When Corruption Was King
How I Helped the Mob Rule Chicago, Then Brought the Outfit Down
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Narrated by:
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Johnny Heller
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By:
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Robert Cooley
About this listen
Bob Cooley was the Chicago Mafia's "mechanic" - a fixer of court cases. During the 1970s and '80s, Cooley bribed judges, court clerks, and cops to keep his Mob clients - hit men, bookies, racketeers, and crooked pols - out of jail. Paid handsomely for his services, he lived fast and enjoyed the protection of the men he served.
He had enough money to blow on all the vices the Windy City could offer, and enough standing among mobsters to know he would never be caught. Yet, through the '90s, Cooley became the star witness in a series of trials that took down the Chicago outfit, arguably the most powerful Mafia family in the history of organized crime.
This is the story of a Mob lawyer turned mole with a million-dollar contract on his head, a man who has clanged back and forth between sin and sainthood like a church bell clapper - a turbulent youth, a stint on Chicago's police force, law school, and then the inner sanctum of Chicago's leading mobsters and corrupt political officials. With wild abandon he chased crooked acquittals for the likes of Pat Marcy, an Al Capone protégé, who had become the Mob's key political operative; ruthless Mafia capo and gambling czar Marco D'Amico; and notorious hit man Harry Aleman. He dined with Mob bosses and shared "last suppers" with friends before their gangland executions. Cooley watched as Marcy and the Mob controlled the courts, the cops, and the politicians. Then, in a startling act of conscience, he walked into the office of the US Organized Crime Strike Force and, without a pending conviction or a hit man on his tail, agreed to wear a wire on the same Mafia overlords who had made him a player.
Cooley's tapes and testimony would be at the center of nine landmark trials that together exposed and then broke the Mob's unprecedented stranglehold on Chicago's government and court system.
©2004 Robert Cooley and Hillel Levin (P)2015 Blackstone Audio, Inc.Listeners also enjoyed...
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Story
In Being Oscar,one of America’s most celebrated criminal defense attorneys recounts the stories and cases of his epic life. The Mafia’s go-to defender, he has tried an estimated 300 criminal cases, and won most of them. His roster of clients reads like a history of organized crime: Meyer Lansky, Nicky Scarfo, and "Lefty" Rosenthal, as well as Mike Tyson and boxing promoter Don King, along with a midget, a dentist, and a federal judge. After 35 years as a defender, he ran for mayor of Las Vegas, and America’s greatest Mob lawyer became the mayor of its sexiest city.
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Not as good as I expected
- By Eric Schurr on 11-16-14
By: Oscar Goodman, and others
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The Westies
- Inside New York's Irish Mob
- By: T. J. English
- Narrated by: James Anderson Foster
- Length: 13 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
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It's men like Jimmy Coonan and Mickey Featherstone who gave Hell's Kitchen its name. In the mid-1970s, these two longtime friends take the reins of New York's Irish mob, using brute force to give it hitherto unthinkable power. Jimmy, a charismatic sociopath, is the leader. Mickey, whose memories of Vietnam torture him daily, is his enforcer. Together they make brutality their trademark, butchering bodies or hurling them out the window.
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Great book
- By Julio on 06-28-18
By: T. J. English
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Cullotta
- By: Dennis N. Griffin, Frank Cullotta
- Narrated by: Michael Taylor
- Length: 7 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
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From burglary to armed robbery and murder, infamous bad guy Frank Cullotta not only did it all, in Cullotta he admits to it - and in graphic detail. This no-holds-barred biography chronicles the life of a career criminal who started out as a thug on the streets of Chicago and became a trusted lieutenant in Tony Spilotro's gang of organized lawbreakers in Las Vegas. Cullotta's was a world of high-profile heists, street muscle, and information - lots of it - about many of the FBI's most wanted.
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Great story, silly narrator
- By Tom Mainella II on 04-20-15
By: Dennis N. Griffin, and others
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In Contempt
- By: Christopher A. Darden, Jess Walter - contributor
- Narrated by: Christopher Darden
- Length: 2 hrs and 45 mins
- Abridged
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This number-one New York Times best seller is an unflinching look at what the television cameras could not show: behind-the-scenes meetings, the deteriorating relationships between the defense and prosecution teams, the taunting, baiting, and pushing matches between Darden and Simpson, the intimate relationship between Darden and Marcia Clark, and the candid factors behind Darden's controversial decision for Simpson to try on the infamous glove, and much more.
