Decades after Richard Ramirez left thirteen dead and paralyzed the city of Los Angeles, his name is still synonymous with fear, torture, and sadistic murder. Philip Carlo's classic The Night Stalker, based on years of meticulous research and extensive interviews with Ramirez, revealed the killer and his horrifying crimes to be even more chilling than anyone could have imagined. From watching his cousin commit murder at age eleven to his nineteen death sentences to the juror who fell in love with him, the story of Ramirez is a bizarre and spellbinding descent into the very heart of human evil. Incredibly, after The Night Stalker was first published, thousands of women from all over the world contacted Carlo, begging to be put in touch with the killer. Carlo interviewed them and here presents their disturbing stories and the dark sexual desires that would drive them towards a brutal murderer. And in an exclusive death row interview, the killer himself gives his thoughts on the "Ramirez Groupies"-and what he thinks they really want.
In researching his acclaimed true-crime books, Philip Carlo interviewed some of the most infamous criminals and killers of our times in prisons and on death rows throughout the country. He was able to forge trusting relationships with his subjects, enabling him to extract the facts behind their monstrous acts and identify what motivated them to commit their horrific crimes.
Carlo's investigative achievements are remarkable, but what wasn't known to his readers is that, while working on The Ice Man, he learned he had amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a terminal illness that causes all of the muscles in the body to atrophy over time. Suddenly, after years of penetrating the minds of killers, Carlo found himself being pursued by the grim reaper. But rather than lying down and succumbing to the disease, Carlo continued to work, his books still getting published to both critical and commercial acclaim.
In The Killer Within, Carlo documents his difficult experiences with ALS and explains how he managed to continue writing prodigiously in the face of adversity. The Killer Within is a gripping, suspenseful page-turner that pulls the listener into the netherworld of Mafia bosses, Mafia hit men, and serial killers, as well as the hard realities of dealing with a fatal disease.
'An inspiring testament'to what the human mind can accomplish in the wake of devastating change. A brave psychological exploration of a writer's craft and terminal illness.''Kirkus Reviews
Richard "The Ice Man" Kuklinski led a double life beyond anything ever seen on The Sopranos, becoming one of the most notorious professional assassins in American history while hosting neighborhood barbecues in suburban New Jersey. Now, after 240 hours of face-to-face interviews with Kuklinski and his wife and daughters, author Philip Carlo tells his extraordinary story.
Kuklinski was Sammy "The Bull" Gravano's partner in the killing of Paul Castellano at Spark's Steakhouse. John Gotti hired him to kill the neighbor who accidentally ran over his child. For an additional price, he would make victims suffer; he conducted this sadistic business with cold-hearted intensity, never disappointing his customers. By his own estimate, he killed over two hundred men, taking enormous pride in his variety and ferocity of technique.
Kuklinski's story, once known, captivated the public and became the subject of three HBO documentaries about which the New York Times raved "Few viewers are ever likely to forget this thoroughly chilling portrait. As for possible movie competition, it would work on the level of The Silence of the Lambs."
Anthony "Gaspipe" Casso, the boss of New York's Lucchese crime family, was a Mafia superstar, responsible for more than fifty murders. Currently serving thirteen life sentences at a federal prison in Colorado, Casso has given journalist and New York Times bestselling author Philip Carlo the most intimate, personal look into the world of La Cosa Nostra ever seen. By pure happenstance, Casso had lived next door to the family of young Philip Carlo, who was able to get into the mind, heart, and soul of one of the most cunning, ruthless mob bosses in the annals of crime history. In Gaspipe, Casso reveals the shocking details behind headline-making crimes and crime figures, such as:
—The mob's decision that John Gotti had to be taken out after whacking Big Paul Castellano without approval—and how Casso got the order to hit Gotti
—A fly-on-the-wall view of the Mafia commission sit-down at which John Gotti was made capo di tutti capi, the boss of all bosses
—The insidious relationship between La Cosa Nostra and the Russian Mafia, and how the Lucchese family murdered the most-feared assassin in the Russian mob
—Details of secret sit-downs with mob bosses Vincent "The Chin" Gigante and John Gotti, and the notorious Sammy "The Bull" Gravano
—How Gravano made fools of the U.S. Justice Department and the FBI
—The real story of the Mafia Cops and the revelations of other law enforcement personnel on Casso's payroll
—How the Mafia managed to get a tight stranglehold on most unions in America
—The truth behind the Mafia's real role in bringing huge amounts of narcotics into the United States
—How federal prison officials were bought and sold by the Mafia
—The intimate details of the women behind the Mafiosi
—The truth behind the assassinations of JFK and RFK
—Who killed Jimmy Hoffa, and where his body is
—Why J. Edgar Hoover protected the Mafia
Chilling and illuminating, unvarnished and entertaining, Gaspipe is a roller-coaster ride into a world few outsiders have ever dared to enter.
