Hudson County native Jon Dâ€Amore and Manhattan-born rock legend Carmine Appice will entertain the audience at a book signing event .

Jon Dâ€Amore, author of the bestselling memoir, THE BOSS ALWAYS SITS IN THE BACK and the novel DEADFELLAS, has done it again with his newly released THE DELIVERY MAN. The authorâ€s expert ability for storytelling, along with his humor, creativity and ability for character development, ensures his third book will also grace the bestseller list. Dâ€Amoreâ€s understanding of the complexities within human thought becomes evident in the first pages. The Delivery Man delivers on all counts. Mystery, suspense, humor, romance and espionage are all expertly woven together into a fun, exciting and unpredictable romp that is sure to please a variety of tastes.

Legendary drummer Carmine Appiceâ€s career spans over a half century, having played with Vanilla Fudge, Cactus, Beck, Bogert & Appice, Rod Stewart, Ozzy Osbourne and countless others. His career has afforded him the opportunity to cross paths with some of the biggest names in the entertainment industry. In his book, STICK IT! MY LIFE OF SEX, DRUMS AND ROCK ‘n†ROLL, Carmine regales us with personal experiences that allow us a glimpse of the glitz, glamour and craziness of a rock starâ€s life.

To quote Dâ€Amore “After doing a reading at this fantastic cemetery last year during the Deadfellas tour, I knew I had to come back and invite Carmine to join me. I know heâ€ll love the venue, and I know those in Hudson County whoâ€ve enjoyed and admired his drumming for decades will absolutely love him,” he said of his friend whom he has shared the stage with in the past.

They will be appearing at the Jersey City and Harsimus Cemetery, 435 Newark Avenue, Jersey City on Friday, September 28, at 7:00 PM, where a splendid time is guaranteed for all. Admission is free, food and refreshments will be available.

The post LOCAL LEGENDS COME TO JERSEY CITY first appeared on River View Observer.

by  Diane Lombardi-Fleming

Hudson County native and the author of his bestselling memoir, The Boss Always Sits In The Back, Jon Dâ€Amore has published his long awaited sequel. Except that itâ€s not really a sequel. Deadfellas incorporates the best (and the worst) of the North Jersey mob with a supernatural theme, which makes for a satirical tale where everyone involved gets their just reward. Where “The Boss” was based on Dâ€Amoreâ€s true life events, Deadfellas stays with the Jersey mob theme, but the story is fiction. “No one would have guessed that mixing the underworld with the real underworld would result in such an entertaining combination,” Dâ€Amore says, after receiving reviews from literary insiders and other authors fortunate enough to get advance copies.

            The author expertly used his ability for storytelling, humor, creativity and deep character development to tell a tale that has the reader rooting for the bad guys. Dâ€Amore has taken these unlikely elements and once again created a “hard to put down” book. The main characters are complex, honorable, sinister, loyal, and in spite of their occupation, likeable. Yet, by the final chapters, one finds theyâ€re hoping everyone gets out alive.

            The fact that Dâ€Amore knows and understands the mob is evident from the first pages of Deadfellas. That he has a sense of humor is also evident. That he is a master at weaving very different elements into a cohesive and fun book is a joy for the reader, and speaks highly of the authorâ€s creativity and imagination.

            Historically, itâ€s the book that gets released and is eventually, and hopefully, turned into a screenplay. But when Jon Dâ€Amore is involved, things never happen in the traditional manner.

            Several years ago while living and working in Hollywood as a script doctor, Dâ€Amore partnered with screenwriter Steve Barr to create an idea for a feature film to fit the zombie-genre. Jon and Steve now laugh as they remember producers telling them they had missed the boat, and that the “zombie wave is over.” As detailed by Barr in Deadfellas†Foreword, this was soon followed by the release of films like Zombieland, and a stream of TV shows such as The Walking Dead, iZombie and many others, “Once again,” states Dâ€Amore, “Those who claim to know what theyâ€re talking about, often donâ€t.”

            Dâ€Amore will be touring the country, beginning in Los Angeles in early September and will arrive for several appearances in New Jersey and New York City during late-September into early-October.

