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[narrator] This playbook has shown you
how to harness your mob boss energy,
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grow your bottom line,
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and obliterate everyone
who threatens your rule.
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[guns firing]
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It's a classic for a reason,
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but not all mob bosses
pay attention to its lessons.
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I want to tell you about someone
who thought he knew better.
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His name, John Gotti.
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John Gotti flipped
the playbook on its head.
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You don't talk.
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You don't strut yourself around.
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[narrator] During his tumultuous
six-year reign
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over New York's Gambino crime family,
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Gotti blew off the playbook at every turn,
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leading to an endless series
of arrests and betrayal
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that brought him
and his entire organization to ruin.
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John Gotti destroyed the Mafia.
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You can't operate like John
and expect to survive. You just can't.
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[narrator] Ready to learn what not to do
on your mob boss journey?
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The Dapper Don is at your service.
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[theme music playing]
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In his prime,
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John Gotti was the most recognizable
mob boss in the world.
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[Gotti] You'll never see another guy
like me if you live to be 5,000.
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[narrator] But by following
his own impulses
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instead of the playbook's wisdom,
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he blew his chance at greatness,
lost the respect of his peers,
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and ended up dying behind bars.
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There's a lot of guys
who look up to John Gotti,
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the way he dressed, the way he acted,
because they're not mob guys.
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The real story is
it's the worst thing you could ever do.
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[narrator] Before we get into
the bad choices Gotti made at the top,
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let's give him his due
for making it there in the first place.
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Here's how he pulled it off.
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[George] John Gotti was a thug.
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His attributes
only worked well in organized crime.
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So he gravitated toward the one business
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where what he was good at
would have a payoff,
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and then he started
to work his way up the ladder.
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[man] The leaders of the Gambino family
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were very much impressed
by the young John Gotti.
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He was making money for them.
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He had the reputation
for being violent because he was,
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and, by all accounts,
Gotti was a raconteur.
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He was somebody who had charisma.
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He was somebody
that had leadership qualities.
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[George] Aniello Dellacroce, who was
the underboss of the Gambino family,
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became a mentor for Gotti.
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Dellacroce came up from the streets.
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It was somebody
that Gotti could look up to.
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Dellacroce taught Gotti
you got to be tough, you gotta be strong,
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and you don't take any guff from anybody.
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This is not about diplomacy.
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This is about an iron fist.
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[siren wailing]
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[narrator] In 1973,
boss Carlo Gambino's nephew is kidnapped.
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The main suspect,
Irish-American gangster Jimmy McBratney.
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[Ed] People in the Gambino
crime family decided
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that the people responsible
for the kidnapping should be dealt with.
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Gotti was given
the task of killing Jimmy McBratney.
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[gunshot]
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So Gotti ends up
pleading out the manslaughter,
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and I think doing four years.
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When he comes back,
you know, he's a stand-up guy.
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He's been involved in a murder,
and so now he can get made.
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[narrator] Gotti was now a made man,
a fully initiated member of the Mafia,
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but he wanted to be a boss,
and his plan for getting there
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had him run afoul
of the playbook from the opening gun.
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No matter what organization
you're looking to lead,
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you have to respect its structure.
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That's especially true
with the Italian Mafia,
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also known as Cosa Nostra.
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[Sammy] You live by Cosa Nostra's rules.
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It's not your thing.
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It's not my thing.
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It's our thing, as a family.
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[narrator] And in this family,
everybody needs to know their place.
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In Cosa Nostra, there's a pecking order.
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[man] At the top, you have your boss.
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Under the boss, you have your underboss.
Then you have your consigliere,
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which is basically the advisor
or the counselor.
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Then you have your captains.
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That's sort of your mid-level managers.
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And then you have your soldiers.
Those are the made guys.
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Beyond that, you have associates.
They're not made members of the group,
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but they're people
who work with and contribute to the mob.
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[George] And if everybody buys into that,
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the organization
will probably function fairly smoothly.
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[narrator] But when you're
a street fighter like John Gotti ,
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working your way into upper management,
it can be hard to just blend in.
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He just wanted it the way he wanted it.
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By his rules only,
and nobody else's rules mattered to him.
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- [siren wailing]
- [gun firing]
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[Ed] In the mid-1980s,
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Paul Castellano
was the boss of the Gambino family.
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His faction was sort of
the white-collar faction of the family.
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They made their money
through committing fraud crimes.
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They used labor unions,
and they used sophisticated means,
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less violent means.
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[narrator] Gotti's relationship
with the top boss was complicated
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by more than just artistic differences.
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Castellano put out an edict, "No drugs."
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Anybody deals drugs is gonna get killed.
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[gunshot, guns firing]
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[narrator] As a loyal captain,
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you should always make sure
your boss's commands are followed.
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But Gotti wasn't that loyal.
