Frank Lucas, the Real Life 'American Gangster,' Shares His Story for the First Time Ever on This Season of BET's Critically Acclaimed Series 'American Gangster' Premiering Wednesday, October 31 at 10pm*
Frank Lucas Himself Takes Viewers on a Journey of His Childhood and the
Events that Led to His Life of Crime
NEW YORK, Oct. 17 -- In the late '60s and early '70s,
Frank Lucas was the king of the Harlem drug scene. He was also one of the
toughest, dangerous and most unforgiving criminals in the country before he
was caught. The real Frank Lucas -- whose rise and fall is chronicled in
the Universal feature film "American Gangster" starring Denzel Washington
and Russell Crowe -- retraces his early childhood, the turns of events that
led to his life of crime, his criminal past on the streets of Harlem and
his reign for the first time with BET on this season of AMERICAN GANGSTER.
This episode of BET's critically acclaimed series premieres Wednesday,
October 31 at 10PM*.
"I wanted to be rich. I wanted to be Donald Trump rich," Lucas, 75,
said during an interview for the episode. "And so help me God, I made it."
He sure did. It is estimated that Lucas made up to $1 million a day
selling heroin that he shipped over from Southeast Asia in the coffins of
dead soldiers during the Vietnam War. But while he was becoming a
multi-millionaire, his drug of choice was devastating Harlem's community
and the families in it. And according to sources also interviewed for the
episode, the CIA knew all about his shipments and even made it possible for
Lucas to bring the dope to America. Lucas was such an astute businessman
that he even had the mob, the Sicilians and Mexicans as clients. Everybody
wanted what Lucas was peddling.
"Frank is very charming, very humble and he'll have you working for him
by the end of the day. He's a force of nature," Denzel Washington said in a
recent interview promoting the film. Washington portrays the gangster in
the film due out on Friday, November 2.
In 1975, Lucas was convicted on both federal and state drug charges and
sentenced to 70 years in prison. The next year he cooperated with law
officials and named names, which led to the convictions of more than 100
other drug lords and Lucas' release from jail in 1981. Two years later he
was arrested again for drug trafficking and in 1984, was convicted of those
charges, spending another seven years in jail.
Apart from his criminal past, this episode delves into Lucas' formative
years and uncovers the experiences that would eventually define the man as
an adult. Illiterate, Lucas was very affected by the racism he experienced
growing up on a farm in North Carolina. He arrived in Harlem in the '40s
and immediately began "taking" what he wanted. He stole, hustled and
essentially outsmarted everyone around him. Soon after he arrived, Lucas
was mentored for 15 years by one of Harlem's most notorious criminals,
"Bumpy" Johnson. When Johnson was killed, Lucas became "the man" and Harlem
would never be the same.
Called "sober, intelligent and appropriately judgmental," by Newsday,
"a savvy push into more challenging territory" by Variety, and " ... .a
public service" by the New York Daily News, BET's AMERICAN GANGSTER
explores the rise and subsequent fall of some of the country's most
notorious African American criminals of all time and the impact these
crimes had on the communities in which they were committed. Narrated by
Ving Rhames, each episode of AMERICAN GANGSTER creates a provocative and
alternative view of Black America through these criminals' eyes.
This season, AMERICAN GANGSTER profiles:
PHILLY BLACK MAFIA
Premiered October 3
From the late '60s to the mid '80s, Tony Soprano and his boys had
nothing on the Black Mafia. They were relentlessly ruthless and the most
feared mob in Philadelphia's Black underworld. Not only were they whacking
their enemies, they had connections with the Nation of Islam, had a
plethora of politicians doing their bidding and would kill anyone who
resisted their demands.
LARRY HOOVER
Premiered October 10
He was the brains behind Chicago's largest and most powerful street
gang, The Gangster Disciples. Even though he's currently behind bars, law
enforcement officials still view him as a serious threat. Hoover's
supporters, however, say that he's a different man-one committed to
improving his community.
