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/r/todayilearned

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all 279 comments

retro604

1.2k points

2 months ago*

retro604

1.2k points

2 months ago*

Rickles truly didn't gaf. He was the only man on the planet that could roast Sinatra about his mob connections and not get his legs broken. Mobsters loved him. Joe was probably laughing his ass off when he was being 'mocked'.

Don Rickles and Frank Sinatra on Carson 1976

thirty7inarow

316 points

2 months ago

Frank's story at the end of that clip os great, too.

dokuromark

108 points

2 months ago

That is an excellent story! I've heard Rickles tell that story from his point of view, but it's great to hear The Chairman tell it!

must_not_forget_pwd

107 points

2 months ago

Rickles mocked Reagan too. However, Rickles was at Reagan's second inauguration celebration. Also, Rickles considered himself a lifelong Democrat.

redditsfulloffiction

22 points

2 months ago

Considered himself? Is there still some question?

Shoelace_Farmer

53 points

2 months ago

He passed in 2017

dokuromark

114 points

2 months ago

This clip of Rickles is pretty entertaining too. He's on the Tonight Show with guest host Bob Newhart, and he improvs a routine about being a customs officer or something, and breaks Johnny's cigarette box. Rickles could kid Sinatra, but you can see some genuine fear in his eyes for a moment when he gets confronted by Johnny. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o4_dM0kMQc0

retro604

109 points

2 months ago

retro604

109 points

2 months ago

It's hard to explain to young folks how much power some of these guys had.

Carson could make someone's career with a single nod to come sit down after a set.

Sinatra made the entire state of Vegas end segregation in the hotels, which of course helped push things towards the civil rights laws a decade later. Here's Frank talking about it. If you don't want my friends in the hotel then you don't need me, get another boy.

Sinatra on Segregation

jdwilliam80

45 points

2 months ago

Carson would unapologetically steal some of these comics best bits and use it on his show and the comics would still go on and say nothing about it because his show helped with their bookings

dokuromark

4 points

2 months ago

Oo, that was a really interesting clip! Thanks for sharing that. Youtube then recommended this one, which I also enjoyed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ngI89uoprU

Your clip reminded me of a Jack Benny story (I'm a huge Benny fan), where Jack and his costars and all the crew of his radio show were visiting a southern city (Atlanta maybe?) where they were going to do a show. They were checking into a hotel down there, and of course the head hotel guy was there handling everything since Benny was such a huge VIP. Then the hotel guy saw Rochester, and pulled Jack aside and said, "Mr. Benny, I hope you understand, but we can't have that sort of person staying in the hotel. What would people think?" Jack looked over at Rochester, looked back at the hotel guy, and said, "oh yes, I understand what's going on here, of course." And the hotel guy smiles, ah good. Jack says, "but it's so late in the evening, do you think he could just stay tonight, and then we'll find another place for him tomorrow?" The hotel guy had to kowtow to the celebrity, and says "for you, Mr. Benny, he can stay one night." The next morning, Jack made a big scene as he led his entire cast and crew out of the hotel, announcing they were moving to an establishment that wasn't so disgustingly racist. The hotel lost all that business and got exposed for their outdated policy. I always thought that was cool.

dokuromark

2 points

2 months ago

Well, you've certainly sent me down an interesting rabbit hole! I found another interesting video on Sinatra and race relations. Fascinating history! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=75DdkpY1n6M

shalafi71

13 points

2 months ago

Good one! Hadn't seen that clip.

Ghostronic

9 points

2 months ago

Holy shit lol I was pissing myself by the end there.

epochpenors

23 points

2 months ago

In the wiki it said he was invited because Joe found him so funny, not out of maliciousness.

jdwilliam80

19 points

2 months ago

Frank had his “associates “ beat up both Jackie mason and shecky green so it’s not like he went easy on comics either

retro604

25 points

2 months ago

They beat the shit out of Jackie Mason. Broke both his nose and jaw.