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[George] Gotti's brother Gene
and Angelo Ruggiero, Gotti's good friend,
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get jammed up in a heroin case.
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[narrator] Not a good look.
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[George] Gotti decides,
"I got to do a preemptive strike."
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"If I don't take this guy out, he'll take
my brother and my best friend out."
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"Maybe he's gonna take me out."
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[narrator] When it comes
to targeting mob royalty,
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you can't just act alone,
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and Cosa Nostra
has some particularly strict rules.
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In the American Mafia,
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you can't kill a fully initiated
or made guy in your family
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without getting permission from your boss.
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You can't whack
a made guy in another family
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without getting permission from your boss
and the boss of the other family.
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And if you want to clip
your own boss, good luck.
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You need approval from the Commission.
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Basically, the Mafia board of directors.
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The rules were clear.
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John Gotti needed to make his case
through the proper channels,
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but he decided otherwise.
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He said, "Do it. Fuck it."
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We knew we couldn't get permission
from this thing.
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Bosses want to protect each other
in the Commission,
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so we formed this alliance
which we called The Fist.
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So, there was five of us,
and there was nobody saying no.
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It was just a time and a place.
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[narrator] It's the height of the holiday
shopping season in Midtown Manhattan.
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And John Gotti and Sammy Gravano
are awaiting their prey,
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Paul Castellano
and his underboss, Tommy Bilotti.
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Sammy scored a tip
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that Gambino higher-ups
were meeting at five o'clock
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at Sparks Steakhouse.
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And I said, "This is perfect."
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We know the restaurant.
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We know what time.
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We can make it happen.
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I had told John, "They're a little late."
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"I wonder what's going on."
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As I said that,
four feet, five feet away from me,
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was their car stopped at the light.
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I told John they're right next to us.
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[narrator] But luckily,
their targets are distracted.
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They give Gotti's
conspicuously-dressed hitmen the word.
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Castellano is approaching.
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And as the boss's car
pulls up to the valet,
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the assassins execute Gotti's plan.
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[ominous music playing]
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[music crescendos]
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[gunshot]
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And it couldn't have been a better plan.
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[crowd screaming]
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No legitimate people were hurt.
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There was hundreds of people
who saw this, was witnesses.
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[screaming continues]
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"What did they look like?"
They didn't know.
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All they saw was those hats,
the jackets, and people getting shot.
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[siren wailing]
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[narrator] Within days,
John Gotti's power play bears fruit.
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He's named the new boss
of the Gambino family.
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So, what's the problem?
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He absolutely knew
what he was doing was against the rules.
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There's no doubt about it.
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[narrator] And this unsanctioned hit
puts a huge target on John Gotti's back.
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The very next day, he's out there.
He's just, "I'm the king now."
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[Michael] You know, murder brings heat.
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Doesn't only bring heat to you.
It brings heat to everybody.
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[narrator] When the temperature
gets too hot,
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our trusty playbook
has just the trick to cool things down,
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which, naturally, Gotti would ignore
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big time.
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As a mob boss,
the spotlight is not your friend.
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[Elie] Smart mobsters
don't want attention on themselves
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from law enforcement,
from the media, from the public.
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They know
that what they're doing is illegal,
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and attention can only hurt
their bottom-line goal,
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which is to make money.
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[narrator] Let me show you how it's done.
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Florida mob boss Santo Trafficante Junior
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earned the nickname "The Silent Don"
for his low-key lifestyle,
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despite being a big enough player
in both the US and Cuba
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that he was allegedly enlisted by the CIA
to kill Fidel Castro.
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Sicilian mob boss Bernardo Provenzano
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managed to evade capture
for nearly 40 years
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by avoiding phone calls
and all electronic communication.
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He would task his lieutenants
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by sending messages on small
folded pieces of paper called pizzini.
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While Genovese crime boss
Vincent "the Chin" Gigante
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deflected attention from his activities
by feigning dementia for 30 years,
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shuffling around Greenwich Village
in a bathrobe
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while muttering to himself
and nearby parking meters.
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After the Castellano murder,
Gotti had good reason to lay low.
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[John] It blasted John Gotti
all over the media
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that the people that didn't know him
outside the local areas of New York,
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they all knew who John Gotti was now.
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[narrator] But instead of following
the playbook and going underground,
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Gotti decided to do the opposite.
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[Sammy] But John Gotti decided,
"I have to present myself as a boss now."
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So his whole demeanor changed.
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His wardrobe changed,
and his attitude changed.
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[narrator] Within months, Gotti's profile
was going to be raised even higher
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by his first of three public trials.
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This one was a blast from the past.
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A year before he becomes the boss,
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John Gotti is just another Gambino captain
looking to blow off steam
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at the family's favorite bar
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when his good time is interrupted.
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- [indistinct chatter]
- [horn honks]
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[honking]
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Refrigerator repairman Romual Piecyk
is boxed in and livid.
