I was a novelty a neighborhood guy with an education, whod come into the bar reading books, working crossword puzzles, not a tough guy. A many yearslong saga of murder and betrayal on manhattans gritty west facet its men like jimmy coonan and mickey featherstone who gave hells kitchen its. Dec 16, 2018 jimmy coonan and mickey featherstone were summoned by big paul castellano to a sit down to find out what happened to the black book. May 14, 2010 i guarantee you i can find out if youre really interested. Until it did, jimmy coonan and mickey featherstone ruled with frightening effectiveness. Jimmy coonan organized crime encyclopedia wiki fandom. Starting with a partnership between two sadistic thugs, jimmy coonan and mickey featherstone, the gang rose out of the. Mickey featherstone stood trial for the murder and was found not guilty. Spillane frequently did this to merchants in the area, and would ransom them back to their families. In march 1986, featherstone was found guilty, and faced a sentence of 25 years to life. James jimmy mac mcelroy was serving a 60year sentence for racketeering in federal. They were a bunch of crazy animals that had absolutely no problem killing someone and chopping them into pieces and throwing the parts in the river. James coonan born december 21, 1946 known as jimmy c, was an irishamerican gangster and boss of the notoriously violent hells kitchen irish mob known as the westies, which was the most brutal irish gang in history.
A true story of irish gangsters in manhattana harrowing account of big city crime library journal. To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up. Similar to the abhorrent proclivities of bulgers new york irish counterparts, jimmy coonan and mickey featherstone, who wreaked havoc in hells kitchen throughout the 1970s and 80s, bulgers. Mickey featherstone destroyed the westies and its boss, jimmy coonan, right. The nameused by the press and the police, not by the mobsters themselvesdesignated a group of ruthless and vicious hoodlums, led by jimmy coonan and francis mickey featherstone, who cut up. English, the new york times bestselling author of the corporation. Ive met one of jimmy coonan s sons and a chick whose aunt was married to mickey featherstone. The evidence seemed overwhelming, and the next day featherstone was booked. Facing almost 25 years in jail, he became an informant and brought. Its probably best, though, for a guy like me not to go around asking too many questions about this sort of thing unless you really want to know i have some people i truly trust that could either find out for me or tell me to just forget about. Oct 31, 2006 even among the mob, the westies were feared. Mickey featherstone born september 2, 1948 is a former irish american mobster and member of the westies, an organized crime syndicate from hells kitchen, manhattan in new york city, led by james coonan.
The author spent many hours interviewing featherstone, first while he was being held in federal prison and later when he was relocated into the witness protection program. One of the last living members of the manhattans vicious westies gang has died in a california prison. A decadeslong saga of murder and betrayal on manhattans gritty west side its men like jimmy coonan and mickey featherstone who gave hells kitchen its name. Mickey featherstone is arrested in 1977 for a murder he did not commit. The war began when james jimmy c coonan, an 18yearold irish hood, had sworn revenge against michael mickey spillane, the boss of hells kitchen. Fbi it was the end of mother machree, james cagney and other cultural hokum associated with the irish in the americas. Inside new yorks irish mob is the true account of the vicious gang that ruled hells kitchen from the 1960s through the 1980s. A true story of irish gangsters in manhattana harrowing account of big city crime library journal its men like jimmy coonan and mickey featherstone who gave hells kitchen its name.
It was the end of the westies, featherstone had previously been charged and acquitted of three murders he did actually commit but found guilty of the one he didnt. Mickey featherstone and his wife sissy had decided they wanted out and turned states witness, testifying against his former friends. Out of a partnership between two sadistic thugs james coonan and mickey featherstone the gang dominated the decaying slice of new york citys west side known as hells kitchen in the 1970s and 80s. Until it did, jimmy coonan and mickey featherstone ruled with. Coonan s wife, edna, who prosecutors said had helped run the westies while her husband was in jail on other charges, was sentenced to a total of 15 years on two counts of racketeering and. The book tells the story of the gang primarily from the point of view of mickey featherstone, who was the number two man in the gang behind boss jimmy coonan. Prolific crime reporter english delves into the brutally violent reign of two men, jimmy coonan and mickey featherstone, and the politics and betrayal that eventually brought them down. He took over the hells kitchen irish mob after mickey spillanes 1977 murder. Barone and devaney had just attended a wake across the street from the tavern. Featherstones penchant for violence and intimidation caught the eye of jimmy coonan and the two soon formed an alliance. There present variety of motives behind it due to which the. The nameused by the press and the police, not by the mobsters themselvesdesignated a group of ruthless and vicious hoodlums, led by jimmy coonan and. Together they plotted the murder of longtime hells kitchen crime boss mickey spillane in 1974. Its men like jimmy coonan and mickey featherstone who gave hells kitchen its name.
