It’s never a good thing when a femme fatale is called the “The Kiss of Death.” Yet never has this moniker been more appropriate than in the case of Evelyn Mittelman, a little lass from the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn.

Little is known about Mittelman’s early life except that at the tender age of 16, she was already one of the most sought-after broads in the entire borough of Brooklyn. In 1941, after Mittelman had been thrust into the spotlight as a material witness in the trial of her boyfriend, Murder Incorporated’s Harry “Pittsburgh Phil” Strauss, veteran New York Daily Mirror columnist Eddie Zeltner said, “I knew Evelyn ten years ago, when she was barely sixteen. She was a gorgeous blond who used to come from Williamsburg to Coney Island to swim, and dance in the cellar clubs which are grammar schools for gangsters.”

Two years later, Evelyn surfaced in California with a beau named Hy Miller. Hy was crazy about Evelyn, but Evelyn was not so crazy about Hy. One night, Hy took Evelyn to a dance and she met another young chap who thought she was the greatest thing since sliced bread. Because she was obviously flirting with the newcomer, whose name is unknown, Hy said something to this fellow, and something even worse to Evelyn. The anonymous chap took umbrage at Hy insulting Evelyn, and the final result was that Hy became very dead. It is not known if Evelyn took up with the victor for any period of time, or not. Still, Hy was the first notch on the “Kiss of Death’s” garter belt.

A few years later, Evelyn showed up in Brooklyn with her new love: Robert Feurer. It was at a dance she attended with Feurer that she met up with a nasty piece of work named Sol Goldstein, known in the rackets as “Jack.” Goldstein was famous on the docks of New York City as one of the biggest fish wholesalers in the business. Of course, in order to keep being prosperous on the docks, Goldstein went up against, and aligned himself with, people as nasty as he was; some even nastier. But we’ll get to that later.

As Goldstein cozied up to Evelyn at the dance, smoke began to blast from Feurer’s ears. One word led to another, and soon Feurer said a few things to Evelyn that were not quite so nice. Goldstein burst to Evelyn’s rescue, and when the dust settled, Feurer was now quite dead too (see a pattern here?).

This is getting a little tiresome, but one night Goldstein brought Evelyn to another dance, where she met Harry “Pittsburgh Phil” Strauss (called “Pep” by his friends). Strauss, considered a tall, dark and handsome lug by the opposite sex, was the top killer in a cozy little group called Murder Incorporated, run by Louis “Lepke Buchalter and Albert “The Lord High Executioner” Anastasia. It was said, that although Strauss was paid tidy sums for killing people, whom his bosses said needed to be killed throughout America, he was so good at what he did because, as Brooklyn District Attorney William O’Dwyer once said, “Strauss killed people just for the lust to kill.”

When an out-of-town killing was assigned to Lepke, it was usually Strauss whom Lepke entrusted to do the job. When these occasions arose, Strauss packed a bag with a shirt, change of socks, underwear, a gun, length of rope, and an ice pick, just in case. Most times, Strauss didn’t even know the name of his target, and he didn’t care either. As long as the dude wound up dead, that was enough for Strauss.

On the night Strauss met Evelyn at the dance, he told both Evelyn and Goldstein that he considered Evelyn to be his new girlfriend. Evelyn didn’t protest too much, but Goldstein did. Strauss told Goldstein they shouldn’t fight in front of a woman, and would Goldstein agree to go with Strauss to a nearby poolroom to settle the dispute of who should be the top man in Evelyn’s life. Goldstein agreed, and the next thing he knew, Strauss was re-arranging the features on Goldstein’s face with a mean pool stick. The result was — Goldstein was out, and Evelyn was the girlfriend of one of the most sadistic killers in America. For some reason, Strauss let Goldstein live on that occasion, but he would rectify that situation later on, as part of his daily duties for Murder Inc.

Goldstein’s mother was quite happy her son was away from the likes of Evelyn Mittelman. Mom Goldstein was plain giddy, when soon after the dust-up with Strauss, Goldstein met a nice young girl named Helen, who was the daughter of a Cleveland used-car dealer.

Goldstein’s mom told his sister, “Sol is away from the tough boys at last.”

Well, not quite mom.

In the summer of 1936, Mom Goldstein received the wonderful news that her son and Helen had tied the knot and were honeymooning at Glen Wild, a small, romantic place in the Catskill mountains in upstate New York. Weeks went by without hearing from the newlyweds again, and after three months, Mom Goldstein began to fret a bit. After much sleuthing, Mom Goldstein finally found Helen.

“What happened, I haven’t heard from Sol in months,” she said to Helen.

Helen started dripping crocodile tears. “I don’t know,” she said. “We were in our room getting dressed for a Saturday night dance, when the phone rang and he answered it. A little while later some men drove up. Sol said he’d be back in a few minutes. I haven’t seen him since.”

Mom Goldstein decided to make a trip to the Catskills to see if she could find any trace of her son. When she arrived in the Catskills, Mom Goldstein could not find a trace of her son, but she did find Helen hosting a gay party not far from Glen Wild where she had honeymooned with Sol. Mom Goldstein told Helen that Helen was not behaving like an aggrieved wife should behave.

Helen coldly told Mom Goldstein, “Sol is dead. He was thrown in a lake.”

It wasn’t until four years later that Mom Goldstein and the government found out exactly what happened to Sol “Jack” Goldstein.

It all started with Abe “Kid Twist” Reles, one of the higher-ups in Murder Incorporated, becoming a government informer. Abe knew who killed who and how, and with his photographic memory, he told the government about scores of murders, including the untimely demise of Sol Goldstein. Two other Murder Incorporated killers, Allie “Tick Tock” Tannenbaum and Pretty Levine corroborated everything Reles said about the Goldstein hit.

It seemed that the contract on Goldstein was put out by Joe “Zocks” Lanza, the big boss on the Manhattan docks, and the highly-profitable Fulton Fish Market. Lanza had been indicted by a Federal Grand Jury for the “monopolistic control of fish sent to New York City from Minnesota, Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio, and Canada.” Lanza was tried and found guilty, but he won an appeal to have a second trial on the same charges. While planning his defense, Lanza realized that Goldstein, who had some pull on the docks himself, knew enough information about Lanza’s waterfront rackets to put Lanza away for a very long time, if not land Lanza right into the electric chair. Lanza contacted Louis Capone, another Murder Incorporated big shot, to put the process in motion of eliminating Goldstein from the possible witness list at Lanza’s second trial.