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Not knowing who he's dealing with,
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he asks the wise guys
to get out of his way.
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They decline...
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[grunts, screams]
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...and make sure
the fridge guy knows that he got off easy.
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Piecyk runs off straight to the police.
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This was a nonsense assault.
It was almost street thuggery.
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[narrator] But with Gotti
publicly flaunting his mob boss status,
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the authorities were eager
to take him down
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whether Mr. Piecyk likes it or not.
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[Ed] All he had to do
was open up the paper and see
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that the leader of the most notorious
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and violent organized crime family
in the country
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was the subject of his complaint.
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[narrator] As prosecutors
refine their case,
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the new mob boss makes sure
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Piecyk and his family
also get some extra attention.
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[John] Gotti wasn't sending out
orders to hurt this guy.
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He was just trying to make him go away.
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[narrator] Inside the packed courtroom,
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Gotti and his attorneys
wait for the proceedings to begin,
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but Piecyk doesn't show.
239
00:13:47,744 --> 00:13:50,038
He has scheduled elective surgery.
240
00:13:50,539 --> 00:13:52,540
It only delays the inevitable.
241
00:13:52,624 --> 00:13:53,500
[gavel knocking]
242
00:13:54,626 --> 00:13:59,423
But when Piecyk finally takes the stand,
he can't seem to remember a thing.
243
00:14:01,592 --> 00:14:04,302
If I did go stand there and say
that this is Mr. Gotti
244
00:14:04,386 --> 00:14:07,556
and this is Mr. Colletta,
they assaulted me and robbed me...
245
00:14:08,390 --> 00:14:09,266
I'm not sure.
246
00:14:09,892 --> 00:14:11,602
[narrator] The judge throws out the case,
247
00:14:12,352 --> 00:14:15,731
leading to even more headlines
about Gotti's great escape.
248
00:14:20,277 --> 00:14:21,402
True to form,
249
00:14:21,486 --> 00:14:24,948
Gotti took all the wrong lessons
from his brush with justice.
250
00:14:26,325 --> 00:14:27,700
[George] That was an example of,
251
00:14:27,784 --> 00:14:30,746
"Hey, this celebrity stuff
can really work to my advantage."
252
00:14:31,538 --> 00:14:32,497
"Look at this guy."
253
00:14:32,998 --> 00:14:35,500
"I didn't even have to do anything."
He forgot.
254
00:14:36,209 --> 00:14:39,546
[narrator] But when you continue
setting the playbook on fire,
255
00:14:40,339 --> 00:14:42,341
don't expect to get off that easy.
256
00:14:43,133 --> 00:14:45,635
[Lou] If you're gonna be out there
and be flashy,
257
00:14:45,719 --> 00:14:48,221
you're going to embarrass law enforcement.
258
00:14:48,889 --> 00:14:50,307
So now we're gonna double down.
259
00:14:51,433 --> 00:14:54,143
[narrator] Even so,
you can still get back on side
260
00:14:54,227 --> 00:14:56,062
with the playbook by using your head
261
00:14:56,146 --> 00:14:59,066
and making sure it doesn't get too big.
262
00:15:06,531 --> 00:15:09,826
Throughout history,
excessive pride or hubris
263
00:15:10,410 --> 00:15:13,413
has been the downfall
of many powerful figures.
264
00:15:15,499 --> 00:15:16,791
[woman] One thing that can happen
265
00:15:16,875 --> 00:15:21,254
when somebody develops
this hubris is they make mistakes.
266
00:15:22,422 --> 00:15:24,173
Because they are operating
267
00:15:24,257 --> 00:15:27,761
under this false belief
that nothing can touch me.
268
00:15:28,428 --> 00:15:29,930
[narrator] And by the mid-1980s,
269
00:15:30,514 --> 00:15:33,183
John Gotti was getting
ever closer to the sun
270
00:15:33,725 --> 00:15:35,310
whether he knew it or not.
271
00:15:37,813 --> 00:15:40,315
[Ed] John Gotti was
an egotistical narcissist
272
00:15:40,399 --> 00:15:45,445
who appeared to revel in the attention
that he was getting from the press
273
00:15:45,529 --> 00:15:46,571
and from the public.
274
00:15:46,655 --> 00:15:48,698
And the more he got, the more he wanted.
275
00:15:48,782 --> 00:15:50,491
[newscaster] He's called the Dapper Don.
276
00:15:50,575 --> 00:15:51,784
[newscaster 2] The Dapper Don.
277
00:15:51,868 --> 00:15:54,121
[newscaster 3]
The so-called Dapper Don, John Gotti.
278
00:15:55,622 --> 00:16:00,585
Whoever named him the Dapper Don
should have came down and talked to him.
279
00:16:00,669 --> 00:16:04,923
The reporter. He would've paid
that guy $100,000 for that label.
