Mafia spies : the inside story of the CIA, gangsters, JFK, and Castro

Maier, Thomas 1956- (author.).

Summary: "Mafia Spies is the definitive account of America's most remarkable espionage plots ever--with CIA agents, mob hitmen, "kompromat" sex, presidential indiscretion, and James Bond-like killing devices together in a top-secret mystery full of surprise twists and deadly intrigue. In the early 1960s, two top gangsters, Johnny Roselli and Sam Giancana, were hired by the CIA to kill Cuba's Communist leader, Fidel Castro, only to wind up murdered themselves amidst Congressional hearings and a national debate about the JFK assassination. Mafia Spies revolves around the outlaw friendship of these two mob buddies and their fascinating world of CIA spies, fellow Mafioso in Chicago, Cuban exile commandos in Miami, beautiful Hollywood women, famous entertainers like Frank Sinatra's Rat Pack in Las Vegas, Castro's own spies in Havana and his double agents hidden in Florida, J. Edgar Hoover's FBI snooping, and the Kennedy administration's "Get Castro" obsession in Washington. Thomas Maier is among the first to take full advantage of the National Archives' 2017-18 release of the long-suppressed JFK files, many of which deal with the CIA's top secret anti-Castro operation in Florida and Cuba. With several new investigative findings, Mafia Spies is a spy exposé, murder mystery, and shocking true story that recounts America's first foray into the assassination business, a tale with profound impact for today's Trump era. Who killed Johnny and Sam--and why wasn't Castro assassinated despite the CIA's many clandestine efforts?"--Jacket flaps.

Record details

ISBN: 9781510741713
ISBN: 1510741712
Physical Description: print
xii, 388 pages, 16 unnumbered leaves of plates : illustrations ; 23 cm
Publisher: New York : Skyhorse Publishing, [2019]

Content descriptions

Bibliography, etc. Note:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [349]-383) and index.

Formatted Contents Note:

Author's note: For your eyes only -- Phase I: Plan of action. Overture : "The great game" ; A strange kind of genius ; Aiming for Fidel ; The cutout ; Spruce Goose and Brown Derby ; Mooney ; The Vegas Strip ; Havana's allure ; At the Plaza ; Fontainebleau -- Phase II: Covert operations. The secret war begins ; Bolita dreams ; Lie detectors ; Listening devices ; A thousand spies ; What would James Bond do? ; The Health Alteration Committee ; Enforcing one's will ; Hoodlum complex ; Blood in the bay ; Close but no cigar ; Agents in the shadows -- Phase III: The patriotic assassin. The second wave ; That's entertainment ; A secret is seldom safe ; Into the darkness ; Birds of prey ; Sing for your supper ; The double agent ; The black book ; Spies without portfolio ; Dangle ; Nature of the beast ; Death in the afternoon ; The stuff of legends ; Government immunity ; "Boom and bang" and bust -- Phase IV: The price of everything. A place in the sun ; Messages from home ; Prying eyes ; Blowback ; Soldiers of fortune ; Keeping the lid on ; Silencers ; Church confessions ; Missing in action ; The last one standing.