal criminal organization with national implications. A chilling, thoroughly researched presentation, Murder, Inc. is a strongly recommended contribution to American Organized Crime supplemental reading lists.

Rating:
Summary: Riveting
Review: The most riveting book I've read on the creation & operations of the early stages of the Mafia.

Rating:
Summary: The true mob story
Review: This is the best book ever written about the mob. Show us how the mob set itself up as a National Company in the 40's and some very interesting things about its board of directors - Charles "Lucky" Luciano, Louis "Lepke" Buchalter, Bugsy, Meyer Lansky, Frank Costello, and the best execution group ever, Murder Inc, formed in Brooklyn by Abe "Kid Twist" Reles, Harry "Pittsburg Phill" Strauss and Bugsy Goldstein This book was wtitten by Mr. Arsenic the guy that sent a lot of them to the eletric chair