280
00:16:05,007 --> 00:16:06,424
He loved those labels.
281
00:16:06,508 --> 00:16:09,553
I mean, you couldn't make that stuff up.
282
00:16:10,887 --> 00:16:12,805
[John] He'd get his hair done
on a regular basis,
283
00:16:12,889 --> 00:16:15,350
so he'd have
one of the barbers come over to the club,
284
00:16:15,434 --> 00:16:18,353
and they'd cut his hair
and shake as they're cutting.
285
00:16:18,979 --> 00:16:22,441
He's got very good taste.
286
00:16:22,941 --> 00:16:26,069
He likes his hair extremely perfect.
287
00:16:26,153 --> 00:16:28,821
[Ellie] He operated
in front of the cameras.
288
00:16:28,905 --> 00:16:33,994
He made himself into a celebrity,
into a "front page of the tabloid" figure.
289
00:16:36,663 --> 00:16:40,667
[narrator] But Gotti's uncontrolled ego
quickly got him into even worse trouble.
290
00:16:41,251 --> 00:16:43,711
[Ed] Gotti moved his headquarters
291
00:16:43,795 --> 00:16:47,924
from the Bergin Hunt and Fish Club
in Queens to the Ravenite,
292
00:16:48,008 --> 00:16:52,929
and this was the ancestral home
of the Gambino crime family
293
00:16:53,013 --> 00:16:54,806
in Little Italy, in Lower Manhattan.
294
00:16:54,890 --> 00:16:58,017
It was a move up the ladder, clearly.
You know, it's Manhattan now.
295
00:16:58,101 --> 00:17:00,312
You're not out in Queens.
Now you're in the city.
296
00:17:02,355 --> 00:17:05,358
Guys had to come there
to meet with Gotti on a regular basis.
297
00:17:05,442 --> 00:17:07,151
The FBI's outside taking pictures.
298
00:17:07,235 --> 00:17:08,319
[camera shutters clicking]
299
00:17:08,403 --> 00:17:09,905
Is that good? That's not good.
300
00:17:10,697 --> 00:17:14,451
He put the whole Mafia on Front Street.
301
00:17:15,118 --> 00:17:17,120
A secret brotherhood.
302
00:17:19,414 --> 00:17:21,541
[narrator] How do you think
that went with the heads
303
00:17:21,625 --> 00:17:23,502
of the other Mafia families?
304
00:17:24,252 --> 00:17:28,131
They were appalled that Gotti was
carrying himself in this flamboyant way,
305
00:17:28,215 --> 00:17:31,468
bringing all this attention
upon himself and the family.
306
00:17:32,260 --> 00:17:34,971
[narrator] And they were going
to do something about it
307
00:17:36,014 --> 00:17:37,223
by borrowing a technique
308
00:17:37,307 --> 00:17:39,893
from their criminal cousins
across the pond.
309
00:17:40,727 --> 00:17:45,148
The Commission hired
Sicilian mobsters to have Gotti killed.
310
00:17:47,317 --> 00:17:48,860
A car bomb exploded today
311
00:17:48,944 --> 00:17:51,863
not in the Middle East,
but in a quiet neighborhood of Brooklyn.
312
00:17:52,531 --> 00:17:54,991
[narrator] But things didn't go
according to plan.
313
00:17:56,326 --> 00:17:59,579
The Sicilian mobsters botched it.
314
00:18:00,247 --> 00:18:02,957
[newscaster] One man was killed,
the 58-year-old Frank DeCicco
315
00:18:03,041 --> 00:18:05,293
described as a lieutenant to John Gotti.
316
00:18:06,128 --> 00:18:08,004
They put a bomb in the wrong car.
317
00:18:09,047 --> 00:18:12,008
[narrator] Were it not
for a little operator error,
318
00:18:12,092 --> 00:18:14,719
Gotti's ego would have cost him his life.
319
00:18:15,262 --> 00:18:17,305
You may not be so lucky.
320
00:18:20,642 --> 00:18:24,312
But the Dapper Don's string
of good fortune was about to hit a snag.
321
00:18:29,609 --> 00:18:31,486
For a studious mob boss,
322
00:18:31,570 --> 00:18:35,740
a stay in the big house
can be just a temporary inconvenience.
323
00:18:36,408 --> 00:18:38,910
But then you'll have to do better
324
00:18:38,994 --> 00:18:41,746
at adhering to the playbook
than John Gotti.
325
00:18:46,960 --> 00:18:49,587
There comes a time
in every mob boss's career
326
00:18:49,671 --> 00:18:52,257
when you will have to work remotely.
327
00:18:52,924 --> 00:18:56,094
To be in this life,
you have to be willing to go to prison,
328
00:18:56,803 --> 00:18:58,889
because at some point,
you're gonna get caught.
