The Mob and Boxing with Jeffrey Sussman

Jeffrey Sussman is the author of 15 non-fiction books including the subject of this podcast, Boxing and the Mob: The Notorious History of the Sweet Science. Recently, Gangland Wire interviewed him about Murder Inc. taken from his popular book, Big Apple Gangsters: The Rise and Decline of the Mob in New York. Mr. Sussman has a long interest in the sport of boxing and he has several books about this checkered history. In this podcast, Gary interviews him about the history of mob interference in the sport. Boxing is one of the easiest sports to fix for gamblers because there is only one person who needs to cooperate. Mr. Sussman has also written  Rocky Graziano: Fists, Fame, and Fortune, Max Baer and Barney Ross: Jewish Heroes of Boxing, No Mere Bagatelles, a biography of handbag designer, Judith Leiber, and Power Promoting: How to Market Your Business to The Top!   

Jeffrey Sussman tells the listeners about the seamy underbelly of boxing during the entire twentieth century. Taken from his book, he has researched into organized crime characters like Owney Madden, Frankie Carbo, and Frank Palermo, and details many of the fixed matches in boxing’s storied history. He also discusses the influence of the mob on legendary boxers—including Primo Carnera, Sugar Ray Robinson, Max Baer, Carmen Basilio, Sonny Liston, and Jake LaMotta—and whether they caved to the mobsters’ threats or refused to throw their fights.

Show notes by Gary Jenkins

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