Mickey Cohen: The Gangster Squad and the Mob: The True Story of Vice in Los Angeles 1937-1950

by Bradley Lewis

This is the true story of Mickey Cohen's life while he was being tailed daily by the Gangster Squad, LA Patrolmen, and FBI Agents. From 1937-1950 the reader will be treated to the private and public life of the most famous mobster of his era.

This is both a fascinating history of time gone by and a biography of a survivor and Lewis has written it with flash and substance. -- Howard Schwartz - Gambler's Book Club, Las Vegas

"I found Gangster intense, dramatic, a real page turner." ----Irwin Winkler, Producer of Rocky, Raging Bull, Goodfellas, Night and the City and The Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight.

"Never in my years of reading for pleasure, has such an infamous mobster as the late Mickey Cohen been written about with such insight, truthfulness and good humor as Brad Lewis has accomplished in this page-turning bio. For anyone into Jewish or even gentile folklore, this is a must read." ----Arthur Marx, author of Life With Groucho, The Nine Lives of Mickey Rooney, Goldwyn: A Biography of the Man Behind the Myth , Red Skelton, and The Secret Life of Bob Hope

A colorful biography of the Mick, a nattily attired, 5-foot-5-inch L.A. gangster who declared he never killed anyone who ``didn't deserve killing" and who feared nothing but germs (hence, his habit of taking 2- to 3-hour showers). A fascinating portrait of how a Boyle Heights newsboy grew up to cross paths with movie stars, religious leaders, jetsetters and newspaper folks when he wasn't dodging assassination attempts on Sunset Boulevard. Lewis' book shines a light on an often overlooked chapter of the history of crime, L.A.'s mid-20th century underworld (called the ``Vicecapades'' by one columnist). Mickey struck me as a guy I would have loved to dine with as long as it wasn't on Sunset Boulevard.

----Steve Harvey, "Only in LA", Los Angeles Times


Abridged version from Hollywood's Celebrity Gangster

291 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 29, 2012

About the author

Brad Lewis is a writer whose focus has ranged from the bizarre world of celebrity doctors to detailed histories of Jewish-American development, with particular interest to the entertainment industry. He co-wrote the bestselling biography of Milton Berle, My Father, Uncle Miltie, with the fabled comedian's son, a candid look at the irreplaceable American television icon. His Hollywood's Celebrity Gangster, The Incredible Life and Times of Mickey Cohen is the only biography of the charismatic and dangerous mobster whose life was a paradigm for the intermingling of Washington, Las Vegas, the entertainment business and the mob. Lewis' novel Great White Doctor is a scalpel thriller centered on the sordid lives and weird sexual habits of "celebrity doctors", exposing the seamy side of high profile specialists who perform unnecessary surgery on their female patients. The Bloomingdale Code is a well-researched page-turner about secret religious tenets, ancient medical ritual, conspiracies, and modern-day international politics. God's Helix is a fast-paced sequel to The Bloomingdale Code. God's Helix explores the dangers of DNA typing. Lewis has written often about the Hollywood scene, and is no stranger to celebrities and celebrity doctors. Anonymous underworld "businessmen," often sent their lady friends for treatment in his offices. That experience with known mobsters contributed to Lewis' interest in how gangsters, Hollywood, and Washington somehow connect in the American landscape. As an actor, Lewis appeared on TV in As the World Turns, Love of Life, The Guiding Light, and trained at the prestigious H. B. Studios in Manhattan, with its founder Herbert Berghof and fabled acting teacher William Hickey. He appeared in many off and off-off Broadway productions. Lewis has advanced degrees from CUNY (Psychology) and New York University; a fellowship at Columbia University, College of Physicians and Surgeons, and St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital. He is retired from clinical practice and has fought for the elimination of formaldehyde from pediatric medicaments. His research has been quoted in hundreds of professional journals. A popular talk show guest, he has appeared on numerous radio and television programs. Lewis is a native New Yorker.

Reviews

[Victor J. Triolo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Has strong ring of truth, so does another book with title ', NOVEMBER SHADOWS , BY VINCENT TERRA.

Has a strong ring of truth , as another book with title " NOVEMBER SHADOWS" , BY VINCENT TERRA " !

[Bruce Davidson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fast-paced and amusing.