329
00:18:59,890 --> 00:19:04,352
[narrator] So make sure your time
in government custody is productive.
330
00:19:04,436 --> 00:19:06,229
[Elie] Whenever a mob boss goes to prison,
331
00:19:06,313 --> 00:19:09,524
they do their best to continue running
the show from behind bars.
332
00:19:09,608 --> 00:19:12,735
But the struggle is to keep the money
coming in to keep control of this family
333
00:19:12,819 --> 00:19:15,197
when you don't have
your individual liberty.
334
00:19:16,448 --> 00:19:19,242
[narrator] These jailhouse operators
didn't miss a step.
335
00:19:22,662 --> 00:19:24,288
During his time in prison,
336
00:19:24,372 --> 00:19:28,168
Pablo Escobar continued running
all aspects of his criminal operation.
337
00:19:29,002 --> 00:19:32,213
And when he discovered
that his phone calls were being monitored,
338
00:19:32,297 --> 00:19:34,883
he started using carrier pigeons instead.
339
00:19:36,718 --> 00:19:39,387
While serving 26 life sentences,
340
00:19:39,471 --> 00:19:43,934
Salvatore Riina successfully ordered
the kidnapping of a 13-year-old boy
341
00:19:44,517 --> 00:19:47,687
to prevent his father
from revealing Mafia secrets.
342
00:19:47,771 --> 00:19:50,940
When the plan failed,
he had the boy killed
343
00:19:51,024 --> 00:19:53,068
and his body dissolved in acid.
344
00:19:54,361 --> 00:19:57,488
And to continue
running his operation behind bars,
345
00:19:57,572 --> 00:20:00,783
Sinaloa Cartel leader,
Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman,
346
00:20:00,867 --> 00:20:03,662
put most of the prison system
on his payroll.
347
00:20:04,537 --> 00:20:07,415
Friendly guards
also helped him smuggle in cash,
348
00:20:07,499 --> 00:20:08,666
prostitutes,
349
00:20:08,750 --> 00:20:09,709
Viagra,
350
00:20:10,252 --> 00:20:13,380
and the latest movies
to make his stay more pleasant.
351
00:20:17,217 --> 00:20:19,803
The Piecyk assault case
was in the rearview mirror,
352
00:20:20,470 --> 00:20:23,974
but John Gotti was now in jail
awaiting his second trial.
353
00:20:24,516 --> 00:20:26,726
This time on federal RICO charges.
354
00:20:27,227 --> 00:20:30,062
RICO is the worst law
they ever put on the books.
355
00:20:30,146 --> 00:20:33,733
It's Racketeering Influenced
and Corrupt Organizations Act,
356
00:20:33,817 --> 00:20:35,526
and it's an all-encompassing law.
357
00:20:35,610 --> 00:20:37,195
It's very hard to defend.
358
00:20:37,779 --> 00:20:39,739
[narrator] Excuses are for losers.
359
00:20:39,823 --> 00:20:41,783
You still have a business to run.
360
00:20:42,492 --> 00:20:45,704
That will take a firm hand
and impeccable judgment.
361
00:20:46,371 --> 00:20:48,498
Wise guys
aren't the best people in the world.
362
00:20:49,124 --> 00:20:51,084
A lot of people have their own agendas.
363
00:20:51,710 --> 00:20:54,879
When someone has the boss's ear,
they could bring them anything,
364
00:20:55,547 --> 00:20:56,631
and that's a problem.
365
00:20:58,550 --> 00:21:00,551
[narrator] To stay connected in prison,
366
00:21:00,635 --> 00:21:03,430
Gotti relies
on a small group of lieutenants.
367
00:21:04,014 --> 00:21:07,851
His most trusted messenger
is Angelo "Quack Quack" Ruggiero,
368
00:21:08,518 --> 00:21:11,229
known for his duck-like waddle
and big mouth.
369
00:21:12,522 --> 00:21:14,941
Angelo comes to Gotti with urgent news
370
00:21:15,984 --> 00:21:18,986
that another capo,
Robert "DiB" DiBernardo,
371
00:21:19,070 --> 00:21:22,365
the undisputed porn king
of the underworld,
372
00:21:22,449 --> 00:21:25,326
has been talking smack about the boss.
373
00:21:25,410 --> 00:21:27,203
[Sammy] You'd have to be
a complete imbecile
374
00:21:27,287 --> 00:21:29,914
to be talking about a boss
behind his back.
375
00:21:30,540 --> 00:21:34,961
He's got the ultimate power
over your life, whether you live or die.
376
00:21:35,545 --> 00:21:39,632
[narrator] Gotti has heard enough.
DiB needs to be rubbed out.
377
00:21:41,551 --> 00:21:46,514
Back at home, Quack Quack calls
Sammy Gravano to relay the order.
378
00:21:48,725 --> 00:21:52,937
Sammy invites DiB to his office
to discuss construction projects.
