Who Was Monte di Monti?

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Episode Transcript

(00:01):
What's up, everybody. Welcome back, Corey Hughes Bloody History. So what
I want to do today is Iwanna for the time being, we're gonna
wrap up the Carry Thornley stuff.Don't worry, we're gonna get back to
him. We had a lot ofCarry Thornley to get through over the next
couple fucking years or however long thispodcast lasts. But there's a couple of

(00:26):
articles I want to read from thisHistoria Discordia site. Actually, this one's
from the Hiscordia Discordia whatever whatever thefuck. Any other ones are from Feel
Damage, some really good stuff.So this one here, the first one
pretty much talks about Carry Thornley andit has an excerpt of Carry Thornley is

(00:48):
The Idle Warriors. So we'll getto see what kind of writing fucking genius
carry Thornley was. So let's uh, let us begin. This is an
article by let me see, I'massuming this is by Adam Adam Golrightley says
the management. But I'm pretty sureit was Adam Goreriley who manages this site.
So called a Christmas Story. Excerptfrom Kerry Thornley's The Idle Warriors December

(01:12):
seventeenth, twenty thirteen. What wasLee Harvey Oswald really like? In nineteen
sixty two, Marine Corps private CarrieW. Thornley and Discordian Society co founder
with Greg Hill, finished writing hisfirst novel based on a friend and fellow
Marine buddy, Lee Harvey Oswald,who strangely ended up defecting to the USSR
in the middle of the Cold War. Little did Thornley know that his former

(01:34):
friend Oswald, who he would useas a template for his main character,
Johnny Shelburne in his Oh So Hotnew first novel, The Idle Warriors,
would soon become the most hated manin America, unbelievably accused of assassinating President
John F. Kennedy. As afounder of Discordianism, perhaps a young Carry
should have expected some turn about hisfnord play from his sweetheart, Heiress the

(01:57):
Goddess of Discord in this matter.Through the book's fictional Oswald based character Johnny
Shelburne, The Idle Warriors gives arare first hand insight into the mind of
the man who allegedly committed the mostinfamous crime of the twentieth century. The
Idle Warriors is Thornley's fictional book writtenabout Lee Harvey Oswald before the John F.

(02:17):
Kennedy assassination, making the work theonly unique and preassassination artifact completely free
of later events in their subsequent biasesregarding Oswald and the jfk assassination. Unfortunately,
after the events of eleven twenty twosixty three in Dallas, Texas and
the subsequent WARR Commission investigation which endedup hauling Thornley in to testify about his
personal relationship with Oswald in the Marinesand included interest of Thornley's own preassassination writings

(02:42):
about America's first loan nut assassin,the original typewritten manuscript was somehow lost by
carry Thornley to his eternal dismay,believed by Thornley himself and others to be
forever misplaced and forgotten. A copyof The Idle Warrior's original manuscript was miraculously
rediscovered and rescued from the National Archivesin the early nineteen nineties by an unlikely
pair of fellows attending a Dairy QueenChristmas Time Franchise convention in Washington, d

(03:07):
C. Who happened to have aside interest in the jfk Assassination Research and
Materials. Thornley gave his copy ofThe Idle Warrior's Manuscript to the Warren Commission
as background information to Oswald's life andmotives, and it languished as an obscure
evidence item in the National Archives.Originally submitted as exposition to his testimony,
the manuscript by Thornley had mostly beenforgotten over the years. Thornley came to

(03:30):
misplace his only other copy of TheIdle Warriors and came to believe he had
lost all copies of the manuscript.To my guys in the research chat,
we see what the status of thisoriginal Warren Commission Idle Warriors as if it's
still available or if we can foyit by some Discordian Christmas miracle. The

(03:51):
Dairy Queen franchise. The amateur researchersrequested and were oddly granted special permission by
the National Archives to deconstruct the WarrenCommission's copy of the manuscript page by page
and allowed to photocopy Thornley's page writtenIdol Warriors pages or typewritten Idle Warrior's pages.
Eventually, his photocopy was handed overto the infamous conspiracy innovator publisher Ron
Bonds of Illuminet Press, who immediatelypublished The Idle Warriors in conjunction with Kerry

(04:15):
Thornley with a new introduction by BestEvidence, author of David S. Lifton
in nineteen ninety one under the IlluminetPress imprint, launching the Ron Bonds conspiracy
publishing Empire. So let me pauseright here. Kerry Thornley acknowledges in his
fucking testimony to one of these Iforget I must have been the sixty eight
must have been clay Shaw's grand jurystuff. He did acknowledge that he had

(04:36):
to rewrite the whole fucking thing,right, He rewrote the thing he didn't
have. His original copy is notthe same as the copy that was put
out later. So therefore that's whyI think it's such a big deal that
we get a copy of that's original. The only book about Oswald published before
the jfk assassination was finally published HaleAiris and Dairy Queen Dipcones. Here's your
Christmas Miracle, Fnord. Except fromThe Idle Warriors, Chapter fifteen, a

(04:58):
Christmas story. The gin fizz glistenedcheerily in the very colored glow of the
enlisted club's Christmas decorations. Pat smiledand counted on his fingers. September,
October, November December. If thenext four months passed like this, we'll
be back in here in Japan fromManeuvers in no time. But Pat said,
Henry said, Henry Hamilton, whowants to be in Japan tonight?

(05:19):
Me? I do? And Iwant to get drunk on Jac's birthday?
You want to get drunk? Henry'sintentions were more serious than his flippant tone,
but he knew how to communicate moreeffectively than most moralizers. Lightly,
painlessly. Yes, I want toget stink and stone bombed and blasted.
Happy birthday Jac. Wherever you are, if you learn to tolerate the people

(05:41):
around you, then you wouldn't findit necessary to act like them so often,
act like who Bob Kid, JohnnyShelburn, Go to the Devil Hamilton.
Henry smiled, sadly, got upand went to the devil, or
to the barracks or someplace, leavingPat Hulihan to drink alone. Happy birthday,
JC, Happy birthday. Pat's voicewas loud and hoarse. Happy birthday

(06:03):
to you. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you, Dear Jesus,
Happy birthday to you. There waslaughter in the barracks. Marry Chrismash,
Mary, chrismash yourself, Christian,marry Christmash, Jack, Marry chrismash
mouse, Guess what what it's chrismash. They joined the drunken men in

(06:26):
laughter. Arm in arm, theyweaved down to the other end of the
barracks. Pat bumped into the fireextinguisher. Help me get the pin out
of the fire extinguisher, Jack,I want to distinguish a fire. What
there's no fire? I know.Pat hung his head in shame, but
I'm homesick for now at chrismash time, I want to fill the barracks with
snow. Help me get the pinout of the fire distinguisher. Pat looked

(06:48):
doleful as he begged, no,attempting to take the pint out himself.
A simple operation. No snow,Robles decreed, yes, no snow,
yes, no snow yes. Patjumped and yelled like a small boy.
No snow. Pat took the extinguisheroff the wall and searched elsewhere for a
partner in delinquency. He came upwith Johnny Shellburne just back from the States.

