OPINION: Chris Kelly Opinion: In new book, D'Elia dishes on Trump, DeNaples

Jul. 12—"Big Billy" D'Elia has a lot to say about "The Quiet Don," "The Godfather," "The Irishman" and "Uncle Louie."

He told it all to Matt Birkbeck.

In "The Life We Chose, William "Big Billy" D'Elia and the Last Secrets of America's Most Powerful Mafia Family," the final boss of the Bufalino Crime Family reveals how Russell Bufalino managed the Mafia in New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and other major cities from his home in Kingston, just across the Susquehanna River from Wilkes-Barre.

Angered by the way Bufalino was portrayed in Charles Brandt's 2004 book "I Heard You Paint Houses" and the 2019 Martin Scorsese film adaptation "The Irishman," D'Elia reached out to Birkbeck. Matt's 2013 book, "The Quiet Don," is the product of investigative reporting by a seasoned journalist. Brandt is an attorney. D'Elia says "Houses" is a work of fiction.

"The Life We Chose" was released this week. Matt sent me an advance copy, and we chatted by phone on Tuesday about the experience of interviewing an aging mobster who built a wide-ranging criminal career as a master negotiator who knew when to keep his mouth shut.

"Law enforcement thought of him just as (Bufalino's) driver," Matt said. "And as you read, that wasn't the case. Billy became this extremely powerful individual himself who was doing what Russell did, negotiating for the mob, and for entertainers, sports figures, and then he ends up managing Michael Jackson."

And teaching Donald Trump a thing or two about "The Art of the Deal." D'Elia's stories are populated by some of history and pop culture's biggest players because he was backstage. Matt spent almost two years interviewing D'Elia and vetting his stories, many of which the now 77-year-old retired mob boss backed up with documents and other evidence.

"This is really about him telling his story, but that doesn't mean that we're going to let him tell a story that's not true, so we checked as much as we can." Matt said. "He's easy to talk to. He could have been successful in any other industry ... marketing or PR, he has that way about him. But you can also tell that this guy was a gangster ..."

Trusting the word of a career criminal is a risk, but I'm glad Matt took it. I know him as a trustworthy journalist, and the book is written with authority, clarity and diligence.

Some of D'Elia's stories further flesh out old news. It was widely known that Bufalino was instrumental in helping "The Godfather" get made despite the opposition of the New York Mafia families. But who knew that the quiet don coached Marlon Brando on playing a godfather? As Don Corleone, Brando was essentially channeling Russell Bufalino.

Or that Lenny Montana, who played Corleone bodyguard Luca Brasi, was actually a street thug with zero acting experience who stole a $50,000 camera lens from the set. A furious Bufalino made him return it.

As for Frank Sheeran, "The Irishman," D'Elia presents a convincing case that "I Heard You Paint Houses" should be filed in the fiction section. In the book, Sheeran claims he killed Teamsters President Jimmy Hoffa. D'Elia says his aging friend was trying to raise money for the family he was leaving behind.

In earlier versions of the book before Sheeran met Brandt, the Irishman claimed Hoffa was killed by a team of Vietnamese men hired for the hit. D'Elia produced these versions for Matt, as well as a letter Sheeran wrote to Hoffa's daughter, Barbara Ann Crancer. In it, Sheeran denies any involvement in Hoffa's death.

Matt confirmed the letter with Crancer. It was legit.

The parts of the book likely to spark the most local interest involve D'Elia's long relationship with Dunmore auto parts/out-of-state trash/gambling magnate Louis DeNaples. D'Elia claims he steered trash to DeNaples' Keystone Landfill and stepped in when New York mobsters tried to muscle in on "Uncle Louie."

DeNaples' friendship with D'Elia became inconvenient when the billionaire bought Mount Airy Casino Resort before obtaining a casino license. D'Elia says DeNaples pulled strings "all the way to Washington" to rig the process, but he couldn't get a casino license and be associated with known criminals.

D'Elia told Matt that DeNaples attorney John Moses asked him to sign a statement affirming that he did not know DeNaples. D'Elia refused.

"We were friends for years," D'Elia said. "The FBI had surveillance pictures and video of me going into his office four times a week ... and whenever I walked in we'd shake hands and he'd kiss me on the cheek. We'd go out with our wives. I had him at my daughter's wedding ...

"We did business together. ... We helped him become a billionaire. Louie was one of us. He wasn't a made guy but he was one of us. And now he says he won't talk to me?"

DeNaples and his pistol-packing priest sidekick, the late Rev. Joseph Sica, perjured themselves when they denied knowing D'Elia in testimony before a grand jury. The charges were eventually dropped after the state Supreme Court contorted itself to serve DeNaples and he agreed to relinquish ownership of the casino to a trust run by his daughter, Lisa.

Read Matt's book for the inside stor(ies) about how D'Elia says DeNaples rigged the game. Even better is D'Elia's claim that DeNaples tried to have him killed so he wouldn't be able to testify against DeNaples.

"Louie owned the Supreme Court, too," D'Elia told Matt. "The only thing that could do him in was me. So he started telling people I was a government informant."

D'Elia said only his reputation as a "stand-up guy" kept him safe. He claims his friends inside and outside wanted to avenge what he and they agreed was an attempt on his life.

To share more would be a disservice to Matt and his terrific book. "The Life We Chose" is a must-read for anyone interested in understanding the underbelly of Northeast Pennsylvania, as told by a gangster who outlived the crime family he led.

"I asked him at the very end, 'Any regrets?'" Matt said. "He had none. He lived his life and he wasn't ashamed of it in any way. He chose this."

CHRIS KELLY, the Times-Tribune columnist, chose this life. Read his award-winning blog at timestribuneblogs.com/kelly. Contact the writer: kellysworld@timesshamrock.com; @cjkink on Twitter; Chris Kelly, The Times-Tribune on Facebook.

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