Locals Recall Goodfellas' Henry Hill's Visit to City's Old Mob Hangout

"Oh, I've been here before," said Henry Hill upon entering in Middletown this past May, referencing the days when Wild Bill's was Club Vasques, a popular Mafia hangout in the 1940s and '50s.

Yes, that Henry Hill. The Hill who gained notoriety as a mobster-turned-FBI-informant when his life was chronicled in the book, Wiseguy, by crime reporter Nicholas Pileggi. In 1990, the book was adapted into the Martin Scorsese film, Goodfellas.

He died June 12 at the age of 69 and repercussions were felt as far away as (or in this case, as close as) Middletown.

Hill stopped by Bill Ziegler's shop on May 4 to check out the progress of his newest creation, a massive walk-through fun house, construction of which you may have seen driving by on Newfield Street.

There he met many of his Middletown friends, including filmmaker Joe McCarthy and filmmaker, actor and owner of nightclub David Gere.

McCarthy is working on a documentary of Wild Bill's, "Dark Ride Paradise," and Gere just wrapped up filming of the locally filmed sci-fi independent feature film, "."

When Gere talks about Hill, especially their last time together last month, it's with a tenderness and understanding that reveals how more more there was to the pop culture legend — he was a dear friend and mentor.

"We also took a ride around town together," Gere said. "He loved people, but it was apparent that after an appearance or being around a crowd, Henry loved going for a drive to listen to music and unwind. He loved music, and not just the old stuff — he was friends with Dave Grohl from the Foo Fighters, and he called Henry when we were hanging out.

"It was incredible to see how many entertainment industry contacts he had because so many people reached out to him because of Goodfellas. He was really behind my pursuit of being an actor and filmmaker, and gave me a lot of valuable advice."

Gere said Hill seemed to go out of his way to help his friends by sharing his expertise in the industry with fledgling actors, filmmakers and artists.

"Henry was a smart networker, later in his life. He loved to put like-minded people especially in the industry together. He did that for me. I think that it was his way of correcting past mistakes and supporting the dreams of others.

"We had long discussions about art, as he was a painter, he loved coming to the Shadow Room because it's an art gallery also, and we showed his work last year. He always said he could never get past the darker images of his earlier life in his art. I think he did these types of pieces so he could keep it all there, away from what had grown into a softer and warm heart.

Even with three decades between them, Gere and Hill were close.

"Henry had a great laugh and he loved to just hang out," Gere said. "He had definitely slowed down over the past year. I remember walking him up a flight of steps to his hotel room. He had to stop midway. He just leaned into me, and I held him up for a moment. Then he started up again. I knew he was having health issues, but he tried to show a strong front.

"He loved to tell stories and listen. But sometimes he was a million miles away, and I'd ask him if he was OK, and he'd always just say, 'I'm cool kid...'"

Hill and Ziegler had planned a book signing and screening of Goodfellas in July. Ziegler, who met Hill years ago through his girlfriend, Lisa, said his friend, "looked a little tired. Lisa said his health was not good. She had an inkling he wasn't doing very well," Ziegler recalled.

Hill smoked an awful lot and drank liberally as well. Ziegler remembers Hill asked to borrow a corkscrew that day in May and went out back in his car to drink a half-gallon of wine. At 1 p.m.

Lisa Schinelli Caserta, who hails from Newington, met Ziegler when her mother owned a store called the Doll Factory on the Berlin Turnpike. "She was in town one day and stopped by and had Henry with her."

Hill was thrilled to return to Wild Bill's, which in its former incarnation was a nightclub that hosted none other than Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett, Ziegler said. "Frank played here in 1948 several times," and Bennett, whom Ziegler met once at a show in Las Vegas, told him, "'I was performing the day the IRS took the cash register and locked the doors,'" Ziegler recalled. "That was the end of the show."

"'I really love this place,'" Hill said May 4. "'I'll be back in July. It'll be a lot of fun,'" Ziegler said.

"He spent part of that week in May with me," Gere said. "We were developing a script that I was pulling together on his early years. He really was into the film industry, and wanted to have another chapter told, but a darker one, not what will be depicted on the new AMC show."

And Hill enjoyed meals at two of Middletown's favorite restaurants.

"We ate dinner at , and , and he was very reflective during that visit. I was pulling together the shoot I just did with the wrestler Tommy Dreamer and we all ate together. It was remarkable to see how Henry could gel with anyone," Gere said.

"I talked to Lisa yesterday," Ziegler said. "She's coming up in August for a Mobster Fest on the property with a full cast of 'Sopranos' lookalikes."

Hill owned the car from the Goodfellas movie, Ziegler said, and Lisa plans on bringing it down with a bunch of his old friends later this summer.

Before Hill left, Ziegler remembers him saying, "'Let's have a fun time.'"

"He wanted to do stuff," Ziegler said, "He was a friend."

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