(07:10):
Well, if it isn't the fairhaired lad, help me get the
pin out of the fire distinguisher.There were no volunteers among the many hands.
He walked up to Sergeant Wooly,his last hope, the fat little
buck. Sergeant was asleep on hisbunk. He looked strange without his glasses
on. Sergeant, Please, sergeant, wake up, help me get this
pin out of the fire distinguisher.What's the matter with you? Hulahan?

(07:30):
Get away? Wooly has no balls. Wooly has no balls. No balls,
Wooly, unless you help me goaway? Hoola Han. Pat had
a new crusade now. He wentover to a nearby g I can,
dropped the fire extinguisher in it,and then returned, Wooly, you have
no balls. He hit the sergeanton the arm. See no balls.
Why don't you fight back, haunhsergeant, why don't you fight back afraid

(07:53):
of me? Eh? He clappedWooly a good one this time on top
of the head. Haunt no balls, Eh, Wooly has not balls at
all? Everybody, no oh,balls at all. Woody had gotten up
and was holding Pat back by thecollar. He was guiding Pat over to
his own bunk and kicking him inthe rear end between steps. Pat was
silent. Once the ordeal was overand Pat was in his rack, tucked
in by Sergeant Wooey, he said, Mary chrismash, sergeant, and happy

(08:16):
new year or two ah, happynew year you if you get out of
your rack and start any more trouble. Yes, Sergeant Willie, you're a
good man. Sergeant Woollye, yougot a bucket full of balls. Pat
pulled the covers up over his headand shut his eyes. Suddenly he felt
like vomiting. He jumped out ofhis bunk and tripped up against the g
I can where he'd put the fireextinguisher. He threw up in great gusts.

(08:37):
Afterward, he crept back to hisbunk. Somebody turned the barrack's lights
out. It was ten o'clock.After about ten minutes of silence, Pat
started crying, I'm sorry, Hamilton, I'm sorry. His sobbing ceased and
he let out with the real whale. I'm sorry, Henry, I'm sorry,
Hamilton heard him from the next cubicle. Sorry for what I'm sorry.
I got drunk on Jac's birthday.His voice was a high pitched, terrified

(08:58):
screen. I'm sorry, Henry,I'm sorry, sorry, that's okay.
Mouse, quiet down, I'm sorry, okay, you're sorry. Be quiet.
Henry's voice was deep and harsh.Pat was quiet. What's going on,
asked Phillips. The duty nco nothing. Hulahan was just having nightmares or
DT's or something. Bob Kidd camewalking up in the darkness. Pardon me,

(09:20):
servant, Phillips. Let me useyour flashlight a minute. Phillips handed
his flashlight to Kid. The beamdanced in the barracks windows aimlessly for a
moment. Then Kid directed on PatHoolihan's bunk. Troops began to gather around
in the darkness to see what Kidwas doing. The light showed Hoolihan with
the covers over his head. Kidsaid, Patrick Coolihan, do you hear
me? Bob disguised his voice.It sounded deep and hollow. Huh.

(09:43):
Hastily, Kid pulled a blanket offand off the end of a nearby bunk
and draped it around himself. PatrickCoolihan, do you know who this is?
No, this is JC Pat.I heard you were drinking on my
birthday. Pat's panic scream cracked openand penetrated the still bare from end to
end. I'm sorry, JC,I'm sorry. Sergeant Phillips, who knew

(10:05):
he shouldn't put a stop to this, became helpless with silent laughter. I'm
sorry, JC. The covers beganto slide down as Hulhan peeped out,
I'm sorry, JC. The shadowlike figure of kid loomed over Patten,
the light beaming beams shining in frominto Pat's eyes. Pat screamed without words.
The barracks echoed back, not ascream but laughter, insane laughter of

(10:26):
men who'd been bored, drunk andhomesick too long, sadistic laughter of men
who had no purpose in life anymore. Pat screamed again. Henry Hamilton chuckled.
Jack Roebles laughed in a great inwardgulps of air, laughing too hard
to breathe properly. Sergeant Willey laugheduproariously, as only fat men can.
Johnny Shelburne twisted and slapped himself andpounded on the edge of his bunk in

(10:46):
an uncontrolled fit of hilarity. Hissides hurt, but he kept laughing.
Pat screamed, again. He soundedlike a man in torture, only Bob
Kidd didn't laugh. He stood therein darkness, peering down at the squirmings,
screaming, Pat Wholahan, this isJC Patt, and I sent it
to you to five thousand years inpurgatory for drinking on my birthday. No

(11:07):
no, no. Kid turned outthe flashlight and thrust it into Sergeant Philip's
hand. The sergeant was doubled upagainst the wall. Laughing, Kid scanned
the barracks coldly. He walked downthe aisle and disappeared out the door into
the night. The laughter and screamingcontinued for several minutes. Finally all became
quiet. The next morning, Patawoke late. He was reminded that it

(11:31):
was Christmas by the decorations in thebarracks, great strands of toilet paper and
fluffs of shaving lotion everywhere. Heremembered only one thing of the preceding night.
Someone woke him long after midnight toimpart that one roll of toilet paper
would stretch clear from one end ofthe barracks to the other lengthwise and halfway
back again. He got up andwent to the head. On the way
he passed a number of friends.They all looked at him strangely, uncertainly.

(11:54):
Only Bob Kidd met his glance witha confident return. It was as
if all the others had committed aterrible crime night before, and only Bob
Kidd was without guilt. Pat rememberedsitting in the Enlisted club with Henry Hamilton.
Nothing more. Well, there wasnot much importance to be placed in
the expression on people's faces. Heknew that, so he let it pass

(12:15):
from his mind and sink into thedepths of his subconscious, where no incident
is ever forgotten. I don't know, it's not overly horrible, right,
I mean, it's your typical.I don't know it's published worthy, right,
I would think. But that isthe clip, the brief clip from
Kerry Thorny's book that I want togo over tonight. So now what we're

(12:37):
gonna do is we are going togo over a couple of articles written by
Phil Gammage. I don't know whothe fuck this guy is. Some kind
of musician, I guess. Butthis what we're going to talk about is
one area of the assassination that hasto do with the trip to Galveston that
I am still fucking perplexed over thisis the final missing piece of the puzzle

(13:01):
for me in regards to the tripto Houston and Galveston, allegedly when they
went to the Winterland. Right,So there's two names that we're gonna introduce
here, Monty Demante and Sid Travanti. Okay, I read these articles for
the first time, I don't knowtwo years ago, once have been right
after they first came out, andI've yet to be able to assemble this

(13:24):
into any coherent storyline in reference toGalveston, and it drives me up a
fucking wall because I don't like tonot know shit. So let's go.
I did Lee Harvey Oswald conspire withMonty Demante and Sid Travanti to assassinate JFK.
Recent evidence concludes that Demanty may havebeen a co conspirator of Ruby,
Oswald and TREVANTI. Dallas, Texas, in the early nineteen sixties was a

(13:48):
city of me of many faces.On one hand, it was known as
the Buckle on the Bible Belt,and it was the home to many churches
and centers of Christian life. Thehigh society of the city resided in the
Highland Park, enclave, and everyonesupported the new pro football team, the
Cowboys. However, like many Americancities of the era, Dallas had a
dark side. The line between lawenforcement and criminals was often a blurry.

