My sister married the son of an NYPD officer, one of the “5%” who were honest, to quote her. She divorced the son about 20 years later, because, she said, he became much too chummy with Mafia members. I’m not sure what to think of this.
This is only a test, to see if my comment will really be published. If so, I will make a pertinent comment. I don’t have a website.
Arthur Cesare, even when confronted with facts more than 40 years after the shooting, was still in denial in the few scenes the two filmed together in the restaurant. I would have been hard pressed to just sit at that table (as Frank did )and listen to Cesare’s replies to some basic questions about the shooting. My only questions to Casare would be a simple ones “Why did you fail to render any aid to YOUR PARTNER after he had been shot in the face?” Even if you could not have breached the door in the time it took suspect to shoot Frank (as shown in the movie), why did you fail to render any aid at the scene and transport this fallen officer yourself to the nearest hospital? And finally, what did you do and where did you go immediately following the shooting of YOUR PARTNER? The one filming this bit in the restaurant treated Arthur Cesare with “kid gloves” during the interview and is a disgrace to investigative journalism!
Frank was right and told it like it was!!!! But, the real truth will never be known.
“Serpico” didn’t get it right, and neither did this article. Why? No mention of David Durk. Pretty pathetic how history gets re-written, forgotten, and then re-assaulted.
Nice guys and whistleblowers always finish last and never receive recognition for their good deeds. This country is going to hell. Cheers to you my man. YOU are a hero.
gabrielnathan, Durk is covered quite a bit in the documentary if you watch it.
Beautiful well-written article. Beautiful human being. Still my hero of my heart many decades after watching “Serpico” understanding that, of course, Mr. Serpico wasn’t some God but stood up for TRUTH at all costs. To stand alone because one speaks truth, defends what is noble, honest & good can be excruciatingly painful. Again, nothing but blessings for Frank Serpico. 🌷
I read once that heroes show us how far we can go. We need them, maybe more than ever.
Would love to show this film at our 8th Annual Legacy Film Festival on Aging in September 2018. An 80-year-old guy with guts. Lots of ’em out there, but few movies showing the real person. But the distributors only give the big film fests the nod. We’ll give it a shot.
Sheila Herling Malkind, Exec Dir.
I’ve always thought Frank Serpico to be a hero. Not only did “Serpico” accurately portray his life, it also captured the zeitgeist of the 1960’s counterculture. Serpico had to deal with the antipathy of the police in much the same way as others who had the courage to let their freak flag fly. I had an uncle, a NYC detective, who thought Serpico’s illegal drug use made him a hypocrite.
I thought Al Pacino made a better Frank Serpico. He even tended a better garden.
I was there. First the man. Then a movie. History and time driving a documentary to confirm it.
This is a career about time and place. Bravo Marty Bregman, Dino De Laurentiis and Al and Peter Maas. Most of all. Thank you Frank. [I still have set photos of you in a signed book by Peter, as we shot the movie.] Heady and real.
My sister married the son of an NYPD officer, one of the “5%” who were honest, to quote her. She divorced the son about 20 years later, because, she said, he became much too chummy with Mafia members. I’m not sure what to think of this.
This is only a test, to see if my comment will really be published. If so, I will make a pertinent comment. I don’t have a website.
Arthur Cesare, even when confronted with facts more than 40 years after the shooting, was still in denial in the few scenes the two filmed together in the restaurant. I would have been hard pressed to just sit at that table (as Frank did )and listen to Cesare’s replies to some basic questions about the shooting. My only questions to Casare would be a simple ones “Why did you fail to render any aid to YOUR PARTNER after he had been shot in the face?” Even if you could not have breached the door in the time it took suspect to shoot Frank (as shown in the movie), why did you fail to render any aid at the scene and transport this fallen officer yourself to the nearest hospital? And finally, what did you do and where did you go immediately following the shooting of YOUR PARTNER? The one filming this bit in the restaurant treated Arthur Cesare with “kid gloves” during the interview and is a disgrace to investigative journalism!
Frank was right and told it like it was!!!! But, the real truth will never be known.
“Serpico” didn’t get it right, and neither did this article. Why? No mention of David Durk. Pretty pathetic how history gets re-written, forgotten, and then re-assaulted.
Nice guys and whistleblowers always finish last and never receive recognition for their good deeds. This country is going to hell. Cheers to you my man. YOU are a hero.
gabrielnathan, Durk is covered quite a bit in the documentary if you watch it.
Beautiful well-written article. Beautiful human being. Still my hero of my heart many decades after watching “Serpico” understanding that, of course, Mr. Serpico wasn’t some God but stood up for TRUTH at all costs. To stand alone because one speaks truth, defends what is noble, honest & good can be excruciatingly painful. Again, nothing but blessings for Frank Serpico. 🌷
I read once that heroes show us how far we can go. We need them, maybe more than ever.
Would love to show this film at our 8th Annual Legacy Film Festival on Aging in September 2018. An 80-year-old guy with guts. Lots of ’em out there, but few movies showing the real person. But the distributors only give the big film fests the nod. We’ll give it a shot.
Sheila Herling Malkind, Exec Dir.
I’ve always thought Frank Serpico to be a hero. Not only did “Serpico” accurately portray his life, it also captured the zeitgeist of the 1960’s counterculture. Serpico had to deal with the antipathy of the police in much the same way as others who had the courage to let their freak flag fly. I had an uncle, a NYC detective, who thought Serpico’s illegal drug use made him a hypocrite.
I thought Al Pacino made a better Frank Serpico. He even tended a better garden.
I was there. First the man. Then a movie. History and time driving a documentary to confirm it.
This is a career about time and place. Bravo Marty Bregman, Dino De Laurentiis and Al and Peter Maas. Most of all. Thank you Frank. [I still have set photos of you in a signed book by Peter, as we shot the movie.] Heady and real.