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Author-narrated/well-written - yet abridged
- By J.Chin on 06-28-16
By: Christopher A. Darden, and others
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The Last Good Heist
- The Inside Story of the Biggest Single Payday in the Criminal History of the Northeast
- By: Wayne Worcester, Randall Richard, Tim White
- Narrated by: Eric Martin
- Length: 6 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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On August 14, 1975, eight daring thieves ransacked 148 massive safe-deposit boxes at a secret bank used by organized crime, La Cosa Nostra, and its associates in Providence, Rhode Island. The crooks fled with duffel bags crammed full of cash, gold, silver, stamps, coins, jewels, and high-end jewelry. The true value of the loot has always been kept secret, partly because it was ill-gotten to begin with, and partly because there was plenty of incentive to keep its true worth out of the limelight.
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Interesting but not the greatest story.
- By Russell on 07-21-17
By: Wayne Worcester, and others
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Convicted
- A Crooked Cop, an Innocent Man, and an Unlikely Journey of Forgiveness and Friendship
- By: Jameel McGee, Andrew Collins, Mark Tabb
- Narrated by: Calvin Robinson, Adam Verner
- Length: 6 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
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Racial tensions had long simmered in Benton Harbor, a small city on the eastern shore of Lake Michigan, before the day a White narcotics officer - more focused on arrests than justice - set his sights on an innocent Black man. But when officer Andrew Collins framed Jameel McGee for possession of crack cocaine, the surprising result was not a race riot but a transformative journey for both men.
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Wonderful book
- By Michelle B Ouellette on 06-10-21
By: Jameel McGee, and others
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Making Jack Falcone
- An Undercover FBI Agent Takes Down a Mafia Family
- By: Joaquin "Jack" Garcia, Michael Levin
- Narrated by: Dick Hill
- Length: 9 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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At six-foot-four-inches and 375 pounds, Jack Garcia looked the part of a mobster, and he played his part so perfectly that his Mafia bosses never suspected he was an undercover agent for the FBI. "Big Jack Falcone," as he was known inside La Cosa Nostra, learned all the inside dirt about the Gambino organized crime syndicate and its illegal activities---from extortion and loan-sharking to assault and murder.
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interesting story--offensive narration
- By Mark on 03-17-12
By: Joaquin "Jack" Garcia, and others
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Gangster Squad
- Covert Cops, the Mob, and the Battle for Los Angeles
- By: Paul Lieberman
- Narrated by: Robert Petkoff
- Length: 13 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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Gangster Squad chronicles the true story of the secretive police unit that waged an anything-goes war to drive Mickey Cohen and other hoodlums from Los Angeles after WWII. In 1946, the LAPD launched the Gangster Squad with eight men who met covertly on street corners and slept with Tommy guns under their beds. But for two cops, all that mattered was nailing the strutting gangster Mickey Cohen. Sgt. Jack O’Mara was a square-jawed church usher, Sgt. Jerry Wooters a cynical maverick....
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Nothing Like the movie
- By KEITH on 02-21-13
By: Paul Lieberman
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The Murder of Sonny Liston
- Las Vegas, Heroin, and Heavyweights
- By: Shaun Assael
- Narrated by: R.C. Bray
- Length: 6 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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On January 5, 1971, Sonny Liston was found dead in his home - of an apparent heroin overdose. But no one close to Liston believed that his death was accidental. Digging deep into a life that Liston tried hard to hide, Shaun Assael treats the boxer's death as a cold case. The result is a riveting whodunit that evokes a glorious and grimy era of Las Vegas.
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Great read
- By Diane Dodge on 09-14-19
By: Shaun Assael
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Lethal Guardian
- By: M. William Phelps
- Narrated by: J. Charles
- Length: 13 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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A real-estate lawyer in Connecticut's moneyed seaside communities, Beth Ann Carpenter, 30, had beauty, brains, and success. But she wanted more - namely guardianship of her two-year-old niece, Rebecca, daughter of Beth's estranged sister, Kim.
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Lethal Guardian
- By Tamara on 10-19-10
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Above the Law
- By: J.F. Freedman
- Narrated by: Dick Hill
- Length: 17 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
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In a remote northern California town, a huge task force from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration conducts a raid on the stronghold of one of the biggest drug-dealing rings in the country. During the raid, the infamous, reclusive leader of the ring, Reynaldo Juarez, is shot and killed - despite direct orders from the Attorney General that he is to be taken alive at any cost because of his immense value to the government as a witness in other drug cases.