(14:11):
One state law forbade the selling ofliquor by the drink to its citizens,
yet on any given night of theweak or man or woman could easily buy
themselves a drink of alcohol at oneof the city's notorious downtown bars and burlesques,
establishments often visited by members of lawenforcement community. It was in this
kind of city that Monte Dmante foundhimself. For many years, the exact

(14:35):
whereabouts of Dumante during the early sixtieshave remained a mystery. While it is
known that he lives in Las Vegasduring the pocket billiard craze and Studio City,
California during this time, there areseveral months that cannot be accounted for.
Recently, however, research has beenable to uncover some reliable information about
his activities during this time period.It is startling to find that Demante,

(14:56):
along with his paramour Lavaon sat John, we're living in Dallas, Texas in
November of nineteen sixty three. Thesame time in place that our thirtieth President,
John F. Kennedy was murdered byan assassin's bullet in Daly Plaza.
Here's a rough timeline of Demonte's whereaboutsduring the time period from September nineteen sixty
to May of nineteen sixty four.From September sixty to August of sixty one,

(15:20):
Demnty resides with Miss Saint John inStudio City, California. His activities
during this time period are unknown.Saint John is employed as an exotic dancer
by the L Ray Burlesque club circuitand performs regularly at West Coast nightclubs in
Los Angeles, Oakland, and SanFrancisco and Seattle. August sixty one to
January sixty two, Demante shuttles betweenLas Vegas and Reno, Nevada. His
source of livelihood is believed to bepool hustling. Saint John continues to reside

(15:43):
in Studio City. February nineteen sixtytwo to December nineteen sixty two, de
Monty returns to live for several monthswith Miss Saint John in her Studio City
apartment. His activities are unknown.January sixty three to fifth jury in nineteen
sixty four, Damante and Saint Johnmoved to the oak Cliff section of Dallas,

(16:04):
Texas, where she is represented byPremier Talent Management. As an exotic
dancer. She performs in nightclubs inDallas, Houston, New Orleans, Biloxi
in Memphis. It is believed atthis time Demante works for a Dallas based
numbers racket that is also purported tohave involved Jack Ruby. March nineteen sixty
four to April nineteen sixty four,utility record show on Monte de Monty residing

(16:29):
residing at an apartment complex on HazardStreet in the Montro section of Houston.
Miss Saint John continues to reside inoak Cliffe until returning to California the first
week of April. Focusing on hisperiod in Texas starting in nineteen sixty three,
we see that Demanty's relocation to Dallasmost likely revolved around the new employment
of Levon Saint John as an exoticdancer working a circuit of clubs based in

(16:52):
Dallas and nearby cities. It isunknown what prompted her to desire to relocate
to Texas, but it is speculatedthat the reason was financially based. Saint
John was one of the West Coast'sbest drawing and most successful exotic dancers of
the early nineteen sixties, and it'sbelieved that when her contract was bought by
the Premiere Talent Management booking agency,she was enticed by a large pay raise
to relocate to the South. PremierTalent Management had an office address listed in

(17:18):
nineteen sixty three Dallas phone book atfour to twenty seven Commerce Street. This
would have this would place it justa few blocks from Jack Ruby's Carousel Club
in downtown Dallas. During the yearnineteen sixty three, record show Miss Saint
John was a featured performer at theCarousel, as well as other Ruby owned
Dallas clubs and burlesques like the ColonyClub and Club Monte Marte. Newspaper advertisements

(17:38):
from nineteen sixty three show she performedat the Tiki Room on Telephone Road in
Houston. Holy shit, Telephone fuckingRoad. The reason I'm fucking bringing this
into this is because this has gotto be a key part of what happening
in Houston, because who was it. It was one of those fucking schmucks,

(17:59):
bo bo or one of those guys. It must have been bo Boof
had to have said that they wentto fucking dinner at a diner on Telephone
Road in Houston. But I havea feeling that's not the case. I
have a feeling that the mention oftelephone Road in the JFK files, particularly
in the David Ferry file by mentionedby Alvin bo Boof, is going to
connect here to Monty Demnti and thisTiki Room on Telephone Road. Okay,

(18:25):
big fucking deal right here, bigfucking deal. Telephone road gets completely ignored
by the JFK schmucks out there,and I know it has something to do
with the fucking trip to Galveston.Okay, so make a note of that.
My research guys, Please thank you. Newspaper advertisements from nineteen sixty three
show she also performed at the TikiRoom on Telephone Road in Houston, the

(18:47):
Jade House in Austin, and clubbedas Artists in New Orleans, among others.
She even made it into the movieNaughty Dallas, filmed along with other
dancers like Jada Jenet, Conforto,Kim Assis, and Peggy Steele. In
the quasi documentary about the Dallas burlesquescene, Miss Saint John's uncensored performance that
the carousel is featured in the film. What exactly was the nature of Monte

(19:11):
de Monte's activities during the months hehad lived in Dallas. Bert Dixon,
an employee at Club Monte Marte inthe early sixties, claims to have gotten
to know Demante rather well during thespring and summer months of sixty three.
Most revealing is his assertions that Demantywas known among the local Dallas crime players
as a numbers man, and thathe worked with and was a friend of,
Jack Ruby, who controlled the numbersgame in Dallas in nineteen sixty three.

(19:38):
Well, it'll be credited to IsidoorMax Miller, but let me fucking
tell you Isodoor Max Miller is nothingmore than an alias being used by Lenny
Patrick up in Chicago. Okay,there you go. So moving on.
Ruby's connections to organized crime, andin particular, the Chicago Mob have been
well documented elsewhere, but there isalso strong evidence uncovered by a jfk assassination

(19:59):
researcher that he ran a numbers racketin Dallas starting in the mid nineteen fifties.
Two other longtime unreliable Dallas residents whowe interviewed and preferred to stay.
Anonymous came forward in two thousand andsix and twenty ten with information that Demonte
was regularly seen in the strip clubson Commerce Street in the spring and summer
of nineteen sixty three, and thathe was a regular at several all night

(20:21):
poker games in the back room ofthe Carousel, where Miss Saint John often
performed. What is most striking isthat the other players at these late night
early morning card games included Ruby andLee Harvey Oswald bullshit. This is confirmed
by the content of several letters Dumontesent to his close friend Jue boy Al
see the two thousand and nine interviewwith Al of Brooklyn, New York in

(20:45):
June of nineteen sixty three, wherehe mentions doing well at the table in
card games with Jack Randall and Lee. He also mentions his card playing acquaintance
Lee Harvey Oswald to Al in hisletter dated April twentieth, nineteen sixty three,
this square dude from New Orleans namedLee. He's a crappy card player
and man is this cat wrapped upin some commie bullshit. Talks NonStop at

(21:07):
the games about Castro this and Castrothat. Don't get him started. On
Kennedy either Manny hates him like youwouldn't believe. In fact, a lot
of them down here hate Kennedy's guts. But dig I didn't care until Lee
and I were smoking a butt outfront of the carousel and he started talking
about Kennedy coming to Big d sometimein the fall and him taking target practice
to get ready. Okay, sohe's saying that he smoked a cigarette with

