Columbia Center for Oral History Portal > Oral history interview with Patrick C., 1980Biographical NotePatrick C. was born to Italian immigrants on December 19,1908 in New York City, New York. He was the youngest of three children. He attended P.S. Ninety-Five until the age of twelve when he suffered a head injury, and it became difficult for him to continue his studies. In his teenage years he worked as a delivery boy for a bakery, an errand boy for a lock factory, and in a chandelier factory. At sixteen, he eloped with a girl from his neighborhood, who would turn out to be his wife of over fifty years. In 1924, he used heroin for the first time, and shortly after began using opium. He began selling heroin for Hymie Rothman to finance his opium use. Patrick lost his dealing connections in 1938, when the Jewish crime syndicates that controlled the New York City drug traffic were usurped by the Italian Mafia. He could no longer afford opium, so he transitioned back to heroin. During World War II, when both opium and heroin were scarce, Patrick used dried, powdered opium, morphine phenobarbital, Nembutal, and seconal. After the war, he began seeing a doctor for a dolophine prescription. He worked as a welder, a store clerk, a deli clerk, and a factory worker. In 1973 he joined the methadone program at the Morris J. Bernstein Institute. Patrick C. was interviewed for the project that led to the book Addicts Who Survived. The name is likely a pseudonym for the project. In the book, Patrick C. was referred to by the pseudonym "Charlie"
Scope and ContentsIn this interview, Patrick C. discusses his life in New York City, with special attention to his drug use. He discusses the first time he tried heroin and opium in 1924, and how he developed an opium addiction. He explains how he began selling heroin under the leadership of Hyman "Hymie" Rothman in order to finance his opium addiction. He details his clientele, where in the city he operated, and his average income. Discusses the impact of the Harrison Narcotics Act of 1914 on Chinese opium dens. He discusses how the Jewish crime syndicates that controlled the New York drug traffic were usurped by the mafia around 1938. He discusses key Jewish dealers from before the transition such as Hymie Rothman, Murray Marks, and Waxey Gordon, as well as key Italian dealers such as Don Pepe, Charlie Lucky, Frankie White, Tony Bender, and Vito Genovese. He explains how the power struggle severed his customer connections and forced him out of the drug trafficking business. He discusses the drug panic during World War II, and how he substituted dried, powdered opium, morphine phenobarbital, Nembutal, and seconal for opium and heroin. He discusses visiting the Lexington, Kentucky Hospital for drug detox during World War II. He reviews his arrest history, and the time he spent incarcerated. Facilities included: Rikers Island, Hart's Island, and Matteawan State Hospital for the Criminally Insane. He discusses his experience with Wild Cat, a program that placed ex-addicts and methadone patients in jobs
SubjectsAccess ConditionsCopyright by David Courtwright
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