Talking to a fiery redhead is trouble. Talking to a fiery Russian redhead is big trouble. Talking to a fiery Russian redhead about her experiences with the mafia? Well, that's just a death wish. But I recently risked it all to talk to Elena Satine, the beautiful star of the Starz drama Magic City, about gangsters, and other topics including Hilary Clinton, prison rules, and gingers.
MARK SVARTZ: So it seems like gangsters are everywhere these days.
ELENA SATINE: Yeah. I think it's the allure of the dangerous, lawless man that everyone across the board finds appealing. Men have that childhood fantasy of being a badass. And women find those men so sexy.
MS: What's interesting is that at their core, gangsters are bad guys. They're murderers and thieves and criminals, but we still love them. But then you take a modern-day crook like Bernie Madoff, who simply stole money from other rich people, way less evil, and we despise him.
ES: It's funny how the ruthless, murderous gangster has really been romanticized by the media. I mean, I grew up watching the Godfathers and Scarface and they were the coolest. They're just really interesting stories with great characters. They're rock stars.
MS: It's true, we all want to be gangsters. Gangsters are KISS. Madoff is KISS's backstabbing attorney.
ES: Exactly. And there are also those gangsters like Tony Soprano who've got kids and a family who you could sorta relate to, and for the first time people are like, I kinda like this guy, but he does these bad things... I don't know how to feel.
MS: Do you think you could ever be a gangster?
ES: You know, I think I could totally be a gangster, but I could never be the kind of gangster that carries things out myself. I would have to be the kingpin that has my minions go and do the dirty bidding. I think I'd be pretty good at giving orders.
MS: I think you'd make an awesome kingpin. But isn't it weird that in all of history, there haven't really been any female gangsters?
ES: Hmm, yeah, you're right.
MS: I mean, sure there have been female criminals, like Bonnie from Bonnie and Clyde, but never really any mafia "Godmothers" or female-based gangs.
ES: Well, I guess in today's modern inner-city gangs you'll see women participating. But I think back in the day, women always had to follow and weren't allowed to do certain things. The world wasn't ready. But I think we'll definitely see female gangsters in the future.
MS: I hope so. I mean, women can be just as conniving and manipulative and vengeful as men.
ES: Even moreso! You don't want to get in the way of a woman who has her mind set on something.
MS: You know, this might just be the beginning of a new women's lib movement. Everyone's all hyped about Hillary Clinton becoming the first female president. I think the real sign of progress is when we get our first female mob boss.
ES: Totally. I can't wait 'til those big, bad, male mobsters have to answer to a woman.
Elena Satine in Magic City.
MS: So if you had to dispose of a body, where would you do it?
ES: It wouldn't be in America. Hmm, this makes my people look horrible, but I'd totally go Russia. Because the police department there doesn't have their sh*t together, so if a body turns up, they're not really looking to solve the crime. They're more like well, this guy probably had it coming.
MS: Yeah, you never hear of CSI: Russia.
ES: And I feel like I wouldn't stash it either. I wouldn't leave it in plain view, but you know, I wouldn't really go out of my way to hide it. 'Cause I feel like that raises suspicions. If you just leave it lying around, they'll assume it was natural causes or something.
MS: Totally. This guy must've gotten stabbed in the face of old age.
ES: [Laughs.] That's the best way to get away with it.
MS: This is definitely not the first time you've thought of this. Though I feel like personally, I would be a crappy gangster because so much of it is tied to your nickname. And since my last name rhymes with farts, it's a 100-percent guarantee that I'd be known as Farts Svartz and lose all credibility.
ES: [Laughs.] No one's gonna take that seriously! You're going to have to change your name.
MS: I'd be spending half my time killing people just to defend my gassy nickname.
ES: Well I've grown up with so many people mispronouncing my last name as Satan...
MS: Oh, you're freakin' set. You were born to be a gangster.
ES: I was born to be a gangster!
MS: "Teflon Don" and "Vinnie the Chin" ain't got nothing on "Satan."
ES: Who's gonna fk with Satan?
MS: I'm surprised you didn't jump straight into the Russian mob.
ES: [Laughs.] I mean, hey, I'm only 25. I've still got time. I'll get there. The truth is I'm only doing Magic City for research, so I can go back to my homeland and take my throne.
MS: So we both grew up in New York City. I actually lived in the Lower East Side for years, which is where all the old Jewish gangsters like Bugsy Siegel and Arnold Rothstein used to live. And it always struck me as odd that a culture so troubled with guilt would go into the crime business. I mean, I get nervous making an illegal U-turn.
ES: That's great. Y'know, I think back then it was all based on honor and respect. It's kind of like how it was with the Russian mafia growing up. They were men who only did bad things to other bad men. For example, there was this girl I used to go to school with. She was a beautiful girl from a well-respected family. A former Miss Sochi, which is the town I grew up in. And when she was seventeen, there was this guy who became obsessed with her, started stalking her. And she didn't want anything to do with him, so he poured acid all over her, destroyed this poor girl's face. And literally a week later, this guy was history. The powerful men in our town weren't going to let this go unpunished and they sent a message that this sh*t doesn't fly. That's when I'm okay with gangsters.
MS: What I find fascinating is that no matter how bad or evil people are, there's always a moral line that doesn't get crossed. It's like how in prisons full of the nastiest criminals on the planet, if you're a rapist or child molester, they'll kill you.
ES: I've heard of that, too. It's so interesting where bad people will draw the line. Certain things just shouldn't go unpunished.
MS: So there's the Russian mob, and the Italian mafia, and the Koreans. It seems like mobs are always based on nationality. I wonder why they're never built around other bonds, like a left-handed mafia.
ES: [Laughs.] I think these are things that go so far back, they're an institution.
MS: But if you had a gang of only lefties, you can save so much cash by only buying left-handed scissors and lefty brass knuckles.
ES: But you need the communities and heritage. You look at awful gangs these days who go out and mug and kill people — those aren't gangsters. They're scum. True gangsters use their power to look out for their community. It's that sense of family that gives them purpose.
MS: Well in that case, if there's any group that deserves its own mafia, it's redheads.
ES: Ginger mafia??!!
MS: Yup.
ES: There's gotta be some sort of ginger mafia out in Ireland or Scotland where they look at the rest of the world and are like, Fk you guys!
MS: They've been stepped on for thousands of years and it's time they defended themselves and their community.
ES: Maybe that should be my next move. Queen of the Ginger Mafia.
MS: Well, Satan was the original ginger. It only fits.
ES: Ha, and then they find out I'm not a natural ginger, and all hell breaks loose.
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Mark Svartz is an artist and creative director and author of the book I Hate You, Kelly Donahuehttp://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=esquiremag-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1440527547.
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