            To purchase signed copies of Deadfellas and The Boss Always Sits In The Back, go to www.Deadfellas.com. Unsigned copies and e-books are also available through Amazon, BarnesAndNoble.com and iTunes.

The post Jon D’Amore Delivers His Next Book, Deadfellas first appeared on River View Observer.

 When they opened Tachair Bookshoppe last July, Carol Valleau and her daughter Aleta Valleau took a gamble that local book lovers wanted something more than downloading a book to their Kindles and Nooks. The mother/daughter booksellers gambled on the idea that book lovers want a place to browse new books, thumb through old classics and maybe read a chapter or two while sipping a fresh brewed coffee. It seems their gamble paid off – big time.

 “To have the ability to walk down the street and find a bookstore, itâ€s nearly impossible,” Carol Valleau says between trips to the counter to help customers with their purchases. “Weâ€re the only book store in Jersey City.”

 “Weâ€re an independent bookstore to the ‘Tâ€,” Aleta Valleau says.

 Tachair Bookshoppe offers new and used fiction, non-fiction, biographies, textbooks, and a warm and friendly atmosphere to browse the shelves. There are tables, too, where you can grab a seat to read, relax and strike up a conversation.  The coffee is delicious too.

 “The very foundation of our concept is that we missed having a bookstore, a place where you can walk in and pick something out,” Carol says. “People buy online, but there are things you miss, like meeting a new author, meeting new people, running into someone you know or someone you knew. Tachair is a community spot where you can come in from the cold and not have to buy. We like it when people do buy, of course, but itâ€s okay to just sit and have coffee, too.”

 “Our business has been open a few years,” Carol says. “We did farmers markets in Jersey City to market the idea, to see if there was some kind of reason why there werenâ€t any bookstores, if it was just a fluke. We did market research while we sold our books under a canopy tent. It was great. We built a following over a two and a half year period.”

 Part of their success has been their custom-order book service, Aleta says. If someone is having a hard time locating a book or if theyâ€d rather not have to worry about missing UPS deliveries while at work, Aleta will search sources online, order the book and have it delivered to the store for the customer to pick up.

“Our distributor is really fast,” Aleta says, “and the customer doesnâ€t have to be home to get the delivery. They can pick it up from us. People are eating up that idea.”

 Tachair Bookshoppe also accepts book donations. When they first opened, a local book lover donated 7 boxes of his books because he wanted to make sure the books would find good homes.

 “Weâ€re like a book adoption service,” Aleta says.

 Childrenâ€s books are very popular at Tachair and Aleta offers an American Sign Language story time for kids on Tuesdays and Thursdays.  She even taught her son Paul, 10, how to sign. And Tachair supports local writers with a section for their new books, book signings and author readings. Jersey City author John W. Hartmann will be reading from his new book, “The Trials of a New Jersey Criminal Defense Attorney” on Saturday Jan 12. Former Secaucus resident Jon Dâ€Amore who wrote “The Boss Always Sits in the Back,” reads from his book on Sat, Jan. 27.

 “They asked me to do a special reading and book signing before I head down to Florida in February,” Dâ€Amore says. “And because the place is so cool, I agreed.”

 The Valleaus see a trend in Jersey City where small businesses like Tachair Bookshoppe are becoming popular with local residents who feel it important to support their local retailers

 “We think that way,” Carol says. “We try to buy everything local. You know the people youâ€re buying from. Theyâ€re your neighbors and friends and working alongside you to build up the city. Thatâ€s what we have to do. Newark Avenue has a lot of potential. Weâ€re trying to build up this area. We like this neighborhood.”

 

Tachair Bookshoppeâ€s January Events:

Sat, Jan 12, 7 pm

Authorâ€s Reading:

“The Trials of a New Jersey Criminal Defense Attorney” by John W. Hartmann

 Sun, Jan. 27, 3 pm

Authorâ€s reading:

“The Boss Always Sits in the Back” by Jon Dâ€Amore

 Ongoing

Sign Language Story Time (for children)

Thurs at 10 am; Sat at 11 am

 Tachair Bookshoppe

260 Newark Avenue

Jersey City, NJ 07302

862-234-0822

Store hours: Mon-Sun, 8 am-8 pm

The post Tachair Bookshoppe -Jersey City’s new Go-To Spot for Book Lovers, Writers and Serious Coffee Drinkers first appeared on River View Observer.

