Catalog

Record Details

Catalog Search



The life we chose : William "Big Billy" D'Elia and the last secrets of America's most powerful mafia family  Cover Image Book Book

The life we chose : William "Big Billy" D'Elia and the last secrets of America's most powerful mafia family / Matt Birkbeck.

Birkbeck, Matt, (author.).

Summary:

"William "Big Billy" D'Elia is Mafia royalty. The "adopted" son of legendary organized crime boss Russell Bufalino, for decades D'Elia had unequaled access to the man the FBI and US Justice Department considered one of the leading organized crime figures in the United States. But the government had no real idea as to the breadth of Bufalino's power and influence--or that it was Bufalino, from his bucolic home base in Pittston, Pennsylvania, who reigned over the five families in New York and other organized crime families throughout the country. For nearly thirty years, D'Elia was at Bufalino's side, and "Russ's son" was a witness and participant to major historical events that have stymied law enforcement, perplexed journalists, and produced false and wild narratives in books and movies--not the least of which being the infamous disappearance of union boss Jimmy Hoffa. In addition, their reach was illustrated by their relationships with Frank Sinatra, Marlon Brando, Michael Jackson, Suge Knight, and many other celebrities and personalities. D'Elia became the de facto leader of the Bufalino family upon Russell Bufalino's imprisonment in 1979, and he officially took control upon Bufalino's death in 1994 until his arrest in 2006, when he was charged with money laundering and the attempted murder of a witness. He pled guilty to money laundering and witness tampering and was released from federal prison in 2012. Candid and unapologetic, D'Elia is finally ready to reveal the real story behind the myths and in so doing paints a complicated, compelling, and stunning portrait of crime, power, money, and finally, family."-- Publisher's website.

Record details

  • ISBN: 9780063234673 (hardcover)
  • Physical Description: x, 260 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations ; 24 cm
  • Edition: First edition.
  • Publisher: New York : William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, [2023]
Subject: D'Elia, William.
Bufalino, Russell, 1903-1994.
Gangsters > Pennsylvania > Biography.
Mafia > United States > Biography.
Organized crime > Pennsylvania.
Genre: Biographies.
True crime stories.

Available copies

  • 1 of 1 copy available at Tsuga Consortium. (Show)
  • 1 of 1 copy available at Innisfil Public Library System. (Show)
  • 1 of 1 copy available at Lakeshore Branch.

Holds

  • 0 current holds with 1 total copy.
Show Only Available Copies
Location Call Number / Copy Notes Barcode Shelving Location Status Due Date
Lakeshore Branch 364.106092 DElia-B 31681010331270 NONFIC Available -


Additional Resources