American Desperado: My Life--From Mafia Soldier to Cocaine Cowboy to Secret Government Asset Paperback – October 16, 2012

I'm a junkie for any kind of book about cocaine and marijuana smuggling - fiction or non-fiction, it doesn't matter to me, I just love the subject. I always thought that BLOW by Bruce Porter - the wild tale of nose candy smuggler George Jung that was later turned into an excellent flick starring Johnny Depp - was the best on the shelves. That is until I read American Desperado. Don't get me wrong now, I still think BLOW is still the slightly better book, but not by much, maybe the width of a finely cut line of Peruvian toot. Desperado is that good.American Desperado is the true story of Jon Roberts who was born into the Mafia, served in Vietnam as a Special Forces trained assassin, returned to New York and became a fixture in the 1970s nightclub scene, and eventually moved to Miami where he would become one of the biggest cocaine smugglers for the Medellin Cartel. To top it all off, before he eventually went to prison he was employed by the good old CIA.In between all of that he found time to "party" with folks like O.J Simpson, Mercury Morris, James Caan, Richard Pryor, Jimi Hendrix, members of the Pittsburgh Steelers the night before a Super Bowl, and Ed Sullivan who he dosed with a hit of LSD and then turned a hooker loose on! Can you imagine what was going on in the mind of poor old Ed? The list of celebrities that hung with this guy is seemingly endless.He was no slouch in the organized crime department either with associates such as legendary organized crime boss Meyer Lansky, Max Mermelstein - the top American in the Medellin Cartel, Don Ochoa - the Godfather of the Cartel, Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega, and Carlos Gambino, to name a few.Of course, Barry Seal will pop up in this book as he has in almost every book you will read about American drug smuggling. Barry Seal was a CIA employed pilot and DEA undercover operative who was also one of the most successful drug and gun smuggling pilots of all time. Jon Roberts would work with Barry Seals for close to six years before Seals was gunned downed by either the government or the Cartel, depending on who you believe. Seals deserves a book himself - Lee Harvey Oswald was in his Civil Air Patrol club when he was a teenage pilot and when Seals was killed he supposedly had the home phone number of the senior George Bush in his briefcase. Doesn't anyone else find that slightly weird?Roberts is the subject of the documentary - Cocaine Cowboys and Mark Wahlberg is also going to be bringing his story to the big screen.You can't go wrong with this book in you're are interested in this genre. Great read!

Great read a truly enjoyable book. This book was recommended by a co- worker and from the moment I picked it up I was enthralled. Evan Wright's narration and historical documentation are well substantiated. Jon Pernell Roberts tells it like it is and makes no bones about it. American Desperado is not your typical wise guy story telling. He dispels the romanticized Hollywood depiction of life in the Mafia. It's much more graphic, sociopathic and realistic. Jon Roberts makes it clear he's no saint and has his own demons to live with. This book is brutally honest and forthright. It's disturbing, factual and humorous. His years of drug smuggling and involvement with the Medellin Cartel and it's hierarchy is unbelievable. This Organization known for its ruthless and vindictive tactics is presented as a business corporation driven beyond greed.There are so many aspects and layers to American Desperado. Government corruption local and worldwide; clandestine CIA operations which exposed the Iran-Contra affair and the American invasion of Panama during the 1980's. There are numerous depictions of famous movie stars and professional athletes exploiting the pleasures of the cocaine lifestyle in its glory days during the 70's and 80's. However criminal Jon Roberts is and the world he lived in tells a part of history that is unforgettable.

Being born and raised in South Florida, and having a grandfather who worked at Metro-Dade PD back in the 1980's, I have always been a fan of most anything relating to this time in South Florida history. Having seen the documentary, "Cocaine Cowboys", I wanted to see what else Mr. Roberts had to say.PROS:-I couldn't get enough of the South Florida parts, and was sad when it abruptly ended.-His take on the disorganization with the US government's, "War on Drugs" was an eye opener and completely contrary to how the media spun it.-His views and stories on Mickey Munday and Griselda Blanco were so interesting, that I'd want to read any literature on them.-The extra info included at the bottom of each page helped the reader become familiar with the laundry list of people Jon encounters throughout his dealings.CONS:-The early New York story kind of dragged. Then again, knowing what he was famous for, I was dying to get to when he came to Miami.-I'm sure that most of what he says has roots in truth, but some of the stories seem to be a bit unreal. It doesn't help that most of his claims in the book feature a disclaimer at the bottom of the page, questioning the validity of Jon's claims.-Key parts of the Dadeland Mall massacre were kind of glossed over.-The end of the book, just ends. I can't explain it. It just lacks any sort of closing or something cool to leave the reader with.If you like this subject, you should enjoy the book. Jon Roberts was a very tortured soul, but this book would make a fantastic movie adaption.

I'm going to read this book again because it's a page-turner!It's loaded with inside information about organized crime and events reported in the news that I didn't fully understand at the time. Lots of shocking revelations about government corruption, too!

Personally I’m not someone who reads a lot of books but I found this book extremely enjoyable and captivating. It was so well written and Jon Robert’s is truly a legend.

I never write reviews but I felt this book deserved one. This book is excellent, I could hardly put it down. It is compiled from dialogue from Evan Wright's interviews with Jon, Mickey, and various other people who are key to the story of Jon's life as one of the biggest drug distributors ever. Transcriptions from various people are used very effectively to build the story and support/add to points made previously from others, which flows extremely well.It gives a excellent insight into the world of drugs, and into the mind of someone who could be considered a psychopath. This also covers Jon's earlier life as part of the Mafia in New York, as well as his time spent in Vietnam. This book also reveals a lot of the corruption that was (maybe still) present at the time, from police officers, politicians, judges and other law officials alike.Jon has lived a crazy and almost unbelievable life. Evan has used footnotes to evidence any points made by Jon and others that help to verify or deny claims made in the interviews, or to simply add more information outside of the transcripts which I thought was a really nice touch.Just read the book, you won't regret it.

Great book, fascinating insight into this mans adventurous life. If criminal minds turn you on, this book is for you.

Ich bin sonst nicht jemand der jedes Buch verschlingt. Bei diesem Buch war es echt extrem. Es geht wie der Titel verrät um den "Cocaine Cowboy" Jon Roberts, der ein turbulentes Leben hatte bzw. immer noch hat (er versteckt z.B. heute noch Waffen). Krass zu lesen wie bestechlich die Systeme sind und wie ein Mann der für so viele Morde und so viel Drogenschmuggel verantwortlich ist, am Schluss nur so eine lächerliche Zeit im Gefängnis saß, nur weil er ein paar Freunde an die Polizei verpfiffen hat! Und nein, ich glaube ihm nicht wirklich, dass von dem Geld heute nichts mehr übrig ist. Der hat bestimmt immer noch seine Verstecke ;).Das verwendete Englisch ist einfach gehalten und wer damit klar kommt auch Einzelheiten und Details von jemandem zu hören der erst im Vietnam gekämpft hat und mit dieser Grausamkeit zurück in die Staaten kommt um dort eine Drogendynastie aufzubauen sollte unbedingt zuschlagen!(Empfehlenswert: Dokumentation Cocaine Cowboys 1 & Cocaine Cowboys 2)

What a great story, I recommend for everyone who likes non fiction. Much better and more in depth than the documentary that was made.