(21:30):
Lee Harvey Ot. Okay, thisis obviously either Carrie Thornley or William Seymour.
Le Me see, it's April twentieth, This is like right after the
Walker shooting. I have a feelingthat fucking William Seymour and those guys would
have dipped out of town just incase, right after the Walker shooting.
So it's probably Carry Thornley. RememberCarry Thornley claims to have left in May
of nineteen sixty three to go toWitty or California, where he passes through

(21:55):
Mexico City on the way. Butremember he's a fucking liar and he never
gets his goddamn dates right. Andit was probably probably him at the Bolton
Ford in January of sixty one withfucking Lawrence Howard, Right, so you
can't trust him on his fucking datesat all. April twenty at sixty three,
that's close enough to May for meto say, yeah, it was
probably Kerry Thornley if this happened hereat all, smoking cigarettes, Your fucking
liar, Jesus Christ. His letterto Al about Oswald day of July seventh

(22:18):
began to take on a much differenttone. I'm involved in a really big
project down here that will catch everyoneoff guard all over the world. Lee
knows everyone down here, and alot of them have serious bread and want
something done about Kennedy. This Leeis a total flake, and at first
I didn't want to touch it.But money talks in as long as I
don't have to do any dirty work, I told him I'm in. He
wants me to meet up with somepilot guy in Houston named David to get

(22:41):
info on what I'm supposed to donext. So I'm going down there next
week. Have you ever been downthere? Maybe when you were in the
navy. Right, So this isin April of nineteen sixty three. Timelines
are reasonable, right. It appearsthat Demante is referring in his letter to
pilot David Ferry, a figured prominentlyin Kennedy assassination research for decades. There

(23:03):
are no additional letters to Al thatrefer to Kennedy after July seventh, but
Al did receive a Houston postcard fromDemante in mid July. Did Demante meet
with Ferry in Houston in July ofnineteen sixty three, It's completely possible,
completely possible. Remember, because CarrieThornley is not in fucking New Orleans.
He left in May, he doesn'treturn till September fourth, right, and

(23:25):
then we have the three week gapbetween the time that he leaves back for
Mexico City again, right, Soyeah, this perfectly lines up with the
time that Carrie Thornley was definitely notin fucking Wittier, California, working at
a goddamn restaurant. Sorry. Yeah, so he's in fucking Dallas doing whatever
the fuck, And so yeah,this is plausible. Right. There's a

(23:47):
gap of several months regarding Demante's involvementin the assassination planning, from that July
to mid November. Several sources recallseeing Demante on Commerce Street in the fall
of that year and at a fewof the late night card games held in
the back room Ruby's Carousel Club.Demante didn't spend much time at that club
otherwise, particularly when Saint John wasperforming there. In October nineteen fifty nine
issue of Confidential has a blurb inits gossip column about Levan's boyfriend getting into

(24:12):
a fight with another patron during oneof her performances at the New Follies Burlesque
Theater in Los Angeles. Word aroundtown then was that Demante was to wound
up and uptight to sit through oneof his women's shows. That's Jada.
One of the topics Octic dancers workingat the time, and one who was,

(24:32):
without a doubt, the star attractionin Dallas clubs was the New Orleans
dancer Janet Jada Conforto. There wasmuch misinformation about Demantes and Jada's relationship,
but based on the recollection of reliablesources, can be ascertained that after July
of nineteen sixty three, when Rubybrought out of the Carousel from New Orleans
Showbar, she soon became Demantes's mistress. She caused Ruby many problems. In

(24:52):
particular, she had a habit ofgoing too far with her act, and
on occasion Ruby would turn the lightsout on her local journal Less South.
Cantor described her as being supercharged withanimalism in his nineteen seventy eight book Who
Was Jack Ruby? According to interviewsgiven in early nineteen sixty four, she
states that there was a poker gameat the Carousel this week preceding the assassination.

(25:15):
Eyewitnesses have stated that Monte de Montiwas in attendance and a player in
the game. There was also physicalevidence that backs this up. When he
was arrested following the murder of Oswald, Jack Ruby was found to have a
napkin from the club in his possessionwith the words IOU one one zero signed
DM. Apparently, Demante took arare loss in the card game that night

(25:36):
and owed Ruby some money because ofit. Demantes's whereabouts on November twenty second,
the day of JFK's assassination, areunknown. The following day, he
called his cousin Ralph Dino Sorbello inBrooklyn, who recollected that quote. Monty
was all shook up, but saidsomething like quote he was glad it was
all over with. I didn't knowwhat he was referring to or what the
hell he was talking about. Iwas upset as anyone about the Kennedy getting

(25:57):
knocked off. It was like apunch in the gun. But interestingly,
after November twenty second, Demante beganspending much less time in Dallas, though
we continued to live with Saint Johnand oak Cliffe. He was seen much
more often in Houston and on occasionin New Orleans. Al still has a
New Orleans postcard from Demonte date inJanuary first, nineteen sixty four. On

(26:18):
the card, Demante talks about goingto a hell of a party in the
Quarter, but many remember him astraveling there into Houston to make connections for
his new numbers business. Through Jada. He also met her half brother,
Houston resident Sid Travante during this timeand stayed with him at his apartment on
Kirby Drive when he was in town. A letter to Jada from Sid in

(26:40):
January of nineteen sixty four mentions thetwo men going to Tideland's Motor Inn at
sixty five hundred South Main Street todo some Tomcatton. By February of that
year, Saint John's contract with PremierTalent Management was nearly over. She made
plans to return to California with herwithout Demante, though he enjoyed an open
relationship where either one could openly seeother sexual partners. Jada later recalled that

(27:00):
Saint John was deathly jealous of thefact that she continued to see Demanty in
both Dallas and during their frequent trystsin Houston. That, combined with Jack
Ruby's arrests and her contract with thePremiere ending, gave Saint John plenty of
motivation to leave Texas once and forall. She departed for the West Coast
following a performance in Dallas the firstweek of April nineteen sixty four and never

(27:22):
returned. By that time, Demantehad moved out on Saint John left Dallas
and had gone to live in Houston. City records show he resided in an
apartment on Hazard Street in the Montroseneighborhood of for at least a couple of
months in spring of nineteen sixty four. What exactly his activities were is still
largely unknown, but there are strongindications, based on reliable sources, that

(27:44):
he was still in the numbers rackets, as well as dipping into some ports
gambling ventures. Indications are that heenjoyed Houston and felt that it was a
growing city. With much potential fora man of his talents, Demanty mailed
a polaroid photo of himself and anunknown woman to his friend Al in the
winter of sixty four, with hishandwritten caption ME and Barbara at sin Alley
on the back. Houston historians willwell no this probably refers to the infamous

(28:08):
block on mid Lane, which betweenSan Philippe and Wesheimer and West Houston,
that hosted many swinger parties during thenineteen sixties. From all appearances, Demante
was enjoying himself. This all changedwith the untimely and mysterious death of his
friend Said Travanti on April ninth.Other than being originally from Biloxi, Mississippi,
and being Jada's half brother, notmuch as known about the background of