379
00:21:54,314 --> 00:21:59,235
Once DiB arrives, Sammy asks an associate
to get their guest a cup of coffee.
380
00:22:01,071 --> 00:22:02,197
It's a signal.
381
00:22:03,448 --> 00:22:07,911
And thus , the demise
of the porn king comes prematurely.
382
00:22:11,539 --> 00:22:14,084
While normally mob hits
are taken in stride,
383
00:22:14,793 --> 00:22:16,002
this one is different.
384
00:22:16,503 --> 00:22:19,505
[Michael] It's a hit that shouldn't
have been ordered. DiB's a good guy.
385
00:22:19,589 --> 00:22:21,924
He made a lot of money,
and he was doing well,
386
00:22:22,008 --> 00:22:23,468
and he was well-liked.
387
00:22:24,302 --> 00:22:26,721
Why's this guy getting killed?
What did he do?
388
00:22:27,555 --> 00:22:30,975
[narrator] Later, Sammy Gravano
would find the likely answer.
389
00:22:31,476 --> 00:22:36,731
Angelo, before he makes up this story
about DiB talking behind John's back,
390
00:22:36,815 --> 00:22:39,234
had borrowed 250,000 from him.
391
00:22:39,818 --> 00:22:42,112
When he gets hit,
he just wipes that debt out.
392
00:22:42,946 --> 00:22:44,948
He never talked behind John's back.
393
00:22:46,741 --> 00:22:50,328
The whole hit completely turned me off.
He was a good friend.
394
00:22:51,246 --> 00:22:52,997
[Michael] You know,
that's a treacherous life.
395
00:22:53,081 --> 00:22:56,375
Dissension is created, uh,
396
00:22:56,459 --> 00:22:59,503
and mistrust is created
when something like that happens.
397
00:22:59,587 --> 00:23:03,382
Now, your own men are questioning that
and worried about themselves.
398
00:23:03,466 --> 00:23:05,343
You know? What, am I next?
399
00:23:06,469 --> 00:23:09,389
[narrator] That's what happens
when you take your eye off the ball.
400
00:23:10,140 --> 00:23:13,517
You get a crew full of killers
doubting your leadership.
401
00:23:13,601 --> 00:23:17,021
And yet,
Gotti's worst mistake is still to come,
402
00:23:17,647 --> 00:23:21,234
failing to follow the playbook's
most basic commandment of all.
403
00:23:27,949 --> 00:23:30,618
The code in the American Mafia is silence.
404
00:23:30,702 --> 00:23:32,495
Don't talk about
a murder that's committed.
405
00:23:32,579 --> 00:23:34,789
Don't talk on your phones.
Don't talk indoors.
406
00:23:34,873 --> 00:23:36,415
Don't talk in your car.
407
00:23:36,499 --> 00:23:38,626
Everything's about
keeping your mouth shut.
408
00:23:38,710 --> 00:23:39,960
[shushes]
409
00:23:40,044 --> 00:23:43,631
[narrator] The Mafia calls
this code Omerta.
410
00:23:45,925 --> 00:23:47,885
[Micheal] When you take
the oath of Omerta,
411
00:23:47,969 --> 00:23:51,138
you're taking an oath to never admit
that the life ever exists
412
00:23:51,222 --> 00:23:52,348
and to never betray the life.
413
00:23:52,432 --> 00:23:53,516
That's the oath.
414
00:23:53,600 --> 00:23:55,643
I tell ya I don't know anything about--
415
00:23:56,436 --> 00:24:02,441
For a mafioso to break Omerta
is tantamount to betraying your family,
416
00:24:02,525 --> 00:24:04,152
everything you know, everything you love.
417
00:24:05,236 --> 00:24:06,987
[narrator] But as for John Gotti,
418
00:24:07,071 --> 00:24:10,200
he was never great
at keeping his thoughts to himself,
419
00:24:10,867 --> 00:24:13,536
even while standing trial
on his RICO case.
420
00:24:14,037 --> 00:24:18,791
He goes into the court the next day.
He's smug. He's smiling. He's waving.
421
00:24:19,626 --> 00:24:21,461
He knows he ain't going to jail
on this case.
422
00:24:22,045 --> 00:24:23,838
[John] He starts setting odds.
423
00:24:23,922 --> 00:24:26,882
"I'll bet you three to one,
I beat this case or that case,"
424
00:24:26,966 --> 00:24:28,801
knowing we're getting to the jurors.
425
00:24:29,594 --> 00:24:30,803
[narrator] Well, he was right.
426
00:24:31,679 --> 00:24:35,975
[newscaster] The man they say is the boss
of the nation's most powerful Mafia family
427
00:24:36,059 --> 00:24:39,353
was today found not guilty
of racketeering and conspiracy.
428
00:24:39,437 --> 00:24:43,983
[narrator] With each acquittal,
the Teflon Don's legend grew even larger.