The fictional ballou could be jimmy coonan or mickey featherstone, the real life chieftans of the gang, who were known for dismembering victims and dumping their bodies in the east river. Tommy devaney was shot to death in a midtown manhattan saloon by sullivan in an execution organized by genovese mobster george georgie the jet barone on july 20, 1976. See more ideas about westies, irish mob and real gangster. When coonan was a young man, mickey spillane, a wellknown mobster, kidnapped his father john, a local accountant. In the mid1970s, these two longtime friends take the reins of new yorks irish mob, using brute force to give it hitherto unthinkable. By the end of the decade however, coonan and featherstone had a falling out over coonan s alliance with the gambino crime family.
Dec 10, 2015 the book tells the story of the gang primarily from the point of view of mickey featherstone, who was the number two man in the gang behind boss jimmy coonan. Jun 20, 2017 its men like jimmy coonan and mickey featherstone who gave hells kitchen its name. Hells kitchen today might be home to pretheater restaurants and brandnew highrises, but in the 1970s it was the domain of the irish mob. Jimmy coonan and mickey featherstone were summoned by big paul castellano to a sit down to find out what happened to the black book. Mickey, whose memories of vietnam torture him daily, is his enforcer.
An epic story of the cuban american underworld, the westies. This is one of those books that is extremely hard to put down, once you start reading you. Starting with a partnership between two sadistic thugs, jimmy coonan and mickey featherstone, the gang rose out of the inferno of hells kitchen, a decaying tenderloin slice of new york citys west side. Coonan and his chief henchman, francis mickey featherstone, were. Roy demeo, a gambino crime family soldier, murdered spillane as a favor to coonan. Starting with a partnership between two sadistic thugs, jimmy coonan and. Oct 31, 2006 the fictional ballou could be jimmy coonan or mickey featherstone, the real life chieftans of the gang, who were known for dismembering victims and dumping their bodies in the east river. But mickey featherstone and jimmy coonan are a couple of fearsome. Nov 15, 2011 its men like jimmy coonan and mickey featherstone who gave hells kitchen its name. Spillane was out of the picture, and coonan was the undisputed boss of hells kitchen. I lived in hells kitchen my first few years and know quite a few people, uh, associated with westies and former westies.
Consequently, their story contains a murder on an average of every few days, most portrayed in gruesome detail. The butchery was a tactic devised by the westies leader, jimmy coonan. The westies is a brutally violent story and one that makes good reading for anyone who likes real life organized crime stories. Mar 19, 1990 its men like jimmy coonan and mickey featherstone who gave hells kitchen its name. Its men like jimmy coonan and mickey featherstone who gave hells kitchen its. I read the book the westies and jimmy coonan was as bad or worse than featherstone, coonan was a real maniac, who killed a mobster named mickey spillane to get the top spot in the westies, i compare coonan to anthony casso, he was that blood thirsty. Coonan is considered one of the most violent irish gangsters of all time. At the meeting was the leaders of the gambino family and some of the genovese family. Inside new yorks irish mob is the true account of the vicious gang that ruled hells kitchen from the 1960s through the 1980s even among the mob, the westies were feared. In the mid1970s, these two longtime friends take the reins of new yorks irish mob, using brute force to give it hitherto unthinkable power.
James coonan was born in 1946 in the hells kitchen, manhattan area of new york city. Apr 08, 1990 until it did, jimmy coonan and mickey featherstone ruled with frightening effectiveness. The westies ebook las vegasclark county library district. Mar 17, 2019 it was the end of the westies, featherstone had previously been charged and acquitted of three murders he did actually commit but found guilty of the one he didnt. Featherstone committed several mob killings before he was convicted in 1986 of a murder he had not committed. Jimmy coonan and mickey featherstone, the gang rose out of the inferno of. Coonan and his righthand man mickey featherstone had the support of the italians.
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