New Jersey State Senator & Union City Mayor Brian P. Stack and and Commissioner Lucio Fernandez honor author Jon Dâ€Amore at special readingof his book “The Boss Always Sits in the Back” at Willian V. Musto Cultural Center in Union City.

Jon D’Amore was honored as a former Hudson County resident who went on to Author a book that will be read by many people across the country and in the world.

Later, when the Mob ‘boss†was facing a 40-year federal prison sentence, Jon was able to use his musical knowledge of audio recording equipment to prove that the prosecution had tampered with evidence. This led to the acquittal and removal of all charges for ‘the bossâ€, leaving Jon a hero to the inner circle.

In“The Boss Always Sits in the Back,”Jon gives a true account of events that he personally witnessed. His multi-dimensional take on the Mob and exploration of family relationships give this book wide appeal and lasting relevancy. Jon does not shy away from giving details of a rather perilous occupation. However, he simultaneously breathes life into a group of people that have been stereotyped and speculated on for decades.

 

The post AUTHOR JON D’AMORE HONORED IN UNION CITY AT BOOK SIGNING ON THURSDAY MAY 24TH , 2012 first appeared on River View Observer.

If you grew up in New Jersey itâ€s likely you knew somebody who had a friend whose second cousin had a brother-in-law whose uncle was connected to “the Mob.” Born in Jersey City and raised in Union City and then Secaucus, Jon Dâ€Amore had family members who were “connected”. An accomplished musician and songwriter, Dâ€Amore kept mental notes of a Las Vegas casino caper that went down back in the day and tells the fascinating and sometimes nail-biting story in his new book, “The Boss Always Sits in the Back.” Hereâ€s an excerpt:

“This is my story, based on actual events, of living on the fringe of what some people call ‘the Mafia.†You see, several members of my immediate family were connected. Connected simply means that through blood, honor or business…you have a direct connection to the Cosa Nostra, the Mafia, Our Thing, La Famiglia, the Mob. And those members of my family made a very comfortable living for many, many years through this affiliation. I thought about becoming more involved when I was in my early 20s, but at the time it was the mid-1970s. I was a professional musician and having too much fun living the rock ‘n†roll lifestyle. I was living every dream of most of my high school and college buddies (and at the time… that mattered!), so why would I want to cut my hair, wear dark suits and ties…and take the chance of getting whacked? Instead, I decided to watch da guys from the sidelines.”

Funny, irreverent and a natural storyteller, Dâ€Amore has made Los Angeles his home since the mid-1990s, but he has remained connected to his Jersey roots. He returns to Hudson this month for special appearances at the Secaucus, Jersey City and North Bergen libraries where he will read excerpts and sign copies of “The Boss Always Sits in the Back,” On a recent afternoon, Dâ€Amore took time out of his busy schedule to talk with Riverview Observer about his controversial new book.

 `RVO: Can you tell our readers what “The Boss Always Sits in the Back” is about?

JD: The book is about some guys I knew from Hudson County who pulled off one of the greatest scams to hit Las Vegas and after it was exposed it changed gambling laws across the country forever so that a scam like this could never happen again. It tells a story of the human side of these people and at the same time it describes the demise of what can be considered ‘the Mob,†because it certainly isnâ€t what we knew it to be from the 1940s through the late 1970s.

RVO:  Why did you decide to write a book about the Mob?

JD: The things that happened in this book started in 1975 when I was a musician. When I had heard about what these guys were doing in Vegas, I thought it would make a fantastic story. One thing I always believe to be true is that these guys are part of our history. Like it or not, there isnâ€t a culture that hasnâ€t come to this country that didnâ€t have to do what they needed to do to survive as a family and as a culture. Itâ€s part of our society. These things I heard about I knew it needed to be written about and that these people needed to be immortalized, because of what they were doing. These guys, and I say ‘these guys†with love and respect, did amazing things when you think that none of them had a college degree, or even prior to 1970, a large number of them didnâ€t have a high school diploma and some of the things they did were worth writing about. I knew I always wanted to write this story but the timing wasnâ€t right. I needed to wait. There were loose ends that needed to resolved – people needed to be incarcerated or released.

