DOCUMENT: Crime

The Reverend, The Wiseguy, And HBO

Michael Franzese

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The Reverend, The Wiseguy, And HBO

We got a great kick out of former gangster Michael Franzese's appearance Tuesday night (7/23) on HBO's "Real Sports," the program that vexed Al Sharpton so much that the Rev's just filed a $1 billion defamation lawsuit against the network and the ex-wiseguy.

Among his many televised claims, Franzese said he fixed baseball games and boxing matches, and that several Yankees had borrowed money from his compatriots in the Colombo crime family. Frankly, nobody should believe a word the felon says (and we're no Bronx Bomber fans). Franzese is pictured in the mug shot at left.

Though he rose to become a mob captain before "quitting" the Mafia and providing assistance to the FBI, Franzese has claimed--as you'll see in this FBI report--that he never had to whack anyone (or approve some guy's murder) during his illustrious criminal career.

Of course, that's a laughable claim--and one that has been contradicted by Sal Miciotta, a former Franzese crony who also ratted out his Colombo pals. We've also included an FBI debriefing report from a third (unnamed) snitch who provided the bureau with information about Franzese and his pappy, the legendary John "Sonny" Franzese. (11 pages)