Gangster

ICE-T AND COCO KNOW WHO THEY ARE AND LOVE IT

Here’s one last costume couple we couldn’t resist showing you. Ice T, 65, and his wife Coco Austin, 45, are still going strong in their 22 year marriage – because they are so much alike! They both enjoy dressing up as THEMSELVES on Halloween. Coco’s skimpy costume with garters and fishnets is clearly a tribute to the fact that she used to be a “lingerie” model, and is now an OnlyFans model. Gangsta rapper Ice-T’s first album was O.G. Original Gangster and he WAS associated with the Crips in high school. Under that pinstripe jacket he carried a fake gun. These two shopped for costumes in their own closets…

 

Photo Credit: BACKGRID-USA

THE LATE TONY SIRICO WAS AN UNFORGETTABLE CHARACTER OFFSCREEN TOO

The first time I encountered Tony Sirico he was working at a hot New York club as a fierce doorman/bouncer/security guard. His name in those days was Junior Sirico. He wore his hair slicked back, a pinky ring, and talked tough, but was very nice to me and my friends at the club. A few years later he appeared as a houseguest, visiting my friend Lenny Barin in LA, and I was told he recently got out of prison and wanted to become an actor. My friend laughingly pointed out that Junior always had a stack of Playboy magazines and a gun under his bed, but he was very close to his mother in Brooklyn. Junior started dating a roomate of mine and I had a party where he met Arnold Schwarzenegger, who had started filming Pumping Iron, but was still just a bodybuilder. Tony was immediately drawn to Arnold and seemed thrilled to meet him. The unlikely pair talked about acting. The next thing I knew he had landed a small role in The Godfather Part II. Junior announced that he was no longer Junior- we had to call him Tony from then on. The rest is history- he started enjoying his new life as an actor.

Photo Credit: BACKGRID-USA

NELLY: NOT AS DANGEROUS AS HE LOOKS

Nelly has never been the gangster rapper that some people assumed he was. The fact that he’s appearing on Dancing with the Stars should validate that fact. We met Nelly over 16 years ago when he filmed part of a music video at our house. He was slim and cute and surprisingly well spoken- we got the feeling he wanted to be more of a bad boy than he really WAS. (In those days rappers were mostly from the east or west coast – not the midwest, like Nelly.) Fast forward to today – he’s a fierce looking muscleman and he has raised four kids of his own…and he DANCES.

Photo Credit: BACKGRID-USA

THE MOVIE “KITCHEN” HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH FOOD

Just seeing this photo of Tiffany Haddish, Melissa McCarthy, and Elizabeth Moss in their 1970’s attire filming Kitchen in New York, got us interested in seeing the movie. It’s a comedy/drama about three Hell’s Kitchen mob wives who take over their husbands’ rackets when the mobsters are sent to prison. AND the film was written and directed by a woman – Andrea Berloff. We always have higher expectations for movies made by women – the characters seem more relatable.

Photo Credit: BACKGRID-USA

MARK YOUR CALENDARS FOR MAY 3 – AND SEE “THE ICEMAN”

True stories of malevolent behavior are always the most chilling and The Iceman doesn’t disappoint. Michael Shannon brilliantly plays a serial killer turned mob hit man (over a hundred victims) without a conscience who manages to keep his family in the dark. The real life sociopathic “Ice Man” Richard Kuklinski, did dozens of hours of interviews (some on HBO) after he was finally arrested in 1986, and the psychological aspects that led to his monstrous crimes are closely examined. It’s horrible to picture the criminal as an abused child torturing and killing neighborhood pets for fun. The director, Ariel Vromen, seemed to have a soft spot for the killer – giving him an occasion sense of humor and exaggerated love for his family. But it makes for a gripping and thoughtful gangster movie and the actors are all incredible. These people DO walk among us. (Release date is May 3rd)

