On Military Life in Europe
“I was in heaven. I never ran into a gambling den like the one they had at Ramstein, Germany. It had the biggest crap and poker games at any U.S. military base in Europe. It was loaded with GIs and the first three days after they got paid was a gravy train for me. On a good night, I could make $1,000 to $1,500. I built a bankroll of $20,000. I lived good and still saved money. For a change of pace, I went to Wiesbaden and Darmstadt, where a lot of gambling went on at the officers clubs on the U.S. bases there.”
On First Meeting Frank Lucas
“I was at my sister Pearl’s house in New York when my nephew Larry came by. Larry said Frank Lucas wanted to see me. Could I meet with him? I knew he lived in New Jersey and that is where I thought Larry was going to take me. But we ended up going to this small apartment in New York City. Frank was holed up there, afraid to go home. He owed the Italians (La Cosa Nostra) some money and feared they might try to kill him. I thought it was kind of funny-- this guy, who was supposed to be a big drug dealer, holed up in this tiny room. Larry said Frank needed a loan, so I gave him $25,000.”
On The Bogus Heroin-Cadaver Connection
“Why would I do something so awful as move heroin in cadavers? I had so many easier and more effective ways of moving my dope. Besides, whatever wrong I did, I was still proud of my [military] service, and I would have done nothing to harm the memory of our brave soldiers who died serving the country.”
On Arriving at Atlanta Federal Penitentiary
“Nobody but a few guys from North Carolina really knew who I was when I arrived at the Atlanta pen, gradually, that changed. The word spread about who I was and what I had done.”
On Life's Reflection
"I know I would have done well in school. My life could have gone in a much different direction."
