Georgia meets Carlo Gambino

Georgia does Sammy a favor, delivering a message to Carlo Gambino.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Teleforce Productions and I Heart Radio presents Wheel Woman Confessions
of a Getaway Driver, M do you need a break?

(00:25):
Why stop? Now? Walk me through the sequence of events
following the shooting. Like I said, I returned to Rochester
briefly at Frankie's urging. Though he was the one in jail,
I felt as if I was facing my own prison sentence.
I couldn't get out of there quickly enough. So as
soon as Frankie called, saying he was released, I was

(00:47):
on a flight. First thing the next day, and you
fell back into your relationship sort of problem was instead
of the incident bringing us together, Frankie only became more secretive.
He was darker, more anxious, and though I still spent
most of my time with him, gone was the good
time Charlie who had fallen in love with, And on

(01:08):
top of that, the girls were gone, the sundowner was gone.
Eventually I decided to leave. I thought, she said he
ended things with you, he might as well have. I
was hoping that if I left he would miss me
and asked me to come back, that I might snap
him out of his funk, But instead he accepted it.

(01:36):
The thing was I needed to have all of him,
not just part, and I began to realize he would
never give it to me. He told me to leave,
and I did. We kissed goodbye with tears streaking down
both of our faces, and you went back to Rochester.
Had nowhere else to go. But somehow, in the back

(01:57):
of my mind, I knew it was only a way station,
a stop on my journey, and that sooner or later
I'd be back out in the world, alone and heartbroken.

(02:53):
I faced more jealousy and hatred than ever In Rochester.
The whispers and stairs I left behind had only increased,
especially with Dick out of jail and free to continue
to spread rumors about me. Eight months had passed since
the rape, yet it was as if it happened yesterday
in the minds of the townspeople. The problem was now,
I was beginning to convince myself they might be right.

(03:15):
I wasn't the pure, innocent child I had been, and
I told myself maybe that was why Frankie didn't want me.
I thought, maybe no one ever would, and I sunk
into a very deep depression. Then one night, around when
I am there was a knock at the door. Hi, Georgia, Tom,

(03:41):
what are you doing home. I came home to marry you.
What I want to marry you and take you away
from all of this. I don't understand. How did you
know what about it? Would you marry me, Georgia? Um,
marry me. I've only got two weeks before I have
to go back, so let's do it now, Let's get married.
I it's yes. I know things have been tough since

(04:05):
you've been back home, and I'm sorry I haven't been
able to be here, but I want to protect you
and love you, honey. Well, when we were going to
get married anyway after I got home, so why not? Now?
Can you give me a day just to think about it?
Of course we can talk about it tomorrow. Tom didn't

(04:28):
know the real reasons for the hesitation. He explained that
he had shown my letters to the commanding officer, who
thought that my mental condition was serious enough to grant
Tom a compassionate leave. I have to admit I felt
safe and secure back in his arms, but I didn't
think I loved him, because I knew I loved Frankie,

(04:48):
and I needed to hear from Frankie one more time
that he didn't want me. Hello, Hi, Frankie. Oh, Hi, baby, Frankie,
Tom's home. Did you get shot? No? He came home

(05:11):
to marry me. Wow. Maybe that's for the best, baby, Frankie,
do you love me? I love you more than I've
ever loved anybody. Actually, no, that's not true. I never
was in love till I met you. Georgia girl, what

(05:32):
kind of life can you have with me? I've never
been able to explain it to you, right because there's
so many things I can't talk about. But you should marryhim, money,
have kids, be happy. I'll always love you, but you
just gotta trust me on this, Okay, Frankie, tell me something.
Does it have anything to do with my not being

(05:54):
a virgin when we met? Come on, Georgia girl, will
you stop with that. It's got nothing to do with
the way I feel it at us. Some people in
that Townty was really screwed your head up. It's about
what you deserve about a life, and I'm sure it's
hell not it. Get it, Frankie, how can you tell
me to get married? If you say you love me?
There has to be another reason. Some day you'll understand

(06:16):
it's not because I don't love you, It's because I do.
But nothing can ever take away what we had. Four
days later, Tom and I were married by a Justice

(06:36):
of the peace. Did you continue to speak with Frankie
after that? Not for a little while, but over the
years we spoke on and off. He was there for
me a few times when I really needed him, and
after everything, I never stopped wondering what my life would
have been like with him. Now is your marriage to Tom? Well?
Only a week and a half after we got hitched,