JOHN TRAVOLTA’S GOTTI MOVIE IS “SLEEPING WITH THE FISHES”

#johntravolta #gotti #janetcharlton

John Travolta’s gay sex scandal might NOT be the only reason for the collapse of the much heralded “Gotti: In The Shadow Of My Father” movie. Last year the proposed movie got a lot of publicity when Lindsay Lohan was chosen to play Victoria Gotti. Lindsay ‘s behavioral problems led to her being replaced by Kelly Preston. Strangely, John Travolta, his wife and daughter Ella ALL had parts in the troubled movie. Directors and actors came and went, but when producers were revealed to be two wiseguys who served time in prison, things really fell apart. After the Travolta scandal hit the papers, an associate of the Gotti family doubted that Gotti Jr would want John to play his father, but John Jr insisted that was NOT true. Having gangsters as producers IS probably a bad idea, however. (We love any excuse to post a photo of Victoria Gotti’s three sons – above.)

DYLAN MCDERMOTT’S TRAGIC CHILDHOOD: HIS MOTHER WAS MURDERED

“Practice” attorney Dylan McDermott always seemed like a good looking guy who grew up pampered with money. It turns out his youth was not as idyllic as one might assume. His Italian mother was fifteen when he was born in Connecticut in 1961 and his Irish father was seventeen. Six years later they were divorced and Dylan, his mother, and sister were living with grandparents. In 1967 his mother was shot dead and her death was originally ruled an accident. The kids were raised by grandparents, but Dylan recently contacted police to get details about his mother’s death. They re-examined the investigation and determined that his mother had been killed by her gangster boyfriend. In 1972 the boyfriend’s body was found in the trunk of a car in a supermarket parking lot. Case closed. (Above, Dylan maintains his good looks by snacking on orange juice and a banana on the set of “Dogfight.”)

GERALDO IS RIGHT: DON’T LET YOUR KIDS WEAR HOODIES!

Viewers were outraged today when Geraldo Rivera stated on “Fox and Friends” that he thought “the hoodie he wore was as much responsible for Trayvon Martin’s death as George Zimmerman was.” Of course this IS a questionable choice of words and George Zimmerman appears to be guilty of murder, but the hoodie MAY have played a part in his death. Geraldo said “It’s common sense for minorities to avoid wearing hoodies.” He believes parents should NOT allow their kids to go out wearing hoodies. He said “It’s those crime surveillance tapes – every time you see someone sticking up a 7-11, the kid is wearing a hoodie. Kids that look like gangsters will be treated like gangsters.” Rivera stressed that seventeen year old Martin was innocent and didn’t deserve to die. He hopes this issue will enlighten parents. We totally see Geraldo’s point. Did you know hoodies are banned at all events where President Obama makes an appearance?

SNOOP DOGG KEEPS HIS ONSTAGE PERSONA GANGSTER

Photo Credit: Pacific Coast News

Snoop Dogg is rumored to be worth over 200 million dollars, but he ‘s not about to give up his gangster image onstage. Here he is performing in Liverpool wearing a Dickies industrial polyester suit and sunglasses. The Suit costs around $55 and it’s the fashion choice of LA gang members. We fondly remember the day Snoop puzzled Parisians when he wore a shower cap outside his hotel in Paris.

CAN JOHN TRAVOLTA FILL JOHN GOTTI SR’S ITALIAN SHOES?

We were floored to hear that John Travolta is first choice to play the “Dapper Don,” John Gotti Sr, in the story of his life. The film’s executive producer Marc Fiore and John Gotti Jr, along with director Nick Cassavetes, met with Travolta at an Italian restaurant in LA to discuss the deal. Junior Gotti wants John to play his father and he’d like James Franco to play himself! (Imagine THAT ego!) We had no idea that Junior Gotti was so open minded – he has no objection to casting a Scientologist of questionable sexual preference to play his legendary mobster father! And WHO will play Victoria Gotti Charlize Theron?