#20: Interview with Jeff Canarsie, Host of Mob Talk Radio

The Gangland History Podcast: An Organized Crime & Mafia History Podcast

In today’s episode, we’ve recorded an amazing interview with Jeff Canarsie, the host of Mob Talk Radio. I’m really excited and honestly very appreciative that this guest was able to take time out of their busy life to sit and talk with me for a few hours to talk about his life, his show, and much more.

In the interview, we discuss a range of topics including:

• Jeff's early life growing up in Providence, Rhode Island
• Jeff's mother and father, as well as his "extended" family
• What life was like growing up within a mob-connected family
• Stories about Jeff's grandfather including the infamous beach story, the story of his mom borrowing his grandfather's car, and much more
• When he realized his family was a part of the mob in Providence
• His cousin, Joseph "Joe" Badway, who was an alleged associate of the Patriarca family
• What is was like growing up Providence during the turbulent 1980's and early 1990's
• How the darker side of the mob lifestyle affected his family

We also cover:

• Jeff's initial entry into crime and how things escalated for him
• When Jeff was arrested, informed on by several of his counterparts, and nearly sent to a long prison stretch
• The background of Jeff's personal stance on government informants (aka "rats")
• Turning his life around and starting Mob Talk Radio, which is now a decade old
• Turning Mob Talk Radio into a success and a viable business -How Jeff developed relationships with alleged wiseguys in Philadelphia and New York
• How he became a member of several social clubs
• What's coming next for Jeff and the future of Mob Talk Radio