It was a racket straight out of “The Sopranos.” Sicily at the end of the 19th century: The estates of wealthy landowners were being attacked by greedy bandits. Fearing for the safety of their homes and citrus groves, the landowners turned to local mafias for protection. The irony? The mafiosos hired to protect those Sicilian orchards were likely … Read more
For nearly a century, the Ciprianis have courted celebrities, princes and potentates — from Ernest Hemingway and generations of Kennedys, Trump and the Clintons, to Taylor Swift, Bella Hadid and Leonardo DiCaprio. First in Venice at Harry’s Bar — where the dynasty’s founder Giuseppe created the bellini from peaches and prosecco — then at Cipriani … Read more
In 1999, during its first season on HBO, “The Sopranos” was the biggest TV show in the world. It didn’t have the largest audience — its ratings were still dwarfed by network hits like “ER” and “Friends” —but it had cultural cachet. The dark, sometimes comic tale of a mob boss from New Jersey was … Read more
Bada bing! “Sopranos” star Drea de Matteo has new gig. The 51-year-old actress, who played Adriana La Cerva on the HBO drama, is now on OnlyFans, she announced on social media late Wednesday. Chris-ta-fah would certainly be jealous. De Matteo’s page, available for a monthly $15, simply says “THE SOPRANOS” beneath a steamy close-up of … Read more
“The Godfather” is regarded as a Hollywood classic, one of the highest grossing films of all time. But the making of this mafia movie got off to a rocky start, as author MATT BIRBECK describes in “The Life We Chose: William ‘Big Billy’ D’Elia and The Last Secrets of America’s Most Powerful Mafia Family” (William … Read more
The Oscars botched their hit “In Memorium’’ segment by omitting late “Goodfellas’’ actor Paul Sorvino, his widow fumed Monday — adding someone should get whacked over the snub. “Who is the flunkie who put this list together?” Dee Dee Sorvino seethed on “The Joe Piscopo Show” the morning after the Academy Awards. “They can’t even … Read more
Sex was Larry Levenson’s domain. As the owner of swank swingers’ lounge Plato’s Retreat, located inside the Upper West Side’s Ansonia Hotel, he epitomized late 1970s hedonism in NYC — and even made partner-swapping mainstream. It was an unlikely path for the Bronx-born Levenson, an absentee father of three who had previously worked as the … Read more
For nearly 30 years, Kim’s Video and Music, across five downtown locations, was a haven for NYC movie lovers offering a trove of 55,000 often rare, otherwise unfindable titles. After the most famous location, Mondo Kim’s on St. Marks Place in the East Village closed in early 2009, the massive collection went on a wild … Read more
On Sept. 22, 1998, police were called to the Palo Alto, California, home of Vladimir Pokhilko. They discovered a gruesome scene: The Tetris co-developer was dead, his throat slit; he was still gripping the knife. His wife Yelena and their 12-year-old son Peter had been bludgeoned to death with hammers and then stabbed. There was … Read more
During his two decades as Brooklyn’s top mob-busting homicide prosecutor, Michael Vecchione dealt with all manner of wiseguys, but none was less impressive than Luigi the Zip. Short, overweight, disheveled and speaking in broken English, Sicilian import Luigi Ronsisvalle — dubbed “the human bowling ball” by Vecchione for being as wide as he was tall … Read more
Martin Scorsese, the king of comedy. Years ago, a Tumblr user posted a photo of a “knock off” shoe purchased online, with an odd label that read, “The greatest mafia movie ever made. Martin Scorsese presents Goncharov. Domenico Proccacci production. A film by Matteo JWHJ0715. About the Naples Mafia.” Scorsese has directed other mafia films, … Read more
Andrea Savage pivots from her trademark comedic persona to a dramatic role in “Tulsa King.” “It’s definitely going out on a limb for me,” Savage, 49, told The Post about her co-starring turn as haunted ATF agent Stacy Beale in the Paramount+ series, created by Taylor Sheridan (“Yellowstone”) and starring Sylvester Stallone (in his TV … Read more