July 13, 2023 • 29 mins
AJ tries to rebuild his life and finds inspiration in some surprising places. As Jimmy returns to town, he finds AJ a changed kid. The Trashers have come back into their lives and AJ has found the perfect new team member.
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Speaker 1 (00:06):
Novel.
Speaker 2 (00:15):
Yep, right here on the left, coming up.
Speaker 3 (00:18):
Wow, it's the morning of my final day in Danbury.
Aj Galante takes me back to the house he grew
up in.
Speaker 2 (00:27):
My dad started building and I think like nineteen eighty eight,
so that built it. Yeah, from scratch. He bought the
land and he built this house.
Speaker 3 (00:35):
The Glantes moved here when Jimmy was still growing his
trash empire. Aj was just two, so for as long
as he can remember, this was home.
Speaker 2 (00:48):
It would be a door. There would be a big
wooden door, and you'd open it and my mom would
probably be their cooking or something.
Speaker 3 (00:57):
Even when Aj went to college, he was back him
most weekends and between each semester, coordinating the Trash's pranks
with the t Bone or playing video games with the
recovering Brad Wingfield.
Speaker 2 (01:09):
It was just a good feeling just knowing you're coming home.
You know you're gonna eat a nice dinner or something.
You had family there, lots of laughs.
Speaker 3 (01:17):
The Galantes no longer live here. We can't go inside,
but still I want to get a closer look. Do
you want to get out? I just stand there.
Speaker 2 (01:28):
I don't think I could. I'm sad this is sad.
I can't go. It's sad.
Speaker 3 (01:35):
When AJ's family moved in here, they were on their
way to becoming Danbury Royalty. By the time they left,
they'd fallen from grace. I can see that it's painful
for Aj to be here, So we drive on. AJ
wants to show me the football stadium at his old school.
(01:56):
Jimmy funded a full refurbishment back when Aj was a teenager.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
They named it Galante Stadium, and then when he got
in trouble, they decided to take the sign down and
they named it Rebel Stadium instead. Ah. That pissed me off.
You know a lot of people kind of change their
opinions about us. And when my dad wasn't on top anymore,
all of a sudden, they don't need you anymore.
Speaker 3 (02:20):
The tide had turned against his family, and Gallante, a
name once synonymous with success, hard graft and generosity, had
become synonymous with scandal. Politicians who had once stood proudly
next to them at ribbon cutting ceremonies, who had gladly
(02:43):
taken donations, now hastily distanced themselves from Jimmy James.
Speaker 4 (02:48):
Galante, a mark connected Danburg trash Holler has contributed to
a political action committee to support your campaign. I'm wondering,
first if you could comment on that, and secondly, can
you tell us what your relationship with James Galante is.
Sure I thought he was someone who was trying to
do good in his community. I was wrong, and it's
embarrassing to be that wrong, but I was wrong.
Speaker 3 (03:11):
As a kid, AJ felt uncomfortable when the spotlight shone
on his family. And now the Galantes weren't just famous,
they were infamous. AJ was like a rabbit caught in
the headlights of public scrutiny. It wasn't easy to move forward.
(03:32):
Each week after Jimmy was sent to prison, AJ would
make the seven hour round trip from Danbury to Central
Pennsylvania to visit.
Speaker 2 (03:41):
It was just a tiring drive. It was just like
woods woods. That's all I remember seeing is trees, and
you didn't know what mood he was going to be
in when you got there. Sometimes you'd spend six straight hours,
you know, in a room, and sometimes it could be
all laughs and funny. And then some days, you know,
you don't have to say to each other. You're kind
(04:02):
of like just sitting.
Speaker 3 (04:02):
There college over. The trash is gone. And the family's
garbage dynasty well in the bin. Sparking up a conversation
wasn't always easy, But even after Jimmy was arrested, he
was still thinking about how he could help plan AJ's
next move.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
He had an old buddy, a guy who used to
work from a long time ago, like that had a
heating oil company. He's liked. Go see him, you know,
see if maybe he has something for you there, you know.
And I went there and he gave me a job.
Speaker 3 (04:34):
Heating oil wasn't exactly AJ's calling, but in some ways
the work was familiar.
Speaker 2 (04:40):
You know, you pick up accounts. My dad started the
garbage business by going to different businesses soliciting, Hey, I'd
like to pick up your garbage. Here's my rates, blah
blah bah. Oil is no different.
Speaker 3 (04:51):
Plus, with his family's connections, Jimmy assures AJ he'll have
plenty of business. But what Jimmy doesn't see from his
prison cell is that back and Downbury, the Galante name
no longer opens doors. It closes them. AJ tries to
explain this to his dad.
Speaker 2 (05:10):
I would sound like business is bad right now. I
mean I can't get accounts. Well, go see this guy,
Why didn't you go see this guy yet? Why don't
you go see that guy? Sometimes I wouldn't even have
the heart to tell my dad, Hey, I did, and
he told me, can't deal with me right now.
Speaker 3 (05:26):
AJ and Jimmy's relationship has started to change. Now AJ
has to protect Jimmy.
Speaker 2 (05:33):
Sometimes I'd actually have to kind of fib to him
and say, yeah, no, I didn't see him yet. I'll
go this week. I would take the heat just so
he wouldn't get upset, because I knew it would drive
him crazy, knowing certain people weren't doing the right thing,
as we would call it, you know what I mean.
Speaker 3 (05:50):
AJ was putting his dad's feelings above his own.
Speaker 2 (05:54):
I wanted to just let out my emotions sometimes maybe
not the right way, but sometimes you feel like a
caged animal because I always had in the back of
my mind. I don't want to do anything to embarrass
my family or my father, you know. I don't want
him to get word in prison that hey, AJ just
yelled at this guy. So it was tough for me.
Speaker 3 (06:13):
This new reality is a far cry from the excitement
of the Trashes era. No screaming fans lapping up a
fresh serving of hell on Ice just a monotonous limbo,
but Aj is about to discover the keys to his
future lying amongst the wreckage of his past. I'm Claire
(06:38):
Crofton from the teams at Novel and iHeartRadio. This is
the final episode of the Fighting Puts Game ten. The
Comeback Kid. AJ has a couple more places he wants
(07:09):
to show me before I leave town. We drive past
the ice arena and out towards the railway tracks.
