Who Was The Snitch That Brought Down Tommy in Goodfellas?

Can you believe Ray Liotta didn't win one single award for this movie? He carried the whole damn thing, he was incredible

In an interview, Henry Hill, when asked what he felt when he heard Tommy had been killed, said "Honestly, relieved." I believe there are at least two murders attributed to Tommy, of complete strangers, whom he killed simply because he wanted to try out a new gun he`d gotten.

The part where Karen witnessed the hosing of the car was way after the death of Batts. They dug up the body because they found out a construction project was about to happen where they buried him. The truth is that the Gambino family knew it was Tommy. The only reason they didn't kill Desimone right away was to avoid a feud. When Tommy let people see his face in the Lufthansa heist, he became a liability and Paul Vario gave Gotti the green light to take him out. It wasn't a shot to the head either. Gotti tortured DeSimone, according the Hill.

It is necessary to read Pileggi's book "Wiseguy: Life in a Mafia Family" to understand the unspoken and unseen facets of "the life" omitted from the movie. It is also helpful to remember that the movie is told from H. Hill's POV. He never commits a murder and he is always trying to be a peacemaker. For the movie it had to be that way. The real Henry Hill was NOT the dashing Ray Liotta.

Tommy was NEVER going to make it. He was just too wild and brash. If I remember correctly, in the book, it’s mentioned that someone in Tommy’s family (affiliated with his uncle I believe) was a rat and that’s why he was so desperate to prove himself and be a big bad gangster. He had a terminal case of “Cowboy-itis” as Tony Soprano would say.

Paulie was with Henry’s wife. Jimmy was with Henry’s mistress. No loyalty or honour.

I think it was Henry who unintentionally dropped the dime on Tommy. Before the Sunday dinner, when they were outside, Paulie asks Henry what he knows about "that thing." Henry plays dumb, but then says "nobody knows what happened to him (Batts) He came into the bar that night and then he just disappeared." What he should have said was "last time I saw him was at his coming home party." To use the word "disappeared" implies knowledge that Batts was never seen by anyone else after being in Henry's bar, arguing with Tommy. That's when Paulie figured it out.

Best line in a film full of great lines: “I’m gonna tell yaw-uh landlawd that in 2-R, ROSSI, you are a WHOO-UHH!!!”

Tommy was uncontrollable. It's amazing he wasn't whacked a lot sooner. It's inconceivable that he would ever have been made.

This was apparently what occurred in real life. GoodFellas doesn't really want to focus on it I can imagine because of time and portraying Karen as a victim being cheated on. To show that she cheated as well would merely highlight her hypocrisy and make Henry's affair less poignant in the story.

When I saw the movie I noticed that everyone treated the Bats murder as an "open secret" since everyone saw small guy in a fit of rage and openly saying "dont let him go out" to his buddy before storming off. So everyone knew that the last time Bats was seen was in the bar and he never got back home or called anyone after. For a mobster thats good enough to know who did it, they dont need trials, witnesses and evidence.

I knew Tommy Desimone from the 1970's. I wasn't his friend, but we shared drinks and laughs together at a bar. He was a fun guy and would have you laughing all night. The movie didn't show how drug addicted he was. I knew he was a street guy but underestimated his body count. Glad I didn't piss him off.

Tommy was a major liability for that crew, he would’ve got them all killed. Easy decision for Paulie.

Tommy didn't kill Billy Batts. Billy turned into a house named Phil Leotardo.

Great video. History Buffs does a great overview of the movie. Interesting enough, he suggests that Billy Bate's murder wasn't because of Tommy's anger (though that did happen, just that people kept tommy from attacking him) but that Jimmy took over some of Billy's businesses while he was away and now that Billy was out, he wanted them back. Jimmy didn't want to give them back, so it is suggested he was the one who organized the hit.

This is a ridiculous question. There was a guy from Billy Bat's crew there that night and saw the beef he had with Tommy. He even heard when Tommy said "keep him here".... When you see that and then Billy immediately goes missing its beyond obvious.

I think it was Pete the killer, just so he could walk into a bar and randomly say I took care that thing for ya

Tommy was entirely expendable. His only use was muscle, plus remember there were other Bats associates at the club that witnessed Tommy fly off the handle before he left. Wouldn't have taken Paulie too much to put two and two together after having a sit down with Bats' family. Like I said, Tommy could be cut loose. Henry and Jimmy, although not made members, were big earners for Paulie so were not as easily spared.

Grazie Consigliere. Watched this movie several times and is an all time favourite; now when I watch it again the story will be enriched by your excellent vid. Diolch yn fawr from Wales.

I think it was the aggregate total of transgressions by Tommy that got him whacked. He was wild and unpredictable. I don't think anyone necessarily ratted on him. I think they sort of put 2 & 2 together and decided it was time for Tommy to go. He was bad for business. Simple as that.