Daniel john Patrick Greene was born on 14 November 1933 to first generation irish american parents. Complications surrounding the birth caused his mother to die, and with his father drinking excessively he was sent to live in an orphanage before ending up with his grandfather. His turbulent childhood would continue, and between fighting and tardiness he was expelled from a number of schools. Despite his behavioural problems he was always noted as an excellent athlete and sports person. (SOURCE: BIOGRAPHY.COM)
In the early 1960s, Greene began working on the docks as a longshoreman. In his free time he read about Ireland and its violent yet culturally rich history. He found pride in this, and began to think of himself as a "Celtic warrior". It …show more content…
In reality however the majority of this money ended up in Greenes bank account, this was greenes first taste of mafia dealings. An longshoremens asscoiation member would later say about Greene, "He read On the Waterfront. He imagined himself a tough dock boss. But he was thirty years too late. He used workers to beat up union members who did not come in line, but he was never seen fighting himself. He was a spellbinding speaker and a good organizer." (SOURCE: …show more content…
Like classic Mobsters, they actually acted as semi-protectors of the community. They often helped out families in need and greene himself used to hand out turkeys to desperate families on thanksgiving. He recruited a number of enforcers, including Billy McDuffy who had 14 hits under his belt and enforcer-hitman James "Icepick" Sterling, so called as he reportedly killed someone with an icepick. They started setting up their own gambling dens across the city. He also became friends and allies with John Nardi, a Cleveland family labor racketeer who hated the established family and wanted to overthrow