(28:30):
Travanti. City records show he movedto Houston from New Orleans in nineteen fifty
seven, originally living on Heights Boulevardbefore moving to an apartment on Kirby Drive
in nineteen sixty one. Although hewas indisputably involved in the criminal underworld of
the city, exactly what he didremains unclear to this day, as none
of his associates from that time periodhave ever been interviewed by researchers. His

(28:51):
only police record was a May nineteensixty one arrest for pandering in Herman Park.
He was never convicted and the chargesare noted in records as being dropped.
What we do know, based onseveral accounts found in a Houston Post
newspaper from mid April of nineteen sixtyfour, is that he was mysteriously poisoned
on April ninth. Newspaper accounts sayhe arrived at his favorite nightspot, the
Titelands Club, shortly after ten pm, became ill there, passed out around

(29:14):
eleven pm during a performance by standup comedian Tody Fields. He was never
revived and passed away around eleven tofifty pm in route to Ben Tobb Hospital
in an ambulance. Though the casewas ruled a homicide by the Houston Police
Department, no charges were ever filed. There were no clear leads in the
case, and detectives publicly felt hismurder was too unimportant to pursue. However,
police records made public in nineteen seventyeight indicate that Travanti was an informant

(29:38):
for the Houston Police. Then whywas there no proper investigation to his murder.
Sometime in April of nineteen sixty four, Demanty left Houston for good and
moved back to California, reuniting withLevon Saint John in Studio City. Travanti's
death is of interest not only becauseof his connection to Demanty, but also
his connection to a potential Kennedy assassinationconspiracy. He wrote to his half sister

(30:00):
Jada were recently unearthed by our conspiracyresearchers, and they indicate that Travanti was
planning with Jada to contact Dallas detectivesin the spring of nineteen sixty four and
reveal to them some important information aboutKennedy's murder. Unlike Jada, sid Travanti
was a loud mouth and told severalof his friends and acquaintances in Houston that

(30:21):
he and his half sister knew factsthat would blow the lid off to Kennedy
assassination investigation. Jada, on theother hand, was very secretive about her
involvement with Ruby and his entourage andrarely discussed her relationship with him in public.
Like so many people involved with theKennedy assassination, Travanti died an unnatural
death was the timing of Demante's returnto California, a direct result of Travanti's

(30:44):
murder. The Demante Pheley was next. The facts may never be known.
Jada Conforto died on May ninth,nineteen eighty in a traffic accident in Albuquerque,
New Mexico, where her motorcycle wasstruck by an empty school bus.
The bus driver, Donna Beeman ofAlbert Kirk He told police the motorcyclist turned
in front of her and she wasunable to stop. Jada is buried in
mausoleum in Lake Lawn Park Cemetery inMetaie, Louisiana. Interesting stuff, huh.

(31:12):
Now, Let's head over to anotherarticle by Phil Gamage called Monte de
Monte manor Myth. Editor's note,This interview, conducted nineteen seventy six contains
much contradictory information pertaining to the lifeof Monte de Monte. Fact Checking is

(31:33):
an impossible task as much of hislife as shrouded in mystery, and several
of the principles mentioned in the articleare deceased, including east Side Al.
Also, please note the racist terminology, homophobic references, offensive language, and
politically incorrect attitude of Al's expressed inthis interview has been unedited. It's exactly
as he said it in nineteen seventysix. East Side. Al's viewpoints and

(31:56):
perspectives are products of his era,and we wish for his controversial interview to
represent them accurately. We present itto you in its original raw form,
as it was published in the Aprilnineteen seventy seven issue of Cavalier magazine.
So siicly put, Dimanty is oneof the major legendary underground figures in the

(32:16):
mid to late twentieth century American andEuropean arts and showbiz scenes. Unlike,
for example, Neil Cassidy, whosetrailblaze brightly in the literary beat scenes of
both American coasts, Demante traveled freelybetween the music, literary and entertainment worlds.
Why he is not better known isa tribute to his willingness and inclination
to stay out of the limelight andremain in the shadows. While speculation has

(32:39):
arisen about his problems and with authoritieson two continents, there is no evidence
that he was ever arrested or servedany time for any crime. On the
contrary, this article reveals that heis a military veteran who served his country
proudly in Europe and Asia. Hisconnections and friendships within the criminal world,
along with his now mythically torred romancewith the legendary exotic burlesque dancer Levaughan's st

(33:00):
John, have all served through thedecades to project an image that is and
that surrounds mister Domante as an enigma. Tracing the details of Domante's journey through
the American underground arts and underworld landscapeof the nineteen fifties to it to present
is as best difficult. Unfortunately,many of his close friends from these years

(33:20):
have passed away, either through illnessor foul play. Because of his tendency
to keep a low profile, thereis a little public record of where he
lived and when. In fact,at present there are no known photographs of
Demanty. What we do know forcertain is that he was born in Brooklyn,
New York, and lived for atime in the nineteen fifties and sixties
in California. After that, itgets more complicated, and he seems to
have traveled more extensively, with stopsin London, Palm Springs, and Florida,

(33:44):
where he now apparently lives around nineteenseventy five, he disappeared from the
East Coast, and unfortunately, alldirect contact with him was lost. Since
that time, there have been numerousrumors that he's been spot around many of
his old stomping grounds, including NewYork, Los Angeles, London, and
back again, most recently in Florida. There's also been a persistent rumor,

(34:07):
though never confirmed, that he's dead. Utilizing our acquaintance with some of Demanti's
surviving relatives through hard work, wewere able to track down his longtime friend
and cohort, east Side Al.He has requested that his real name be
withheld. Al was kind enough toanswer a few of our questions about Demanty

(34:28):
and his life on a brisk autumnalevening at his home in upstate Monticello,
New York. While we still remainout of contact with the subject, this
interview offers a revealing glimpse into Montede Monte man or myth. Many thanks
to Al for taking the time tospeak with us. We are always seeking
new help and up to date informationabout the whereabouts and well being of our
friend Monty Demnty. How far backdo you go with Monty? Al?

(34:53):
When and where did you meet him. I first met Monty when I was
ten. He came into the numbershole at the rear of Dominic's barbershop,
where I delivered number slips. Heplaced a large amount of cash on a
number and gave me a twenty dollarsto play a number that he gave me.
The next day we collected our winnings. Rumor Monty and his boys rigged
the number. He looked at meand said, you look like a nice

(35:15):
kid. Al you want to dosome work for me. You shouldn't be
getting seventy five cents a haircut.You can get ten dollars if you work
for me. I was excited tobe a member of his inner circle,
even in a minor role such aspolishing his acoustics or collecting money from the
side bets. When he'd visit alocal pool hall to play the local favorite.
He'd always win, of course,and he paid me from his winnings,
usually about one hundred to two hundreddollars. That was a lot of

(35:37):
money in those days, especially fora snot nosed kid. Did you have
any professional relations with him or didyou just run with Demanty and his crew
Other than polishing his acoustics and gettinghim coffee or running errands. All I
did was hang out with him andthe boys. Although I begged him to
let me drive for him and whenI was old enough to get my license,
he was like a dad to me. He didn't want me to get
into any trouble. Who were someother friends that you too ran with back