429
00:24:44,692 --> 00:24:49,447
He starts inviting people
to come to his trials. Movie stars.
430
00:24:54,410 --> 00:24:57,121
It brings more notoriety to him.
It legitimizes him.
431
00:24:58,039 --> 00:25:00,124
And it's getting turned around
on the government
432
00:25:00,208 --> 00:25:04,336
that John Gotti is an innocent guy
that works for a plumbing company.
433
00:25:04,420 --> 00:25:07,507
And they don't like him
because he's in the public's eye.
434
00:25:08,800 --> 00:25:13,221
[Renee] The government was jealous of him
because he was winning.
435
00:25:13,930 --> 00:25:15,348
A vendetta's a vendetta.
436
00:25:15,848 --> 00:25:17,600
Doesn't matter where it comes from.
437
00:25:17,684 --> 00:25:19,894
It comes from the good side,
it comes from the bad side,
438
00:25:19,978 --> 00:25:22,230
at the end of the day,
they're gonna get your ass.
439
00:25:22,814 --> 00:25:25,483
[narrator] Sounds like a great time
to quiet things down,
440
00:25:25,984 --> 00:25:29,737
but then he wouldn't be John Gotti,
would he?
441
00:25:32,156 --> 00:25:36,702
[Ed] Gotti was talking very freely
with countless members,
442
00:25:36,786 --> 00:25:40,290
leaders of the Gambino crime family,
about their criminal activities.
443
00:25:41,541 --> 00:25:44,960
He was talking about the structure
of Cosa Nostra, past hits,
444
00:25:45,044 --> 00:25:47,046
guys that he was contemplating hitting.
445
00:25:47,839 --> 00:25:51,426
The FBI is able to bug an apartment
where Gotti would have meetings.
446
00:25:52,385 --> 00:25:54,596
He assumed the apartment was safe,
447
00:25:55,430 --> 00:25:56,556
and it wasn't.
448
00:25:58,182 --> 00:26:00,768
[Ed] If he just stopped
and used common sense,
449
00:26:00,852 --> 00:26:03,354
he would say,
"I'm running a real risk here."
450
00:26:04,856 --> 00:26:06,441
"I am gonna bring myself down."
451
00:26:07,358 --> 00:26:09,736
"And I'm going to bring
the entire family down."
452
00:26:10,778 --> 00:26:13,865
[Gotti] Anytime you got a partner
who don't agree with us, we kill him.
453
00:26:14,365 --> 00:26:16,492
You go to the boss,
and the boss kills 'em.
454
00:26:16,576 --> 00:26:21,705
You tell this punk, I, me, John Gotti,
will sever your... [bleep] ...head off.
455
00:26:21,789 --> 00:26:22,874
You... [bleep].
456
00:26:24,250 --> 00:26:27,378
[narrator] Thanks to extensive wiretaps
and other surveillance,
457
00:26:27,462 --> 00:26:30,381
the FBI and federal prosecutors
gather enough evidence
458
00:26:30,465 --> 00:26:35,177
to indict John Gotti, Sammy the Bull,
and consigliere Frank LoCascio
459
00:26:35,261 --> 00:26:36,554
on RICO charges.
460
00:26:36,638 --> 00:26:39,307
Now, they just need to wrap them up.
461
00:26:40,475 --> 00:26:42,726
On December 11th, 1990,
462
00:26:42,810 --> 00:26:44,562
agents spot Gotti, Gravano,
463
00:26:44,646 --> 00:26:48,483
and other Gambino soldiers
arriving for a meeting at the Ravenite.
464
00:26:49,651 --> 00:26:51,819
They swarm in expecting a fight,
465
00:26:52,862 --> 00:26:55,657
but instead receive a cordial welcome.
466
00:26:56,949 --> 00:26:58,909
Gotti's not worried.
467
00:26:58,993 --> 00:27:01,204
He's the Teflon Don after all.
468
00:27:02,664 --> 00:27:06,668
After enjoying a delightful beverage,
Gotti takes his leave.
469
00:27:07,293 --> 00:27:09,295
He's sure he'll be back soon,
470
00:27:10,338 --> 00:27:12,006
until an agent tells him,
471
00:27:12,548 --> 00:27:15,385
"You shouldn't have talked so much
in that woman's apartment."
472
00:27:18,221 --> 00:27:21,557
[Sammy] It must have dawned on him
he was in deep shit.
473
00:27:22,183 --> 00:27:26,145
He knew he fucked up big time.
474
00:27:26,229 --> 00:27:30,357
[narrator] Having now defied
the Mafia's most sacred code,
475
00:27:30,441 --> 00:27:34,445
Gotti's loose lips
will lead to one last karmic twist.
476
00:27:35,655 --> 00:27:39,033
[Ed] John Gotti was being critical
of Gravano on wiretaps.
