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| “ | What is this, the high hat? | „ |
| ~ Caspar's iconic quote. |
| “ | You double-cross once - where's it all end? An interesting ethical question. | „ |
| ~ Caspar reflecting on betrayal and ethics. |
Johnny Caspar or known by his real name Giovanni Gasparo is the secondary antagonist of the Coen Brothers gangster movie Miller's Crossing. He is an Italian mob boss who wishes to kill bookie Bernie Bernbaum for betraying him and skimming off his winnings. This leads him to war with Liam "Leo" O'Bannon, the leader of the Irish mob and the top boss of the city. In order to get ahead, he hires Leo's former right-hand Tom Reagan to find Bernie, but only gets himself caught in a web of lies and deceit.
He was played by Jon Polito, who also played Ashcan in Homeward Bound II: Lost in San Francisco.
Personality[]
Caspar possesses a napoleon complex, making him hot-headed, rage-full, impulsive, vengeful, and stubborn gangster that shouldn't be crossed. Feeling a high sense of self-importance, he feels as though he should be respected for his position. Those who go against him and turn him down are immediately considered enemies which he has no problem disposing them via flunkies or himself. He especially hates it when someone talks over him, disrespects his authority and outright betrays him. When Leo forbids Caspar from killing Bernie, he spitefully tells him that he's "giving him the high hat" and goes to war with him. Prone to violence when things don't get his way, Casper is a loose cannon that even makes a level-headed gangster like Tom Reagan nervous.
However, another facet of his character is his belief in ethics and honor, especially when dealing with the members of his organization. Prone to monologuing about ethics and friendship, Caspar holds these truths to a high regard, unlike the other characters in the movie. The main reason he wanted Bernie Bernbaum dead was because he had betrayed Casper first and he wanted revenge. And he was willing to believe that Eddie Dane wouldn't betray him due to their connected history, before Reagan convinced him otherwise. And he was willing to pay back Reagan's debt to Lazarre as long as he joined with his organization. Unfortunately, his loyalty can also be seen as fatal, because he was blind to the fact that Tom was using him and planned to set him up. Caspar even killed his enforcer Dane, despite the fact that Dane correctly suspected that Reagan had spared Bernie. This proves that he's deeply paranoid and a bad judge of character when it comes to maintaining his empire.
He does seem to love his family however, shown to be playing with his son and listening to his wife. Despite smacking his son for interrupting his discussion with Reagan, he apologizes and attempts to comfort him as he cries. He does believe in being firm with his family however, just like his business associates. In the end, his blind trusting of Reagan and his impulsive decision-making manages to cost him his life.
Biography[]
Miller's Crossing[]
Having suspected that bookie Bernie Bernbaum has been skimming off of his fixed fights, he arranges a meeting with the resident boss of the city Liam "Leo" O'Bannon to discuss it. When he arrives, Caspar gets into a monologue concerning friendship, character and ethics. He then explains that Bernie had been skimming off of his money and wants to find him and kill him. Leo, currently engaged with Bernie's sister Verna, dismisses his request at the disapproval of his right-hand man Tom Reagan, who's ironically also sleeping with Verna. Caspar doesn't take it well and angrily declares that he's no "guinea" fresh off the boat and he declares war on Leo for his disrespect. As Caspar leaves, Leo mockingly says that Johnny is only as big as Leo lets him be, with Caspar warning him that he'll see.
Beginnings of the gang war.[]
With Leo using the police force and the mayor's office, he begins to crack down on Caspar's operations in order to get Caspar to stand down. However, this instead make Caspar turn to Tom Reagan for assistance. Having his two goons Frankie and Tic-Tac take Reagan to his warehouse, Caspar is talking with his wife about there son, Caspar compliments that he is eating too much. Then, he plays "Hide the Penny," with his boy continuing to pick the wrong hand as he gives up in annoyance. As his wife and son leave, Caspar arranges a deal with Tom to work for him in order to pay back Lazarre in return for helping to take down Leo. As Tom turns down the offer to join his side, Caspar then has some of his enforcers beat into him for refusing. After hitting Frankie with a chair and getting beaten up by Caspar's goons, the police arrive to break up the operation. Not long afterwards, Caspar orders a hit on Leo, which fails due to a fire alerting Leo of his assassins and killing them both. With no alternative, Tom reveals his affair to Leo to get him to see sense, only to be kicked out of Leo's organization.