Speaker 2 (07:16):
There's the train station over here. This is Pacciochi Avenue.
Speaker 3 (07:22):
The houses here are a little weathered. We're not exactly
on the wrong side of the tracks, but some of
the places we passed could do with a lick of paint.
Speaker 2 (07:32):
Yeah, every day I hear the train ding dinging all
day long. Well not all day, but a bunch of stops. Here.
Speaker 3 (07:39):
AJ is taking me to the place he spends most
of his time these days. By twenty eleven, half a
decade had passed since the untimely demise of the Trashers.
AJ was living with his mum, working his boring job,
and pretty much keeping his head down.
Speaker 2 (08:01):
Mom cooks for me. I don't have any major bills,
so I'm just saving all my money.
Speaker 3 (08:06):
So when a friend calls him one day and tells
him he's struggling for cash and needs to buy a
second hand car, AJ offers to help a couple of
thousand dollars. Why not, And that act of kindness was
the start of something special. AJ ended up meeting a
second hand car dealer who happened to be a former
(08:28):
heavyweight boxer.
Speaker 2 (08:30):
I'll never forget. He asked, Hey, what do you know
about boxing? And I'm like what he said? He looked
me up and he realized I was with the trashers,
and he said, listen, there's a local boxer here. He's
a veteran, but he's still got some gas in the
tank and he hasn't fought in two years. But basically,
we need someone to steer the ship, you know, as
a manager advisor. And I was like, I don't know
(08:52):
anything about boxing, and what am I going to tell
you guys? You know, I went home that night and
I thought about it and I was just like, I
don't know. Something clicked and next thing, you know what,
I'm in the mix. I'm making fights. I couldn't tell
you two things about boxing, you know, but I'm in
now eleven years later here, I am see this is
(09:15):
Claire's podcasts too, her showing around the gym and stuffs. Gee,
can we turn down like two notches whenever? This is it?
Speaker 3 (09:30):
It's got a special smell.
Speaker 5 (09:32):
Yeah, it's different.
Speaker 3 (09:35):
We walk into a large room covered in competition banners
and huge spray painted murals. Punch bags hang down from
the ceiling on chains. In front of me. There's a
ring with a couple of guys sparring.
Speaker 2 (09:47):
There's something about a boxing gym where if you get
into it and it's the right type of boxing gym
where it's a community again, people end up leaving here
a lot stronger than when that came in.
Speaker 3 (10:01):
In boxing, AJ recognized some of the things he loved
about hockey, both contact sports, both aggressive and weirdly, both
kind of therapeutic.
Speaker 2 (10:13):
This gym is really a great tool for kids with
their anger or their depression, or if they're overweight or
they're being bullied. It's more for their mental state.
Speaker 3 (10:22):
The rink and the ring are places to blow off
steam and vent frustrations.
Speaker 2 (10:27):
You know, boxing as a sport has saved so many
kids over the years, just getting them in a better position,
a safe place.
Speaker 3 (10:34):
It seems to me that people come to this gym
for more than just sport.
Speaker 2 (10:38):
I should be able to have a psychology certificate on
my wall. The things that I deal with every day
in this office for the past seven and a half years,
I'm basically a counselor.
Speaker 3 (10:50):
Just like he did with the trash is, AJ builds
relationships with everyone who comes through these doors. And just
like the philosophy behind Danbury's Hockey bad Boys and the
gym underdogs come out on top.
Speaker 2 (11:04):
If you come in here and you act like you're
better than anyone else, I'm gonna sticky in the ring
with one of these little guys that you think is weak,
and he's gonna he's gonna teach you. You know you're
gonna be humbled.
Speaker 3 (11:16):
In creating this boxing gym, Aj rediscovered the things he
loved community, sport, underdog values. The gym allowed him to
step into the future holding on to the best bits
of his past.
Speaker 2 (11:32):
It gave me something that I lost when we lost
the Trashers. It kind of like Electra shocked me kind
of back to life and kind of gave me a
purpose in a lot of ways. It saved me some
of the best things I have now is because of boxing.
Speaker 3 (11:48):
AJ even met his wife Kim through the gym when
she brought her nephews in to train.
Speaker 2 (11:56):
Don't tell her, I said, I loved their first but yeah,
I guess it was love. Yes, definitely.
Speaker 3 (12:04):
We head to the back of the gym into a
small office. The walls are plastered with family photos, articles
about the trashes, and flyers for wrestling events. A group
of kids pops in to say hi to Aj as
we sit around talking. There's a community here that depends
on AJ. Like his dad, he's dedicated himself to giving
(12:28):
back to Danbury, but he's building the family legacy a
little differently this time.
Speaker 2 (12:33):
When you see your father build something from scratch and
you have garbage companies worth in excess of one hundred
million dollars and then it's gone tomorrow, it's a tough
thing to witness and it's kind of like, you know, what,
if that could happen to him, make it easily happen
to me, So why am I going to take a
stupid shortcut or risk anything even so small and lose
(12:58):
it all. I've seen it happen.
Speaker 3 (13:03):
AJ Gillante has seen the true price of winning at
all costs, and so when he got into boxing in
twenty eleven, he decided to take the path that steered
clear of scandal. Aj got on with his life while
his dad served his prison sentence, and by June twenty fourteen,
(13:23):
with only weeks until Jimmy's release date, the question is, is
Jimmy ready for a quiet life?
Speaker 1 (13:31):
You never know what I'm going to do. You never know,
so anything's possible.
Speaker 3 (13:38):
That's after the break. In the summer of twenty fourteen,
(13:58):
Jimmy finally came home from prison. He was no longer
Danbury's top dog on the trash heap. The FBI sold
off his company and banned him from the industry. But
worse than that.
Speaker 1 (14:11):
Holy Christ, I missed Christmases, Easter, Thanksgivings, vacations.
Speaker 3 (14:18):
Jimmy was realizing just how much catching up he had
to do.
Speaker 1 (14:22):
Their lives have already changed. You weren't around other than
the visit you get in prison.
Speaker 3 (14:26):
It was tough. It was tempting to pick up where
he left off before he got arrested. Jimmy was brewing
up a truly wild idea for family fun.
