- "I know you think you're alone in this world, Lincoln. But you're not. And you never will be."
- — Sammy Robinson
Sammy Robinson is a main character in Mafia III, and mentioned in Mafia: Definitive Edition.
History[]
Sammy is the proprietor of Sammy's Bar and boss of the Black Mob in Delray Hollow. He is partnered with Sal Marcano, kicking up profits from operations like the Black Lottery to him.
Background[]
Sammy grew up with his sister Lily on a patch of land where their father worked as a sharecropper until he got hurt and could no longer work.[1] After moving to New Bordeaux, he settled in the all-black neighborhood of Delray Hollow. His proximity to Barclay Mills put him in contact with Enzo Conti, who ran the rackets there for Sal Marcano. The two became friends and spent much of their time together partying and chasing women.[2]
Family[]
Sammy met Perla after she moved to New Bordeaux in 1944.[3] The two were soon married and started a family when their son Ellis was born in January of 1946. When Saint Michelle's Orphanage closed its doors in 1958, they took in the orphaned Lincoln Clay and raised him as their own. Along the way Sammy opened Sammy's Bar and began running the Black Mob and its main source of income, the Black Lottery.
The Black Lottery[]
The Black Lottery was a numbers racket run by the Black Mob for Sal Marcano. They ran numbers on everything from the final price on the day's stock market to the serial numbers on someone's dollar bill. In essence, it was a tax on the poor and desperate people in Delray Hollow, who were often strong-armed into betting on it.[4] It took people's desire to better their situations with sudden riches and turned it into profits for the mob. The lottery proved very lucrative for Sammy, allowing him to live his somewhat lavish lifestyle compared to those around him.
Community Outreach[]
Sammy wasn't entirely corrupt though, as he used some of his wealth to better the local community. Sammy ran a benevolent society which helped the destitute of Delray Hollow pay their rent, go food shopping, or cover the cost of emergency medical services,[5] and he regularly donated food to the Warm Hearts Neighborhood Kitchen to help feed the needier families in the Hollow.
After the 1962 fire bombing by the Dixie Mafia destroyed the First Baptist Church, it sat abandoned for several years until Sammy announced plans to renovate it. However, such plans were slow to come to fruition due to lack of money and the plans suffered further setbacks in 1967 when Mr. Robinson needed to turn his attention to the recent Haitian attacks in the neighborhood.
Sammy also believed in the importance of black people owning private property and started Sammy's Bar at some point in his life. He also acquired a nightclub which his wife managed; correspondingly naming that Perla's in her honor. He also bought the plot of land where his father had worked and gifted that to his sister Lily. Perla worked alongside Sammy in his community outreach until she died in 1961.
The Haitian Problem[]
Despite all he had done in the community, Sammy was still a criminal, and there were those who didn't agree with the way he ran things or the control he had over the neighborhood. Working for the Marcano family meant he was allied with those responsible for most of their problems to begin with. One such group was the Haitian Mob. Sammy was perplexed why the Haitians would get so aggressive so quickly, but was revealed later when Baka was interrogated that they wanted Delray Hollow away from Marcano and they wanted it now. Because Sammy was willing to have some dealings with non-black gangs, in the world according to Baka that made him a "race traitor".
In the fall of 1967 they began robbing folks in the neighborhood, taking money, jewelry, and whatever else they could use to finance their operations. Soon after that, they began going after the Black Lottery, disrupting Sammy's main source of income. Before long, Sammy was broke and three months behind in his kickback to Marcano. When Lincoln, who recently returned from Vietnam, asked what is going on, Sammy says not to worry, for Marcano is aware of the Haitian harassment and extended credit to the Black Mob, instead ordering Lincoln to go help out at Warm Hearts. However, when the Haitians shoot up the soup kitchen, Sammy finally gives the full story to Lincoln. Sammy declares that such a despicable act is the final straw. He orders Lincoln and Ellis to assassinate Baka at the Haitians' hideout in Bayou Fantom.
The Heist[]
With the Haitian harassment stopped, Sammy turns his attention to being past due with the Marcanos. He agrees to assist Sal Marcano with the robbery of the Federal Reserve. Sammy had a man who worked at a cleaners that was able to steal the uniforms they needed to get access to the building on the night of the robbery. He had someone else who worked there as a janitor that provided them with a layout of the vault. Sammy also agreed to let his sons Ellis and Lincoln take part in the heist.
Sammy sent Lincoln to meet with Sal at his country club to discuss the plan, warning that Lincoln must do whatever Sal Marcano asks of him. At the meeting, Sal is so impressed with how Lincoln dealt with the Haitian problem that he tells Lincoln he wants him to run Delray Hollow and take over Sammy's position as boss. Although Sammy warned him to "do whatever Marcano wants", Lincoln knows he could never hurt his adoptive father. He replies that he will aid Marcano in the forthcoming heist, but he cannot turn against Sammy. Marcano responds with acceptance, and his son Giorgi says he is impressed with such a remark and how loyalty is like gold.
Betrayal and Death[]
The heist is a success, earning Sammy a little over two million dollars from his cut. This is more than enough to repay his debt to Sal and keep them all set for life. Sammy feels elated, knowing that this kind of money changes everything. It represents freedom - nobody will be standing over him or the Black Mob again.
As they celebrate their new wealth, Sal Marcano arrives with his son Giorgi and Ritchie Doucet to collect his cut of the money. After they all share a drink to their success, the Marcanos turn on them. Giorgi shoots Lincoln in the head, telling him he shouldn't have said no to his father's offer; Giorgi then turns his gun on Danny Burke. While Doucet stabs Ellis repeatedly, Sal Marcano shoots Sammy multiple times. Giorgi then sets fire to the bar as they leave with all of the money.
As the fire begins to spread, Father James happens to be nearby and enters the burning bar. He finds Lincoln barely clinging to life and gets him to safety, but tragically, Sammy, Ellis, and Danny are already dead. Soon after the fire, while Lincoln is still clinging to life in a coma at Saint Jerome's Catholic Church, Father James lays Sammy and Ellis to rest along with Perla in the Robinson family tomb at the Delray Hollow Cemetery.
Appearances[]
Mafia III[]
- The Home Fires Burn (Killed)
- Thicker Than Blood (Flashback)
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- While not explicitly stated, Sammy is most likely of Louisiana creole descent, judging by his accent and some of his lines spoken in French Creole.
- A mural of Perla, Sammy, and Ellis will be added to the wall of Sammy's Bar when Lincoln renovates it.
- Enzo Conti says that Sammy dated a woman who became a movie star prior to meeting Perla, but it was never revealed who.
- Sammy knew of the Ensanglante and warned Lincoln about them in his younger years. After Sammy died, Lincoln admits to Father James he did not take it seriously, figuring Sammy was telling ghost stories.
- Sammy is the only man featured on the Mafia: Definitive Edition Cigarette Cards who has no Italian heritage.