(06:58):
he shipped back to Vietnam, and just one month after that,
I discovered that I was pregnant, Just what I needed.
The gossips had a field day. How old were you then?
Just eighteen? Still a child myself practically. I got a
new apartment on Empire Boulevard and I spent a lot

(07:20):
of time fixing it. But I felt trapped, stuck in
a boring life in a boring city. I hated Rochester,
and I even had to miss my big Kodak press
tour because I was so pregnant. I looked nothing like
the photos. The only thing that would cheer me up
was when Sammy stopped by. Sammy, I'm okay, really, you

(07:49):
don't need to bring me groceries? Every week size. I'm
too fat already, I shut up, break out the canolies,
put the coffee on. Man, you got this place looking
like belongs in a magazine. Aren't you going to decorating business?
You've got an eye for your kid. What I'd like
to do some days? Go to college, Sammy, Really get

(08:09):
a good education. What do you need that for? You
got street smarts. You can't buy that kind of education. Besides,
you get through book smile. You won't want nothing to
do with us guys anymore. Okay, Oh yeah, just to kick.
It's gonna be a girl. I can feel it. Yeah,
I think so too. And God help me. And she

(08:30):
takes after her mother. I got enough problems just watching
out for you. The last thing I need is two
of you. M hmm? Are you happy? Kids? Thankfully the
phone rang, saving me from having to answer. I waddled

(08:51):
over and picked it up. Hello, Oh Sammy, it's for you.
Uh huh okay, yeah all right, hey listen, I want

(09:16):
you to do me a favorite kid. Sure, sam, what
do you need? You Go to Nikki's Bar a lot
right the overlook. Well, yeah, that's right next door. They've
got great Hamburgers. You ever see Tommy Dido there. Tommy
DiDio was one of Valenti's boys, the current boss of
the Rochester Syndicate. Yeah, he's usually there at night. I've

(09:37):
seen him there a few times when I run in
to pick up in order. They have great baked c
D two. You have a try it. You have a
perfect view of the overlook from here, don't you. Yeah. Look,
if you happen to see Dido Poland and you just
do something for me, Just casually walk over there, take
your seat there, keep your rising ears open for me.

(10:00):
I want to know who he's meeting with, and if
you can get close enough without being conspicuous, I want
to find out what they're talking about. Conspicuous that's a
good word. This is serious, Georgia. I need a little
help here. It's important, or I wouldn't ask that. God
gives me the creep Sammy. I hate the way he

(10:21):
looks at me with that demented glare. He looks like
the type of man that could stab his own mother
and watch a football game afterwards while she bled to
death next to him. So I avoid him, and he
knows it. He might get suspicious if I suddenly sit
near him and Besides, how do I not look conspicuous
with the stomach? What I just get through saying? Kit,

(10:41):
you got street smarts, you can handle it. So did
you do it? I was still thinking about it. Something
about it made me uneasy. But Sammy never asked for anything,
and I wanted to help him out. So three days later,
or when I spotted Tommy Didio's car in the parking

(11:02):
lot of the overlook, I decided to head over. I
sat at a table as close as I could get,
and I ordered a double cheeseburger, french fries, and onion rings.
Think he even brought me a milkshake on the house.
Like I said, I was huge. I still had a
few months ago, and I already gained close to forty pounds.

(11:22):
I got only fragments of the conversation, something about Frank
Valenti and the boys in Utica and something about money
that wasn't accounted for. None of it made any sense
to me, but when I repeated it to Sammy the
next day in the apartment, he didn't look happy. What's
going on, Sammy, don't worry about a kid? What's this

(11:48):
five dollars? What's this for? Buy something for the kid?
Put it away for the school that you never got.
I'll see a kid, thank you. M h h kay.

(12:18):
So it was the money that pulled you in. It
was the adventure. What job did you do next? Next?
I gave birth to my daughter, Tony, right after my
nineteenth birthday. Tom had returned from Vietnam shortly before she
was due, and after she was born, the reality of
motherhood didn't come as naturally as I thought it would.