477
00:27:39,575 --> 00:27:43,412
He was concerned Gravano was taking up
too much power for himself,
478
00:27:43,496 --> 00:27:45,372
too much authority, asserting himself
479
00:27:45,456 --> 00:27:48,125
in a way that was more substantial
than Gotti liked.
480
00:27:48,209 --> 00:27:51,795
Gravano saw this
as Gotti being a dry snitch.
481
00:27:51,879 --> 00:27:53,047
He wasn't ratting on him,
482
00:27:53,131 --> 00:27:55,633
but in case somebody was listening,
he was ratting on him.
483
00:27:57,093 --> 00:28:01,305
You don't have to call John Gotti a rat,
but that's a fucking rat move.
484
00:28:02,056 --> 00:28:03,390
I was brokenhearted.
485
00:28:03,474 --> 00:28:05,934
We were attached at the hip.
486
00:28:06,018 --> 00:28:08,979
We went into a war, took over a family.
487
00:28:09,063 --> 00:28:10,398
People were killed.
488
00:28:10,982 --> 00:28:12,442
I killed people for you.
489
00:28:13,484 --> 00:28:15,653
I rigged cases for you.
490
00:28:15,737 --> 00:28:19,239
I said, "Fuck the Mafia. Fuck John Gotti."
491
00:28:19,323 --> 00:28:24,036
And I reached out
to the government to change sides.
492
00:28:24,120 --> 00:28:27,164
My allegiance
wasn't going to be to him or the Mafia.
493
00:28:27,248 --> 00:28:29,375
To me, the code was gone.
494
00:28:29,959 --> 00:28:31,753
It was gone. It was over.
495
00:28:33,880 --> 00:28:35,631
[narrator] Thanks to Sammy's testimony,
496
00:28:36,507 --> 00:28:40,094
John Gotti finally paid the price
for rejecting the playbook
497
00:28:40,178 --> 00:28:41,429
and going rogue.
498
00:28:42,847 --> 00:28:44,515
[newscaster] The feds finally did it.
499
00:28:44,599 --> 00:28:48,811
They took down America's
most notorious Mafia boss since Al Capone.
500
00:28:48,895 --> 00:28:52,648
Charges of murder, gambling,
and racketeering finally stuck
501
00:28:52,732 --> 00:28:55,359
to the flashy, flamboyant John Gotti.
502
00:28:56,068 --> 00:28:59,905
[narrator] In the end, Gotti did achieve
the attention he always wanted.
503
00:28:59,989 --> 00:29:02,116
He was the best guy around.
504
00:29:02,200 --> 00:29:03,826
[woman] What about the people he murdered?
505
00:29:03,910 --> 00:29:05,411
- What murder?
- They say he murdered...
506
00:29:05,495 --> 00:29:09,415
[Lou] I think John Gotti represented
people's frustrations with the government.
507
00:29:09,916 --> 00:29:12,376
How the government's
always nickel-and-diming you,
508
00:29:13,085 --> 00:29:15,546
and John Gotti's fighting the government.
509
00:29:16,506 --> 00:29:19,758
[narrator] But the Dapper Don's reward
for doing things his way
510
00:29:19,842 --> 00:29:22,386
was a reign that lasted just six years
511
00:29:22,887 --> 00:29:25,681
and a lonely death
in prison from throat cancer.
512
00:29:26,224 --> 00:29:30,186
Basically, Gotti was an example
of how not to be a mob boss.
513
00:29:31,938 --> 00:29:33,230
[Sammy] If you want fame,
514
00:29:33,314 --> 00:29:36,108
go become a fucking actor
or whatever you want to be,
515
00:29:36,818 --> 00:29:38,527
but don't be a mob boss.
516
00:29:38,611 --> 00:29:41,572
[siren wailing]
517
00:29:42,740 --> 00:29:44,992
[narrator] Now that you've seen
the wrong path to building
518
00:29:45,076 --> 00:29:46,702
an enduring criminal career,
519
00:29:47,203 --> 00:29:49,455
let's refocus
our attention on the right one.
520
00:29:52,124 --> 00:29:55,043
Our next chapter will show
how with unfailing discipline
521
00:29:55,127 --> 00:29:56,378
and the right priorities,
522
00:29:56,462 --> 00:30:01,008
you can preserve your power
and your freedom for the long haul.
523
00:30:02,343 --> 00:30:05,304
Nobody tackled
this challenge as creatively
524
00:30:05,388 --> 00:30:08,891
as Boston's most legendary mob boss,
Whitey Bulger,
525
00:30:09,600 --> 00:30:13,729
whose ruthless attention to detail
charted his path to infamy
526
00:30:13,813 --> 00:30:17,942
and then pulled
a disappearing act for the ages.
527
00:30:19,569 --> 00:30:21,571
[theme music playing]