(36:06):
in the day? Did you twoknow any of the beats? We knew
Gregory Corso and Jack Kerouac on ahigh How are you a basis? Some
of our friends were friends of MurderInc. From Brownsville, such as Davy
boy Ka, Chinky Bob Stern,Moose Berkowitz, and Vicious Vito Barone from
Ocean Hill, And of course fromour colored friends like Large Leroy Jefferson who
was the master of the Garat.Did you know Herbert Hunky Monty didn't associate

(36:32):
with dope fiends. Did you twoever make a bohemian Greenwish village scene?
We go to the village to checkout Monk at the half note from time
to time MONI took five hundred dollarsoff Monk at mcgear's one night. Well,
that's the very latest on his whereaboutsand is he in trouble with the
law, either here in the Statesand or abroad. Monty been setting up

(36:54):
an agricultural importation business with a Turkishpartner in London. When Special Branch requested
that he appear for questioning, heslipped out of the country on a fishing
trawler landed in Calais, from wherehe charted a private aircraft which took him
to Cyprus, from there to Florida. What about him becoming a father?
Recently he became a father for thesecond time, at the age of eighty

(37:15):
six. His wife Tanya, somefifty years his junior, presented him with
a baby girl in July. Hey, it looks like this hope for all
of us. Huh, we heardhe's now settled in Boca. What's he
up to currently, Monty now roam'sthe periphery of the Fort Lauderdale social scene,
attending the odd yacht party with hisGreek shipping magnate friend Stavros A Cavellos.

(37:38):
Can you tell us about Dimanti's firstchild? Monty and his longtime companion,
the late Levon Saint John, werethe parents of Rocco Dimante, aged
twenty six. Roco blamed Monty forhis mother's death, which was under suspicious
circumstances sometimes alleged to be suicide asa result of the police and putting her
under constant stressed Due to the policeand Harrissinger for information regarding Monty, it

(38:00):
is speculated that she took her ownlife rather than give up the love of
her life. That seems so tragic. When and where did she die exactly?
Wasn't she a close friend of MontgomeryCliff or was it tab Hunter.
She was found dead in nineteen seventyfive of an apparent overdose of a prescription
medication. Miss Saint John was aclose friend and mentor to John Saxon.
We also have her connected romantically inthe nineteen sixties with actor John Vivian CBS

(38:23):
Television's Mister Lucky. They had abrief twist tryst, but missus Saint John
sent him packing with the remark You'rejust a second rate carry grant wannabe.
I've always been amazed and inspired thatMonty, with his street wise background,
pool hustler and numbers man, wasable to run with a crowd of such
sophisticated artists and movie stars on bothcoasts. What do you think that crowd

(38:45):
saw in Manty and what attracted themto him? They saw a very attractive,
well dressed man with an outgoing,sparkling personality, which to them made
him larger than life. Of course, they were drawn to the menace that
his background exuded, and it gavemost of them a persive rill to be
in his company. Were they fullyaware of his underworld connections or did he

(39:05):
keep that hidden from them? Yes, he always said that he had nothing
to hide and actually reveled in thefact that the Hollywood crowd was attracted to
this aspect of him. They couldn'ttake a good pounding or of beating those
softy faggots. They pissed themselves theyever had a rod pointed at them.
There are so many stories about Montythat the truth and the myth have become
intertwined. What's the story about Montyteaching Jackie Gleeson how to shoot pool for

(39:29):
the film The Hustler. We knowthat Montey de Monty was a pool hustler
himself. At one time. Montyactually taught the late great Paul Newman the
intricacies of the game. Gleeson hadbeen an accomplished player ever since his youth
in Bushwick, Brooklyn was pool hustlingMonty's primary source of income. Through the

(39:49):
years, Monty hustled pool as always, but he became increasingly involved in hijacking,
specializing in fish and cigarettes. Whendid he give that up? After
a close call in Philadelphia when thepolice were waiting for him and his crew
because of an informant who subsequently shotto death while eating a cheese steak,
Monty declared himself free of any Ilisted activity. Can you give us some

(40:13):
background on his music career? Montistarted out as a blues harp player vocalist
with the local blues bands in LosAngeles and San Francisco. He played with
Junior Wells at Pepper's Lounge on theSouth Side of Chicago, where he caught
the attention to the Chess Brothers,who desired to record him with the other
blues giants. Monty declined as hefelt he could make more money hustling pool.

(40:34):
The count Basie song M Squad wasnamed for Monty, not for the
TV show Love That Bassie tune MSquad. I used to have that soundtrack
Alpie somewhere. What brought him toVegas? In the sixties. Always the
financial swashbuckler, Monty moved to Vegasat the crest of the pocket Billiard's craze.
In the early sixties, he hadintended to open a nationwide chain called
Monty's mass Emporium. Monte allegedly shotand killed mob boss enforcer sal Pasilaqua during

(41:00):
an attempted shakedown. The mob launchedan intense manhut, but Monty has alluded
them to to this day. Wherein Brooklyn did de Monti grow up?
Monty grew up in Ocean Hill,Brownsville, where he learned to play pool
at Midnight's Rose wrote Midnight Roses PoolHall on Strauss Street and Ivanna Avenue.
At the age of twelve, hebeat merchant Marine Coalstoker unconscious after accusing him

(41:23):
of moving the cue ball with hishands? Was he always prone to violence
like that? I always imagined himto be the refined, sporting man,
gentleman type. It sounded like hehad one hell of a temper. Monty
was a hot tempered kid, butmanaged to get himself under control while in
Thailand when he developed an opium addiction. Can you give us a timeline and

(41:43):
elaborate a bit On when he wasin the Southeast in Southeast Asia, he
traveled so much I wasn't even awarehe had spent any time in Asia.
The dates are a bit hazy,but he was based in a small village
outside of Bangkok and was engaged inthe opium trade. But when he saw
the abject misery in others faces dueto addictionary, wore off the shit and
sobered up. Was this before orafter he served in Korea? This was

(42:05):
after when he sensed a lucrative opportunityregarding war Curple's material. How did he
get off opium Monte Cold Turkey?Did? Was Levon Saint john the love
of Demantes's life? Can you tellus a little bit about her past?

(42:27):
We had an old issue of ModernMan from the late nineteen fifties lying around
that featured an eye popping pictorial ofher in her natural state. We understand
their relationship was very passionate yet volatile. Can you shed some light on that
please? Yes, she was thelove of his life. Levon thought of
herself as an artist and hated tobe called a stripper. Or she began
her career at Johnny's Stampanado's Folly's deFemmes in North Beach, San Francisco.

