Book signing May 26; crime talk May 31
Talk show host and crime author Howie Carr will sign copies of his new book, "Rifleman: The Untold Story of Stevie Flemmi, Whitey Bulger's Partner," on May 26 from 1 to 4 p.m. at Barnes & Noble in Holyoke. He is also doing "An Evening of Crime with Howie Carr" on May 31 at 8 p.m. at the MassMutual Center in Springfield. Howie Carr was working for the Boston Herald American in the late 1970s and early 1980s, covering City Hall and the Statehouse when he observed what he calls a connection between organized crime and politics in Massachusetts.
He was writing about mob trials, and about former Massachusetts Senate President William “Billy” Bulger and his notorious brother James “Whitey” Bulger, who was arrested in 2011 after 16 years on the run and is expected to face trial in federal district court in Boston in June, on racketeering charges involving 19 alleged murders.
In gathering his investigative material, Carr took safety precautions like not agreeing to meet anyone he did not know and following different routes home each day.
“Once people threaten to kill you, you have to pay attention to them,” said the current columnist for The Boston Herald and host of “The Howie Carr” talk show on Boston’s WRKO 680 AM, which can be heard on Springfield affiliate WHYN 560 AM.
Carr turned his work into three books — “The Brothers Bulger,” “Hitman” and, most recently, “Rifleman: The Untold Story of Stevie Flemmi, Whitey Bulger’s Partner.”
Carr will be at Barnes & Noble in Holyoke on May 26 from 1 to 4 p.m. to talk about “Rifleman” and sign books.
Stephen Flemmi, who earned his nickname from his service as an Army marksman in the Korean War, has been described in the Boston Globe as having “forged a close partnership with “Whitey” Bulger in the execution of mob crimes.
He turned FBI informant before his partner. He was arrested in 1995 on charges of extortion and racketeering, and eventually sentenced in a plea agreement to 10 years in prison. As a result of further charges, he pleaded guilty to 10 murders in 2004 in exchange for life in prison rather than a death sentence.
“Rifleman” is the story of Flemmi’s life of crime as told to federal and state law enforcement agents after he pleaded guilty to the murders. The original document on which the book is based, “DEA 6,” was 146 single-spaced pages, covering dozens of extortions, assaults and murders.
Nearly 300 photographs from Carr’s collection are included in his book, which lists for $25.99.
Carr is a 1969 graduate of Deerfield Academy who earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill.
He said public interest remains strong in “Whitey” Bulger.
“He was like a throwback,” said Carr who plans to attend the trial scheduled to start June 10. “If you didn’t look too carefully about how sick he was, how devious, you could convince yourself he was a Jimmy Cagney figure.”
In addition to his visit to Barnes & Noble, Carr is doing “An Evening of Crime with Howie Carr” on May 31 at 8 p.m. at the MassMutual Center in Springfield.
For that event, he will be joined by Anthony Amore, director of security at Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston, and author, with Tom Mashberg, of “Stealing Rembrandts: The Untold Stories of Notorious Art Heists.”
In 1990, two men dressed as police officers entered the museum and committed what the FBI has called “the largest property crime in U.S. history.” The two stole “13 objects, including rare paintings by Rembrandt, Degas, and Vermeer, valued at approximately $500 million.”
Amore will discuss that case in which government officials announced earlier this year they know the identities of the thieves and could trace the art from Boston to Connecticut and Philadelphia.
Howe will also discuss his investigations into “Whitey” Bulger and other Boston crime figures at the event held in the Exhibition Hall of the MassMutual Center.
The first 20 people to buy a book at the Barnes & Noble event will receive a free T-shirt and ticket to the MassMutual event.
Tickets for the May 31 event at $25 and may be purchased at www.howiecarrshow.com or http://www.massmutualcenter.com/events/eventpages/1054.asp. For more information about his visit to Barnes & Noble, 7 Holyoke St., Holyoke, call (413) 532-1786.