Speaker 1 (14:36):
I had an opportunity to buy our arch nemesis the
ad Aarundick Frostbite. I was going to make my daughter
the president of the ad around deck Frostbite, so we'd
have that brother's sister rivalry and make it crazy. But
it never transpired. It never happened.
Speaker 3 (14:57):
As Jimmy served a sentence, the outside world become a
very different place. Neither the Frostbite or the trash has
even existed anymore. The rest of his family had moved on.
Speaker 1 (15:08):
The biggest problem I had when I got back was
my kids told me I was trying too hard. I
missed out on so much that when I got out,
my feet hit the ground running, and all I wanted
to do was make up for lost time.
Speaker 3 (15:23):
The times were different now. Jimmy was going to have
to reflect on his past if he wanted to adapt
to the changed world around him.
Speaker 1 (15:32):
Regrets, well, I think everybody has regrets. I think when
I look back, there are things that I could have
done better. I think I was so obsessed about being
number one and would do anything to stay number one
without really thinking about the ramifications and the people that
(15:58):
would suffer andm be hurt.
Speaker 2 (16:02):
And you know, you try to.
Speaker 1 (16:06):
Control things, but you know, controls and illusion. There's no
such things. You think you're in control, but you're not
in control. But you try to do the best you can.
You know, I lost years of my life, didn't make
a lot of mistakes.
Speaker 3 (16:20):
Yes, what I do.
Speaker 1 (16:21):
A lot of the things that I did over again,
I'd be a liar for said I wouldn't. The day
of reckoning came and I paid my price, and that's it.
Speaker 3 (16:35):
Has it changed with you about winning?
Speaker 1 (16:38):
Well, I still want to win. I still want to win.
Speaker 2 (16:44):
I still want to win.
Speaker 3 (16:48):
Change isn't easy for anyone, especially not someone as strong
minded as Jimmy Gallante, and it's not exactly easy for
the Galantes to move away from the past when it's
chasing them. In twenty eighteen, AJ's jim has been up
and running for a few years. Jimmy has settled into
(17:09):
his post prison life, and the Trashers are beginning to
seem like a distant dream. Then out of the blue,
AJ gets a call.
Speaker 2 (17:22):
Hey, listen, me and my brother we made some pretty
cool documentary films.
Speaker 3 (17:27):
A filmmaker had a proposal for Jimmy and AJ.
Speaker 2 (17:30):
We just got contracted by Netflix to run a five
part sports series and we want the trash Is to
be one of those episodes let me think about it.
So I just hung up the phone and I'm like, ah,
we're not doing that, you know, because I don't want
to talk about this anymore.
Speaker 3 (17:46):
AJ had moved on from the Trashes, but his reluctance
to talk ran deeper than that, because ever since AJ
was a kid, he told me that in the Galante family,
when difficult things happened, I.
Speaker 2 (18:00):
Didn't talk about it because I thought, that's not what
you're supposed to do. You know, you're not supposed to
talk about it, kind.
Speaker 3 (18:05):
Of like their own mafia code of silence. And after
everything that had happened with their fool from Grace, the
Galantes were understandably cautious when it came to publicity.
Speaker 2 (18:16):
They want to sell papers, they want to sell you know,
if it's ratings, it's if you do something wrong, it's
just for whatever the reason. That's what people tend to
remember the most, you know.
Speaker 3 (18:29):
But all these years on from the trash Is Downfall,
could this be the opportunity the Galantes have been waiting for.
Speaker 2 (18:38):
We never got like our side of the story, like,
we never got to show what this team meant to
this town. And we didn't get the ceremonialist goodbye. Why
don't we just do it?
Speaker 3 (18:50):
And so they did.
Speaker 2 (18:58):
I remember getting a phone.
Speaker 3 (19:00):
The documentary came out in twenty twenty one, and all
over Danbury people gathered around TVs and laptops to watch
the Galante family finally give their version of events.
Speaker 1 (19:11):
There were rumors that Died did things for Danberry like
you can't believe.
Speaker 3 (19:15):
Among them Emmanuela Pulmarez, the editor of Danbury's online news site,
The Tribuna. As soon as she saw it, she reached
out to Aj.
Speaker 6 (19:25):
I have so much more respect for you now.
Speaker 3 (19:28):
After decades of rumors about his family, AJ was finally
speaking out with his own voice.
Speaker 6 (19:35):
I thought it was genius. At this stage. The move was,
let me flip the script. Let me now take control
of this narrative, tell my side and the story, and
expose what everyone has been whispering about. When I walk
into a room and there takes guts and.
Speaker 3 (19:56):
More than a personal triumph. The documentary emmanuela city back
on the map. Because it wasn't just Danbury that was
watching this film. The rest of the world went nuts
for it too. It seemed like everybody was ready to
embrace the trash's bad boy underdog philosophy.
Speaker 6 (20:13):
As the Iberians, we just want people to know we're
here and be curious enough to come and want to
experience it, for better for worse. It did the trick
in a lot of attention keen upon Danburry.
Speaker 3 (20:28):
Because of it, the small city finally had a little
taste of the limelight. And over a decade since Aj
and Jimmy's team of misfits disbanded, people were getting trash
as tattoos. Kids were getting their team mascots scrappy shaved
into the back of their heads. Instagram was on fire
with pictures of celebrities wearing trash as much Drake and
(20:51):
Tyson Fury included. The Glantes became world famous and in Deanburry,
a bigger picture came into folks.
Speaker 6 (21:02):
I think there's a lot of wisdom in their story.
There's a lot of redemption, and there are a lot
of lessons for a lot of people. It's also proof
that sometimes the path to get to that goal is
not a straight line. It's something that connects to many
in our community. All these rags that someday hope to
(21:26):
get your riches. Look at it so at the same
time that it is a warning, it's also inspiring.
Speaker 3 (21:37):
The documentary was just the start a Jane Jimmy done
rebuilding the Galante legacy.
Speaker 6 (21:44):
They're great guys, They're hard workers. They really care about
dan Berry.
Speaker 2 (21:47):
I love them.
Speaker 3 (21:48):
They want to make a change, and that's what we
need for this tunnel. That's after the break. It's September
(22:13):
twenty twenty two and I'm walking with my colleague Gostin
around downtown Denburry. The city is strung with red, white
and green lights, the colors of the Italian flag. Behind this,
it's Jimmy's new thing.