Hiring Tom and ordering Bernie's death[]
Not long after Tom is kicked out, Caspar manages to take control of both the mayor and the police after Leo goes into hiding. When Tom returns asking for work, Caspar demands the whereabouts of Bernie, which Tom knows from Verna. He then sends Tom, Frankie and Tic-Tac to kidnap Bernie from the hotel to kill him at Miller's Crossing. Wanting to know if he can trust him, Caspar orders his henchmen to give Tom the gun to kill Bernie. However, out of love for Verna and pity for Bernie, Tom spares him and orders him to leave town. Not long afterwards, Caspar notices that someone is till profiting off of his fix, leading him to grow paranoid. Meanwhile, Eddie Dane is suspicious of Tom's behavior and begins to follow him. Discovering that Mink has gone missing, Tom decides to manipulate Caspar by saying that Bernie, Mink and Dane are all in on the fix. Refusing to believe that Dane would betray him, Caspar asks him to let him think on it and keep an eye out for Mink.
Bernie returns and Caspar's death[]
Unknown to Caspar, Bernie has returned and blackmailed Tom into killing Caspar to avoid karma, putting Tom in a complicated situation. Bernie has even killed Mink and placed him at the Crossing to cover up his survival. Caspar struggles to maintain his new position amidst rampant paranoia about who to trust. Realizing that he needs to play off both sides, Tom manages to sow doubt into Caspar about Dane's involvement. This greatly upsets Caspar and is still convinced about the Dane's loyalty. Wanting to hear the truth from Mink, Caspar continues asking to find him. Meanwhile, Tom calls Bernie and forces his hand, saying to meet him at his place with hush money or else. That night, he returns to Caspar and lies that Mink is at his place, hoping for either one to kill each other. Unfortunately, Eddie Dane is also there, having received a tip from a boxer on Bernie's payroll that Tom was at his apartment. Caspar watches as Dane beats up Tom, believing that he killed Mink. Forced to choose between the both of them, Caspar hits Eddie with a coal shovel and beats him bloody, calling him a "son of a b**ch". After nearly killing him, Tom calms him down and says that Mink is at his place. Wanting to kill Mink, Caspar agrees to go to the meeting place. However, Dane moans in pain, spurring Caspar to end it with a bullet to the head.
As Caspar arrives at Tom's house, he asks his driver to wait here while he goes and deals with it. Not long after he enters, Tom arrives and asks Caspar's driver to leave so that he can drive him home. As Tom nears his house, he hears gunshots and enters, telling a neighbor to call the police. As he walks up the stairs, he sees Caspar lying dead through the railing. Bernie had gotten the drop on Caspar and killed him first. However, Tom returns the favor by killing Bernie for his betrayal, effectively ending the conflict.
With both Bernie and Caspar dead, Leo resumes his position as the leader of the city through the mayor and police force. He yells at them for their betrayal behind closed doors. After Bernie's funeral and Verna leaving ahead of them, Leo asks Tom to return only to be rebuffed. Leo then leaves as Tom watches from behind.
Quotes[]
| “ | Johnny Caspar: Friends is a mental state. Wuddya say, kid? Tom Reagan: I'll think about it. |
„ |
| ~ Caspar and Tom Reagan negotiating before he orders his men to rough him up. |
| “ | I'm talkin' about friendship. I'm talkin' about character. I'm talkin' about - hell. Leo, I ain't embarrassed to use the word - I'm talkin' about ethics. | „ |
| ~ Caspar's first words in the film. |
| “ | It's gettin' so a businessman can't expect no return from a fixed fight. Now, if you can't trust a fix, what can you trust? For a good return, you gotta go bettin' on chance - and then you're back with anarchy, right back in the jungle. | „ |
| ~ Caspar explaining his problem to Leo. |
| “ | Tom Reagan : Then it's not just the money he's after. He's got a wart on his fanny. Johnny Caspar : Huh? Tom Reagan : He's got a wart. On his fanny. Giving him the fidgets. |
„ |
| ~ Caspar and Leo discussing The Dane. |
| “ | One thing I always try to teach my boys: always put one in the brain! | „ |
| ~ After killing Eddie Dane for "betraying" him. |
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- Jon Polito was originally offered the role of Eddie Dane but he campaigned for the part of Johnny Caspar.
- Jon Polito was only 39 years old when he played Johnny Caspar, the same age as Gabriel Byrne, despite the script implying Johnny is an older man than Tom (referring to him as "kid"). Polito claimed it helped his career going forward being thought of as an older character actor, having struggled to find his image as a young actor.