At this point in time, Goldstein and Helen were experiencing their first few days of married bliss in the Catskills. Capone (no relation to Al Capone) contacted Pretty Levine and told him, “Go up to Loch Sheldrake in the mountains, where Pep is staying to do some work. Pep will tell you.”

Levine jumped into a car with another Murder Inc. operative named Dukey Maffetore, and drove to the Catskills, where they located Strauss and two more Murder Inc. killers — Mikey Syckoff and Jack Cutler. Strauss knew since his face and reputation were well known to Goldstein, he could not be in on the snatch. But Goldstein had never met Levine, Syckoff, and Cutler, so Strauss told them what to do.

“Just snatch the bum and bring him here,” Strauss told them. “Don’t knock him off.”

It was approximately 9 p.m. on August 3, 1936, when Goldstein received a phone call in the honeymoon cottage he was sharing with wife Helen. Even though Goldstein was dressed to the nines, as was Helen for that night’s dance, whatever the caller told Goldstein was enough for him to leave the side of his lovely bride, for what he thought would only be an few minutes at most. At least, that’s what Goldstein told Helen. Helen spotted a car driving up to the cottage with three men sitting inside. She watched as her husband got into the back seat next to Levine.

Within a few seconds, Levine had laid Goldstein out cold with a hammer. Soon, the three men deposited Goldstein at Strauss’ lakeside cottage, where Strauss personally killed Goldstein, tied him up with rope, and wrapped him in a blanket. The men then dragged Goldstein’s dead body to the lake’s shore, where Tannenbaum and Jack Drucker, another Murder Inc. operative, were waiting in a rowboat. The two men rowed out to the deepest part of the lake and dropped Goldstein’s body into the drink.

In cases like this, it was quite unusual for a man like Strauss to order the murder victim be brought to him alive, so that Strauss could finish him off personally. But this was personal to Strauss, not just business. Goldstein had been Evelyn’s boyfriend, and Strauss liked it better when Evelyn’s ex-boyfriends were rendered quite dead. Not that Strauss feared Evelyn would ever go back to Goldstein, but why not eliminate the possibility anyway?

Chalk up Goldstein as Evelyn Mittelman’s dead boyfriend number three.

The next five years passed by without any more dead boyfriends. Evelyn was quite devoted to Strauss, so much so, to please Strauss, she dyed her blond hair to raven brunette.

In 1940, Strauss was arrested on information given to the feds by Abe “Kid Twist” Reles. District Attorney Burton Turkus had enough evidence to implicate Strauss in at least six murders, but the most solid case Turkus had on Strauss was the murder of a nobody named George Ruddick, who was rumored to have been talking to the law.

While Strauss stewed in jail, he received repeated visits by a woman described by Turkus as “a striking brunette,” who signed herself in as Strauss’ sister “Eve.” Turkus as his crew noticed absolutely no family resemblance between Strauss and “Eve,” so on her next visit, they picked her up and found out that “Eve” was none other than Evelyn Mittelman. At the time of her arrest, Evelyn was wearing three diamond rings and a diamond bracelet.

“Pep (Strauss) gave them to me,” Evelyn told Turkus. Then she said something so remarkably stupid, Turkus couldn’t believe his ears. “And I have several more trinkets like this in a bank vault.”

Turkus checked, and sure enough, there was enough jewelry in the safety deposit box to open up a small jewelry store. Turkus immediately held Evelyn as a material witness, with bail set at $50,000, and he commenced getting as much information out of her as he could. However, Evelyn immediately lawyered up, and subsequently clammed up. Turkus figured, with all she knew about Strauss and his pals at Murder Incorporated, she was as good as dead if she were set free on the mean streets of Brooklyn.

At her bail haring, her lawyer argued fiercely for a bail reduction.

“She’s a good decent girl,” her lawyer said.

Turkus told the judge, “She knows all there is to know about how the syndicate works.”

Her lawyer countered with, “Can’t your honor conceive that this young lady, even though she may be the sweetheart of this man, might be the one person in the whole world who would know nothing at all of what he is doing?”

The judge said he could conceive of no such thing, so Evelyn’s bail stood at $50,000. No one rushed to put up the money to get her out, so Evelyn stood in jail a full six weeks while Turkus cemented his case against Strauss.

As Strauss’ trial neared, Evelyn realized that the only way she could save her man was to convince Strauss to do what Reles had done: become an informant. Evelyn asked Turkus for permission to speak to Strauss to try to convince him to turn canary. Amazingly, Strauss agreed to do exactly that, on one condition: “I got to walk out clean.”

Turkus knew it was impossible to set a man free after he had committed as many as 50-100 murders himself, so Strauss’ offer to sing was rejected.

During Strauss’ trial, he acted like a lunatic. Strauss refused to shave and came into court with a long, scraggly beard, looking like a bum on the Bowery.

Strauss even went so far as to chew on his lawyer’s briefcase straps. But it was to no avail. Strauss was found guilty of the murder of George Ruddick (Turkus said he could have tried Strauss and have him found guilty of at least six other murders). And as a result, Strauss was sentenced to sit in the electric chair at Sing Sing Prison.

On June 12, 1941, the day of his execution, Strauss’ last visitor was Evelyn Mittelman. Evelyn kissed Strauss goodbye, and soon he was dead too.

And as far as we can determine, Harry “Pittsburgh Phil” Strauss was the fourth and final victim of “The Kiss of Death.”

Maybe.

I am not sure if anyone has been watching out there, about the types of music that we are listening to. Let us look at them for a minute. Our grandparents listen to music like; "Happy Days are Here Again, the Skies Above Are Clear Again." Kids today listen to RAP, which actually starts with a 'C' except the 'C' is silent in this new spelling and pronunciation. Its really, CRAP. A radio station in TX is actually called K-RAP. Perfect.

It is not that the music is so bad; actually it is good, because its rhythm and cadence puts people in a convergence state of mind. In other words it puts them into theta state of mind and that is where it is easier to suggest a new thought or to brainwash in sleep state. The initiation of such brainwaves is powerful indeed. These tactics are also used in certain churches and Sales and motivational seminars. Also during commercials and government uses them to some degree for important endeavors, for instance cadence in military marching. The gangster rap is not good in that it suggests killing, drugs, other gang activities while putting its listener into the convergence state of mind. This is a negative thing, and may cause these individuals to dwell on certain thoughts and give them ideas that they may with proper gang mentality attempt one or more of the activities talked about in the songs. It would be much better to have songs with that type of cadence, which promoted good deeds and love. Perhaps there are many of these types of songs yet they do not sell very well and I do not here positive rap songs as much as I should. Mostly the Gangster Rap.