(12:40):
I still felt trapped and robbed in my youth, but
as Tony grew, so did my motherly instincts. What I
couldn't get over was that so much of the life
I had envisioned had been lost. But still I loved
her fiercely. Marriage, on the other hand, was another story.
Did you and Tom fight? We barely spoke. Tom came

(13:07):
back from Vietnam a different person. We both were our guests,
two children, trying to play house and raise a child
who hadn't really dealt with our traumas. But what I
couldn't get used to was the blandness of routine. All
Tom wanted to do was sit at home in front
of the TV. But I was restless. Is that why

(13:29):
you kept taking jobs for Sammy. At first, I just
went back to modeling, and excuse to get out of
the house was enough. I started back at work only
six days after Tony's birth, and it didn't take long
before I was working just as much as I had
before my pregnancy. Tony worked too, Kodak love to take
the mother and baby photos, and our client list only grew. Finally,

(13:52):
a few months later, I got a booking in New York,
and boy, I couldn't wait to escape Rochester, if only
for a day. I didn't much about it when I
mentioned the job to Sammy over lunch. He was agitated,
then distant, and I was just making a conversation. But
suddenly he perked up. I got my first modeling job

(14:15):
back in New York next week. Really, Yeah. If I
can get more of those, maybe I'll survive staying in
this town. This may be good timing. What could you
do something for me while you're there at Georgia? Is
it possible you to leave a day earlier? I don't
see why. Not good. I'm gonna set up a meeting.
Why do you need me? Because I can't discuss anything

(14:37):
on the phone right now, and there are very few
people I trust Okay, I need you to personally deliver
a message. I'll make your reservations and arrange to have
you picked up at the Apple. Oh that's okay, I
can have the studio take care of that. Said, listen, Georgia,
this is heavy information. I'm trusting you with no one,
and I mean no one can know about this. You

(14:58):
want to stand? Of course, I understand trust no one,
because I worried about this gets out to be treading
my body at the Genesee River. You got it. I'm
trusting you with my life. Don't worry. I get it. Yeah.

(15:24):
Were you nervous, I would have been stupid not to be.
I knew this was something big, potentially life or death.
But I also knew that not many women were allowed
in this world, and it gave me a sort of
sick fascination to be trusted at that level. As I

(15:55):
exited the terminal, I saw a man holding a sign
with my name on it. As I walked over, he
worthlessly led me to a black limousine. Suddenly I was excited.
It screamed power and I wanted it inside. A slender
man leaned forward and extended a diamond clad hand. He
was even more polished than Sammy g not a hair

(16:18):
out of place or a single crease in it's obviously
expensive European suit. I'm Salvatore. Reality, I'm I already know
who you are. Get in. Were you ever called Georgie girl? Yes?

(16:42):
When I lived here. Didn't you work at the sun
down around Street? Yes? Yeah, your Frank County's girl. Never
forget a face. Was I'm married now? Yeah? Yeah, it's
went back to me. You're that girl that saved that
Harlem slime ball from getting his due. You got it anyway,

(17:06):
It didn't matter what happened to him. We passed away
and sleep one night from natural causes. His heart stopped
beating when two men slipped into his room and stuck
knives into it. But I remember the talk about your
driving that night. You're regarded as a pretty good wheelman.

(17:27):
I am you ought to think about doing it for
a living. Where are we going? You'll find out when
we get there. We got out a block away from
our destination, some Italian restaurant in Brooklyn, four man and

(18:00):
waited in a quiet corner in the back. They eyed
me suspiciously as Salvatore and I approached. I was surprised
when I saw the gray haired man again, the one
from your outing with Frankie. The same, and he somehow
looked even more important than before, still dressed unimpressively though

(18:20):
the place wasn't brightly lit, but I didn't recognize the
other two guys. They wore dark sunglasses and no expressions.
This is Georgia Girl, Frank Canty's ex girlfriend. I understand
you have a message for me. Yeah, I do. I
extended the envelope and he took it. As he opened

(18:46):
the letter and read it, he became obviously agitated. He
was clearly not happy with what he was reading. Then
he passed it to one of the guys with the sunglasses.
The man raised his shades and stared at me in disbelief. Hey,
I'm just the messenger here. I have no idea what
this is all about. Tell Mr Ginjello. He's gonna have

(19:07):
to discuss this in person. I'll arrange a meeting in
Utica for next week. How long are you going to
be in the yak A few days. You'll be contacted
with the time and the place. Okay, it's time to go, Georgia.