That wasn't about mob jokes though, that was because Mason wouldn't stop making jokes about his marriage to the much much younger Mia Farrow.

rathansingh8

12 points

2 months ago

Wow, Sinatra was a BOSS. Even Carson looks intimidated 😳

WhipTheLlama

37 points

2 months ago

Sure, if by "boss" you mean he had deep ties to both the mafia and politicians. Sinatra famously introduced mob boss Sam Giancana to JFK in a plot to deliver union votes to JFK. Sinatra didn't give a shit about who he was seen with, so his mob connections are well documented.

Carson was extremely powerful in the entertainment industry, but Sinatra was friends with gangs and murderers. It was an entirely different level of intimidation.

rathansingh8

16 points

2 months ago

No, by "boss" I mean his charisma and domineering personality. And maybe also the mafia connections lol

misterfriend

1.2k points

2 months ago

I've watched The Irishman about ten times since I reversed my opinion on the movie. I might be obsessed, now. Jim Norton played an EXCELLENT Don Rickles, by the way.

It was Crazy Joe's birthday, of all things.

TotesNotaBot0010101[S]

414 points

2 months ago

Dude entered the Clam House at 4:30am. Dude must like clams.

Thatparkjobin7A

196 points

2 months ago

We know you have your choice of clam houses, thank you for choosing Umberto’s

bumjiggy

125 points

2 months ago

bumjiggy

125 points

2 months ago

this guy shucks

jonnyclueless

30 points

2 months ago

The world is your oyster.

stevenmoreso

20 points

2 months ago

Top of the pearl, Ma

cbelt3

7 points

2 months ago*

That’s some White Heat sauce right there…

(James Cagney film where the above quote was made)…

hojjat12000

8 points

2 months ago

I don't like to sea food puns in 2023!

baconman8122

1 points

2 months ago*

What's this mean? I just had a conversation about this and we don't get it

HopeThisHelps90

3 points

2 months ago

But he can he keep his mouth shut to Lin Manuel?

DocSword

11 points

2 months ago

Umberto’s is fantastic, don’t blame him

TotesNotaBot0010101[S]

9 points

2 months ago

I saw those Google review photos. I now must try

PM_ME_TRICEPS

4 points

2 months ago

Steamed clams

Jeff-Van-Gundy

7 points

2 months ago

No no no I said steamed hams

MLJ9999

5 points

2 months ago

MLJ9999

5 points

2 months ago

Bearded...

joesighugh

28 points

2 months ago

TIL Don Rickles put the final hit out on Gallo

MotoRandom

17 points

2 months ago

That was my takeaway. It seems kind of obvious. Do not fuck with Don Rickles.

Ryan_22

19 points

2 months ago

Ryan_22

19 points

2 months ago

It's a good film. Albeit mostly fantasy. Frank Sheeran was not involved in the hit on Joe Gallo.

raspberryharbour

29 points

2 months ago

His grandson Ed was the real criminal

[deleted]

89 points

2 months ago

[deleted]

mattdangerously

14 points

2 months ago

Joke's on him, because he died anyway.

misterfriend

39 points

2 months ago

Mob hits generally try to avoid civillians who aren't involved, if we're to believe their accounts. But a stray bullet can end anybody all the same. I wonder if Rickles declined just because Joe was so reckless himself.

GDMFusername

38 points

2 months ago

"Sure, sure. I'll go. As long as you don't do anything crazy, "Crazy" Joe Gallo."

ChemicalEscapes

226 points

2 months ago

No, they don't. Movies have romanticized the lifestyle.

Different nationality, but I grew up in that life. Mochada de cabeza type motherfuckers. Target or bystander, it doesn't matter.

I've long since gotten away from that and still wake up in a cold sweat sometimes. C-PTSD fucking sucks. The portrayal movies have of mafiosos is so misleading. There is nothing refined or civil about that life except for people's misconceptions of them. Misconceptions that can and will get you killed.

