The Whisky King
The Remarkable True Story of Canada's Most Infamous Bootlegger and the Undercover Mountie on His Trail
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The Whisky King
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Narrated by:
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Richard Davidson
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Written by:
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Trevor Cole
About this listen
At the dawn of the 20th century, two Italian men arrived in Canada amid waves of immigration. One, Rocco Perri, from southern Italy, rose from the life of a petty criminal on the streets of Toronto to running the most prominent bootlegging operation of the Prohibition era, taking over Hamilton and leading one of the country’s most influential crime syndicates. Perri was feared by his enemies and loved by the press, who featured him regularly in splashy front-page headlines. So great was his celebrity that, following the murder of his wife and business partner, Bessie Starkman, a crowd of 30,000 thronged the streets of Hamilton for her funeral.
Perri's businesses - which included alcohol, drugs, gambling and prostitution - kept him under constant police surveillance. He caught the interest of one man in particular, the other arrival from Italy, Frank Zaneth. Zaneth, originally from the Italian north, joined the RCMP and became its first undercover investigator - Operative No. 1. Zaneth’s work took him across the country, but he was dogged in his pursuit of Rocco Perri and worked for his arrest until the day Perri was last seen, in 1944, when he disappeared without a trace.
With original research and masterful storytelling, Cole details the fascinating rise to power of a notorious Prohibition-era Canadian crime figure twinned with the life of the man who pursued him.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
©2017 Trevor Cole (P)2018 Audible, Inc.Featured Article: Top Canadian Thrillers To Get You On the Edge of Your Seat
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What listeners say about The Whisky King
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Eva Cheshire
- 2024-06-07
Fascinating Story
I was fascinated by the facts and the narrator kept me interested.
I always wanted to know more facts about Rocco Perri.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 2018-10-20
Amazing book
if you want to hear about prohibition in Canada get this!! Great narrator and experience
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- affleck
- 2020-07-15
Remarkable!
This book is my 48th title with Audible. Truthfully i thought the story was just amazing. The historical facts within tied in with world events of the time are very interesting. It offers timelines that parallel the story. I'm going to listen to it again at some point. As well, the Narrator is by far the most talented narrator i have heard yet. Im will definitely be looking for more from him. I loved it!!
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 2024-07-06
Coaky Reader
Interesting story but the reader has a croak in his voice the whole time. Hard to listen to for that many hours. Never finished.
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Kevin
- 2020-02-11
Not my type of orator
Tried to get into it but just did not like the style of writing.
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