Is Frank Lucas's legend full of lies?????
Posted by Media Outrage on November 11th, 2007
Mayme Johnson who is the widow of Harlem Gangster Bumpy Johnson says that she will not be watching the movie “American Gangster” which centers around Frank Lucas who was one of Bumpy Johnson’s associates.
Her reasons….
“I don’t want to see it because it’s not true,” she said last week, from a senior facility in Philadelphia.
“I don’t agree with anything Frank Lucas has said. To me, he’s a sick man. I think he’s a total liar,” “I’ve thought about reaching out to him and punching him in his face, knocking out his teeth. He’s a sick man.”
(lmao! we know you are too!)
Spry until a recent leg injury left her using a wheelchair, Johnson, 93, can still recall the lavish existence she shared with one of America’s most legendary crime bosses, a man whose criminal enterprises ranged from prostitution to numbers running to drugs, beginning in the ’20s and ’30s. It was a life of spacious New York City apartments, European travel, fur coats, hobnobbing with black celebrities and literary types from the Harlem Renaissance – and it almost never included Frank Lucas.
“American Gangster” is based on Lucas’ claims of having been a personal assistant and enforcer for Johnson, as well as his heir-apparent. Lucas, who is portrayed by Denzel Washington in the film, claims to have been Johnson’s driver for 15 years – which Johnson’s widow angrily disputes.
Lucas, she said, has inflated his role in Johnson’s crime syndicate. To her husband, Lucas was a mere flunky – someone Johnson might have allowed to carry his coat. According to Johnson’s widow, Lucas didn’t meet Johnson until 1963, after Johnson’s parole from prison on a 10-year drug conspiracy charge. Johnson died five years later.
“Bumpy never had nobody to drive him for 15 years,” Johnson said.
She insisted that Lucas may have driven Johnson a few times, at most.”Bumpy died in 1968. He got out of prison in ’63. Did Frank drive him when he was in Alcatraz? He’s never been out on the street for 15 years.”
On Bumpy Johnson’s death…
“Frank Lucas was nowhere around. Bumpy did not die with Frank Lucas. All of his talk is lies,”
More lies….
A BET episode about “American Gangster” that aired Wednesday night left her especially infuriated.
“Did anyone notice that he said we lived on the corner of 121st Street, and then he pointed to a brownstone and said, ‘Right there. My boss lived right there?’ Well, Bumpy and I lived on 120th Street. Two West 120th Street to be exact. And we lived in an apartment building [apartment 3I], not a brownstone.”
Is the legend of Frank Lucas inflated and is he really a big liar and out of his mind???
Full Article
November 20th, 2007 at 6:39 am
COMMENTARY: Drug Dealer Frank Lucas, Denzel and Dad
My Father as a kid delivered groceries to the first drug kingpin “Bumpy” Johnson, who at the time, lived in the corner building on 120th street and 5th Avenue, across the street from Mount Morris Park. He use to tell me these colorful stories with admiration, about this man. Bumpy was an employee and conduit for the mafia, helping to orchestrate the distribution of heroin into Harlem and surrounding communities in the 1940′s, an epidemic that would later spread and engulf the entire country for generations to come.
The street gangs of the 40′s would become some of the first addicts, their members would ultimately form the first ruthless drug-gangs of the 50′s, 60′s and 70′s. Families were destroyed individual lives ruined, violence and crime across the board increased at staggering rates. In spite the gains from the Civil Rights Movement, as a community we never fully recovered from the initial impact of the flooding of drugs into our communities.
Frank Lucas, portrayed by academy Award winner Denzel Washington in “American Gangster”, was the driver for Bumpy Johnson until his death by heart attack in 1968. By the time Mr. Lucas took power- the Harlem community had been decimated by this epidemic and the second generation of addicts already overwhelmed the streets. Like the Hip Hop culture violent movies have a tremendous impact on our children. Our young-people are continually bombarded with negative messages that unfortunately help shape and mold their character, Al Pacino’s as Scareface is still a popular image on T-Shirts.