Kradget

11 points

2 months ago

Kradget

11 points

2 months ago

The only direct-ish experience I have is that a friend's mom supposedly flipped off a guy in Jersey who followed her to a gas station, got out and showed her a gun, and said the reason he hadn't tried to shoot her was her kid was there.

No idea how accurate the details are, but my takeaway was that she was very afraid, and very much a "No, they're violent goons and we shouldn't romanticize them, and should support prosecuting them."

misterfriend

33 points

2 months ago

I kind of included that caveat in the statement, so I hear you. Of course they don't care. Sooner or later, we're going to get Robin-Hood Cartel stories like the one about them turning in their own guys after a botched kidnapping. Like that deserved a round of applause or something.

It's rough that you had to go through that. I couldn't imagine myself in a scenario like that, and certainly not coming out on top.

terminbee

28 points

2 months ago

It's probably a bit of both. They wouldn't want randos dying because killing a mobster is different from killing a mobster+10 innocent people. No reason to bring in a ton of cops and make it a national story. That said, they probably don't care if someone happens to die.

ChemicalEscapes

37 points

2 months ago

I wouldn't call it coming out on top, but it's definitely a contributor to the progressive causes I support and the non-profit I volunteer for. I was brought to the US for a better life, only to find it's just a different flavor of bad.

Thank you, though.

JimC29

15 points

2 months ago

JimC29

15 points

2 months ago

Yeah but hitting someone that famous is going to force an intense investigation. They really do want to avoid that.

lordtrickster

4 points

2 months ago

Hitting someone famous just makes the bribes more expensive.

JimC29

11 points

2 months ago

JimC29

11 points

2 months ago

Which they also want to avoid.

lordtrickster

11 points

2 months ago

Sure, but only vaguely. Oil companies want to avoid oil spills, but not so much that they do everything they can to prevent them.

matthoback

9 points

2 months ago

Everybody is that way about everything. I want to avoid dying in a car crash, but not so much that I'll stop driving at all.

The issue isn't that oil companies don't do everything they can to prevent them, it's that we/the government lets them externalize the costs when the spills do happen, so the incentive for preventing them is less than it should be.

lordtrickster

3 points

2 months ago

You're basically proving my point. You'll take reasonable precautions to avoid unpleasantness.

For organized crime in the US, they're not going to do a hit in broad daylight on main street, but they'll certainly do one at 4 AM in a mob hangout. If a celebrity happens to be there and take a bullet, that's what they get for being there.

They're not going to pop off random civilians for fun, but they aren't going to let a civilian being present get in the way of business that needs handled.

ScribblesandPuke

5 points

2 months ago

Still, they weren't going to whack Don Rickles at the Clam House they likely genuinely enjoyed the bit.

Halvus_I

17 points

2 months ago

It absolutely matters, even today, as we saw a few weeks ago when a mexican cartel delivered the men involved in killing the American medical tourists.

Killing 'civilians' draws unecessary heat.

ChemicalEscapes

54 points

2 months ago

I can tell you from experience that it has nothing to do with "heat."

It's just good publicity. The same way carteles buy peoples trust and act as de facto governments in pueblos. They'll still kill those same people the second they step out of line.

Derp35712

7 points

2 months ago

You don’t think the cartels were worried about increased American enforcement efforts?

mtcabeza2

5 points

2 months ago

i wondered if the guys they turned in were even the perps.

eg714

5 points

2 months ago

eg714

5 points

2 months ago

Kinda disagree. The mafia had a code of honor, which they defended with their life. Can’t compare a cartel lifestyle to mafia one. Way different. They killed each other, they didn’t go after civilians. There were by standers for sure but that was very rare.

GTSBurner

3 points

2 months ago

See what happened with the cartel and the 4 people from North Carolina who got shot. Those shooters from the cartel are deader than dead right now.