(42:52):
Following in the great tradition of TempestStorm and Candy Bar, Lavan developed an
aspect of her act that made hervery popular. She was able to twirl
the tassel on the front of herg string with such velocity that it was
hypnotic. Levon met Monty when hevanished from Fort Knox, Kentucky, where
Monty had been stationed as a militarypoliceman. Levon took him in and sheltered

(43:12):
him from authorities. Their relationship lastedsome forty years and neither strayed, although
there were a degree of volatility becausethere are strong personalities, but all disputes
were resolved through extremely passionate love making, sometimes in public places. I find
their relationship fascinating al the sparks thatmust have flown between those two. We'd
known that. While she served inCalifornia, Levon worked as an exotic dancer

(43:35):
for the West Coast l Ray burlesqueclub circuit, often sharing the stage with
fellow legendary burlesque performers Tempest Storm,Dixie Evans, Lily Saint Cyr and Candy
Bar. Where on the West Coastdid she and Demanty live during their time
out there. They stayed at herhouse in Studio City before she made the
big money and lived in a quietsuburban life. He's staying at home or

(43:59):
at the track, playing horses andhustling pool as she worked the clubs.
Did those two mix with any ofthe showbiz types out there? I recall
seeing an old photo of the twoof them decked out to the nines in
an old issue of Confidential. Surewish I had it now, but that
was years ago. Taking in someevent at Hollywood's Brown Derby from fifty nine,

(44:21):
some sort of party thrown by Salmonioor something like that. Very rarely,
Levon had a brief fling with DeborahPaget, and they would entice Monty
into a threesome. Monty made afew Hollywood connections through deb John agar Pedro
Armanderz, and Gilbert Roland, whowas hot to play Monty in a projected
biopic. Manty always tried to avoidMinio and called him a whimpering, salivating

(44:45):
faggot who would tried to suck dickfor personal gain. Was Levan still working
as a dancer in the seventies,Levon worked irregularly because of her connections with
Monty, the strip joint operations oroperators were afraid of the local police or
the Feds coming into the their jointand upsetting the patrons. However, Levon
occasionally digged at the Swank Swan indowntown Des Moines. Good looking woman there,

(45:13):
Levon Saint John. If you're listeningto this on the podcast you know
you can, you can watch thesevideos on Rock Finn just so you know.
Good looking woman nice. Did sheever work in adult films? She
did appear in a classic porn filmwhere she serviced six men at once and
had a few tord scenes with theFrench Canadian young up and comer Giselaine Sorbet.

(45:37):
If the tension of living with Demantesso stressed out Lavon, perhaps ultimately
causing her death, why did shecontinue to stay with him for the next
thirty years or so after they leftCalifornia? Because she loved him with the
burning passion or as she described it, hotter than a thousand suns. He
made me wet just thinking of him, even at this late age. When
and why did they leave California?They left in the early seventies because of

(46:00):
too much heat from police and theFeds. Where did they go? Then?
They took off for a small townin Illinois, Round Tool, which
is about one hundred and forty milesequidistant from Saint Louis In Chicago, Monty
hustled the yokels until no one wantedto play with him anymore. You mentioned
earlier that Dedmanti served in the military. I believe him to be too old
to have fought Nam. Was hein Korea or did he just do his

(46:23):
stretch here in the States. Montyserved in the Army at the very end
of World War II as an MPwith the occupation forces. He is solely
responsible for introducing pockety to Germany andtaught the young future Chancellor Willie Brant a
few trick shots. Monty received theSilver Star for gallantry in action during the
retreat from the Battle of Chosen Reservoir. Anything else about Dmanti that we should

(46:45):
know. All rumors about Monty Demantybeing gay are untrue. Then there was
no substance to the rumors about hisaffairs with actor John Vivian. I wonder
where that one got started. Salminiostarted the rumor at for Monty spurned his
advances at a miniature golf course inResita. All right, looks like that's

(47:08):
it for that one. Umm,oh, we got another one here.
Let's see if this one's about allright, So we got another one.
I'll go ahead and read this onetoo. The Hollywood Years, Life in
the fast Lane, Wannabe Starlit's thePlayboy Mansion in Washed Up Actors, nineteen

(47:28):
sixty eight to nineteen seventy two.Following his misadventures in Texas during the early
sixties, Monte de Monte's whereabouts forthe year sixty four to sixty eight are
unknown. There are reports he wasemployed at the Balinese Room in Galveston,
Texas, in nineteen sixty seven,but the evidence of this is unconfirmed.
There have also been reports he wasliving in Las Vegas around nineteen sixty seven
while under the employment of Howard Hughes. It can be speculated that de Monte's

(47:52):
motivation for keeping a low profile duringthese years was his association with several known
players, including Lee Harvey Oswald,in the JFK assassination conspiracy. After the
assassination and throughout the rest of thedecade of the sixties, many of those
directly or indirectly associated with the assassinationeither disappeared or were found murdered. Shortly
following the mysterious April nineteen sixty fourmurder by poisoning of Monty's closest friend,

(48:14):
Said Travanti, at Houston's Tidelands Club, Demante left Texas, never to return.
Public utility records show he ran outon the lease of his apartment on
Hazzard Street in Houston's Montrose neighborhood inMay of sixty four. Contrary to previous
reports that placed him in California asearly as sixty four, De Monte's next
confirmed location of residence is sixty eightin Studio City, California, living with

(48:36):
his on again, off again girlfriendLevon Saint John in a bungalow she rented.
After leaving Dallas in late nineteen sixtyfour, Saint John moved to California.
Can you work as an exotic danceron the West Coast burless circuit?
However, as the sixties progressed,there was less and less work for burless

(48:57):
dancers in America moved toward permissive bannographylaws, and the audience for a live
burless' shows slowly dwindled, she beganto work occasionally as a nude model for
men's magazine such as Swank and Cavalier, which were published out of Los Angeles.
According to Demonte's childhood friend from Brooklyn, jew Boy al real name not
given by request, Saint John appearedin several adult films, but none of
ever turned up in subsequent years.Increasingly, Saint John's income was primarily earned

(49:22):
as a waitress working at the GoldenState Diner in Studio City. We recently
tracked down and spoke at length witha friend of Demantes from this time,
Andreas Fontagna. Fontangna and Demantes's friendshipwent all the way back to their days
hustling billiards together. He had movedto the West Coast shortly before Demante arrived
in the Bay Area around nineteen fiftyfive to work at the L Ray Burlesquin

(49:43):
in Oakland. He continued to socializewith Demante after he moved to Los Angeles,
often spending time with Monty and Levaughnat the Frolic Room cocktail lounge in
Hollywood. Fontagna says that Demantes's daysin sixty eight and early sixty nine were
mostly spent at the Santa Anita Racetrack, where for a time he enjoyed great
success betting on horse races. Clearly, Monty was planning his next move,

(50:04):
and he was making an effort tomeet all the right players in Los Angeles
who could help him make it happen. In the spring of sixty nine,
de Monty met the well known televisionactor Robert Bob Crane at the Frolic Room.
Crane, at that time was concludinga successful run as the lead actor
in CBS Televisions hit comedy Hogan's Heroes. They soon became close friends. Later
that summer, Crane introduced Monty tohis friend, actor Salmonio Mineo, is

(50:29):
well known for his role in theJames Dean film Rebel Without a Cause,
but by the late sixties his actingcareer crashed and burned. The three would
often go, as Crane later wrotein his letter to lawyer Stan Sota Tom
Katton, together around Hollywood. Thisusually Mencruzen the Hollywood bars to pick up
airline stewardesses and Hollywood newcomers who werestarstruck by Crane, since at the time