Many Techno type songs are also negative in nature. But these songs do not have the proper beats per minute to put a person into a trance like state, where suggestive behavior is introduced that is a throw back to before the human change in society. Is it possible to disallow this type of music? Music is an escape for many people to the fast paced life, and being in a trace state is probably a good state to be in, if one wanted to escape from the world for a while. A strong Bass in a song and certain beats per minute introduce this convergence state, then the subject is 100 percent ready for fresh new input. Theta States of mind are induced and a waken dream state provides for easy subconscious input.

But what are we allowing to be put into these minds of altered state? Songs of this nature are better than drugs, yet the drugs would effect the singular and not the victims of the deed that are done once the behavior of an individual are altered through this convergence. There is freedom of expression in this country yet the listeners are not realizing the effect of the changes as they occur. They are being brain washed while listening to their favorite music. Which become more favored because it puts them in a trace state allowing them to escape from problems of life. Hey no one said life was easy, right? I believe Rappers should be thrown in the trash cans, not littering the minds of our youth. It costs businesses money for graffiti cleaning and tax payers money in police. The cost to society is too great to calculate as a whole, but it is real. Rather than eliminate a cultural phenomena.

Let us instead make each record label and artist (I use this loosely as I do not approve of the RAP, but without passing judgment) produce 10 songs with positive lyrics for every one song of negative lyrics. That solves that problem. People can still escape in their trance state, record companies still make money, the constitution is still upheld, but there will be less negative and more positive thought going on when trance like state is producing more of one chemical in the brain than another. A person in this state is easy to recognize, their eyes are glossy and remain so for while afterwards.

Hip hop fashion trends are not a newcomer to the fashion scene by any means. In fact, this style has been around since the 1980’s, when celebrities like Will Smith and Christopher “Kid” Reid showed youth how it should be done. Of course, hip hop fashion trends have evolved over the past two decades as tastes and styles have changed to correspond with the culture of the time. The following will offer you a brief but colorful history into the world of hip hop, with some of the current fashion design today.

Early Hip Hop In the 1980’s, major brand names became synonymous with the hip hop fashion trends. Brands like Nike, Adidas and Clark shoes were sported with leather bomber jackets and brightly-colored track suits. Sports jerseys were a hot commodity, with Will Smith showing them off in his hit television show, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Aire. This was the time when heavy gold jewelry and large sunglasses came into play, creating an image of wealth and luxury in the hip hop culture of this time. In the latter part of this decade, MC Hammer and other rappers introduced hip hop fashion trends like baggy pants and baseball caps.

The Gangsta Look In the 1900’s, hip hop fashion trends shifted to the gangsta look in the fashion of the Los Angeles Chicano gangsters. This style sported baggy pants that were worn low and without a belt, shirt tails hanging outside the pants and bandanas on the head. In the midst of this fashion trend, designers were also providing something that the youth of this time liked, and brands like Tommy Hilfiger, Polo and Nautica also came into vogue. At this time, hip hop fashion trends evolved into urban streetwear, with names like Mecca USA, Lugz and Rocawear coming into play.

Flash and Bling The turn of the century saw hip hop fashion trends switch to flashy ensembles and bling bling jewelry, made popular by the likes of Jay-Z and The Hot Boys. High end designers like Gucci came onto the hip hop scene during this time as well. Today, the hip hop look has toned down somewhat, with hip hop fashion trends that are more tailored and professional – preppie hip hop, if you will. However, since the hip hop fashion trends are primarily embraced by youth, this style will always be cutting edge and separate from the fashion mainstream. After more than two decades on the fashion scene, it appears that this trend is more than just a trend – it is a fashion icon that is here to stay.

Racket-buster and future New York Governor Thomas E. Dewey called him the "King of the Racketeers." And there is no doubt Vito Genovese was one of the most vicious, conniving, and treacherous bosses in Mafia history.

Genovese was born on November 27, 1897 in the tiny town of Risigliano, located in the Province of Naples in Italy. He reached the equivalent of a fifth grade education in Italy, when in 1913 he traveled to New York City to hook up with his father, who had come to America a few years earlier. The Genovese family settled in the Greenwich Village area of ​​Manhattan, and soon Genovese was working for an young up-and-coming gangster named Charles "Lucky" Luciano. Genovese also became tight with Mafia thugs like Frank Costello, Joe "Adonis" Doto, and Albert Anastasia. But he didn't particularly like to associate with Jewish gangsters like Meyer Lansky and Bugsy Siegel.

The first time Costello introduced Genovese to Lansky and Siegel as their partners in various criminal enterprises, Genovese said, "What are you tying to do. Load us up with a bunch of Hebes?"

Costello snapped back, "Take it easy, Don Vitone? You're nothing but a foreigner yourself."

Because of the inclusion of criminal mastermind Lansky and the muscle provided by Siegel, the Prohibition era of the Roaring Twenties was very profitable for the Italians mobsters. They also hooked up with Irish mobsters Owney "The Killer" Madden and his partner Big Bill Dwyer, who was known as the "King of the Rum Runners," and was the biggest distributor of illegal booze in the entire United Sates of America.

During the mid 1920's, the biggest Italian mob boss in New York City was Joe "The Boss" Masseria, a porcine-looking thug, barely five feet tall, who was said to have the table manners of a "drooling mastiff." Masseria took Luciano, Costello, and Genovese under his wings, and he inserted Luciano as his second in charge, or "Underboss." The problem was, Masseria didn't like his men associating with anyone who wasn't a Sicilian, specifically mentioning Lansky, Siegel, Madden, and Dwyer. Masseria was not too fond either of Genovese, who was from Naples, and Costello (real name Castiglia), who from Calabria. However, Masseria tolerated both men because, after all, they were Italians. But Masseria would not elevate Genovese and Costello to anything above being a mere Mafia soldier. And this did not set too well with Luciano and his pals, Italian or otherwise.