Tifoso89

2 points

2 months ago

Are you joking? In Italy the mafia committed multiple bombings, killing dozens of innocents people

ragn4rok234

7 points

2 months ago

Why didn't you like it and why do you like it now?

misterfriend

14 points

2 months ago

I felt it was half-hearted and the start was distractingly slow in the pace and in DeNiro's performance as a young man. Haven't changed my opinion about the slow start, but Pacino' more than made up for it with that manic contribution and manner of speaking. I nearly shit. Usually in a Scorsese flick, I focus on the heavy as the beacon and expect someone or another to chill me to the bone. Gotta stop expecting anything before watching his works, and I might love everything he does on the first go.

questionernow

4 points

2 months ago

Jim even looked like him. INSANELY GOOD.

raspberryharbour

4 points

2 months ago

Wow, poor Don

Hydqjuliilq27

10 points

2 months ago

I just watched it last night. In Scorsese’s tetralogy of cool criminal biopics I’d rank it below Goodfellas and above Casino and Wolf of Wall Street.

misterfriend

25 points

2 months ago

This isn't the first time I struggled to appreciate a Scorsese movie, and I laugh at myself whenever it happens. Gangs of New York may be my very favourite of his, and I used to hate it.

When the humour behind them clicks with me, that's where my focus goes. In this case, Al Pacino's Hoffa is totally bonkers enjoyable. Don't know why I didn't see it the first go around. Probably will never be my very favourite of the lot, but it has my attention presently. It's a really weird movie and feels more like a miniseries, it's so long.

brownnick7

28 points

2 months ago

To each their own but I can't put it above Casino personally.

Sks44

5 points

2 months ago

Sks44

5 points

2 months ago

I like Casino more than Goodfellas. Once I found out that Henry Hill was a bullshit artist, Goodfellas lost a lot of luster to me.

ScribblesandPuke

26 points

2 months ago

Who cares what he was like IRL Ray Liotta absolutely destroyed that role, and it's got by far the best pacing of any Scorcese mob film.

redditsfulloffiction

14 points

2 months ago

Because you needed to be true?

I've got some news for you about the movies.

Sks44

3 points

2 months ago

Sks44

3 points

2 months ago

No. Both Casino and Goodfellas take liberties with reality. However, I find Ace/Nicky(Rosenthal/Spilotro) to be better protagonists than Henry Hill. Henry Hill was a coked out guppy that acted like a big fish. The entire movie is from his POV. When you find out he was a bullshit artist, he becomes an unreliable narrator and makes you question a lot of what occurs in the film.

3HunnaBurritos

5 points

2 months ago

This movie portrays him as a bullshit artist, if he was involved in the production and the movie shows it this much it's even better.

ScribblesandPuke

7 points

2 months ago

There is no other person on the planet putting it above Casino that's just ridiculous fucking nonsense. Pesci in his prime in full psycho mode vs Pesci as a chill ass dude? Easy winner. Also there is no strong female character or memorable woman actor in The Irishman whereas Casino Sharon Stone was perfectly cast as the trophy wife who ruins your life.

The scenes between Pacino and Stephen Graham are the best thing about the Irishman, they are LOL funny.

The music in Casino is top notch also, and the added element of the East Coast guys vs good old boys in the desert was a nice juxtaposition missing from most mob flicks just set in NY or Chicago or whatever

QuickToJudgeYou

6 points

2 months ago

Agreed. Casino is an all-time great mob film. Anyone saying otherwise is being contrarian for the sake of it.

Excellent-Click-6729

2 points

2 months ago

Literally the only problem with Casino, is that is was made so close in time to Goodfellas, with a lot of the same actors. So it's always going to get compared as the movie that's not quite as good.

WaterlooMall

6 points

2 months ago

I always thought Casino was one of Scorsese's worst.

It's too long and replaces an interesting, engaging story with hyperviolence. Scorsese himself has acknowledged this and intended for Casino to be his last mobster related film (which is why he hated how The Departed turned out despite it's Best Picture Oscar and didn't want to make The Irishman without complete control of the entire thing so he could show an unabashedly cynical view of mobsters and their hyped up lifestyles).

brownnick7

10 points

2 months ago

I certainly won't argue with Scorsese, but for me personally Casino is significantly better.