Speaker 5 (22:27):
What are you see?
Speaker 3 (22:28):
I'm seeing a big dome of lights on stage.
Speaker 1 (22:32):
That's like a mini amphitheater type thing, right in front
of a big lawn of grass.
Speaker 3 (22:36):
Jimmy and AJ are hosting their first big event in
Deanburry since the Trashers were dissolved seventeen years ago. They're
putting on a traditional Italian festival San Gennaro.
Speaker 1 (22:49):
The Galantes are throwing a giant block party is basically
what it is.
Speaker 3 (22:53):
I bump into Jimmy and his wife Tina on their
way to pick up some T shirts. They're planning to
sell at the festival. Tina runs a printing company just
around the corner from AJ's boxing gym. Jimmy's wearing a
T shirt Tina printed especially for him. What does your
T shirt say? Bad choices make good stories. It's us,
bad choices make good stores it And what do you
(23:16):
think about it?
Speaker 2 (23:16):
Jim It's great.
Speaker 1 (23:19):
Let me give you my pat answer to everything.
Speaker 3 (23:21):
I don't care you're wearing. Absolutely it seems like Jimmy
might be done with the bad choices. Though the festival
has brought a buzz back to downtown. The empty streets
I saw when I arrived are now heaving with smiling people.
A lot over on the stage, it looks like AJ's
(23:43):
having a blast hosting a canoli eating competition. The guys
who have just stuffed their faces full of Italian sweet
treats look a bit ill, but everyone else seems to
be doing the festival.
Speaker 2 (24:01):
You don't really need something like that, and so I'm.
Speaker 6 (24:03):
Very happy different places, different music, good food.
Speaker 5 (24:07):
Having a good town, and that's what anymore. I think
it's very important we don't get to do much here,
for to be able to gather sit together as a
community is always a great name.
Speaker 1 (24:15):
You know.
Speaker 3 (24:15):
Chatting to the locals, it's clear the tide has turned
again in Danbury.
Speaker 5 (24:20):
Pretty cool guys. I think they're all about the community,
all about helping each other out. I support them any way.
I can so subbute to the good guys.
Speaker 3 (24:26):
The Galante name is back in fashion.
Speaker 2 (24:29):
I admire the people that was behind pro the just
together Galante Gallante.
Speaker 3 (24:36):
Right after I got back to London, I heard some
more news about the family. So we arrange a video call.
Speaker 2 (24:46):
But sit up a little.
Speaker 3 (24:50):
That's right, there's a new Galante in town.
Speaker 2 (24:54):
All right, talk to Claire.
Speaker 3 (24:55):
Then here on the line, I have Jimmy here. You
like that AJ right, and Dominic James Gallante. AJ's brand
new baby's son.
Speaker 2 (25:07):
I don't know if you can see your mommy's got
his there. He is there, Yeah, he's yeah. He's such
a good boy. He just turned four months last week,
so love of my life. I love him.
Speaker 1 (25:21):
He's got a million dollar smile, just like AJ had.
I just can't wait for him to get a little
bit older so I can turn him into a little terror.
Speaker 3 (25:32):
Three generations of Galante men is the world ready? Have
you got any plans to buy him? A hockey team
when he's seventeen.
Speaker 2 (25:41):
Well, I don't know. My dad made me the youngest
at seventeen. Maybe at sixteen he'll break the record, and
so on and so forth. Who knows, I mean.
Speaker 3 (25:49):
Will have to jokes aside. I wonder how Aj is
going to prepare his son to shoulder the weight he's
carried his whole life the Galante name.
Speaker 2 (25:59):
You know, people see the last name, and you know
now more than ever, there's a lot of history behind it.
And he just has to be very humble and grounded
and be willing to help people. People know you if
you're dealing with a Goalante, you could trust them. We're
gonna fight for our own We're gonna fight for people
(26:21):
close to us. We're an asset to your life. Meaning
if we're on your team, you're you're ahead of the game.
Speaker 3 (26:28):
What if they got on the wrong side of you?
What does that mean if you got on the wrong
side of a Galante?
Speaker 1 (26:35):
WHOA I respectfully declined to answer that question.
Speaker 3 (26:46):
The baton has been passed from Aj to Dominic. It's
now up to this little guy to carry the Galantes
into the future.
Speaker 1 (26:57):
Everybody wants to have some sort of a like a
seeing He's gonna live with the good. There will be baggage.
Speaker 2 (27:06):
There will be times he's gonna have to figure it
out on his own, but more times than that he's
gonna have a lot of people to guide him. And
you try to do one percent better than yourself for
the next child in line, and you know he's passing
it along, and that's that's how you build legacy.
Speaker 3 (27:23):
Really, maybe Dominic James Galante will want to follow in
his granddad's footsteps and become a winner all cost agent
of chaos. Or maybe he'll be like his dad, the
kind of kid who makes the best of every situation
thrown at him, who strives to carve out his own
identity from the legacy he inherits. Their trash dynasty might
(27:48):
be gone and their hockey team is history, but the
story of the Galantes is very much alive, a story
of tenacity, resilience, the will to build from scratch and
to prove the doubters wrong. You ready to go, so,
Danbury better get ready, because when this tiny baby grows up,
(28:14):
he's gonna have a huge impact on this city.
Speaker 2 (28:21):
You're a star, you know you're a star, all right?
Come on, a few more times, we Gotta work your abs.
Speaker 3 (28:38):
The Fighting Fucks is produced by Novel for iHeartRadio. For
more from Novel, visit novel dot Audio. The series is
hosted by me Claire Crofton and produced by me Joe
Wheeler and Amalia Sortland. The executive producer is David Waters.
Story editing from Max O'Brien, Miightily Raouls and Austin Mitchell.
(29:02):
Our field producer is Bebette Thomas. Our fat checker is
Darnia Suleiman. Our hockey sensitivity reader is Nikhil Dessais. Production
management from Scharie Houston and Charlotte Wolfe. Sound design, mixing
and scoring by Daniel Kempson. Music supervision by Nicholas Alexander
(29:22):
and David Waters. Original music composed by Eric Phillips. Willard
Foxton is creative director of Development. Special thanks to Sean Glynn,
Katrina Novelle, David Vassman, Sean ty Tone, and beth Anne
Macaluso Navel
Novel.