MELVIN WILLIAMS
Premieres October 17
Some people considered this Baltimore crook a genius because of his
extremely high I.Q., but as smart as he was, "Little Melvin" Williams never
used his brain power for good. Williams reportedly was the man who brought
heroin to Baltimore and oversaw his empire for 30 years. He was smart
enough to evade the feds, but one day local police planted a handful of
pills in his pocket and brought him down. After serving five years, he
exacted his revenge by making millions-but eventually went back to jail.
His criminal past inspired the hit HBO series "The Wire."
THE D.C. SNIPERS
Premieres October 24
John Muhammad, 42, and Lee Boyd Malvo, 17, became internationally known
after they engaged in a random killing spree in the Washington, D.C., area
in 2002. Since neither fit the profile of a serial killer, law enforcement
officials assumed that there was only one killer and that he was a white
male. The story of how Muhammad methodically trained Malvo -- a homeless
kid in desperate need of a father figure -- is one of the most intriguing
in this series.
FRANK LUCAS
Premieres October 31
Denzel Washington plays him in the movie, but Frank Lucas plays himself
in this version of "American Gangster." During his heyday, Lucas was one of
the most successful drug dealers in the country, grossing up to $1 million
a day. He got a little too greedy though and was busted by a detective who
eventually became his defense attorney when he agreed to help prosecutors
dismantle the operations of his competitors. He discusses why he did what
he did for the first time.
FELIX MITCHELL
Premieres November 7
He was considered Oakland, Calif.'s first major heroin kingpin. In the
late '70s and early '80s he reigned supreme in the city that was once the
home base of the Black Panther Party. Mitchell always rolled in
style-driving expensive foreign cars, wearing the finest clothes and was a
popular fixture on the nightclub scene before his conviction and life
sentence. He was stabbed to death in his prison cell in 1986.
JEFF FORT AND THE BLACKSTONE RANGERS
vPremieres November 14
Jeff Fort led a small group of teens from the Woodlawn section of
Chicago, who were subsequently pegged to take part in a federally funded
program designed to help gang members enter the workforce. Somehow, Fort
was convicted for misuse of funds and sentenced to four years in jail. Upon
his release Fort converted to Islam, but was busted again in 1986 for
promising to commit acts of domestic terrorism that were to be subsidized
by Libyan dictator Moammar Khadafy. He is currently serving an 80-year
term.
CHAZ WILLIAMS
Premieres November 21
He was a man with a plan. Charlie "Chaz" Williams was one of the most
prolific bank robbers in history, robbing more than 60 banks throughout the
country during his reign. He got caught and went to jail, but managed to
get his 95-year sentence reduced to 15 years. Once he was released,
Williams stayed clean and created Black Hand Entertainment. He is currently
managing Foxy Brown, who was recently sentenced to a year in jail for
violating the terms of her probation.
AMERICAN GANGSTER is produced by Nelson George, Frank Sinton of A.
Smith & Company, Mark Rowland and BET.
*All times ET/PT
About BET Networks
BET Networks, a division of Viacom Inc. (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), is the
nation's leading provider of quality entertainment, music, news and public
affairs television programming for the African-American audience. The
primary BET channel reaches more than 85 million households according to
Nielsen Media Research, and can be seen in the U.S., Canada and the
Caribbean. BET is the dominant African-American consumer brand with a
diverse group of businesses extensions: BET.com, a leading internet
destination for Black entertainment, music, culture, and news; BET Digital
Networks -- BET J, BET Gospel and BET Hip Hop, attractive alternatives for
cutting-edge entertainment tastes; BET Event Productions, a full-scale
event management and production company; BET Home Entertainment, a
collection of BET-branded offerings for the home environment including DVDs
and video-on-demand; BET Mobile, a service venture into the lucrative world
of ringtones, games and video content for wireless devices; and BET
International, an extension of BET network programming for global
distribution.
SOURCE BET Networks
http://www.bet.com
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