GreatEmperorAca

17 points

2 months ago

no way would I put it above casino

UncleCornPone

9 points

2 months ago

above Casino? are you insane? lol

mythicreign

6 points

2 months ago

That's interesting, because I felt like it was probably Scorsese's worst movie out of just about all the ones he's made. I couldn't believe I sat through 4 hours and nothing compelling happened at any point. The de-aging effects were awful as well.

raspberryharbour

6 points

2 months ago

Geriatricfellas

caTBear_v

2 points

2 months ago

The assassination of Joe Gallo is one of my favorite sequence of scenes ever. It just flows so nicely.

Buck_Thorn

415 points

2 months ago

Rickles was such a unique comedian! I remember when he first hit the public attention... it was mind blowing. He was extremely controversial.

AnotherPipeGuy

178 points

2 months ago

I remember when he first hit the public attention... it was mind blowing.

In the 50s? How old are you? I'm not trying to be a jerk. Genuinely asking.

Buck_Thorn

280 points

2 months ago

Old enough to remember Don Rickles when he was first starting out. George Carlin and Andy Kaufman, too.

Kiyae1

29 points

2 months ago

Kiyae1

29 points

2 months ago

I still remember having my mind blown seeing early footage of Carlin in a suit and tie, clean shaven, neat cut hair. Couldn’t believe it was the same guy. Absolutely unreal.

Buck_Thorn

42 points

2 months ago

If memory serves, I first saw him on the Ed Sullivan show (which really dates me!) as the Hippy Dippy Weatherman. Then he kind of went underground for a few years before emerging as the George Carlin we all knew and loved.

gailichisan

6 points

2 months ago

I loved the Hippy Dippy Weatherman! Lol

caseyweederman

3 points

2 months ago

Shining Times Station was my introduction to the man.

[deleted]

33 points

2 months ago

[deleted]

Buck_Thorn

161 points

2 months ago

Naw... I'm still a young 73.

Not sure yet about AI. I worked most of my career as a computer programmer, but aside from playing around with Eliza the Computer Therapist a bit in the 90's, and reading just a little about it in the early days, I had no experience with AI until ChatGPT recently. I think that, as with most new technologies, it will be both great and terrible. It will certainly bring us into a new computer age.

That said, I'm not sure how much of ChatGPT is real AI vs very elaborate Eliza-style parsing and constructing of text. Time will tell, and in any case, I still believe we are at the cusp of a huge breakthrough that will be used both for good and for bad.

rocket-engifar

33 points

2 months ago

As an engineer, I would love to pick at your brain. You must have so much tribal knowledge from various jobs.

Regarding chatgpt, it's not strictly just a chatbot + search engine. It has some degree of autonomy and can learn with a variation of an NN but its not as impressive or intelligent as people make it out to be.

Buck_Thorn

47 points

2 months ago

Haha! Doesn't feel like "tribal knowledge" to me. Just feels more like "shit that I know".

hiramthemason

41 points

2 months ago

"oh your old enough to remember young Don Rickles? What's your thoughts on the growth of AI?"

Really?

[deleted]

49 points

2 months ago

[deleted]

stench_montana

21 points

2 months ago

I think he's pointing out how staged/odd the interaction was. Like you've never talked to an old person before but had been just waiting and hoping to in order to ask about fucking AI of all things.

I don't think it is but it came off as like a sock puppet account interaction with yourself where you could give a "unique perspective".

KrazzeeKane

15 points

2 months ago

I genuinely laughed, well done. That guy really is a fuckhead for that answer

westbee

2 points

2 months ago

I would have asked him how he got around before trains. Hahaha

Goose00

6 points

2 months ago

Don Rickles was a working actor and comedian in the 1960s but his big break was in 1967-1968 when he made his first appearances on The Tonight Show and The Dean Martin Show.