Speaker 2 (00:15):
Yep, right here on the left, coming up.
Speaker 3 (00:18):
Wow, it's the morning of my final day in Danbury.
Aj Galante takes me back to the house he grew
up in.
Speaker 2 (00:27):
My dad started building and I think like nineteen eighty eight,
so that built it. Yeah, from scratch. He bought the
land and he built this house.
Speaker 3 (00:35):
The Glantes moved here when Jimmy was still growing his
trash empire. Aj was just two, so for as long
as he can remember, this was home.
Speaker 2 (00:48):
It would be a door. There would be a big
wooden door, and you'd open it and my mom would
probably be their cooking or something.
Speaker 3 (00:57):
Even when Aj went to college, he was back him
most weekends and between each semester, coordinating the Trash's pranks
with the t Bone or playing video games with the
recovering Brad Wingfield.
Speaker 2 (01:09):
It was just a good feeling just knowing you're coming home.
You know you're gonna eat a nice dinner or something.
You had family there, lots of laughs.
Speaker 3 (01:17):
The Galantes no longer live here. We can't go inside,
but still I want to get a closer look. Do
you want to get out? I just stand there.
Speaker 2 (01:28):
I don't think I could. I'm sad this is sad.
I can't go. It's sad.
Speaker 3 (01:35):
When AJ's family moved in here, they were on their
way to becoming Danbury Royalty. By the time they left,
they'd fallen from grace. I can see that it's painful
for Aj to be here, So we drive on. AJ
wants to show me the football stadium at his old school.
(01:56):
Jimmy funded a full refurbishment back when Aj was a teenager.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
They named it Galante Stadium, and then when he got
in trouble, they decided to take the sign down and
they named it Rebel Stadium instead. Ah. That pissed me off.
You know a lot of people kind of change their
opinions about us. And when my dad wasn't on top anymore,
all of a sudden, they don't need you anymore.
Speaker 3 (02:20):
The tide had turned against his family, and Gallante, a
name once synonymous with success, hard graft and generosity, had
become synonymous with scandal. Politicians who had once stood proudly
next to them at ribbon cutting ceremonies, who had gladly
(02:43):
taken donations, now hastily distanced themselves from Jimmy James.
Speaker 4 (02:48):
Galante, a mark connected Danburg trash Holler has contributed to
a political action committee to support your campaign. I'm wondering,
first if you could comment on that, and secondly, can
you tell us what your relationship with James Galante is.
Sure I thought he was someone who was trying to
do good in his community. I was wrong, and it's
embarrassing to be that wrong, but I was wrong.
Speaker 3 (03:11):
As a kid, AJ felt uncomfortable when the spotlight shone
on his family. And now the Galantes weren't just famous,
they were infamous. AJ was like a rabbit caught in
the headlights of public scrutiny. It wasn't easy to move forward.
(03:32):
Each week after Jimmy was sent to prison, AJ would
make the seven hour round trip from Danbury to Central
Pennsylvania to visit.
Speaker 2 (03:41):
It was just a tiring drive. It was just like
woods woods. That's all I remember seeing is trees, and
you didn't know what mood he was going to be
in when you got there. Sometimes you'd spend six straight hours,
you know, in a room, and sometimes it could be
all laughs and funny. And then some days, you know,
you don't have to say to each other. You're kind
(04:02):
of like just sitting.
Speaker 3 (04:02):
There college over. The trash is gone. And the family's
garbage dynasty well in the bin. Sparking up a conversation
wasn't always easy, But even after Jimmy was arrested, he
was still thinking about how he could help plan AJ's
next move.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
He had an old buddy, a guy who used to
work from a long time ago, like that had a
heating oil company. He's liked. Go see him, you know,
see if maybe he has something for you there, you know.
And I went there and he gave me a job.
Speaker 3 (04:34):
Heating oil wasn't exactly AJ's calling, but in some ways
the work was familiar.
Speaker 2 (04:40):
You know, you pick up accounts. My dad started the
garbage business by going to different businesses soliciting, Hey, I'd
like to pick up your garbage. Here's my rates, blah
blah bah. Oil is no different.
Speaker 3 (04:51):
Plus, with his family's connections, Jimmy assures AJ he'll have
plenty of business. But what Jimmy doesn't see from his
prison cell is that back and Downbury, the Galante name
no longer opens doors. It closes them. AJ tries to
explain this to his dad.
Speaker 2 (05:10):
I would sound like business is bad right now. I
mean I can't get accounts. Well, go see this guy,
Why didn't you go see this guy yet? Why don't
you go see that guy? Sometimes I wouldn't even have
the heart to tell my dad, Hey, I did, and
he told me, can't deal with me right now.
Speaker 3 (05:26):
AJ and Jimmy's relationship has started to change. Now AJ
has to protect Jimmy.
Speaker 2 (05:33):
Sometimes I'd actually have to kind of fib to him
and say, yeah, no, I didn't see him yet. I'll
go this week. I would take the heat just so
he wouldn't get upset, because I knew it would drive
him crazy, knowing certain people weren't doing the right thing,
as we would call it, you know what I mean.
Speaker 3 (05:50):
AJ was putting his dad's feelings above his own.
Speaker 2 (05:54):
I wanted to just let out my emotions sometimes maybe
not the right way, but sometimes you feel like a
caged animal because I always had in the back of
my mind. I don't want to do anything to embarrass
my family or my father, you know. I don't want
him to get word in prison that hey, AJ just
yelled at this guy. So it was tough for me.
Speaker 3 (06:13):
This new reality is a far cry from the excitement
of the Trashes era. No screaming fans lapping up a
fresh serving of hell on Ice just a monotonous limbo,
but Aj is about to discover the keys to his
future lying amongst the wreckage of his past. I'm Claire
(06:38):
Crofton from the teams at Novel and iHeartRadio. This is
the final episode of the Fighting Puts Game ten. The
Comeback Kid. AJ has a couple more places he wants
(07:09):
to show me before I leave town. We drive past
the ice arena and out towards the railway tracks.
Speaker 2 (07:16):
There's the train station over here. This is Pacciochi Avenue.
