Naples – Salvatore 'Toto' Giuliano, son of the boss Luigi Giuliano, known as 'o Re, retraces his life of luxury, violence and rebellion in a podcast that reveals the behind-the-scenes of one of the most powerful families of the Campania Camorra.
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“I met my father when I was 7. He broke my new toy, a motorcycle with a police siren.” This is how the story of Salvatore 'Toto' Giuliano, son of the famous Camorra boss Luigi Giuliano, begins. For the first time, at 40, he decides to open the drawer of memories.
He does it in the podcast The Tiger, produced by Chora Media, an intimate and raw journey into the history of one of the most influential families of organized crime in Campania from the 70s to the 90s.
Interviewed in the series written by Floriana Bulfon and Gianluca Di Feo and narrated by Mario Calabresi, Toto Giuliano retraces his childhood marked by violence and the weight of a surname that forced him to live far from Naples.
“I had a police motorcycle, I turned on the siren and my father came down with a club, kicked the motorcycle and broke everything. That’s how he welcomed me to Forcella,” he says.
A life in a cage, like that of the tiger cub, Simba, given to him by his father and immortalized with him in the cover photo of the podcast. Eight episodes that retrace his story, from rebellion to mafia life to unconfessed traumas.
“It’s a challenge with myself, a liberating act. When I look at photos of my childhood, I see a child in difficulty. Living in certain contexts leaves a mark on you, you carry fears and anxieties that you don’t tell anyone. Today, at forty, I have the tools to free myself from them,” explains Toto.
From Aunt Luisa to the Forcella bunker
The podcast begins with the memory of the first meeting with his father, when Toto, at 7 years old, returned to live with his parents after being entrusted to his aunt Luisa, who he considers "like a mother".
Life in Forcella, in the building on Vico Scassacocchi, was anything but normal: “More than a house, it was a bunker, full of closed-circuit television cameras, all in marble.” A luxurious residence, washed every day with cologne, a symbol of the power and paranoia of a family always under attack.
There is no shortage of references to the villa in Palata, in Molise, where the Giulianos were “exiled” after the massacres of the 90s and then taken away by the Anti-Mafia Commission. Toto also recalls the most extravagant moments, such as when he went around Naples on a racehorse purchased for 70-80 million lire.
Maradona and the vices of the Camorra
Among the most vivid memories, the figure of Diego Armando Maradona stands out, linked to the Giulianos by a relationship of protection and friendship. “For me it was normal to see him at home,” says Toto, remembering when the Argentine champion, a guest of the family, took a billiard ball and started juggling it, even climbing a flight of stairs. One of the most iconic images is that of Maradona in the large shell-shaped pool, where Toto and his sister often played.
The relationship between the Pibe de Oro and the Giulianos, in particular with Carmine, Toto's uncle, was at the center of controversy. The family offered Maradona protection, luxury and vices, becoming a point of reference for him during his years in Naples.
Rebellion and music
The podcast ends with the song Son of gold, written by rapper Lucariello, who has always been involved in the fight against the Camorra. An acronym that encapsulates the meaning of Toto Giuliano's story: a son who tries to free himself from the weight of a surname and an imposed destiny.
The Tiger It is not only a personal story, but a fresco of an era, a city and a family that has marked the history of organized crime in Italy. An act of courage that reveals, for the first time, the human face of those who have lived in the shadow of mafia power.
Article published on March 12, 2025 - 16pm