In 1927, Benito Mussolini basically chased the Mafia out of Sicily; jailing some and killing others. Salvatore Maranzano, from the area around the Bay of Castellammare in Sicily, escaped to the United States with another group of Mafia exiles. Maranzano's boss Don Vito Cascio Ferro had been imprisoned for life by Mussolini and his Chief of Police Caesar Mori. So Maranzano, figuring the American Mafia was inferior to the Sicilian brand, decided he would be able to take over all the rackets of Masseria and his cohorts without too many problems. Or at least, problems he couldn't handle. This led to what historians called the "Castellamarese War."

A mobster who met Maranzano soon after Maranzano arrived in America later said, "When we arrived it was very dark. We were brought before before Maranzano, who seemed absolutely majestic, with two pistols stuck in his waist, and about ninety boys who were also armed to the teeth surrounding him. I thought I was in the presence of Pancho Villa. "

From 1927 to 1930, the Castellamarese War raged all over New York City. Men were killed in and in front of pool rooms, Italian members-only clubs, all-night diners, bars and restaurants, and even in the streets as they emerged from their cars. The killers fired their guns from moving cars, roof tops, and darkened doorways. When the dust cleared, 50 bodies were piled up in the streets, which made Luciano consider the wiseness of his allegiance to Masseria. Lansky, who was the closest to Luciano, cautioned Luciano to "Wait the war out. Let the bosses kill each other, then we can step in and take over."

It is not clear who's idea it was first, but in the spring 1931, Luciano and Lansky had a secret meeting with Maranzano in Maranzano's midtown office. At this meeting it was decided that Luciano and his cohorts would switch sides in the Castellamarese War and back Maranzano. Of course, this meant taking out Masseria, which Luciano had no compunction doing.

Luciano figured the best set-up was to entice Masseria into a situation the usually-cagey Masseria would feel totally comfortable with. And this, of course was scarfing down food in a four-star Italian restaurant.

According to Rick Cohen's fine book on Jewish mobsters Tough Jews, on April 15, 1931, Luciano asked Masseria out to lunch in Brooklyn, far away from Masseria's stronghold in Manhattan's Little Italy. Luciano told Masseria, "We'll go over to Scarpato's in Brooklyn. Scarpato fixes sauce like in the old country, with the clams and the good olive oil."

The mere mention of food caused drool to flow down Masseria's lips, so he readily agreed to Luciano's request. The two men took Masseria's bullet-proof limousine from the lower east side of Manhattan to Brooklyn, and sat at a table in the back of Scarpato's. In just a few short hours, Masseria consumed more food than the average man could eat in two days. When his belly was full, Masseria requested a deck of cards so that he and his best pal Luciano could play a little poker.

At around 3 pm, Luciano excused himself and went into the men room. Seconds later, four men burst through the front door of the restaurant. They were comprised of the eclectic group of Genovese, Anastasia, Siegel, and a very capable Jewish killer named Red Levine. They reportedly fired 20 bullets at Masseria; some of them actually connecting with their intended target. Masseria rolled flat on his back, as dead as the card hand he was holding. In photos in the next day newspapers, all that was visible was Masseria's right bloody hand, palm up, holding the ace of diamonds. From that point on, mobsters considered the ace of diamonds a curse. Some even sent the ace of diamonds to an enemy, warning him he was about to join Masseria in that hot place downstairs with no air conditioning.

With Masseria now quite dead, the four gunmen rushed to a waiting car, with the very nervous Ciro Terranova behind the wheel. Terranova was shaking so hard, he was unable to get the car into gear. Siegel angrily pushed Terranova aside, and drove the getaway car himself. A few years later, Terranova was banished from Luciano's mob, because Luciano agreed with Siegel, Levine, and Genovese that Terranova had no guts.

When Luciano finally exited the men's room, he found several nervous waiters, bullet holes in the walls and tables, and a dead Masseria on the floor. When the police arrived soon after, Luciano told the law that he didn't see anything because, "I was in the bathroom, I didn't hear anything."

Since the waiters clammed up, and the police themselves had an extreme dislike for Masseria, no one was ever arrested for Masseria's murder, and it is doubtful that the police ever even looked for his killer.

When Maranzano heard about Masseria's demise, he was beside himself with glee. Maranzano immediately named himself the winner of the Castellamarese War and the new boss of the Mafia. He immediately made Luciano his right-hand man.

A few weeks after Masseria's demise, Maranzano called a meeting of every Mafioso in New York City, reportedly to be over 500 made men. The meeting took place in a large warehouse in the Bronx, near the Harlem River. At this meeting Maranzano divided these men into five separate crime families. As the five bosses of these families, Maranzano named Lucky Luciano, Albert Anastasia, Tommy Luchese, Joe Profaci, and Joe Bonnano. Maranzano also appointed each family a second-in-command, or "Underboss," and he named Genovese as the "Underboss" of the Luciano Family.

Of course, Maranzano also named himself the "Boss of All Bosses," or the "Capi de Tuti Capi," and this was not palatable to Luciano and the other Mafia leaders, who were tired of always having someone lording over them, taking a big piece of their pies.

Even though Maranzano promised that his new organization, which he dubbed "Cosa Nostra," or "Our Thing," would keep peace and prosperity in the forefront of their operation, Maranzano secretly felt quite differently. He immediately drew up a list of people he wanted dead, because he felt their ambition was a threat to his leadership. Luciano, Costello, and Genovese were on that list. Maranzano invited Luciano, Costello and Genovese to a meeting in Maranzano's midtown office. At this meeting, Maranzano planned to have Vincent "Mad Dog" Cole, an especially vicious Irish killer, execute all three men. Maranzano paid Cole $ 25,000 in advance, with another $ 25,000 payable after the dirty deed was done.

However, Luciano had a mole inside Maranzano's inner circle, allegedly Tommy Luchese, and Luchese tipped Luciano as to the set-up. On the day of their intended demise, neither Luciano, Costello, nor Genovese were anywhere near Maranzano's office. Instead, Luciano sent four Jewish gangsters, selected by Meyer Lansky and headed by Red Levine (who was also one of the shooters in the Masseria killing) to Maranzano's office. The four killers posing as police detectives, bullied their way past Maranzano's bodyguards in the outer office, and busted into Maranzano's inner office, where they shot and stabbed Maranzano to death.

The four killers then hurried out of Maranzano's office, followed by Maranzano's ex-bodyguards, who were now looking for new jobs. The men sprinted down the stairs and barreled right into "Mad Dog" Cole, who was carrying a machine gun in a violin case. They told Cole that Maranzano was already dead, and to beat it before the cops showed up. Cole did an about face and followed the killers out of the building, having just received a $ 25,000 pay day without firing a shot.

