Irving Cohen

Irving Cohen (also "Big Gangi" or "Jack Gordon II" ; born January 2, 1904 in Vilnius , Vilnius Governorate , Russian Empire ; † June 25, 1991 in Scottsdale , Arizona ) was an American actor and boxing manager. Before this - ultimately short career - he was a Kosher Nostra member of the infamous Murder, Inc. and, after he had faded into insignificance, there were suspicions that he died in the 1970s.

Life

His acting and boxing manager career began after he fled New York City to Hollywood in a panic .

Cohen was a friend and partner of Walter Sage . This operated gaming machines in Catskill Mountains with the approval of his comrades from Murder, Inc. , to whom he should pay shares, but which he is said to have incorrectly accounted for. Abe Reles - head of the gang in Brooklyn - therefore decided to kill Sage, using Cohen as a decoy .

In addition, Cohen is said to have stabbed Sage himself 54 times with an ice ax . When he himself was injured by knife wounds in the brutal act (probably by mistake), he came to the conclusion that he too would now be killed and fled.

He changed his name and got a role as Jack Gordon II in Hollywood in 1939 in Rouben Mamoulian 's film Golden Boy as a former boxer "Pug Mops". Cohen - whom Red Levine recognized in the film - and Jacob "Jack" Dragner , another person involved in the Sage case, were eventually brought to justice, along with other members of Murder, Inc. Cohen was acquitted on June 21, 1940.

From 1935 to 1965 Cohen was also a boxing manager; his clients included Rocky Graziano , Walter Cartier , Irish Bob Murphy, and Billy Graham . In the early 1960s he had become the director of Lou Stillman's "Gym" in New York City and arranged boxing matches in St. Nicholas Rink and Sunnyside Gardens, Queens .

With the demise of "Murder, Inc.", the need for actors who also looked like such gangsters soon disappeared and the type of Cohen was no longer in demand. One of his last appearances as an actor is said to have been a stunt in the series Bonanza in 1965 .

He died on June 25, 1991 at Scottsdale Memorial Hospital, Arizona and was buried in Los Angeles County .

Filmography

• 1939: Golden Boy ; Boxer movie
• 1945: Crime, Inc. , gangster film
• 1947: Under The Tonto Rim , Western
• 1949: The man who wanted to rule (OT: All The King's Men ), political drama
• 1958: Reporter of Love (OT: Teacher's Pet) , comedy

Biographical short film

Azi Rahmann: American Dream

Web links

• Irving Cohen in the Internet Movie Database (English)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b} Irving Cohen on morethanyouneededtoknow.typepad.com (English)
2. ^ Time , Apr. 01, 1940, CRIME: Murder, Inc.
3. ↑ COHEN BROUGHT HERE AS CONTRACT SLAYER; Questioned 5 Hours by O'Dwyer, Then Sent to Monticello The New York Times , April 11, 1940, p. 17
4. ↑ MURDER ACCUSATION MAKES COHEN WEEP; Breakdown Necessitates Recess at Monticello Trial , The New York Times , June 8, 1940, p. 25
5. ↑ http://www.answers.com/topic/golden-boy-play-7
6. ↑ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5Jly5KFEp8
7. ↑ FIVE ARE INDICTED IN MURDER FOR HIRE; Big Gangi Named in Sealed Bills Involving 2 Slayings in Sullivan County O'DWYER DENIES FRICTION Amen Also Scouts Talk of Clash - Woman Accused of 'Fixes' for Brooklyn Gang , The New York Times , March 21, 1940, p. 29
8. ↑ NEW MURDER HUNT STARTED UP-STATE; Jack Drucker of Monticello Is Sought in Gang Killings Originating in City QUERIED IN OTHER CRIMES Reported Having Been in Miami Recently-County Aroused by the Revelations , The New York Times , March 23, 1940, p. 3
9. ↑ BIG GANGI COHEN CLEARED OF MURDER; Slaying Was One of 57 Laid to Syndicate in Brooklyn , The New York Times , June 22, 1940, p.34
10. ↑ The New York Times , June 27, 1991, Irving Cohen; Boxing Manager, 87
11. ↑ Archive link ( Memento of the original from March 7, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.