Killer: The Autobiography of a Mafia Hit Man

by Joey the Hit Man, David Fisher

New York Times This groundbreaking tell-all by a mob hit man is “chilling and compelling—a must-read” (Former FBI agent Joe Pistone, aka Donnie Brasco).

The Bronx-born son of a Jewish bootlegger, “Joey the Hit Man” was introduced to crime when he was just eleven years old. For the next thirty years he was a numbers king, scalper, loan shark, enforcer, and drug smuggler. He hijacked trucks, fenced stolen goods, and trafficked in pornography. But Joey really made his name as a Mafia assassin, racking up thirty-eight cold-blooded hits—thirty-five for cash, three for revenge.
 
In Killer , Joey tells the true story of life in organized crime. He exposes the reality of gang wars, discusses how he raised a family while living on the wrong side of the law, and documents the day-to-day business of crime—from making and breaking alliances to staying one step ahead of the cops. He reveals how he faced a grand jury seven times with no convictions (“never lie to your lawyer”) and kept a seven-figure fortune out of reach of the IRS. He lays out in graphic detail the difference between getting paid to kill and doing it for personal reasons. “People think because they saw [ The Godfather ] they know everything there is to know about organized crime,” Joey contends. In this no-holds-barred account, he reveals the brutal truth behind the Hollywood fantasy.
 
Forty-five years after this true crime classic shocked readers all over the world and set the standard for bestselling Mafia biographies including Joseph Bonnano’s A Man of Honor and Philip Carlo’s Ice Man , the new edition of Killer includes an afterword by coauthor David Fisher that unmasks Joey’s real identity—and the circumstances behind his death that add another layer of mystery to his complicated, colorful, and fascinating life.
 

Genres: True Crime, Biography, Nonfiction

285 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 1, 1975

Reviews

[Valerity (Val) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Originally published in 1973, this book tells a lot about Joey's extreme poverty and how he grew up, and out of necessity fell into a life of crime in the mob. How from age 11 he learned how to run numbers game, and later on be a shylock. Also, when called upon, he'd provide muscle for other or for his own situations. The book really goes into many of the different types of things he did while working in that type of criminal life, including being a hitman. I felt it really just glossed over the hitman aspect of his career though. I kept waiting for it and was disappointed because everything else was so detailed. Overall, still a good mob read, I was just expecting more about his kills from the title.

(My thanks to Goodreads and Open Road Integrated Media for providing me with an ARC for review.)

[Mike · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was not at all what I expected. That's not necessarily a bad thing, it's just a different thing.

I was expecting something more along the lines of a tell-all by the numbers narrative about all the murders or 'hits" that "Joey" had been involved in... not gratuitously violent or explicit exactly but with some of the gruesome details and circumstances. There is remarkably little of that in this book.

What 'Killer by Joey the Hitman with David Fisher' turns out to be more than anything else is a step-by-step run through of how different aspects of mob businesses are run. There are chapters devoted to explaining how betting the numbers works, how diificult or easy it can be to rig certain sporting events, dealing with a fence who sells stolen products, etc., etc.

The running of the day to day business in other words.

While I will admit that I have never had the whole "running the numbers" scheme explained to me so thoroughly, at times the minute details of everything gets exhausting. There is a lot of detailed information on things like profit margin and the like on most all of the subjects offered up and it really gets a little dull at times.

Originally published in 1973, alot of the information in this book is pretty dated.. Not sure anyone is all that interested in how to bootleg 8-track tapes these days. I also believe - perhaps wrongly(?) - that the average American is a little more wise to some of the realities of organized crime than we were back then.

Co-author David Fisher, all these years later, has added an update at the end where he discusses the impact of the original release of this book - it was a best seller - as well as infomation he did and did not know at the time and what he has found out about "Joey the Hitman" in the years since. That, in my opinion, is one of the more interesting parts of the book even though it's not all that long.

Another part I enjoyed was "Joey's" opinion on things that the movie The Godfather (which was a blockbuster hit at the time) got wrong. He also drops a few big names here and there and aludes to some who can't be named but overall the book is all about the somewhat mundane business end of things.

I think if someone, as a writer or for whatever reason, was interested in an overview of how the mob took care of day-to-day business back in the '50's, '60's and '70's then they would get alot of good stuff from this book. Not sure the casual reader would get as much from it.

I've noticed that "Joey" and Mr. Fisher collaberated on another book about a particularly eventful "hit" that Joey was involved in but after reading this book I think I'll pass on the sequel.

Very little graphic violence contained. Other than some strong language and a few racial and homophobic slurs there isn't much to offend anyone.

***Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me the opportunity to read and review this title

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ok, I'm sure my friends are remarking -- you gave this a five! But I absolutely loved it. In fact, I read it all Christmas Day as the rest of the family was immersed in some all day television fest gorging on Game Show Network. Ugh! Anyways, this book, written in first person by an excellent author who spent several years interviewing a Mafia hitman, was compelling, amazing, and highly informative. Now I finally understand how spreads work in sports betting, and have an idea how to find a loanshark, if I would ever need one. Very entertaining, especially from a criminal defense point of view (sadly, I've only had the opportunity to work on one mob case.) I actually bought this book for my 13 yo son who asks me daily questions about the mafia (I guess assuming that since we live in Little Italy and I'm an attorney I must be well-versed in the field) and I think he'll love it, though I'm thinking I might do away with the chapter about how to set up a porn film business. Just not as liberal a parent as some may think . . .

[patrick Lorelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Joey the hit man is a book that originally came out in the 70’s, and the stories are all from that period. The man telling his story Joey tells his story but goes about it form first New York the Bronx then Los Angeles, sometimes Vegas and though some of the names are ones you have heard before the book itself is just average especially for today’s readers. Now back in the late 70’s not so much. He talks about gambling, how running numbers work, how real loan sharking works and not how it is portrayed on T.V. or in the movies, how he would need get a call to take care of someone, and how made men did not mess with the average Joe. True, in all of the real cases where the mob was taken down some of the cases were started by hits made by men who hit the wrong person the average Joe. Two cops in New York a big case were working for one of the families and hit a guy with the same name, wrong guy were convicted in 2005 and books were written about them. Just one of many stories. Overall not a bad book just a little slow at times but I took in account for when it was written and the way he is telling the story. He is also telling people the facts that were wrong with the movie Godfather which was popular at the time when this book came out. Overall not a bad book. I got this book from Netgalley.com I gave it 4 stars. Follow us at www.1rad-readerreviews.com

[Robert Falkenberg · Rating 4 out of 5]

I never should have read this book as young as I did. I was still in elementary school. There I was, getting on the bus home from school chomping at the bit to get back home and resume this book that I only got my hands on because my mother picked up a box of books from a friend at work. Mob hits. Gambling. Sex. More mob its. More sex. More four-letter words than you could imagine. This book was written from the perspective of "Joey," a former mob hitman who told his tale leaving no stone unturned. I'll never really know just how much of an impression it had, because I was so young when I read it. Did it twist me up some, desensitize me to violence and other activities of ill-repute. I wouldn't go that far, but I distinctly remember my buddies talking about things at school for the "first time" that I had read about a few years prior in this book. If I remember correctly it was a hardback with a red cover, the word "Killer" in gold print.

[Steven Ayy · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 rounded up.

Joey the Hitman was a real guy who was murdered 7 years after writing this book.

As a mafia expose it's up there. It is on the ground reporting and history of how to organize a group of guys and set up business in a neighborhood. Joey mostly details small crimes like running numbers (lotteries), a LOT about loan sharking/shylocking, some about assassinations which some have thrown doubt about Joey's credentials but he's definitely close enough to write about the subjects.

Overall it was repetitive but had some good info. IF you're into mob stuff this is with a look.

[Jesse Flood · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting read by a mafia hitman. He writes about how contracts are made and some he's carried out. He's very critical of the film/book The Godfather, which he feels bears no reality to la cosa nostra. And he's critical of the American consumer, who says they don't tolerate crime, but has no problem paying for swag at greatly reduced prices. Good book.

[John R. Goyer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I suppose I could criticize the writing style, but that would be missing the point. The story is the point, and it totally captivates and works for me. Lots of anecdotes and a good summary of Joey's philosophy - with biting criticism of the "honest" citizens that are in many ways the backbone of organized crime. A very good read.

[Annette · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting look into the life of a hit man. The book takes a look at the poverty Joey the hit man grew up in, and you can almost understand how he fell into a life of crime. Not much info. on his hit man career but a look at mob life. I was given an arc by Netgalley for an honest review

[Mark Warren · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read it when I was a kid and loved it. I'd like to find a copy to read again.

[Jared · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not an autobiography, but instead a detailed guide on how to commit and organize pre-surveillance era crime

[Geoffrey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Parts of this book is better than others. This guy is a sociopath, but does provide some decent overview on mob related activities.

[Walt · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a good book that described many gangland killings. However, few of the victims are identified making the book difficult to verify.

[Claudine Shannon Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mafia Man

What a Great read. Great insight on the ins n outs of the mafia! I would recommend everyone to read it! Don't mess with the mob!!!!