With Masseria and now Maranzano out of the way, the five Mafia families thrived. However, Genovese, along with Anastasia the most vicious killers of the bunch, began an out-of-control killing spree.

First, Genovese's wife (name unknown) suddenly disappeared from the face of the earth. The word on the streets was that Genovese had killed his wife and made her body disappear, because he had fallen in love with a woman named Anna. The only problem was, Anna was already married to a man named Gerard Vernotico. Now this was merely a small obstacle to Genovese, who killed Vernotico on a tenement rooftop, then married Anna two weeks later, on March 30, 1932.

In 1934, things started falling apart for Genovese, when he was involved in an extortion plot gone awry. One of his co-conspirators in the plot was Ferdinand Boccia. Genovese, fearful that Boccia was the weak link and would squeal, murdered Boccia himself. This would later come back to haunt Genovese.

In 1936, special prosecutor Thomas E. Dewey set his sights on organized crime, and on Luciano and Genovese in particular. After Luciano was convicted on a trumped-up charge of prostitution, allegedly orchestrated by Dewey himself, Luciano was sentenced to 30 to 50 years in prison. Before he left to do his time, Luciano named Genovese as the boss of Luciano's family. But in 1937, Genovese was indicted for the murder of Boccia that had happened three years earlier. Instead of being fed the same fate as his pal Luciano, Genovese escaped to Sicily, one year after Genovese had become an American naturalized citizen. With Genovese unable to supervise the Luciano family, Luciano, from prison, degreed that Frank Costello was now the head of the Luciano Family.

While Genovese was in Sicily he was a very busy man indeed. Having reportedly taking $ 750,000 in cash with him, Genovese put this money to work for him on the streets. Of course this was impossible to do without the friendship and cooperation of Italian dictator Benito Mussolini, who was intimately involved in Word War II, as an enemy of the United States. Genovese paid for the construction of a power plant for Mussolini in Nola, located in Southern Italy. Then Genovese contributed $ 250,000 for the construction of a Municipal building that Mussolini wanted built. Whenever Genovese got a little short of cash, he contacted his wife Anna in America, who was handling Genovese's business operations while he was in his self-imposed exile. During this time, Anna Genovese made frequent trips to Italy to replenish her husband coffers.

To show his gratitude for Genovese's largess, Mussolini awarded Genovese the Order of the Crown of Italy, a high civilian honor. And because one good turn deserves another, in 1943, Genovese arranged for the murder in New York City of Mussolini's chief nemeses, Italian newspaper editor Carlo Tresa, who was stirring up the pot against Mussolini in his radical Italian newspaper Il Martello, which was sold in Italian communities in America. The hit was allegedly done by up-and-coming mobster Carmine Galente, who shot Tresa in the back of the head as Tresa was strolling down Fifth Avenue near 13th Street.

In 1944, Mussolini's empire was crumbling. Genovese, seeing the handwriting on the wall, switched sides and began working for the United States Army, basically as an informer, who led the Army to a slew of black market operators, whom Genovese had been doing business with. Soon, the Army got wise to why Genovese was working with them so readily. It seemed that every time the Army shut down a black market operation that Genovese had led them too, Don Vitone took over that operation himself.

With the war over, and all of the witnesses against Genovese either dead or disappeared, Genovese made his way back into the United States. With no evidence against Genovese, the prosecutors simply dropped the Boccia murder case against him.

Genovese immediately tried to gain back control of the Luciano family, but Costello, with the help of Lansky and Anastasia, was too firmly entrenched. So Genovese bided his time. He moved with his wife to a luxurious house in Atlantic Highland in New Jersey and took the guise of a civic-minded businessman who gave heavily to numerous charities, including the Boy Scouts of America. In fact, Genovese was heavily involved in the narcotics business, raking in millions and building up his war chest to fight his way back to the top.

Genovese had a minor setback, when in 1953, Anna Genovese, claiming physical and emotional distress, sued Genovese for divorce. During their divorce trial, which was reported daily in the press, Anna Genovese said that her husband had stashed millions of dollars in European accounts, and that he grossed between $ 20,000- $ 30,000 a week from the Italian lottery games. This caused Genovese much dishonor amongst his Mafia cohorts, and delayed his planned coup d'état for control of the Mafia families.

Genovese waited until 1957 to make his attack. Since his return from Italy, it was estimated that Genovese, through drug dealing, Italian lotteries, and his activities with corrupt labor unions, had accumulated about $ 30 million of "play money" to invest in treachery. His three main obstacles to achieve his mission of Mafia control were Frank Costello, Albert Anastasia, and Meyer Lansky. Since Lansky was Jewish and therefore not eligible to be in the Mafia, Genovese figured if he took out Costello and Anastasia, Lansky would have no other choice but to fall in line.

Genovese tried to take the first bite of the apple, when in 1957, he sent hulking ex-boxer Vincent "The Chin" Gigante to ambush Costello in the lobby of Costello's Park Avenue apartment building. Gigante pointed his gun and said, "This is for you, Frank!" But the bulled Gigante fired simply grazed Costello's head. A quick rush to the hospital emergency room and Costello was back in his own bed that same night. True to the code of omerta, when Gigante was captured and brought to trial, Costello refused to identify Gigante as his attempted assassin.

Genovese's second upwardly mobile move was more successful. On October 25, 1957, Genovese arranged for the murder of Anastasia, who was filled with lead by two men as he sat in the barber chair in the Park Sheridan Hotel. Genovese originally gave the murder contract to his ally Joe Profaci, the head of one of the Mafia five families, and Profaci allegedly subcontracted out the hit to Crazy Joe Gallo's Red Hook Brooklyn crew. Anastasia's murder was never solved and over the years several men have privately took credit for the hit, including Gallo.

With Genovese still angling for his Mafia takeover, Costello and Lansky, with the approval of Luciano who was now exiled in Italy, devised a scheme whereby they could put Genovese out of commission for good without killing him. They enlisted the aid of an ambitious mobster named Carlo Gambino, who was looking for a rise to the top himself. Gambino approached Genovese about a proposed mutimillion international drug deal that would net them tons of money. Even though Genovese had outlawed drug dealing in his own crew, Don Vitone didn't figure this ban extended to him, so he greedily agreed. Then Gambino, though his crooked connections in law enforcement, arranged for Genovese to be arrested on a drug conspiracy charge. However, the Feds needed proof before they could try and convict Genovese.