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Good Book great ending
- By shelley on 04-10-14
By: J.F. Freedman
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Open and Shut
- By: David Rosenfelt
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 6 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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Whether dueling with new forensics or the local old boys' network, irreverent defense attorney Andy Carpenter always leaves them awed with his biting wit and winning fourth-quarter game plan. But the fun stops the day Andy's dad, Paterson, New Jersey's legendary ex-DA, drops dead in front of him at a game in Yankee Stadium.
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Does Anyone Else Notice the Missing Content?
- By pewter on 02-05-13
By: David Rosenfelt
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The Hidden Man
- By: David Ellis
- Narrated by: Luke Daniels
- Length: 10 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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On a hot summer night in 1980, two-year-old Audrey Culter was snatched from her bedroom and never seen again. Twenty-six years later, her brother, Sammy, fatefully crosses paths with the man the police failed to convict for her abduction and murder. A few weeks later, that man is dead, murdered. Private attorney Jason Kolarich is engaged to defend Audrey's brother. But can he trust the people who hired him?
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Story not bad, Didn't like the reader
- By Kristin on 12-21-09
By: David Ellis
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The Birthday Party
- A Memoir of Survival
- By: Stanley N. Alpert
- Narrated by: Richard Powers
- Length: 10 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
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On January 21, 1998, the night before his 38th birthday, federal prosecutor Stanley Alpert was kidnapped by a car full of gun-toting thugs. Hoping to make a large withdrawal with his ATM card, they took him, blindfolded, to a Brooklyn apartment, and improvised. All night, his captors alternately held guns to his head, threatened his family, engaged him in discussions of "gangsta" philosophy, sought his legal advice, and even offered him sexual favors from their prostitute girlfriends as a "birthday present."
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Since there haven't been any SERIOUS...
- By Douglas on 04-30-15
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Judgment Calls
- Samantha Kincaid, Book 1
- By: Alafair Burke
- Narrated by: Betty Bobbitt
- Length: 9 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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Deputy District Attorney Samantha Kincaid walks into her office in Portland's Drug and Vice Division one morning to find the sergeant of the police bureau's vice unit waiting for her. A 13-year-old girl has been brutally attacked and left for dead on the city's outskirts. Given the lack of evidence, most lawyers would settle for an assault charge; Samantha, unnerved by the viciousness of the crime, decides to go for attempted murder.
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Well read above average book
- By Rajesh on 06-24-05
By: Alafair Burke
What listeners say about When Corruption Was King
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Stephen A. Isaacs
- 03-03-15
I great read about Chicago and the mob
I great tell all book about the corruption inside the Chicago government, judicial system, and the Mob. I highly recommend it!
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3 people found this helpful
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- Amazon Customer
- 04-30-21
Very good book
One of the best books I've listened to inna while! I would recommend to anyone interested in this type of story.
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- Hester FM
- 04-19-24
Say what!?
Such a wild book. loved every part. wish more books were done like this.
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- Mother of Italy/Aivee
- 09-23-20
Johnny Hellet is Brilliant!!!
I’m now listening to a second book by same narrator. He’s perfect! Doesn’t over do it but instead takes you into the story as if he’s physically painting you a picture.
The story ties together a number of different Mob storylines that I didn’t realize intertwined.
Must also read/listen to Double Cross! And if you like Johnny Heller then “John Gotta Boys” is a great next read.
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5 people found this helpful
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- steve finkelstein
- 10-18-20
Very enjoyable
I listened to the book mostly because Johnny Heller (narrator) has an excellent voice. He did a masterful job with the book.
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5 people found this helpful
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- Joshua Hunt
- 02-04-23
Mind blowing
I always heard about corruption in Chicago, never knew it was this bad. Great book!
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Overall
- Dave McEvers
- 04-22-19
The Glue of Chicago History
This book, when read with the proper lens, reveals how corruption, has worked, continues to work, and will work moving forward in Chicago. Keep notes and draw a map. then, in the end, cross out the names but leave the connecting lines, and there you have it. A structure, unique only to Chicago, where bosses don't kill each other and the 'untouchables ' just make minor adjustments and replace the players on the chart, but the stucture and leadership remain strong. their way is, modern, modular, scalable and can be ramped up or pulled back into the shadows at any time.
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3 people found this helpful
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- jwj
- 05-13-22
Excellent narration of interesting story
Somehow hadn't heard anything about this story, but it was interesting. Heller is one of the best in the business, and alone made it worth the listen.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Anonymous User
- 03-13-21
Fascinating!
Very good and detailed account of how the mob had its fingers in every part of Chicago. The author and narrator did a great job, I definitely recommend this book!
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- majorbehr
- 03-06-22
Kept me wanting more
Loved it and listened every chance I could. Suspenseful, interesting and very easy to follow
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