Speaker 3 (07:22):
The houses here are a little weathered. We're not exactly
on the wrong side of the tracks, but some of
the places we passed could do with a lick of paint.
Speaker 2 (07:32):
Yeah, every day I hear the train ding dinging all
day long. Well not all day, but a bunch of stops. Here.
Speaker 3 (07:39):
AJ is taking me to the place he spends most
of his time these days. By twenty eleven, half a
decade had passed since the untimely demise of the Trashers.
AJ was living with his mum, working his boring job,
and pretty much keeping his head down.
Speaker 2 (08:01):
Mom cooks for me. I don't have any major bills,
so I'm just saving all my money.
Speaker 3 (08:06):
So when a friend calls him one day and tells
him he's struggling for cash and needs to buy a
second hand car, AJ offers to help a couple of
thousand dollars. Why not, And that act of kindness was
the start of something special. AJ ended up meeting a
second hand car dealer who happened to be a former
(08:28):
heavyweight boxer.
Speaker 2 (08:30):
I'll never forget. He asked, Hey, what do you know
about boxing? And I'm like what he said? He looked
me up and he realized I was with the trashers,
and he said, listen, there's a local boxer here. He's
a veteran, but he's still got some gas in the
tank and he hasn't fought in two years. But basically,
we need someone to steer the ship, you know, as
a manager advisor. And I was like, I don't know
(08:52):
anything about boxing, and what am I going to tell
you guys? You know, I went home that night and
I thought about it and I was just like, I
don't know. Something clicked and next thing, you know what,
I'm in the mix. I'm making fights. I couldn't tell
you two things about boxing, you know, but I'm in
now eleven years later here, I am see this is
(09:15):
Claire's podcasts too, her showing around the gym and stuffs. Gee,
can we turn down like two notches whenever? This is it?
Speaker 3 (09:30):
It's got a special smell.
Speaker 5 (09:32):
Yeah, it's different.
Speaker 3 (09:35):
We walk into a large room covered in competition banners
and huge spray painted murals. Punch bags hang down from
the ceiling on chains. In front of me. There's a
ring with a couple of guys sparring.
Speaker 2 (09:47):
There's something about a boxing gym where if you get
into it and it's the right type of boxing gym
where it's a community again, people end up leaving here
a lot stronger than when that came in.
Speaker 3 (10:01):
In boxing, AJ recognized some of the things he loved
about hockey, both contact sports, both aggressive and weirdly, both
kind of therapeutic.
Speaker 2 (10:13):
This gym is really a great tool for kids with
their anger or their depression, or if they're overweight or
they're being bullied. It's more for their mental state.
Speaker 3 (10:22):
The rink and the ring are places to blow off
steam and vent frustrations.
Speaker 2 (10:27):
You know, boxing as a sport has saved so many
kids over the years, just getting them in a better position,
a safe place.
Speaker 3 (10:34):
It seems to me that people come to this gym
for more than just sport.
Speaker 2 (10:38):
I should be able to have a psychology certificate on
my wall. The things that I deal with every day
in this office for the past seven and a half years,
I'm basically a counselor.
Speaker 3 (10:50):
Just like he did with the trash is, AJ builds
relationships with everyone who comes through these doors. And just
like the philosophy behind Danbury's Hockey bad Boys and the
gym underdogs come out on top.
Speaker 2 (11:04):
If you come in here and you act like you're
better than anyone else, I'm gonna sticky in the ring
with one of these little guys that you think is weak,
and he's gonna he's gonna teach you. You know you're
gonna be humbled.
Speaker 3 (11:16):
In creating this boxing gym, Aj rediscovered the things he
loved community, sport, underdog values. The gym allowed him to
step into the future holding on to the best bits
of his past.
Speaker 2 (11:32):
It gave me something that I lost when we lost
the Trashers. It kind of like Electra shocked me kind
of back to life and kind of gave me a
purpose in a lot of ways. It saved me some
of the best things I have now is because of boxing.
Speaker 3 (11:48):
AJ even met his wife Kim through the gym when
she brought her nephews in to train.
Speaker 2 (11:56):
Don't tell her, I said, I loved their first but yeah,
I guess it was love. Yes, definitely.
Speaker 3 (12:04):
We head to the back of the gym into a
small office. The walls are plastered with family photos, articles
about the trashes, and flyers for wrestling events. A group
of kids pops in to say hi to Aj as
we sit around talking. There's a community here that depends
on AJ. Like his dad, he's dedicated himself to giving
(12:28):
back to Danbury, but he's building the family legacy a
little differently this time.
Speaker 2 (12:33):
When you see your father build something from scratch and
you have garbage companies worth in excess of one hundred
million dollars and then it's gone tomorrow, it's a tough
thing to witness and it's kind of like, you know, what,
if that could happen to him, make it easily happen
to me, So why am I going to take a
stupid shortcut or risk anything even so small and lose
(12:58):
it all. I've seen it happen.
Speaker 3 (13:03):
AJ Gillante has seen the true price of winning at
all costs, and so when he got into boxing in
twenty eleven, he decided to take the path that steered
clear of scandal. Aj got on with his life while
his dad served his prison sentence, and by June twenty fourteen,
(13:23):
with only weeks until Jimmy's release date, the question is, is
Jimmy ready for a quiet life?
Speaker 1 (13:31):
You never know what I'm going to do. You never know,
so anything's possible.
Speaker 3 (13:38):
That's after the break. In the summer of twenty fourteen,
(13:58):
Jimmy finally came home from prison. He was no longer
Danbury's top dog on the trash heap. The FBI sold
off his company and banned him from the industry. But
worse than that.
Speaker 1 (14:11):
Holy Christ, I missed Christmases, Easter, Thanksgivings, vacations.
Speaker 3 (14:18):
Jimmy was realizing just how much catching up he had
to do.
Speaker 1 (14:22):
Their lives have already changed. You weren't around other than
the visit you get in prison.
Speaker 3 (14:26):
It was tough. It was tempting to pick up where
he left off before he got arrested. Jimmy was brewing
up a truly wild idea for family fun.
Speaker 1 (14:36):
I had an opportunity to buy our arch nemesis the
ad Aarundick Frostbite. I was going to make my daughter
the president of the ad around deck Frostbite, so we'd
have that brother's sister rivalry and make it crazy. But
it never transpired. It never happened.
