Story Summary
The Salad Oil King is a uniquely American tale of greed gone mad, inspired by real events that took place in the 1940-60s. An unpretentious, diminutive Manhattan-born high school drop-out named Alfonso Gravenese morphs into one of the great scam artists in American financial history.
Watch “Fonso” graduate from a modest childhood scam into an executive who initially steals hundreds of millions of dollars from Federal domestic and international aid programs. And ultimately becomes a cunning entrepreneur who creates a $14 billion Wall Street scam that halts NYSE trading and destroys two venerable brokerage firms.
Along the way, you meet an unforgettable collection of friends, enemies and accomplices. Notably benevolent Mobsters, a jealous and compliant wife, a vicious yet oddly romantic right-hand man, and a collection of opportunistic Government and Church officials.
And a surprising ending that will leave you wondering.
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Learn more about Gravanese
One reviewer called it “A Classic American Crime Story by a Master Story Teller.” The author says it’s based on real events and the research and interviews took him about 5 years to complete.
5 Stars San Francisco Book Review
Author contact: mgcrisci@mgcrisci.com.
