Just after 2 a. m. in 1958, Billie Holiday called Bumpy Johnson in tears. She told him that John Levy, her manager, had taken control of her money, contracts, and career for years, isolated her from friends, and spread rumors that she was using drugs again. That night, she said, he had put his hands … Read more
Oskar Dirlewanger, the SS commander whose own men petitioned for his execution and whose brigade burned villages with their inhabitants inside, died in French custody in June 1945 without ever facing a single trial for the tens of thousands of deaths attributed to his unit, according to historical records examined in a new account of … Read more
Im April 1945 befand sich im westlichen Deutschland ein Feldlazarett mit 87 verwundeten amerikanischen Soldaten. Es waren Männer, die nicht gehen und nicht kämpfen konnten – Menschen, die nach jeder Regel des Krieges geschützt waren. Als amerikanische Kräfte heranrückten, um sie zu evakuieren, übermittelten deutsche Pioniere eine Nachricht durch eine Krankenschwester. Das Gebäude sei verkabelt … Read more
Am 17. Dezember 1944 näherte sich in Belgien ein amerikanischer Soldat einem Kontrollpunkt auf der Straße nach Malmedy. Er trug die richtige Uniform, und er kannte das Kennwort. Der Militärpolizist hob die Hand und stellte eine scheinbar harmlose Frage: Was ist die Hauptstadt von Illinois? Der Soldat zögerte. Dann antwortete er: Berlin. Die MP eröffneten … Read more
On November 23, 1962, at 2:45 p.m., 12-year-old Charlie Cavalaro Jr. climbed into the back seat of his father's Cadillac on Youngstown's North Side. His younger brother, 11-year-old Tommy, slid in beside him. Their father, Charles "Cadillac Charlie" Cavalaro Sr., 60, silver-haired and dressed in an expensive suit, turned the ignition key. The engine roared … Read more
On the night of June 20, 1947, Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel sat on a chintz-covered sofa in the living room of his girlfriend's mansion at 810 North Linden Drive in Beverly Hills, California. It was 10:45 p.m. He was reading the Los Angeles Times. His associate Alan Smiley sat beside him. The curtains were open. The … Read more
Just after sunrise on April 4, 1961, two federal agents walked into a quiet building in New Orleans, Louisiana. They told a short, thick-necked man with heavy eyelids that he was coming with them right now. There was no long hearing, no chance to call a lawyer, and no goodbye to the people waiting outside … Read more
Im April 1945, in einem Kriegsgefangenenlager außerhalb von München, stand ein amerikanischer Küchenfeldwebel vor einem Rätsel. Er hatte gerade 200 deutschen Gefangenen ihr Mittagessen serviert: Standardrationen mit Brot, Suppe und Büchsenfleisch. Es war gutes Essen, besser als das, was die meisten Deutschen damals auf den Tisch brachten. Doch die Gefangenen rührten nichts an. Sie saßen … Read more
On November 17, 1987, at 3:42 in the afternoon, Santo Trafficante Jr. died in a hospital bed at Mease Hospital in Dunedin, Florida. He was 72 years old. There were no bullets, no pending indictments, and no handcuffs on the bedrail. The cause was heart failure. His wife held his hand. A son-in-law would later … Read more
First Sergeant Leonard Funk walked around the corner of a farmhouse in Holtzheim, Belgium, at 2:47 p. m. on January 29, 1945, and found himself staring at 90 German soldiers, half of them armed, his four guards disarmed and kneeling in the snow, and a German officer pressing an MP 40 submachine gun into his … Read more