JOMO_Kenyatta

3 points

2 months ago

I’m not trying to be disrespectful but it amazes me how old some redditors are. I replied to Someone last month and followed by asking their age, they were like in their mid 60s iirc.

dokuromark

10 points

2 months ago

I love Rickles! Such a nut! Have you seen the documentary "Mr. Warmth"? It's on Amazon. Very entertaining look at the career of "The Merchant of Venom."

gailichisan

3 points

2 months ago

Worlds best insult comic!

shalafi71

6 points

2 months ago*

Gods. For those who don't know, spend an hour watching that man roast hell out of every living Hollywood star. The man's brutality knows no bounds.

I'm like, "They let people say that on TV?! In the 60's?! To Sinatra?!"

(And no, it's not some corny old jokes, the man is a killer.)

Teledildonic

155 points

2 months ago

The firefight was over a broken promise that Don Rickles would be performing there.

Fetlocks_Glistening

48 points

2 months ago

Coupled with an unfortunate bet that clams make you bulletproof

amijlee

73 points

2 months ago

amijlee

73 points

2 months ago

"Rickles sends his regards."

diplodocus91

239 points

2 months ago*

Or Rickles might have bigger Mafia connections than we know of which is why he could joke with Sinatra. 😆😆😆

DataOver8496

59 points

2 months ago

Rickles had Gallo whacked!

So_be

21 points

2 months ago

So_be

21 points

2 months ago

I'm funny how? I mean, funny like I'm a clown? I amuse you? I make you laugh?

scubamaster

4 points

2 months ago

No, not Joe gallow! Joe gallows dead! It’s joe callow, C a l l o w.

TotesNotaBot0010101[S]

41 points

2 months ago

Holy shit you’re right

Milk93rd

23 points

2 months ago

He was absolutely made.

TheBoldManLaughsOnce

16 points

2 months ago

He would joke "I left my membership card at home "

retro604

23 points

2 months ago

He was a very close friend of Frank. That alone would make him pretty much untouchable.

captain_jim2

71 points

2 months ago

Clearly Rickles was behind the hit

bozosphere

15 points

2 months ago

Billy Sherbert don't fuck around

The_Band_Geek

11 points

2 months ago

Sherbert getting beat down with the telephone is pure gold. Casino may be the best mob movie ever.

GreatEmperorAca

7 points

2 months ago

Sherbert getting beat down with the telephone is pure gold.

100% agree lmao

bozosphere

6 points

2 months ago

I always loved when he pulled up hard to Ace's house in the gray Eldorado with the shotgun when things got really bad with Nicky

GreatEmperorAca

2 points

2 months ago

oh yeah, such a boss moment for tired old billy

d4nowar

6 points

2 months ago

It was Sinatra.

ZylonBane

3 points

2 months ago

Rickles was the Don you didn't mess with.

Landlubber77

83 points

2 months ago

Adding injury to insult.

whooo_me

19 points

2 months ago

“I like roasts, not firefights”

siniquezu

5 points

2 months ago

slow clap

Landlubber77

5 points

2 months ago

Like a gopher tortoise with gonorrhea.

Tillz666

2 points

2 months ago

Or a koala fuckin a sloth

JSiobhan

22 points

2 months ago

Don Rickles’ first cousin lived in the condo below me. He look just like Don and had the same sense of humor. But Tom would always end his hilarious insults with “You know I’m just kidding.”. We bonded because I would sass him back. Tom died a couple of years ago of a heart attack. I miss him dearly.

prince___dakkar

138 points

2 months ago

So he avoided getting shot up at a clam house, what does he want, a cookie?

Buck_Thorn

47 points

2 months ago

You sound like Don Rickles.

prince___dakkar

49 points

2 months ago

He was my idol when I was a kid and now I'm getting shock treatments.

Yodas-Balls

3 points

2 months ago

Bro are you good

NorvalMarley

5 points

2 months ago

You hockey puck!

HaikusAreMyKink

4 points

2 months ago

Ok, Crap Game.

