Cleveland Mafia- Are they Irish, Russian or Italian ?
Who were the Cleveland Mafia ? Irish Mob, Italian Mob or the Russian Mafia ?
shareIt's the Russian Mafia. Italians don't exsist in New York.
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MovieChat Forums > Kill the Irishman (2012) Discussion > Cleveland Mafia- Are they Irish, Russian...
Its the Russian Mafia. The Irish mob are mostly in Boston, the Italian mob in New Jersey & the Russian Mafia are all over, mostly in Cleveland, California & Florida.
shareThe Italian Mafia is everywhere. This film is the story of a clash between the Italian Mafia and the Irish "mafia." It is a true story, and it started in Cleveland, Ohio.
Nomad
Cleveland was mostly Italian Mafia with a lesser Irish presence. Starting in the 60's and early 70's the Irish were better known. Find the book by Rick Porello that inspired this movie- To Kill the Irishman (The Rise and Fall of the Clevealnd Mafia). It's very well researched (the author's grandfather was killed by the Mob)and an entertaining read.
shareExactly. The Cleveland mafia (both Irish and Italian) had offshoots in my hometown of Youngstown. We were the dividing line between the Cleveland and the Pittsburgh mafias, which meant there were more than a few "skirmishes" from time to time.
shareThe Italian Mafia mainly operates in these cities. The FBI still says the Italian Mafia is the foremost threat to society in terms of organized crimes. Many naive people like to the think the Italians are done, but that's just lazy journalism.
New York
Philadelphia
Boston
Providence
Rhode Island
Newark
Buffalo
Chicago
Detroit
Hamilton, Ontario
Toronto, Ontario
Rockford
Milwaukee
Kansas City
St. Louis
Miami (No family, just many families operating independantley)
Las Vegas (No longer in Casinos, but in still involved in street level rackets)
Los Angeles
Montreal, Quebec
The Italians are number one in the US, Russians number two, the Irish mob is DEAD. There is nothing left in terms of an organized crime unit pertaining to Irish criminals. The last strong Irish groups were the Westies of New York and the Winter Hill Gang in Boston, but they pretty much died out in the late 80s to mid 90s. The number three group is probably the Chinese or Albanians.
I'm really getting sick of guys
named "Todd". - George Carlin
In the US, the Irish mob today is non-existant. But in Montreal, the Irish mob (the West End Gang) controls the west side, while the Mafia and Hells Angels occupy the rest.
sharePeople throw around the word "mafia" loosely, it really applies to Italian crime families. And in Cleveland, there was and still is a significant Cleveland Italian mafia.
I'm related to one of the main characters in "The Irishman." Italians were the big first organized crime group in Cleveland, starting during the Prohibition. They worked amicably with wealthy Jewish mobsters like Moe Dalitz (and Shondor Birns). An Italian mob associate (unmade, but should have been made) in "The Irishman" teamed up with an ambitious Irish racketeer (with a small gang) to wrestle control from the official made Cleveland mafia. That is what the movie is about.
John Nardi is the name of the mob associate, and yes he should have been made. However, the Cleveland crime family was never big on making new members. By the early 1980s they were down to around a dozen made men. Similar events occured in Pittsburgh and New Orleans.
The Chicago Outfit and Detroit Combination have people operating in Cleveland now, the Civella family based in Kansas City might too.
I'm really getting sick of guys
named "Todd". - George Carlin
definitely Italian. - with a little Irish - but not as overwhelming at the Italians
there is a place just outside of downtown Cleveland called Little Italy... it's only about a quarter stretch of road - a lot of shops and restaurants (which i have gone to on more than one occasion - amazing food) and a small neighborhood surrounding it.... it's a place that still has that reputation of "you better not come in here asking for trouble." - My Aunt has told me a lot about the Mafias that used to operate in the Cleveland/Little Italy area
she actually told me a funny story - now i can't remember the boss' name, but i think he went by Jack White, or something like that... well, he lived next to this single mother who had 2 daughters, one of whom had down syndrome and turrets (and back in those days, they didn't really know all about treating those conditions, so they kept her at home - no schooling)... well, whenever he'd come outside, or walk by the house, this girl (obviously not knowing anything about the guy) would start yelling "F you's" at him, and calling him a *beep* things like that.... Jack then apparently made the comment to her mother, she is the only person who could and would ever get away with talking to him like that... lol.
sidenote about Little Italy: President James A. Garfield is buried at the cemetery just up the road from Little Italy..
"See I'm not a monster.. I'm just ahead of the curve."
dj-clement.com
Interesting and sad thing about Little Italy, it's the only area in the city proper that is truly safe:( Virtually all Cleveland neighborhoods have been "ghettoized" in the last fifty years, and while there is some gentrification/middle class presence in (often trendy) areas like Ohio City, Tremont, Downtown, Edgewater, Detroit Shoreway, North Collinwood, Old Brooklyn, West Park/Kamm's Corner, Asiatown and Shaker Square, there's nothing quite like Little Italy. Apparently during the Hough and Glenville riots (two godforsaken neighborhoods with hints of rebirth) in the late 60s, a lot of the Italians banded together and were ready for anything, as the neighborhood is surrounded by East Cleveland (possibly the poorest city in the country), East side of Cleveland (equally horrific), and Cleveland Heights (diverse suburb with nice and ghetto, about 50/50). The Italians also used to be somewhat hostile to blacks, though this has changed considerably, probably because of Case Western/Cleveland Clinic/University Hospital's proximity to Little Italy. The neighborhood has become diverse in that lots of people of different creeds and races live there, but it's still unbelievably safe and the old schoolers still have a major presence, a disincentive to the would-be infestations of gangbangers and muggers. You can walk on Murray Hill and not be mugged I cannot say the same about any single other neighborhood in Cleveland.
Again, it really is the last safe neighborhood of Cleveland, but if I'm wrong I'd love to be corrected. Sorry for the babble, I just got caught up there:)
I love the Little Italy area. I met guy recently that was in the Ohio National Guard during the Hough riots and he told me the 'gentlemen' from Little Italy had a 50 caliber machine gun mounted and ready to sweep the street clean of rioters should they decide to venture up Murray Hill. Fortunately for all involved this did not happen.
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