"Frank Nitti" (The True Story of Chicago's Notorious "Enforcer") by Ronald D. Humble is a superb and clinically crafted literary trail in persuit of historical footsteps from the notorious and infamous "Frank Nitti." Nitti was the successor of Al Capone's Chicago apparatus, a position he subsequently held from about 1931 until his death in 1942.

The author's research points to the fact that Nitti's illegal interests and cladestine ventures went far deeper into the dark abyss of the underworld than Capone ever dreamed of! No one was exempt from his vendeta...including the mayor of Chicago, Anton Cermak. Nitti's influence even cast it's dark shadow into the 60's some 20 (+) years after his death in the name of one, Jack Ruby (et al).

Despite the fact that the author is a Specialist on International Security and Intelligence, one begins to feel that he may even start to sympathize with this master criminal about whom he writes.

Frank Nitti's complex personality is somewhere between Machiavelli, Joseph Stalin, and Heinirich Himmler...all rolled into one.

Sometimes however, the reader feels that he/she may be reading exerts from some Government Agent's legal manual on Organized Crime yet...tactfully combined with extensive historical layering of the Cosa Nostra and "Gangsterism".

A well formatted and informative biographical piece with more than enough resource material for anyone interested in contemporary American Social History. Well worth the price!

It's too bad that I had to give this book one star because my choice would have been none. While author Ronald Humble appears to be a thorough researcher he clearly is not a writer. This book just rambles with no direction whatsoever. As an example the author spends an entire chapter on the JFK assassination even though Frank Nitti had nothing to do with it. Nitti had committed suicide or was murdered (Humble never makes the reason for Nitti's death clear although he does like to make guesses) a scant twenty years before the JFK Killing. Humble also likes to name names as he repeats names incessantly throughout the book. At one point Humble chooses to name every single person that he believes Nitti may have murdered (Or had murdered) rather than just telling the reader the number of possible victims. The reader is bludgeoned with an information overload that is not put into any sort of workable order. The book does have one good point: It is certainly a cure for insomnia.

Anyone with even just a passing interest in true crime in general or organized crime in particular will find this a worthy investment. It's the detailed and well-sourced account of Frank "The Enforcer" Nitti, who was Al Capone's consigliere and underboss and who took control of the Chicago "Outfit" in 1931, when Capone was convicted and imprisoned for ten years for income-tax evasion.

Just a couple of years before that, Nitti masterminded the St. Valentine's Day Massacre when members of the "Outfit" disguised as Chicago police and detectives mowed down seven members of George Moran's North Side Gang. When the killers emerged from the scene, two of them had their hands in the air and the other two followed with machine guns at their backs; they escaped in what looked like a police squad car. You might say it was a pretty well planned operation.

Author Ronald Humble provides an alternative interpretation of the events underpinning the murder of Chicago Mayor Anton Cermak in Miami, Florida, which is usually viewed as a failed attempt on the life of President-elect Franklin D. Roosevelt. Humble lays out persuasive evidence that the mayor, not the future president, was the intended target, as payback for an unsuccessful attempt on Nitti's life--instigated by Cermak--just two months prior.

Particularly interesting to this reviewer are the parallels drawn between Giuseppe Zangara, who was executed for the Cermak assassination, and Lee Oswald the accused assassin of President John Kennedy.

Nitti eventually killed himself (or so it seems) in 1943, because he couldn't face returning to prison, along with other senior members of the Outfit, on racketeering and mail-fraud charges related to extortion in Hollywood. Whether suicide or homicide, Nitti met his maker as a direct or indirect result of over-reaching himself, despite his cunning and high intelligence, an interesting reflection of the human condition.

Although "Frank Nitti" is a name well known in popular culture, chiefly as a result of inclusion of the character in "The Untouchables" television series and Hollywood movies, Humble provides the real scoop: little of what we've seen on the small or big screen accurately reflects the man, his motives or his deeds. If you think you already know Frank Nitti, probably you still need to read this book.

Appendices provide a useful chronology of the main events in Nitti's life and a detailed organizational structure of the Outfit during the years it was controlled by the Enforcer. There's also a comprehensive index.

Highly recommended.

Far too little research has previously been available about Frank Nitti, Capone's "Enforcer" and the public face of the Chicago Outfit after Capone was sent to prison, but anyone with an interest needs look no further than this book. Ron Humble, in what can only be described as an amazing researched book, has brought Frank Nitti back to life within these pages and has revealed the complex and contradictory gangster in a way that no other writer has ever been able to do. This is a highly readable (although filled with great detail) book that no one with a serious interest in the Chicago gangland era should be without. Don't miss this one!

Author Ronald Humble mentions a number of things I wasn't aware of prior to reading this book on Frank Nitti. Humble mentions that Nitti was likely responsible for the hit on Chicago Mayor Anton Cermak in retaliation for Cermak's sending two men to eliminate Nitti. Giuseppe Zangara was chosen by the mob to assassinate Cermak because Zangara was in debt to the mob, and if he didn't carry out the hit he and his family would suffer torture and death. If Zangara did as the mob ordered, the mob would see that Zangara's family was taken care of in a positive way. Author Humble draws comparisons between the assassinations of Mayor Cermak and President John Kennedy. Zangara and Lee Oswald were both expendable. Zangara was quickly eliminated through execution, and didn't dare express what he knew due to concern for his family. Oswald was quickly eliminated by Jack Ruby. Author Humble also states Nitti was likely in on the rub out of despised enemy Machine Gun Jack McGurn, and north sider Hymie Weiss. The author wonders whether Nitti's death was a suicide or was he a victim of foul play. I would stick with a suicide due to his reluctance to return to prison. Finally the author spends quite a bit of time on Nitti as he was portrayed on television and in the movies showing how much coverage he was given in this area. When the author isn't sure about events in Nitti's life he makes sure to point that out. I found the book very worth while and one that should interest those who enjoy mob-related books.

Everyone knows of mob boss Al Capone. But what of his successor in the mob, Frank Nitti, who should be just as infamous, if not more so? "Frank Nitti: The True Story Chicago's Notorious 'Enforcer'" is his tale, bringing the tale of the countless murders and conspiracies for more, the vice and corruption that came with Nitti's leadership. With examinations of how Nitti has been portrayed in myth, legend, television, and movies, it tries to find out the truth about the man through scholarly research, covering everything from his time as Capone's enforcer, his plots to extort Hollywood, and his mysterious death, ruled as a suicide, but could it have been a complex assassination? "Frank Nitti: The True Story Chicago's Notorious 'Enforcer'" is highly recommended for anyone with a strong interest in the golden age of the mob and for community library true crime shelves.

I thouroughly enjoyed Ron Humble's book on Frank Nitti. The incredible detail of Nitti's grim circumstances in his youth and the insights the author provides of how his personality fit the needs of the mob and allowed him to rise to mythic status was fascinating. The depictions of Frank Nitti by Hollywood that Humble includes are further indications of how ruthless a person can become in the right circumstances while still retaining a human quality. I highly recommend the book.

I enjoyed this book so much - I read it in two sittings. As a ghostwriter on several mafia stories I've had to read dozens of books about Chicago's powerful mob organization - The Outfit. I've found most to be overly sensational, speculative and gruesome in their story telling. Ronald has broken through the mold. Frank Nitti: The True Story of Chicago's Notorious Enforcer is written in a refined style that makes the true horror jump off the page. Ronald does a great job framing the mafia in historical context, showing the blurred lines between good and evil in mid-nineteenth century. Great book.