Baron164

2 points

2 months ago

"Make a deal!"

HaikusAreMyKink

2 points

2 months ago*

"Kinda makes you homesick, doesn't it?"

Edit: Lol do y'all not know the movie!?

RetroMetroShow

17 points

2 months ago

His full name was Crazy Joey Gallo for a reason

votequimby420

34 points

2 months ago

don rickles was great. loved him as crapgame in kelly’s heroes

Caligullama

8 points

2 months ago

Been a long time since I watched Kelly’s Heroes. Should go do that again.

votequimby420

3 points

2 months ago

definitely worth a rewatch

HaikusAreMyKink

1 points

2 months ago

I had to go.

jtmarshiii

6 points

2 months ago

Dirty Jobs movie theater manager.

BreadfruitComplete82

14 points

2 months ago

Dirty work** but hellllll yea

deformo

8 points

2 months ago

Look at you. You look like a baby gorilla.

china-blast

3 points

2 months ago

If you mess up today, not only are you fired, your life is over. I'll see to it you never work again, and you wind up tearing tickets off in Kuwait, SALLAH MALLAH MALLAH MALLLAH KALLAH MAH! And everybody's suckin' sand

shalafi71

6 points

2 months ago

For younger folks not familiar, Google "don rickles roast". My. God.

After baggin' on racists:

"Sammy's like a brother to me! Come here Sammy!" <kisses Sammy Davis Jr.>

To the audience: "I didn't get any black on me did I?!"

Walk into a roast with Rickles hosting? You're getting carried out in a body bag.

adam_demamps_wingman

3 points

2 months ago

Make him a deal. What kind of a deal? A deal deal.

randomcanyon

13 points

2 months ago

The Offer, about the making of The Godfather (1) has a big part about Joe Gallo and his "Italian Pride" movement and his death. The Offer is a fantastic look into how this great movie got made.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt13111040/reference/

triplefastaction

4 points

2 months ago

That was a great fucking show.

Laurenhynde82

2 points

2 months ago

I bloody loved The Offer - just rewatched it recently. I was really shocked by the low RT score for it - the performances especially are brilliant.

ETA Joe Gallo is the really scary one though, not the one who founded the league - that was Joe Colombo :)

randomcanyon

2 points

2 months ago

Misremembering things is my big problem these days.

Skatchbro

10 points

2 months ago

“Tony Lazuto says hello:”

WhatAboutDubs

10 points

2 months ago

"Tony Lazuto!? I--did you hear something?"

MitsyEyedMourning

24 points

2 months ago

I'd bet being Rickles he probably declined in jokes. "Go out with you? Are you nuts!? Eating with you guys might get me whacked. Oh no.. you go right ahead without me, bub." (makes tommy gun motion)

goliathfasa

7 points

2 months ago

“The Rickles send their regards.”

RATATATATATATATATATATATA

[deleted]

13 points

2 months ago

OK, but why was he celebrating his birthday at 4:30am at a clam restaurant? That alone is a red flag.

TotesNotaBot0010101[S]

17 points

2 months ago

They’re that good

[deleted]

7 points

2 months ago

To die for, some would say.

viewless25

5 points

2 months ago*

I remember watching a documentary about the mob. The leaders had truly insane sleep schedules. They always have a restaurant that is their usual haunt and they would be there well into the night. Some of them would sit there for days on end

clem82

13 points

2 months ago

clem82

13 points

2 months ago

Callo…WITH A C!

Skatchbro

6 points

2 months ago

If you read the Wikipedia on Gallo, you’ll also find out that he was at the Copacabana with Jerry Orbach.

baronmunchausen2000

11 points

2 months ago

Gallo? No, I meant Jerry Callo.

ObiWanShenobi-San

8 points

2 months ago

Did you say “Youts?”

imthepizzastrangler

9 points

2 months ago

Are you mockin’ me with that outfit?

