The story of the American Mafia is not complete without a chapter on Kansas City, MO. The 'City of Fountains' has popped up in The Godfather, Casino and The Sopranos, but many aren't aware that Kansas City is key in the history of organised crime. Events unfolding in this city affected the fortunes of all the 'families' and shaped the entire underworld. In The Mafia and the Machine, author Frank Hayde ties in every major name in organised crime - Luciano, Bugsy, Lanksy - as well as the corrupt Kansas City police force.

The Mafia began on the small Mediterranean island of Sicily. It grew to become a major political force in Italy, while its tentacles penetrated every aspect of life in the United States. Through drugs, it spread its influence around the world. This is its story.

The Mafia began on a small island in the Mediterranean, Sicily. It grew to become a major political force in Italy, while its tentacles penetrated every aspect of life in the United States. Through drugs, it spread its influence to Britain, Canada and Australia. And through the gangster movies of Hollywood, including The Godfather and Goodfellas, it permeates popular culture. The History of the Mafia is full of blood-chilling characters, from Al Capone, who ran Chicago during Prohibition, and hitmen Louis Lekpe and Alberto Anastasia who founded Murder, Inc, to Totò Riina, 'boss of bosses', John Gotti, 'the Teflon don', and Bernardo 'The Tractor' Provenzano, who hid out from the law in a farmhouse for 43 years... These were extraordinary men who lived through extraordinary times. The History of the Mafia tells the story of their lives, their families, their codes, their crimes and their cold-blooded murders. A long and enthralling tale, drenched in blood and scored with betrayal.

"Millions of television and movie viewers have shown that Americans continue to be fascinated by the remarkableùand often sordidùworld of the Mafia. This book takes you beyond fiction and tabloid accounts and relates the true-life accounts of all the major players in the American Mafia. From Al Capone to John Gotti, you will come away with a better understanding of AmericaÆs most notorious crime families. This book features colorful information on: The Sicilian Mafia The ôFirst Familyö of the American Mafia The ôrealö Untouchables The mob and politicians The five New York families Packed full of up-to-date gangster information, this guide will satisfy even the most ardent true-crime enthusiasts."

Some time in the early 1960s, during the golden age of organized crime in America—the era that would inspire The Godfather; Goodfellas, and even The Sopranos—federal investigators pulled every known piece of information on more than 800 Mafia members worldwide into a thick, phone-book-sized directory. From old-school gangsters like Lucky Luciano and Mickey Cohen to young turks like Paul Castellano and Vinny "The Chin" Gigante, the guide offered at-a-glance profiles of small-time thugs and major dons alike... and was allegedly the book Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy used to investigate the mob. Recently discovered, and published for the first time in this facsimile edition, Mafia is a treasure trove of info on the underworld in mid-century America—a revelatory artifact and an irresistible read.

"An illustrated history of the Mafia, focusing on this highly developed criminal organization both as a cult subject and an important social phenomenon. Movie classics like The Godfather epitomize our fascination with the underworld of the Mafia, conjuring images of cigar-smoking dons and shoot-outs in pizzerias. But behind the romantic myths of 'men of honor' and omertà lies a very real world of murder, racketeering, and organized crime. Marco Gasparini traces the evolution of the Mafia from nineteenth-century Sicily to the streets of twentieth-century New York, to the international cartels that rule the illegal drug and arms trades today. In this authoritative volume he exposes the many secrets of an 'octopus' organization that has remained impenetrable for decades, despite the efforts of heroic crime fighters such as New York police officer Joe Petrosino and the similarly ill-fated Italian judge Giovanni Falcone almost a century later. We discover the Mafia's greatest godfathers, underbosses, and 'soldiers, ' as well as its pentiti (or turncoats) and the most formidable wives of Mafiosi. This book not only focuses on the original Sicilian Cosa Nostra and its various branches--such as Al Capone's Chicago Outfit or the still existent Corleonesi--it also features the equally bloody Neapolitan Camorra, which inspired the compelling documentary Gomorrah, and the Japanese Yakuza, the largest organized crime group in the world today, as well as the ever-growing Russian and Chinese 'mafias.' Mafia reveals the multi-faceted reality behind a phenomenon that has sparked the popular imagination for decades."--Amazon.com.