RVO: Werenâ€t you a bit nervous about naming names?

JD: I changed the names of everyone except my family. Everybody who is still alive and who I am still in contact with, I told them that I wrote this story and they all ask the same question: ‘Whoâ€s going to play me in the movie?â€

RVO:  Have there been any movie offers?

JD: Thereâ€s been a lot of interest. I wrote the screenplay and I have people contacting me wanting to talk business. Weâ€re just waiting for the right person to get a $25 million movie made. Thatâ€s the budget of this project.

 RVO:  How did you go from being a musician to a writer?

JD:  Because I had been taking guitar lessons since I was seven, by the time I was 14, I could read any kind of music chart put in front of me and that gave me impetus to write songs. Iâ€m not saying any were blockbusters or hits, but I learned how to write lyrics that were good. In the Jersey club bands I played in, the songs I wrote were good for the time we were doing them. I always wrote to a degree, just not books or anything that was publishable until 1976. At the Herald News an editor found out I was a traveling musician and gave me the opportunity to write a weekly column called “Jon Dâ€Amore on the Road.” When I was touring, I got to tell about being a musician on the road. I got to review albums, concerts. I got out of the music business in 1985 and I made it into the corporate world and by the 90s, I was traveling all over the country as a corporate executive doing presentations for large groups. I was in the insurance business but I never sold a life insurance policy in my life. After a decade in the corporate world, I was unhappy with what I was doing. I loved the people who were benefiting from what I did, but Iâ€m not really a corporate guy.

RVO:  What made you decide to become a Californian? Did you have ties there?

JD:  My father had two cousins who had established themselves in the restaurant business in Los Angeles from the 1930s to the 1970s, so when I was a kid, we came out here to visit. I donâ€t remember this, but I was told that when I was just an infant the actor James Dean, who was a frequent customer of my cousinâ€s restaurant, picked me up and held me in his arms. Six weeks later he would be killed. I always had a connection out here and I always knew I would live here.

RVO:  You have several book signings scheduled including May 16th at the Secaucus Library. How does it feel to come back to your hometown a published author?

JD:  In all honesty, itâ€s a wonderful feeling to be able to go back. From first grade to eighth grade, I attended school in Union City and from ninth grade to high school graduation I went to Weehawken High School. (Back when I was living in Secaucus, there wasnâ€t a local high school and we went to Weehawken.) At the book signings, there will be people I havenâ€t seen since then. I was the guy who played all the high school dances. And you know whose footsteps Iâ€m following? You know who else was famous from Secaucus who came before me? The Tidy Bowl Man, the guy who did all those Tidy Bowl commercials. Thatâ€s the guy Iâ€m following.

If you go:

Jon Dâ€Amore will read excerpts and sign copies of his new book

“The Boss Always Sits in the Back” on the following dates in Hudson:

 

Wed, May16, 7 pm

Secaucus Public Library and Business Resource Center 1379 Paterson Plank Road

Secaucus

(201) 330-2083

www.secaucus.bccls.org

 

Thursday, May 17, 6 pm

North Bergen Free Public Library

8411 Bergenline Avenue

North Bergen (201) 869-4715

www.njpl.org

 

Mon, May 21, 6 pm

Jersey City Free Public Library

Five Corners Branch

678 Newark Ave. Jersey City, NJ 07306 (201) 547-4543

www.jclibrary.org/branches/five-corners

 

For more information, or to purchase the hardcover or paperback of “The Boss Always Sits in the Back,” visit www.thebossalwayssitsintheback.com. (hardcover $22; paperback $13)

Kindle and Nook readers can download the book for $7.99 at www.Amazon.com and www.B&N.com

Boxing Promoter Al Certo (2nd from left) along with Boxers: (l) Joey Giardello, next to Al Certo the great Jack Dempsey and Willie Pep

Photo Below: A young Jon D’Amore future author holding a fake machine gun at a friends wedding

The post MOBSTER TALES-Jon D’Amore Who Grew Up in Secaucus, Pens Page Turner on Jersey Wiseguys and The Casino Caper first appeared on River View Observer.