(19:35):
The old man liked you. I could tell which one?
They were all old Carlo Gambino, the one with the
beak and the gray hair. That was Carlo Gambino one
and only. You know. I wasn't kidding about what I
said on the way in from the airport. We've got

(19:57):
a style, a certain way of handle yourself that could
be an assect to me, and from what I've heard,
you're not bad behind the wheel. If you're interested in
making some real money, maybe we should talk. I didn't

(20:21):
realize it at the time, but that adventure was my
official indoctrination in the organized crime. Did you continue to
speak to Carlo Gambino? Sure, but he never gave me
instructions directly. He let other people handle that for him.

(20:42):
You can imagine my surprise to learn I'd met with
him twice without even knowing it. But even without knowing
his name, he made an impression. He just had that
air about him. He didn't need to flaunt his power.
Everyone knew he was in control. Did you accept Salvator's
job offer in that moment? I knew I would. I

(21:03):
was too interested, but not yet. When did you start
driving for the Gambinos? After I got my personal affairs
in order, I knew I had to return to Rochester
to deal with my life before I could embark on
something new. I knew I couldn't take the job and
keep lying to Tom. It wouldn't work. Plus I was unhappy,

(21:24):
and the promise of something else made me want to
finally change things. Did you go home and end it
right away? I wanted to, but I didn't know how.
Tom wasn't working and depended on my income, and in
my hounding him to better himself. He quit Kodak but
hadn't been able to hold on to a job since then.
But as each day went by, I felt more and

(21:46):
more stuck in our apartment. I could feel myself suffocating,
tired of living a lie, and hoping to bring an
end to our marriage. I told him about my previous
affair with Frankie. Tom, I gotta talk to you. What

(22:10):
is it? When I was living in New York, I
I had an affair. I know, Georgia. Do you really
think I'm that stupid? If you knew, why didn't you
ever say anything? Because I was afraid of losing you.
Why are you bringing this up now? Did you see

(22:31):
Frankie when you were in New York last How do
you know his name? I found a letter he wrote,
You're not too good at covering your tracks, but I
was willing to forget it and try to make our
marriage work. Is working? I want to try? Will you?
Will you please try? For Tony sake? I am trying, Tom,
but things have got to change. They will. I promise.
I'm going to get a job. We'll go out more, Georgia.

(22:52):
I love you very much. We can make this work.
But things didn't change. I felt bad, knowing I would
hurt him, but life with Tom was just existing, and

(23:13):
I knew there was more to life. I escaped for
work whenever I could, but it wasn't enough. Finally the
phone rang with a way out. It was my agent
calling with a gig for me in Puerto Rico. It
was a big one. Kodak got American Airlines, Samsonite Luggage,
and the Puerto Rican government to all go in on
the deal. It was a longer job, plus traveling, which

(23:36):
meant more money. And the kicker was they wanted Tom
to model with me. We were supposed to be a
real life honeymoon couple on vacation the irony, but I
was getting paid to pretend and This was the perfect
way for Tom to make some money of his own.
I thought it would be a nice cushion for him
to embark on a new life. You're doing great, guys. Okay,

(24:04):
we're losing the light. I think we've got a kids.
That's a wrap everyone. I love you, Georgia, Tom, I
want a divorce. Our flight back home was awkward but amicable.

(24:24):
Tom knew there was no changing my mind, and suddenly
I felt free. But I also felt a shift within me.
Georgia Black was itching to come out, so I let her.
I took a backseat and watched as she grabbed hold
of the wheel. Wheel Woman is written by Lars Jacobson

(24:46):
and Sabrina Jagulin and directed by Sabrina Jagulin, produced by
Lars Jacobson and Sabrina Jagulin, Executive produced by Georgia Durante
and Noel Brown for I Heart Radio. Wheel Woman stars
Lelia Symington as Georgia, with additional performances by Tanner Beard,
Zachary Webber, Simon Jaguline, Chase Mullins, Nick Williams, Gabe Greenspan,

(25:09):
Dylan McCullum, Garrett Bear, Nora, Garrett Duncan Caldein, Victoria Foyt,
Max Georgie, Mariah Bess, and Max Jacobe. Edited by Chris Childs,
with sound design and theme music by Chris Child's. Adapted
from the book The Company She Keeps by Georgia Duranty.
Wheelwoman Confessions of a Getaway Driver is an I heart

(25:30):
Radio production. For more podcasts from I heart Radio, visit
the i heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you
get your podcasts.