The Harlem Plug: The Richard 'Fritz' Simmons Story

"To have once been a criminal is no disgrace. To remain a criminal is the disgrace." MALCOLM X

In Harlem's tumultuous history, there are many tragedies. For those growing up in this part of New York City, a young man known simply as Fritz from West 112th Street became an urban legend in Harlem.

In the 1970s, Richard "Fritz" Simmons is introduced to the drug trade, by an associate of the Lucchese crime family, one of the five families of La Cosa Nostra (the Mafia). After negotiating a deal with the Medellín Cartel, Fritz becomes New York's Cocaine Consignment King. The lucrative deal unlocks a lavish lifestyle with more money than Fritz's family and Harlem could've imagined. Now, distributing kilos of cocaine on a kingpin level to many well-known Harlem heavyweights, Fritz employs hundreds throughout the five boroughs of New York City and neighboring states. Fritz further extends his generosity in ways few from the community had ever seen. Fritz reigns supreme for over a decade in the drug game, making millions under the radar of the NYPD and he never got busted. Some look at Fritz as the Keyser Soze of the 80s. The most enigmatic drug dealer of that time.

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HARLEM HOLIDAY brings her readers the inside scoop after almost three decades of silence, speculation, and secrecy. This biography is the in-depth story of Fritz never before told; the tale of how a lowly street hustler rises to orchestrate a one-man-syndicate. It's an account of events, as told by Fritz's family and closest friends, and details gathered from newspaper clippings, magazine articles, court transcripts, and social media. Fritz's truth, joy, and despair are fully disclosed, while circumstances surrounding his death still remain a mystery.

About the Author
Holiday, Harlem: - Harlem Holiday was born and raised in Harlem. She spent some time in the Highbridge section of the Bronx and found her Prince Charming in Brooklyn, where they courted and married a year later on Valentine's Day. She has been writing for over thirty-years short stories and poetry, that she shared with family and her close friends. She went to Gotham Writers' Workshop to enhance her story writing skills. She attended an HBCU, Lincoln University in Pennsylvania where she pledged Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, and briefly attended the New School where she studied film and screenwriting. On June 2, 1999, she graduated with a B.A. in Communications, Film, and Video from The City College of New York, and where she was honored for Outstanding Leadership and Services as a Peer Academic Advisor, and the recipient of the university's Civil City Project Award 1st Prize, for her poem, The Melting Pot. Harlem Holiday learned early on in her writing journey that authors of color often have to work harder to get published. She also learned the importance of finding quality editors, graphic designers with exceptional visions to create book covers that sell, and powerful promotional book campaigns that attract a targeted market. As a result, she has come to understand that a writer not only must have the passion to write but a certain ability to grasp the business of writing. Through Harlem Holiday's trial and error experiences, she desires to bring not only quality books but also affordable publishing services for anyone serious about investing in the art of self-publishing. ​ Harlem Holiday founded HARLEM WESTSIDE PUBLISHING LLC in 2019, to provide exceptional publishing services and great literature: fiction, nonfiction, young adult, and children books that focus on issues and themes related to people of color.