The wily Gambino knew a convicted minor drug dealer rotting in Sing Sing Prison named Nelson Cantellops. He approached Cantellops though an intermediary and suggested if Cantellops would testify in court that he had witnessed Genovese involved in several big money drug deals, Gambino would arrange for Cantellops to be paid the whopping sum of $ 100,000, a suspended sentence, and a release from prison . To accomplish this, Costello, Lansky, and Luciano would contribute $ 50,000, and Gambino would kick in the other $ 50,000.

Luciano later said about the sting, "We had to pay him (Cantellops) pretty good."

Cantellops thought about the proposition for about two seconds and he agreed to take the bribe.

Then an anonymous tip was called in to the New York Narcotic Bureau saying that Cantellops would be willing to trade information on Genovese for his freedom. With Genovese being such a big fish, and Cantellops hardly a minnow, the government readily agreed.

In 1958, Genovese and twenty four member of his crew were arrested for violating the new Narcotics Control Act.

In 1959, at Genovese's trial, Cantellops was the star witness for a full four weeks. Cantellops said under oath that he had personally witnessed Genovese and his underlings over the years making numerous drug buys. He also said that for two years he had acted as a courier for Genovese, carrying heroin from New York City to various other cities around the country. Cantellops testified that on one occasion he had accompanied Genovese to a meeting in the Bronx where it was discussed how to divvy up the heroin-selling territories.

Based almost exclusively on the testimony of Nelson Cantellops, Genovese and all 24 of his cohorts were found guilty. Genovese was sentenced to 15 years in prison, to be served at the Atlanta Federal Penitentiary in Atlanta, Georgia.

While in prison, Genovese continued to run his crime family though intermediaries. Mobster Joe Valachi later testified before the John L. McClellan's Subcommittee that while in jail Genovese, because he knew he had been framed, became extremely paranoid. Genovese trusted no one, and even ordered the execution of his top aide Tony Bender, just because he suspected Bender, wrongfully of course, in being involved in the set-up.

In prison, Genovese developed nervous symptoms and severe heart problems. Vito Genovese died of a heart attack on February 14, 1969, while still in prison. He is buried in Saint John's Cemetery in Queens.

In the 1972 movie The Valachi Papers, staring Charles Bronson, Genovese was portrayed by actor Lino Ventura. And in the 2001 TV movie Boss of Bosses, Genovese's part was played by actor Steven Bauer.

After the introduction of the steadicam stabilizing mount in Hollywood in the mid 70s, it has been used in countless productions contributing to make some scenes truly memorable. Sometimes this technology is abused and overused in too many scenes but sometimes, when a director is facing a difficult and complex scene to cover and the action calls for it, the use of steadicam can bring the visual impact of the scene to another level.

Here we are looking at arguably one of the most interesting chase scenes in movie history, the one from Brian De Palma’s masterpiece “Carlito’s Way”, photographed by Stephen Burum with the steadicam scene shot by steadicam operator extraordinaire Larry McConkey. For those of you who have not seen the movie and are wondering what makes this scene great, well, here’s a brief summary of the story leading to the chase.

Carlito Brigante, a Puerto Rican criminal who has just served 5 years of prison out of a 30 years sentence, is freed thanks to his lawyer’s (Dave Kleinfeld) ability to exploit a technicality. Carlito vows to go straight but his past just won’t let him. Even if he manages to start a successful night club that will give him enough money to retire in the Caribbean, because of different circumstances, he is involved in various illegal activities. One of them is helping out his desperate friend and lawyer Kleinfield, who is in trouble with the Italian Mafia, to free an Italian gangster from prison by using his boat. The Italian gangster is freed but the crazy lawyer ends up killing him along with his son. The gangster’s associates are now all over Carlito and Kleinfeld. They go visit Carlito in his night club to figure out how much he was involved in the killing and when Carlito decides not to take any chances and run away, they go after him. This is what leads to the chase scene. We are at 2 hours and 4 minutes into the movie.

The chase scene can be divided into 2 parts, first the chase in the Subway and then the chase in the Grand Central Station. Both parts have an extensive use of steadicam, the first has several shots cut together and the second has one spectacular continuous shot leading to the gun fight.

The first part starts as Carlito, after taking some stashed money in his night club, runs away towards the subway station with the Italians behind him. The steadicam shots intercut from a wide POV (of the Italians) shot of Carlito running away to a steadicam shot of the Italians pursuing him where the camera is in front of them at a close range, with the audience already feeling them closing in. We cut to a wide of the interior of the subway station where we follow Carlito running inside and up the stairs. The camera is still on steadicam and closing in on him. As Carlito reaches the subway platform the steadicam shot gets closer, first in front of him, then all around him when he stops to look back and finally behind him as he first walks faster, then runs. Here we get a first taste of one of the things that makes this scene great, that is the constant change of pace. Carlito tries to pretend nothing is wrong by walking casually, then runs when he feels them closing in. He gets in the subway and sits down. He might have lost them but suddenly they appear, they are looking inside the train to spot him and Carlito is forced to hide. We then get inside where the Italians are getting closer and closer. The steadicam stalks Carlito in a POV shot as if it was the Italians looking at him. We also cut to a steadicam shot from in front of the pursuers who are walking faster and faster. Carlito manages to get away and run out to the Grand Central Station where the second part of the chase takes place.

We have to point out that if the first part, even if shot on steadicam, constantly cut back and forth from Carlito to the pursuers and had different types of shots, the second part is one very well choreographed long steadicam shot which leads to a gun fight when Carlito is spotted by one of the gangsters. As Carlito comes up the stairs we are in front of him, then behind when he starts running. He is about to go down the escalator when he suddenly hears the voices of the pursuers and stops abruptly and hides behind a wall. In the same frame we see Carlito, who is ready to shoot them if they see him, and the Italians. Vinnie, one of them, almost reaches Carlito’s spot but is called back and they go down the escalator. Carlito walks around to a balcony, crouching as he walks, to see where they go. The pace slows down as Carlito walks very slowly to avoid been seen. He looks down the balcony and the camera subtly becomes the protagonist’s POV, then turns back to him. Carlito starts running again to go down the escalator but there he sees Vinnie again at the bottom and again abruptly turns back. And in the final brilliant section of this shot, the camera doesn’t follow Carlito but continues down the escalator and circles around the pursuers. An inspired ending to a brilliant chase scene.

