Scarface-My Family Similarity & Mafia Movies

I'm catching up on back episodes of "The Sopranos" so I can be up to speed on season 6 starting this month on HBO. I rented the whole series and can hardly leave my recliner. I am strangely fascinated by Tony Soprano and his brutal gang of mobsters and "made" men.

I'm also a huge fan of the Godfather trilogy and most any movie involving the mafia to include documentaries on real-life mobsters. I don't really know where this fascination came from but I know I have a small piece of the Scarface scenario in my own background.

I grew up with an Uncle (married to my Dad's sister for many years before they divorced) who owned several shipping yards down in Key West Florida. He used to bring in illegal Cubans from Havana before the time of major coast guard protection. Uncle Mike was 100% Cuban and although charming to most, could be a scary guy. He did things on the wrong side of the law like running drugs, illegal aliens and I don't know what all else. He treated us all very well. My mom used to work as a secretary at one of his marinas and he gave her a pair of diamond earrings (given to him as payment for bringing the illegal alien over on one of his boats) to my mother. They were small studs so he figured weren't of significant value and therefore, gave them to her as a gift. She handed them down to me and I still have them. I love the story attached to their existence.

My dad, God rest his soul, I know used to run drugs on the side for Uncle Mike while he and my mom were still married. I don't agree with it but I know it to be fact.

I remember being five years old and we were visiting Key West (right before my parents divorced). We were all at the marina and I was hanging around one of the docks, looking down into the water at a dead fish when my sister came hauling butt on her bicycle. She had ridden up to the convenience store and some weird guy was chasing her. She was only fourteen at the time but she was screaming in fear and peddling as hard as she could. My dad grabbed the handle bars and asked her what was going on. My Uncle Mike ran up behind him and they both listend to Jolyn's tearful explanation that a guy was chasing her. Dad and Uncle Mike saw the guy coming and the both pulled guns out of their belts and took off after the guy. GUNS!!! HELLO? I don't know what happened after that. No one ever told me since I was so young.

Many years later, my brother tried to visit Uncle Mike at his house (which was a compound surrounded by a high concrete wall with non-english speaking Cuban guards walking the wall carrying uzis) and was told at the gate that he could not be let in. My brother and Uncle Mike's son, Little Mike, were both turned away. They were around eighteen and or so at the time. Can we all say "Big time drug runner, class?"

Not long after that, Uncle Mike and his oldest son Artie, were arrested on drug and raqueteering charges along with a federal judge and were both sentenced to ten years in Tennessee State Penitentiary. He did his time, found Jesus so I hear, and turned away from his previous religion, santeria (he was supposedly a high priest or Santero). He was released at the end of his time.

When my father passed away in 1996 under some suspicious circumstances (I believe to this day his wife, at the time of his death, had something to do with it--that's another story for another day), I was very distraught. I had been raised by my mother, away from all the craziness, but I was still Daddy's girl at heart. Uncle Mike called me while I was in Florida for the funeral. He said I looked like my Aunt (the one he was married to previously and he had seen pictures of me over the years from dad. He told me I was just beautiful and he was proud of me). We kept in contact for a little while after that day.

When I got back home to Texas, I shared my suspicions with him and he told me to say no more...just tell him what did I want him to do. I couldn't believe my ears. He said "brakes fail everyday". I was shocked. I told him thank you but no. I could never be responsible for something like that. I believe in karma way too much. All the same, in a strange way, it was kinda cool knowing there was someone out there willing to do whatever it took to protect or avenge my honor. Weird, I know.

It's been nearly ten years since I last heard from Uncle Mike. I don't even know if he is still alive or where he is. I hope he kept himself clean after getting out of prison. I hope he took to doing some good with himself as well.

All the same...he remains an interesting character within my family and well known to this day by the Florida F.B.I.