Speaker 3 (14:57):
As Jimmy served a sentence, the outside world become a
very different place. Neither the Frostbite or the trash has
even existed anymore. The rest of his family had moved on.
Speaker 1 (15:08):
The biggest problem I had when I got back was
my kids told me I was trying too hard. I
missed out on so much that when I got out,
my feet hit the ground running, and all I wanted
to do was make up for lost time.
Speaker 3 (15:23):
The times were different now. Jimmy was going to have
to reflect on his past if he wanted to adapt
to the changed world around him.
Speaker 1 (15:32):
Regrets, well, I think everybody has regrets. I think when
I look back, there are things that I could have
done better. I think I was so obsessed about being
number one and would do anything to stay number one
without really thinking about the ramifications and the people that
(15:58):
would suffer andm be hurt.
Speaker 2 (16:02):
And you know, you try to.
Speaker 1 (16:06):
Control things, but you know, controls and illusion. There's no
such things. You think you're in control, but you're not
in control. But you try to do the best you can.
You know, I lost years of my life, didn't make
a lot of mistakes.
Speaker 3 (16:20):
Yes, what I do.
Speaker 1 (16:21):
A lot of the things that I did over again,
I'd be a liar for said I wouldn't. The day
of reckoning came and I paid my price, and that's it.
Speaker 3 (16:35):
Has it changed with you about winning?
Speaker 1 (16:38):
Well, I still want to win. I still want to win.
Speaker 2 (16:44):
I still want to win.
Speaker 3 (16:48):
Change isn't easy for anyone, especially not someone as strong
minded as Jimmy Gallante, and it's not exactly easy for
the Galantes to move away from the past when it's
chasing them. In twenty eighteen, AJ's jim has been up
and running for a few years. Jimmy has settled into
(17:09):
his post prison life, and the Trashers are beginning to
seem like a distant dream. Then out of the blue,
AJ gets a call.
Speaker 2 (17:22):
Hey, listen, me and my brother we made some pretty
cool documentary films.
Speaker 3 (17:27):
A filmmaker had a proposal for Jimmy and AJ.
Speaker 2 (17:30):
We just got contracted by Netflix to run a five
part sports series and we want the trash Is to
be one of those episodes let me think about it.
So I just hung up the phone and I'm like, ah,
we're not doing that, you know, because I don't want
to talk about this anymore.
Speaker 3 (17:46):
AJ had moved on from the Trashes, but his reluctance
to talk ran deeper than that, because ever since AJ
was a kid, he told me that in the Galante family,
when difficult things happened, I.
Speaker 2 (18:00):
Didn't talk about it because I thought, that's not what
you're supposed to do. You know, you're not supposed to
talk about it, kind.
Speaker 3 (18:05):
Of like their own mafia code of silence. And after
everything that had happened with their fool from Grace, the
Galantes were understandably cautious when it came to publicity.
Speaker 2 (18:16):
They want to sell papers, they want to sell you know,
if it's ratings, it's if you do something wrong, it's
just for whatever the reason. That's what people tend to
remember the most, you know.
Speaker 3 (18:29):
But all these years on from the trash Is Downfall,
could this be the opportunity the Galantes have been waiting for.
Speaker 2 (18:38):
We never got like our side of the story, like,
we never got to show what this team meant to
this town. And we didn't get the ceremonialist goodbye. Why
don't we just do it?
Speaker 3 (18:50):
And so they did.
Speaker 2 (18:58):
I remember getting a phone.
Speaker 3 (19:00):
The documentary came out in twenty twenty one, and all
over Danbury people gathered around TVs and laptops to watch
the Galante family finally give their version of events.
Speaker 1 (19:11):
There were rumors that Died did things for Danberry like
you can't believe.
Speaker 3 (19:15):
Among them Emmanuela Pulmarez, the editor of Danbury's online news site,
The Tribuna. As soon as she saw it, she reached
out to Aj.
Speaker 6 (19:25):
I have so much more respect for you now.
Speaker 3 (19:28):
After decades of rumors about his family, AJ was finally
speaking out with his own voice.
Speaker 6 (19:35):
I thought it was genius. At this stage. The move was,
let me flip the script. Let me now take control
of this narrative, tell my side and the story, and
expose what everyone has been whispering about. When I walk
into a room and there takes guts and.
Speaker 3 (19:56):
More than a personal triumph. The documentary emmanuela city back
on the map. Because it wasn't just Danbury that was
watching this film. The rest of the world went nuts
for it too. It seemed like everybody was ready to
embrace the trash's bad boy underdog philosophy.
Speaker 6 (20:13):
As the Iberians, we just want people to know we're
here and be curious enough to come and want to
experience it, for better for worse. It did the trick
in a lot of attention keen upon Danburry.
Speaker 3 (20:28):
Because of it, the small city finally had a little
taste of the limelight. And over a decade since Aj
and Jimmy's team of misfits disbanded, people were getting trash
as tattoos. Kids were getting their team mascots scrappy shaved
into the back of their heads. Instagram was on fire
with pictures of celebrities wearing trash as much Drake and
(20:51):
Tyson Fury included. The Glantes became world famous and in Deanburry,
a bigger picture came into folks.
Speaker 6 (21:02):
I think there's a lot of wisdom in their story.
There's a lot of redemption, and there are a lot
of lessons for a lot of people. It's also proof
that sometimes the path to get to that goal is
not a straight line. It's something that connects to many
in our community. All these rags that someday hope to
(21:26):
get your riches. Look at it so at the same
time that it is a warning, it's also inspiring.
Speaker 3 (21:37):
The documentary was just the start a Jane Jimmy done
rebuilding the Galante legacy.
Speaker 6 (21:44):
They're great guys, They're hard workers. They really care about
dan Berry.
Speaker 2 (21:47):
I love them.
Speaker 3 (21:48):
They want to make a change, and that's what we
need for this tunnel. That's after the break. It's September
(22:13):
twenty twenty two and I'm walking with my colleague Gostin
around downtown Denburry. The city is strung with red, white
and green lights, the colors of the Italian flag. Behind this,
it's Jimmy's new thing.
Speaker 5 (22:27):
What are you see?