This 8 minute sequence seemed to have been written just to showcase what a steadicam can do and can add to the visual power of a climactic scene. Suspense, in this final part of the movie, has reached its peak. Its great how the coverage of the sequence also builds up to greater suspense in the second part of the chase. First we have several wide shots that gradually get closer and closer, then intercut between Carlito and his pursuers, then we get a brilliant 2 minute continuous shot mainly on Carlito and then on both. The shot subtly morphs into Carlito’s POV and at the very end we are wowed with a very original shot down the escalator.

Top 5 Grand Theft Auto V Characters.

5. Lester Crest

Lester is the mastermind behind all the heists and although he suffers from a wasting disease which has gradually worn down his motor skills during his life and left him wheelchair-bound he is still no less of a threat. He excels best behind his computer screen and is not a person you would like to piss off.

At an unknown point in time, Lester met and became affiliated with Michael Townley and Trevor Philips, becoming a regular member of their heist crews since the start of their partnership.

4. Lamar Davis

Lamar is the best friend of Franklin Clinton they both went to Davis High School together when they were teenagers. Eventually, the two men became involved in crime. Now going about stealing (or "repo-ing") cars for the dealership where they work. Lamar always has something intelligent to say, even if he doesn't have the eloquence to really say it, and he shows that there is more to a small time gangster than meets the eye.

Fun Fact: Lamar was originally supposed to be the character that Franklin ended up being but due to a last minute decision by Rockstar his role was altered.

3. Franklin Clinton

Franklin is a small time gangster, working for a crooked guy who wants him to boost cars for a living. Franklin is the first playable character in GTA V (discounting the prologue) and is our first introduction to the sprawling world of Los Santos.

Franklin was born in South Los Santos in 1988. Following his mother's death, Franklin moved in with his grandparents. Despite being constantly spoiled by his grandmother, Franklin had decided to take on the role of a street hustler. One of his first jobs was selling cigarettes with Bradshaw however, it isn't until Franklin jacks Michael's son's car that he is promoted into the criminal world of high risk, high reward.

2. Micheal De Santa / Townley

Michael Townley used to be part of a big time gang, pulling off bank heists and getting into ferocious shoot-outs. After he is shot by the police, however, he decides to take the way out; witness protection in exchange for information.

Michael is a great character to balance the three protagonist structure. He strikes a balance between Franklin's cool, collected attitude and Trevor's crazy. Michael can be as reasonable as the next guy, but when he's in a bad mood, he can almost be as manic as his old partner. Michael is about as far away from the stereotypical GTA protagonist as you could get, and it seems rather fresh to start off the game as a success this time round.

1. Trevor Philips

Who else could it have been? Rockstar's newest psychopath is different because he's also a protagonist. Trevor Phillips is wild and unhinged. His company, Trevor Phillips Industries, seems to only have two things on its business plan – kill everyone and sell some meth. As the story progresses, Trevor carries out torture, brutally murders people, takes a man's wife hostage and continues his one man rampage.
Trevor is an unbelievably complex character, and will go down in GTA history as one of the wildest characters ever.

"This is my life's work. I mean since I was a little kid II dreamt big. Y'Know, I've always wanted to be an international drug dealer and … weapons trader." – TREVOR PHILIPS

Agree or disagree with this list? Then leave a comment down below about how you would have designed this list.

Article from: http://www.foogle-empire.com

Gangsters are always fascinated by pretty women. They always want to have a flashy one holding onto their arms while walking into a club with their boys as in the movies. Some will even go overboard to get the one of their dreams even if their empire crumbles to the ground.

He was the king pin on the Upper East Side, in style and always mild

His boy at his side he would slide by with a smile like an evening breeze

Flashy coats, shining rings, leathered shoes, and a sting of other things

He was the man of the hour wheeling all of the power from his tower

They sent her to get him, told her to use anything, even a ring or bling

She dressed like Susie Que, fancy shoes with heels as high and tight

Walked like Nancy Wong on a bubbling fashion show, she went on the go

Hips swinging, head high, eyes targeting her prey-tigress on the prowl

So sweet, they met it was neat, he wore pants with pleats, breasted suit

Fancy black and white shoes on his feet; she made his say “please!” twice

Whispered and he jittered; his boys backed their coats, he cleared his throat

They were alone, after what they wanted, hot on each other tails-he sighed

They both had a mission, he was out for a dame to add to his game-a moll

Even thought of her as a doll; he was hooked around his neck with a crook,

Spilled the bean for her jeans; she was mean, nothing he had ever scene

With the day done he had no gun, could not run, it was fun, he was won!

His boys were mad, their boss was had, how could he ’cause he was bad?

The moll was such a sweet gal; they still see her as a doll, but not for a pal

She was like the widowed spider, jedi of love; Mise-en-scene lady still shady

His time now done, she had come, still  under her thumb-they had such fun!

Nathan Kaplan was born on the Lower East Side of Manhattan in 1891. He took to the streets as a youth and soon became engaged in petty swindles, such as the “dropper” scheme. While no one was watching, he’d conveniently “drop” a wallet full of counterfeit money on the sidewalk. Then he would immediately “find” the wallet and look for a sucker, whom he told, “Lookit, I don’t have time to locate the owner. You take the wallet and find the owner. Give me half of what you think the reward money will be.” And dupes constantly did this for Kaplan, hence the nickname “Kid Dropper.”

Because of his expertise in making a buck, Dropper joined Paul Kelly’s (Paolo Vacarelli) Five Points Gang, which was quite unusual for the Jewish Dropper, since the vast majority of Kelly’s gang members were of Italian descent. Yet Dropper did not last too long with the Five Pointers. In 1911, he was arrested for robbery and sentenced to seven years in Sing Sing Prison. By the time Dropper was released in 1917, Kelly’s gang had been disbanded, and Dropper, considered a minor criminal before going to jail, fancied himself as successor to Kelly and he grabbed Kelly’s labor rackets business.

In his past life, Dropper was habitual wearer of slovenly attire, in other words, he dressed like a bum. Now as a boss, Dropper stared to dress accordingly. He threw away his normal rags and started prancing the streets in loud checkered suits, pointed shoes, shirts and ties with loud colors and outlandish designs, with a straw hat, or derby, tilted rakishly over one eye. Dropper compiled a motley crew of low-level gangsters and he called his gang, “The Rough Riders of Jack Dropper.” But Dropper soon found himself in a war for control of Kelly’s old rackets with an old foe, who had just been released from prison too.