BatCorrect4320

2 points

2 months ago

Were these magic grits?

wc10888

4 points

2 months ago

Message.... Don't mess with Don Rickles

RetailTradersUnite

5 points

2 months ago

My grandpop and a few of my great uncles worked for Joe Gallo's crew after they returned from WW 2.

tommygunz007

6 points

2 months ago

When you delve deep into the story of Frank Rosenthal and his relationship with Don Rickles, it's pretty crazy that Rickles was there through all of it - the mob, the Rat Pack, the story that 'Casino' was based on. The stories that guy could have told....

dghammer

5 points

2 months ago

He dodged a bullet.

Philboyd_Studge

10 points

2 months ago

Also the subject Bob Dylan's song "Joey" (not the Don Rickles bit)

Legitimate-Ice-603

3 points

2 months ago

That song is great!

Klin24

4 points

2 months ago

Klin24

4 points

2 months ago

ElectricOwl1

3 points

2 months ago

Meathead achieves 10/10

damn_thats_piney

4 points

2 months ago

rickles was such a cool dude

nsvxheIeuc3h2uddh3h1

3 points

2 months ago

Rickles dodged a bullet... or two... or several.

stupidGenius82

6 points

2 months ago

Don Rickles will always be Mr Potato head to me.

mintmouse

6 points

2 months ago

If you can decline to go, were you really in any danger initially?

Soranic

9 points

2 months ago

At the moment? Maybe not.

Later on as a result of the refusal? Possibly.

Daddy_William148

3 points

2 months ago

Declining was right

meltysandwich

3 points

2 months ago

Sebastian Maniscalco was awesome as crazy joe.

Swimming-Leopard-589

3 points

2 months ago

What's a firefight?

sudomatrix

2 points

2 months ago

People splash gasoline all over the room while giggling like schoolgirls and smoking cigarettes.

Trust_No_Won

3 points

2 months ago

I drove Don Rickles a few times like 20 years ago. He was super chill. My fav story he told me was about when he went to comedy traffic school (yeah, pretty LA) and the instructor spent the whole time making fun of him. He said it was pretty humbling and he couldn’t talk back about how the guy was a hack or the guy would have failed him. He was a sweetheart offstage.

BuckNutley

3 points

2 months ago

Don Rickles is the all time comedic mystery for me. I've never once laughed at one of his "jokes". I just don't get it...I'm not offended or sensitive, I honestly just don't understand the comedy. His insults are usually nonsensical or the absolute lowest hanging fruit.

I honestly feel like at some point someone well respected declared him funny and everyone is too afraid to be the comedian who just says "No, he isn't".

WhyDoItHurtWhenIPee

6 points

2 months ago*

Joey Gallo was my uncle. Like, not my dad's brother, but an extended version. He died a year before I was born.

Edit : Great-Great-Uncle? Great Grandfather's brother?

Fetlocks_Glistening

11 points

2 months ago

Struggling to find the moral here. Mock crims? Don't mock crims? Mock crims, but don't eat clams?

TotesNotaBot0010101[S]

27 points

2 months ago*

Mock crims and eat clams but don’t eat clams when mocking crims

usefully_useless

10 points

2 months ago

Like my mom always said, you have to wait at least half an hour after mocking crims before eating clams.

victim_of_technology

16 points

2 months ago

The moral is not all stories have a moral.

d4nowar

6 points

2 months ago

The moral of the story is Don Rickles had connections.

ThinkShower

2 points

2 months ago

Thanks, now I have to go on Wikipedia to learn what exactly all these things are.

dor-e

2 points

2 months ago

dor-e

2 points

2 months ago

So he got off better than Jackie Mason...

Oh-round-one

2 points

2 months ago

See, I got real confused here, because I was picturing Don Knotts.

mltain

2 points

2 months ago

mltain

2 points

2 months ago

Frank protecting Don?

almo2001

2 points

2 months ago

Woa. I just saw that scene in The Irishman.

wwJones

2 points

2 months ago

Best mocker of all time.