Speaker 3 (22:28):
I'm seeing a big dome of lights on stage.
Speaker 1 (22:32):
That's like a mini amphitheater type thing, right in front
of a big lawn of grass.
Speaker 3 (22:36):
Jimmy and AJ are hosting their first big event in
Deanburry since the Trashers were dissolved seventeen years ago. They're
putting on a traditional Italian festival San Gennaro.
Speaker 1 (22:49):
The Galantes are throwing a giant block party is basically
what it is.
Speaker 3 (22:53):
I bump into Jimmy and his wife Tina on their
way to pick up some T shirts. They're planning to
sell at the festival. Tina runs a printing company just
around the corner from AJ's boxing gym. Jimmy's wearing a
T shirt Tina printed especially for him. What does your
T shirt say? Bad choices make good stories. It's us,
bad choices make good stores it And what do you
(23:16):
think about it?
Speaker 2 (23:16):
Jim It's great.
Speaker 1 (23:19):
Let me give you my pat answer to everything.
Speaker 3 (23:21):
I don't care you're wearing. Absolutely it seems like Jimmy
might be done with the bad choices. Though the festival
has brought a buzz back to downtown. The empty streets
I saw when I arrived are now heaving with smiling people.
A lot over on the stage, it looks like AJ's
(23:43):
having a blast hosting a canoli eating competition. The guys
who have just stuffed their faces full of Italian sweet
treats look a bit ill, but everyone else seems to
be doing the festival.
Speaker 2 (24:01):
You don't really need something like that, and so I'm.
Speaker 6 (24:03):
Very happy different places, different music, good food.
Speaker 5 (24:07):
Having a good town, and that's what anymore. I think
it's very important we don't get to do much here,
for to be able to gather sit together as a
community is always a great name.
Speaker 1 (24:15):
You know.
Speaker 3 (24:15):
Chatting to the locals, it's clear the tide has turned
again in Danbury.
Speaker 5 (24:20):
Pretty cool guys. I think they're all about the community,
all about helping each other out. I support them any way.
I can so subbute to the good guys.
Speaker 3 (24:26):
The Galante name is back in fashion.
Speaker 2 (24:29):
I admire the people that was behind pro the just
together Galante Gallante.
Speaker 3 (24:36):
Right after I got back to London, I heard some
more news about the family. So we arrange a video call.
Speaker 2 (24:46):
But sit up a little.
Speaker 3 (24:50):
That's right, there's a new Galante in town.
Speaker 2 (24:54):
All right, talk to Claire.
Speaker 3 (24:55):
Then here on the line, I have Jimmy here. You
like that AJ right, and Dominic James Gallante. AJ's brand
new baby's son.
Speaker 2 (25:07):
I don't know if you can see your mommy's got
his there. He is there, Yeah, he's yeah. He's such
a good boy. He just turned four months last week,
so love of my life. I love him.
Speaker 1 (25:21):
He's got a million dollar smile, just like AJ had.
I just can't wait for him to get a little
bit older so I can turn him into a little terror.
Speaker 3 (25:32):
Three generations of Galante men is the world ready? Have
you got any plans to buy him? A hockey team
when he's seventeen.
Speaker 2 (25:41):
Well, I don't know. My dad made me the youngest
at seventeen. Maybe at sixteen he'll break the record, and
so on and so forth. Who knows, I mean.
Speaker 3 (25:49):
Will have to jokes aside. I wonder how Aj is
going to prepare his son to shoulder the weight he's
carried his whole life the Galante name.
Speaker 2 (25:59):
You know, people see the last name, and you know
now more than ever, there's a lot of history behind it.
And he just has to be very humble and grounded
and be willing to help people. People know you if
you're dealing with a Goalante, you could trust them. We're
gonna fight for our own We're gonna fight for people
(26:21):
close to us. We're an asset to your life. Meaning
if we're on your team, you're you're ahead of the game.
Speaker 3 (26:28):
What if they got on the wrong side of you?
What does that mean if you got on the wrong
side of a Galante?
Speaker 1 (26:35):
WHOA I respectfully declined to answer that question.
Speaker 3 (26:46):
The baton has been passed from Aj to Dominic. It's
now up to this little guy to carry the Galantes
into the future.
Speaker 1 (26:57):
Everybody wants to have some sort of a like a
seeing He's gonna live with the good. There will be baggage.
Speaker 2 (27:06):
There will be times he's gonna have to figure it
out on his own, but more times than that he's
gonna have a lot of people to guide him. And
you try to do one percent better than yourself for
the next child in line, and you know he's passing
it along, and that's that's how you build legacy.
Speaker 3 (27:23):
Really, maybe Dominic James Galante will want to follow in
his granddad's footsteps and become a winner all cost agent
of chaos. Or maybe he'll be like his dad, the
kind of kid who makes the best of every situation
thrown at him, who strives to carve out his own
identity from the legacy he inherits. Their trash dynasty might
(27:48):
be gone and their hockey team is history, but the
story of the Galantes is very much alive, a story
of tenacity, resilience, the will to build from scratch and
to prove the doubters wrong. You ready to go, so,
Danbury better get ready, because when this tiny baby grows up,
(28:14):
he's gonna have a huge impact on this city.
Speaker 2 (28:21):
You're a star, you know you're a star, all right?
Come on, a few more times, we Gotta work your abs.
Speaker 3 (28:38):
The Fighting Fucks is produced by Novel for iHeartRadio. For
more from Novel, visit novel dot Audio. The series is
hosted by me Claire Crofton and produced by me Joe
Wheeler and Amalia Sortland. The executive producer is David Waters.
Story editing from Max O'Brien, Miightily Raouls and Austin Mitchell.
(29:02):
Our field producer is Bebette Thomas. Our fat checker is
Darnia Suleiman. Our hockey sensitivity reader is Nikhil Dessais. Production
management from Scharie Houston and Charlotte Wolfe. Sound design, mixing
and scoring by Daniel Kempson. Music supervision by Nicholas Alexander
(29:22):
and David Waters. Original music composed by Eric Phillips. Willard
Foxton is creative director of Development. Special thanks to Sean Glynn,
Katrina Novelle, David Vassman, Sean ty Tone, and beth Anne
Macaluso Navel
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