Cullotta: The Life of a Chicago Criminal, Las Vegas Mobster and Government Witness by Dennis N. Griffin Page A
Authors: Dennis N. Griffin
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though. There was something about her she couldn’t put her finger on, and she warned her son to be careful.
In spite of his mother’s reservations, Frank married Marie. She wanted a big wedding; he invited more than 200 people, rented a large banquet hall, and ordered filet mignon as the main course. The reception cost him about six grand. The party went okay, but the newlyweds got into an argument as soon as the couple got home from the reception. Frank wanted to have sex. Marie wanted to count the wedding-gift money.
“Put that stuff away until tomorrow and let’s go to bed,” he said, as Marie started to open the gift envelopes.
“No. I want to see how much is here.”
“The boost [gift money] will be there in the morning. Forget about it now and come to bed.”
“No. I’m going to count it now.”
After some heated words, the disagreement ended in a stalemate. They eventually went to bed together, but they weren’t on speaking terms. Marie didn’t get to count the boost and Frank didn’t get laid.
Frank believes the problem was that Marie was a nice girl and didn’t really know what he did for a living. As she met his friends and learned more about him, she was overwhelmed. The first time he suspected that he’d made a mistake was when he brought home a load of hot clothes to the house after he and his crew had burglarized a shop specializing in top-of-the-line women’s fashions. When they got the stuff to Frank’s garage, they put everything on racks and inventoried it. Frank’s accomplices picked out a couple of things for their wives. After they left he told Marie she could take a few items too. She started looking everything over, picking and pulling. She didn’t understand the protocol thieves followed. Frank told her to slow down, that she was taking more than she was supposed to.
He explained the way things worked. “In my business, loyalty and honesty toward your crew are crucial. We all have to depend on each other. I can’t cheat my people. I’ve got to treat them right and take care of them. You can’t take any more of the merchandise than what my crew did. That’s the way it has to be.”
Marie didn’t seem to like what she’d heard. She pouted for a while, but left the merchandise alone.
Another incident occurred after the robbery of a fur salesman. Frank and his men followed the salesman all the way to Wisconsin, waiting for a chance to rob him. About 3 a.m. the salesman finally pulled into a motel. As soon as he parked, two of the robbers jumped him, pushed him out of the driver’s seat, and got into his car. With the work car following, they drove out to a secluded area and dumped the salesman in a field. Then they transferred all the furs to their car and headed for home.
After unloading the furs in Frank’s garage, the other guys picked out a jacket each for their wives and left. Frank looked around and Marie was standing there, ready to take her share. She took two mink coats, one more than she was entitled to. This time he didn’t argue with her; he said it was okay, even though it wasn’t. When he fenced the merchandise, he paid his men extra money to make up for Marie’s excess.
The last straw came when Marie got into an argument with Frank’s brother. This was after he’d asked her to pick his clothes up from the cleaners and she hadn’t done it, so he was already mad at her. Frank started to argue with her. “Goddamn it! You didn’t even pick up my fuckin’ clothes and now you’re calling my brother names?”
Marie was defiant. “So I didn’t get your clothes. Big deal.”
One word led to another and Marie tried to slap him. Frank picked her up and threw her on top of the table. The table broke and Marie ran into the bedroom with Frank in pursuit. He swung at her, missed, and his fist went through the closet door.
When things settled down, he told Marie, “You know, this just isn’t working out. I think it would be best for both of us if we
In spite of his mother’s reservations, Frank married Marie. She wanted a big wedding; he invited more than 200 people, rented a large banquet hall, and ordered filet mignon as the main course. The reception cost him about six grand. The party went okay, but the newlyweds got into an argument as soon as the couple got home from the reception. Frank wanted to have sex. Marie wanted to count the wedding-gift money.
“Put that stuff away until tomorrow and let’s go to bed,” he said, as Marie started to open the gift envelopes.
“No. I want to see how much is here.”
“The boost [gift money] will be there in the morning. Forget about it now and come to bed.”
“No. I’m going to count it now.”
After some heated words, the disagreement ended in a stalemate. They eventually went to bed together, but they weren’t on speaking terms. Marie didn’t get to count the boost and Frank didn’t get laid.
Frank believes the problem was that Marie was a nice girl and didn’t really know what he did for a living. As she met his friends and learned more about him, she was overwhelmed. The first time he suspected that he’d made a mistake was when he brought home a load of hot clothes to the house after he and his crew had burglarized a shop specializing in top-of-the-line women’s fashions. When they got the stuff to Frank’s garage, they put everything on racks and inventoried it. Frank’s accomplices picked out a couple of things for their wives. After they left he told Marie she could take a few items too. She started looking everything over, picking and pulling. She didn’t understand the protocol thieves followed. Frank told her to slow down, that she was taking more than she was supposed to.
He explained the way things worked. “In my business, loyalty and honesty toward your crew are crucial. We all have to depend on each other. I can’t cheat my people. I’ve got to treat them right and take care of them. You can’t take any more of the merchandise than what my crew did. That’s the way it has to be.”
Marie didn’t seem to like what she’d heard. She pouted for a while, but left the merchandise alone.
Another incident occurred after the robbery of a fur salesman. Frank and his men followed the salesman all the way to Wisconsin, waiting for a chance to rob him. About 3 a.m. the salesman finally pulled into a motel. As soon as he parked, two of the robbers jumped him, pushed him out of the driver’s seat, and got into his car. With the work car following, they drove out to a secluded area and dumped the salesman in a field. Then they transferred all the furs to their car and headed for home.
After unloading the furs in Frank’s garage, the other guys picked out a jacket each for their wives and left. Frank looked around and Marie was standing there, ready to take her share. She took two mink coats, one more than she was entitled to. This time he didn’t argue with her; he said it was okay, even though it wasn’t. When he fenced the merchandise, he paid his men extra money to make up for Marie’s excess.
The last straw came when Marie got into an argument with Frank’s brother. This was after he’d asked her to pick his clothes up from the cleaners and she hadn’t done it, so he was already mad at her. Frank started to argue with her. “Goddamn it! You didn’t even pick up my fuckin’ clothes and now you’re calling my brother names?”
Marie was defiant. “So I didn’t get your clothes. Big deal.”
One word led to another and Marie tried to slap him. Frank picked her up and threw her on top of the table. The table broke and Marie ran into the bedroom with Frank in pursuit. He swung at her, missed, and his fist went through the closet door.
When things settled down, he told Marie, “You know, this just isn’t working out. I think it would be best for both of us if we
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