Before his incarceration, Dropper had made a very bad enemy in fellow Five Pointer Johnny Spanish, a Spanish Jew, real name Joseph Weyler. The two men had been pals, until 1911, when Spanish had to take it on the lam for a shooting that resulted in the death of an innocent eight-year-old girl. Spanish split town for a few months and when he came back, he found Dropper had stolen his girlfriend. Spanish, who carried four guns with him at all times, proceeded to pepper his former love with multiple gunshots. Somehow the woman lived, but Spanish got seven years in prison for his actions. When he was released in 1917, Spanish took dead aim at Dropper and every illegal activity Dropper controlled. Each man had approximately three dozen shooters under their wings, and these shooters went to work, resulting in the deaths of several men on both sides. But the war ended, when Dropper got the drop on Spanish, so to speak, after he and two of his men ambushed Spanish as he exited a restaurant at 19 Second Avenue. When the dust settled, Spanish was dead and Dropper was now in charge of all the strong-arm tactics used by several unions to control their men.

Between 1920 and 1923, Dropper and his gang were responsible for more than twenty murders. But in the rackets, when you kill one competitor, another one usually comes from the shadows, intent on doing to you, what you did to the other guy, to gain control of whatever illegal activity you dominate. This person emerged in the name of Jacob “Little Augie” Orgen. Little Augie had in his stable a crew of every capable killers, which included Jack “Legs” Diamond, Louis “Lepke” Buchalter and Gurrah Shapiro. In 1922 and 1923, Dropper’s gang and Little Augie’s gang turned Manhattan into one big shooting gallery. The result was 23 murders, including the death of one innocent man, who just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

In 1923, Dropper was arrested on a concealed weapons charge. He was soon released outside the Essex Market Court, on Second Avenue and Second Street. There were rumors that a death squad may be awaiting his release, so Dropper was surrounded by a phalanx of cops as he stepped into a waiting taxi. He sat in the back seat next to Detective Jesse Joseph, when a minor thug working for Little Augie named Louis Kushner, rushed from behind the cab and shot Dropper through the closed window, twice in the head. Dropper’s wife rushed to her mortally wounded husband and said, “Nate! Nate! Tell me you were not what they say you were.”

Dropper gasped and said with his last breath, “They got me.” Then he keeled sideways, his head nestling on Detective Joseph’s shoulder.

Kushner, now restrained by several burley cops and proud of his handiwork, smiled and snapped, “I got him. Now give me a cigarette.”

Planning a fancy dress party can be real fun for people of all ages. Fancy dress costumes allow people to forget the real world and be a different person for a change. The favorites are usually superhero themes as they have the most fun and unique outfits. It is often amusing to bystanders and people in your city when they see a bunch of superheroes walk by them. The problem is people do not have to many ideas when it come fancy dress costume themes.

If you are planning one soon and are not sure what theme you want to have, read this article for some great ideas for your next party. These parties may take a little effort but with a group of willing friends you could have loads of fun. The fancy dress costumes can be bought online at very affordable rates so check online before your event. You could even rent these online. Here are a list of ideas and themes.

1. 1920’s (Loui Armstrong, Charles linberg, Flapper Costumes, Bob haircuts)

2. 1930’s

3. 1940’s

4. 1950’s

5. 1960’s (Hippies, Long hair, Peace Signs, Geometric prints, Big sun glasses)

6. 1970’s ( Corderuoys, afros, stripes, tight pants skinny ties)

7. 1980’s

8. 20th Century Fashion

9. Action Heroes

10. Action man VS Barbie

11. Adjective parties ( Happy, Sad, Angry)

12. African

13. Alice in wonderland

14. Ancient Egypt

15. Animal

16. Arabian nights

17. Armed forces costumes

18. Back to school

19. Beach

20. Olympics

21. Best of British

22. Bible character

23. Bright and tight

24. Bubble wrap

25. Bollywood

26. Bling

27. Black and white

28. Cartoon Character parties

29. Children cartoon characters

30. Christmas

31. Circus parties

32. Disco

33. Disney parties

34. Dr Who

35. Environmental

36. East meets west

37. Equestrian

38. Espionage or 007

39. Famous people

40. Famous couples

41. Gangsters

42. Gods and goddesses

43. Gold and silver

44. Goodies and baddies

45. Grease parties (based on the famous movie)

46. Heaven and hell

47. High society

48. High school musical

49. Hollywood and acting legends

50. Intergalactic and space

51. Jungle and tarzan

52. Kung fu

53. Madonna

54. Latin

These are just a few themes you could choose from. You buy fancy dress costumes for all these themes online. So next time your throwing a party do something different and let your imaginative side go wild. The party you throw would be a memorable one for sure

Tap Dancer Ann Miller was born April 12, 1923 in Chireno, a small town in Texas. Her father, John Collier, a criminal attorney who defended some famous gangsters like Machine Gun Kelly and the Barrow Gang, wanted a son. She was born Johnnie Lucille Collier, but later became known as Annie.

In childhood, Annie had rickets, so she started tap dancing lessons to exercise her legs. At age nine, Annie’s parents divorced, and she moved to California with her mother where she took various jobs dancing to support them. At age thirteen, pretending to be eighteen, Annie was hired as a dancer at the “Black Cat Club” in San Francisco. While working there, she was discovered by Lucille Ball, and the rest is history.

She signed a contract with RKO at age fourteen, being cast in such films as “Stage Door” (1937), “You Can’t Take It With You” (1938), “Room Service” (1938) and “Too Many Girls” (1940). She moved from RKO to Columbia Pictures, then to MGM, making her most memorable film, “Easter Parade” (1948), with Fred Astaire.

The fifties, sixties, and seventies landed Ann Miller many theatre and television roles, and her Broadway hit in “Sugar Babies”, in 1979, put her on Broadway for eight years. At age 75, Ann starred in Stephen Sondheim’s “Follies”, and three years later she was in “Mullholland Falls.”

Ann Miller made over forty films as a dancer, and her legs were insured for $1,000,000. She was famous for her style of fast tapping with recorded movements of 500 taps per minute. She received numerous awards in her lifetime, including the Flo-Bert Award to Celebrate Tap Dance in 1994. Her tap shoes, which she called Moe and Joe, are now exhibited in the Smithsonian.