The moral of the story is not that the bad guy gets it in the end. Too many hopeless kids who are engaged in criminal activity, view the demise of these individuals in a fatalistic and morbidly glamorous way. Enlighten by our past history and current events we have to be careful not to glorify criminals. Mr. Lucas has the right to have his story told but as parents, mentors, big brothers and sisters, we must always monitor the messages and more important the response to the message portrayed in media.
Dad’s discussions about Bumpy, were a small part of the rich history of the community that he shared with me. He gave me, as I did my son, Claude Brown’s definitive book on life in Harlem, “Manchild in the Promise Land”, when I was a teenager. He also talked about Malcolm X and Dr. King, Miles Davis and Charlie Parker. Together we watched, Gil Noble’s informative program “Like It Is”. My love of history and current events came from my dads talks about the Bumpy Johnson’s as well as the Dr. King’s of this world. He taught me to discern the messages that would bombarded me in my life-time. He knew then that no matter what, there would always be plenty of people like Bumpy Johnson and Frank Lucas around to share theirs.
Brotherman
[Reply]
RAFIQ Reply:
December 4th, 2010 at 11:19 pm
I have comedian friend who performed for Billy Exstien there in Harlem, and he told me some of the same story you told.Percy Sutton personally hired his to be the first stand up host comedian at the Apollo.He also said Billy Exstien is the person who discovered RED FOXX in Harlem.
[Reply]
December 27th, 2007 at 4:51 am
well, either way frank evidentally learned a great deal from being around bumpy, rather it was one day or 15 years. He ended up making 1 million dollars a day, saying that he learned the way from another man! Now only a fool would say that if he didn’t. I mean if not why not take all the credit for himself! he could have! Right? Instead he said bumpy was his teacher. figure it out. It must of been some what true. I wouldn’t say someone was my teacher and give him credit for something I did entirely on my own. Would you?
And, further more I doubt if his wife was with them most of the time. I mean if I was a crime boss, I wouldn’t want my wife with me when I was mingling with killers and dope heads and dope dealers! Would you? I would only want her with with me if I were taking her out somewhere or doing something to have fun. So, she really wouldn’t know alot about bumpies affairs, other than the basics. Think about it. If you were having someone drive to collect some money whom might not want to pay, and you might have to kill them to get it, would you take your wife along for the drive? hell no. she wouldn’t even know you did it! right? or wrong? shit, he probably had another driver all together for his private affairs and his business affairs.
[Reply]
January 16th, 2008 at 2:09 am
I just viewed the movie and I had to do some research. I too feel like Bumpy’s wife may not know everything. I do feel that by being his wife she has more insight on the next probing body. I just feel that she probably wasn’t around for the infamous deeds that were carried out. It seems to me that people are trying to jump on the wagon but noone is holding the handle. Frank Lucas regardless of the minor details did something that was not heard of. That is what people are inquistive about. Whoever inspired him or helped him only enchanced a story plot. This story was about Mr. Lucas. I do understand if Mrs. Johnson feels that she must say what she felt. However, I am sure that her husband lied on someone to capitalize on a situation. Maybe that person will write a book on his untruths. It’s a cycle. Enjoy the movie and the fame.
[Reply]
February 26th, 2008 at 11:54 pm
Frank Lucas was very influenced by Bumpy Johnson. I seen the film and I think Bumpy Johnson’s wife doesn’t know what she is talking about. It seems that she is probably a bit bitter that Frank Lucas owned his own company and did everthing himself, verse her husband working for others. Jealously is a very ugly thing, and that woman sounds old and jealous. No one cares if she goes sees the movie or not. She needs to grow up and stop being so immature. Who says they want to punch someone in the face because they think they are a liar. She was not with her husband everwhere he went. To be honest the old hag might not even know if the man was cheating on her dumb tail. What a waste.
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January 19th, 2010 at 3:02 pm
Danke fuer den Post. Wirklich toll geschrieben.
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December 4th, 2010 at 8:30 pm
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December 4th, 2010 at 11:10 pm
In the movie Hoodlum it clearly showed Bumpy Johnson had a driver,he didn’t drive himself.Ole girl is 93 and sounds like SHE IS CRAZIER THAN A CAROLINA CREEK CRICKET.
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