The only real question we should ask ourselves during our existence is how much is a man's life worth? Knowing what you're worth is like knowing what day you're gonna die. Me? I'm worth $20 million, and I'd hand over every last dollar to get my old life back.

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In 1931, my grandfather drove one of the 200 Cadillacs hired by the legendary Vito Genovese for his wife 's funeral cortege. In 1957, my father, Cesare Manzoni, was one of the 107 bosses from all over the country who was invited to the Apalachin Convention, which ended in a manhunt. Can you picture me punching a timecard at some factory? I could have rebelled and gone straight to annoy my father. But that was never gonna happen. I took over the family business on my own free will. Nobody forced me. Even now if l got all the best hitmen in America on my ass, ready to blow me away and pick up those 20 million bucks, I don't have a single regret. And, to tell the truth, deep down, you know what, I'm flattered.

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If you take a closer look, I'm a good guy. I'll prove it to you in ten points, a bit like one of Letterman's Late Show top ten lists. So here we go. Number 10: I am always upfront, always. Number 9: I never look for a scapegoat. Number 8: If you give me a job, I'll always see it through. Number 7: I never showed contempt for people who feared me. Number 6: I never betrayed the guy who gave me my first gun.  Number 5: I never wished any harm on anybody. Number 4: I lived outside the law, but only outlaws didn't judge me. Number 3: Anybody who doesn't contradict me can expect nothing but good things from me. Number 2:  In my neighbourhood, when I was running it, there was never a single robbery on the street. People lived and slept easy. Number 1: Of the top ten reasons why I'm a good guy, I don't like to cause pain for no reason because all my sadistic urges are satisfied when I cause pain for a good reason.

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You know, the opening scene of Goodfellas, and there's a guy on the left...with a yellow shirt on, sitting on the chair that's turned around, he was a real gangster. Stone-cold killer. You'd see him on Hester and Mulberry. Every morning he'd be having his coffee, just like he did when he was a kid. His father used to beat him up, threw him out of the house. This kid had a lot of aggression, and that's where that killer instinct comes out, 'cause you've been getting so many beatings, you just don't give a fuck. At 12 years old this kid had, what you'd call a beef with...an argument with a kid from another neighbourhood, and one thing led to another, the next thing you know, he beat him to death with a two-by-four. "Put his hand in cold water." That's an expression that certain people used to use when you killed somebody for the first time.

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I've cheated death so many times in my life, I don't even think about it anymore. It's like getting caught outside in a storm. You just have to avoid being hit by the lightning. Fuck...