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For years, Italian-American Vito Cellini kept his mouth shut to protect himself and his family. Now in his 90s, he wants tell his story. Born in New York, raised in Italy, Vito “Tutuc” Cellini was forced to join the fascist Italian army in WW2, then deserted to fight with communist Partisans in Yugoslavia. Later he became an undercover agent for Allied Intelligence. Trusted friend to a Mafia consiglieri and respected by the New York mob... he was hired to negotiate with deadly organized crime bosses in Naples... was embroiled in an assassination that led to the Sandanista uprising in Nicaragua... acted as bodyguard to a merciless Mexican drug lord. A self-taught mechanic and gunsmith with 19 patents, one of his inventions was financed by a high-profile Texas billionaire and adopted by US Special Forces. “Cellini Freedom Fighter” earned a Starred Review and was named a “Best Indie Book of 2018” by Kirkus Reviews.
Part I. The eleven-year exile -- Part II. Anatomy of a murder.
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Originally published between 1909 and 1917 under the name "Harvard Classics," this stupendous 51-volume set-a collection of the greatest writings from literature, philosophy, history, and mythology-was assembled by American academic CHARLES WILLIAM ELIOT (1834-1926), Harvard University's longest-serving president. Also known as "Dr. Eliot's Five Foot Shelf," it represented Eliot's belief that a basic liberal education could be gleaned by reading from an anthology of works that could fit on five feet of bookshelf. Volume XXXI is considered one of the greatest autobiographies ever written, by Italian BENVENUTO CELLINI (1500-1571). Literally a Renaissance man, making a name for himself as an artist, soldier, and musician-his works are still readily found all over European museums and public places-he is perhaps most famous for his life story. Highly readable and hugely entertaining, it is replete with tales of illicit romance, murder, angelic visions, his own poisoning, and many other salacious affairs.
"Thus spoke Pope Paul III on learning that Cellini had murdered a fellow artist, so great was Cellini's reputation in Renaissance Italy. A renowned sculptor and goldsmith, whose works include the famous salt-cellar made for the King of France, and the statue of Perseus with the head of the Medusa, Cellini's life was as vivid and enthralling as his creations.