(50:50):
he was still extremely well known becauseof Crane's television star status. At the
time, three men were popular amongHollywood's party and nightclub scene. Eeteen sixty
nine, Crane threw his friendship withJohn Henry Carpenter became one of the first
people in the United States to ownone of the first commercially viable video cameras.
Very quickly he put it to usefilming videos of his and Carpenter's sexual

(51:12):
encounters with the women they picked upin Hollywood. For several months. In
nineteen seventy one, Crane dated PlayboyPlaymate of the Month Catherine Lupot and often
attended parties with her and Demante atHugh Hefner's Playboy mansion in Holmby Hills.
The Playboy Empire had relocated from Chicagoto Los Angeles earlier that year, and

(51:35):
the mansion quickly became a social centerfor many well known celebrities and athletes.
Lupot was extremely well liked by Hefnerand had become close friends with his girlfriend,
Barbie Benton. They often made sidetrips to Catalina Island together that summer.
Benton refuses to comment in any interviewsabout her friendship with Catherine for reasons
she won't divulge. Lupot has onlyrecently begun to talk candidly about her romance

(51:57):
with Crane and her feelings about thoseyears spent in Los Angeles. I was
absolutely crazy about Bob. He wasso much fun, but he was too
hard a party for me. Aboutthe time we started dating, Bob was
starting to get into hard drugs andalso making these kinky home movies, and
I wanted no part of it.Sal was into some of that stuff too,
It just wasn't my scene. Yes, I recall very well as friend
Monty. He was a quiet andextremely handsome guy. One time when we

(52:21):
were alone, Bob joked about Monty'smob friends. When I asked him about
it, he just laughed. Lookingback now, I think there was something
to that. There was something goingon behind the scenes. But Monty he
was not your normal Hollywood type guy. He always seemed kind of dangerous,
a nice person and a total gentleman, but he never seemed to be straight
up with anyone, if you knowwhat I mean. I was only twenty
three at the time. These guyswere all in their forties, so looking

(52:43):
back out, looking back on itnow, I feel they just wanted a
younger woman to be with a date. One night that summer, Bob tried
to get me to go with himto some swingers party his friend was hosting
in the Hollywood Hills, and afterI told him no way, he got
real angry and dropped me off onthe street corner in front of the whiskey
A Go Go. That was it. He quit calling me after that.
I ran to him once at aparty about five years later, and lord
did he look terrible, just totallyburned out. I think he was heavy

(53:06):
into cocaine by then, but whoknows. Not long after that, I
heard he was murdered in Arizona.I was sad to hear the news about
him, but he was hanging outwith the wrong people. I always thought
his friend Carpenter was a real creep. I never liked that man. It
wasn't long after my time spent withBob that I met my first husband at
a party at HEF's mansion, andwe moved down to San Diego and I've
been based there ever since. Lupottcurrently owns and runs a talent agency and

(53:30):
is married to her third husband.Wow, she's a little fucking houghty too.
There was talk among the Los Angelesacting community that Crane's home movies featured
several well known young film and televisionstarlets of the era. We've learned from
a couple of confidential sources that Crane, Monte de Monty, and Salminio attempted
to blackmail one of these starlets andthreatened her with publicly distributing our sex video.

(53:52):
It is possible that de Monti couldhave been involved with it a criminal
plan like this. His earnings innineteen seventy seventy one at the race track
were at best sporadic, and hehad no other visible source of income.
We do not know for sure ifthis blackmail plan succeeded or failed, but
a series of events indicate that somehowthe plan backfired on the three men.
It is possible they chose the wrongyoung lady to attempt to blackmail. Perhaps

(54:15):
she had underworld connections or friends inlaw enforcement. We'll never know for sure,
as no legal charges were ever filedagainst the three men. In April
of nineteen seventy one, Minnio washospitalized for several days of the California Hospital
Medical Center as a result of physicalassault in which he suffered numerous broken bones
and facial lacerations. A press releasesays that he was fighting an intruder during

(54:37):
a burglary attempt at his West Hollywoodhome, but Fontana says Minio was jumped
in the parking lot near his houseby a couple of thugs who were working
for the woman that he Demante,Crane, and perhaps Carpenter were attempting to
blackmail. No arrests were made asa result of Mineo's beating, and the
case remains unsolved. Demante and Cranehad a falling out some time in the

(55:00):
fall of nineteen seventy one and wereno longer friends after that. Fontagne recalls
asking Monty about Crane about that time, but Demante was relucant to talk to
him about at any length and avoidedthose questions. Thereafter, De Monte and
Minneo were occasionally seen together, butthe days of them cruising Sunset Boulevard with
Crane in the early morning hours wereover. Demante, by all appearances,

(55:22):
settled down to a quiet domestic lifewith Saint John as he largely stayed out
of the Hollywood limelight. He continuedto visit Santa Anita Racetrack and was also
seen at Los Alamito's racecourse much ofwhat is known of Demantes's activities his last
year or so in southern California isbased on our interview with his childhood friend
Juboy Al coming to visit from Brooklyn. Al arrived on the West coast in

(55:44):
May of nineteen seventy one and stayedat Mont's and Levan's house in Studio City.
According to Al, during his visit, Lavante was intimately involved with actress
Deborah Paget. Levan and Montes sharedan open relationship, which created some odd
situations for him. While staying attheir house, Al also witnessed a nasty
spat between Demante and Minneo one nightat the Frolic Room, resulting in the

(56:05):
two never speaking to each other again. Monte al Levonne, Deborah made the
rounds of Hollywood parties a couple timesduring his visit. Al told us that
while the Los Angeles film crowd likedMonty, they kept their distance from him
due to what they perceived as hisshady background. Bob Crane was found murdered
in Scott's del Arizona at the WinfieldApartments on June twenty ninth, nineteen seventy

(56:27):
eight. His former friend John HenryCarpenter was ultimately acquitted to murder chargers after
being brought to trial in the midnineties. The case remains officially unsolved.
The two thousand and two film AutoFocus is about Crane Carpenter and their relationship
in Crane's murder. There's no mentionof Salmonio or Monte de Monte in the
film. Sometime in November nineteen seventytwo, Monte de Monti left southern California.

(56:47):
His destination was cann France, andthis time Levone Saint John was with
him. And that is that Ladiesand gentlemen, So Monte de Monti.
Who is Monte de Monte? Westill don't know. We still don't know
his relationship with Jack Ruby. Westill don't know his relationship with people involved
in the assassination. We still don'tknow what he did down in Houston,

(57:08):
and if what he did down inHouston had something to do with a meeting
on telephone road. I am convincedthere was a meeting on telephone road between
Sergia Arcacha, Leighton Martin's Alvin boboofand somebody and people. Could it have
been Monty de Monty? And whatwas the purpose of this meeting, I
just don't know. Hopefully we'll findout. But that's gonna do it for

(57:28):
today on Corey Hughes Bloody History.You haven't bought the book, please buy
the fucking book. Sales are slowthis month, like real fucking slow,
so please go get the book.And that's gonna do it for today and
I'll be back, uh God,By the time you see this one,
they'll probably a new episode out alreadybecause it's Sunday night, and I'm gonna
do another episode Monday morning. Sohope you guys are keeping up. See
you guys later.