Karen Friedman Hill: Truth about Henry Hill's ex-wife?

Karen Friedman Hill is the ex-wife of Henry Hill. Karen Friedman Hill’s ex-husband, Henry was an American gangster who was a member of the New York City Lucchese criminal family from 1955 until 1980, when he was arrested on drugs charges and became an FBI informant.

Karen Friedman Hill: Bio Summary

Full NameKaren Friedman Hill
Famous asHenry Hill’s ex-wife
Age76 years old as of 2022
Date of BirthJanuary 16, 1946
Place of BirthLouisville, Kentucky, USA
Zodiac signCapricorn
NationalityAmerican
EthnicityCaucasian
children Gina Hill, Gregg Hill
HusbandHenry Hill

Karen Friedman Hill (born January 16, 1946) is an American woman best known for her involvement in the American Mafia as a result of her marriage to Henry Hill, a Lucchese crime family associate. The events of their lives were portrayed in various novels and the 1990 film Goodfellas.

She was born in New York and raised in the Five Towns area of Long Island by Jewish parents. She grew up with her two sisters, Sandy, and Adrienne.

How did Karen Friedman Hill and her husband Henry Hills Meet?

Karen met Henry Hills, her future husband, in 1965 through Paul Vario, who insisted that Hill join his son for a double date at Villa Capra, Frank “Frankie the Wop” Manzo’s restaurant. The date, according to Karen Friedman Hill, was a disaster, and Hill dumped her at their next dinner date. Friedman was introduced to Hill’s superficially impressive lifestyle after the two began going on dates at the Copacabana and other nightclubs.

Later, the two love birds got married in a large and beautiful North Carolina wedding in the presence of their friends, family, and loved ones. Also in attendance was the majority of Henry Hill’s mob associates.

Karen Friedman Hill was mostly unaware of her husband’s unlawful mafia dealings with the Lucchese crime family at the start of their marriage. She mistook him for a bricklayer and a low-level union official based on lies he told her. After that, the seemingly regular couple began to construct a normal life and had children.

Karen and Henry Hill’s children

Karen Friedman Hill and her husband Henry Hills gave birth to two children. They raised their two children, Gregg & Gina, initially in New York and later in different locations including Nebraska, Washington, and Kentucky.  The children always knew their father did some shady work.

But little did the young ones, Gregg and Gina understand at that time, how their life is going to change because of their father’s association with the mafia.

Their mother Karen finally discovered her husband’s criminal activities, but she overcame any reservations she may have had at the time. In fact, she admitted to her daughter Gina that she was drawn to Henry by the glamor and glamour of the criminal lifestyle.

As Gina wrote in the On the Run: A Mafia Childhood, “One day she’s a dental assistant from a middle-class family on Long Island, and the next she’s sipping from a bottle of champagne that Sammy Davis Jr. sent to Dad’s table at the Copa.”

Wiseguy author Nicholas Pileggi spoke similarly of Karen Friedman Hill’s attraction to Henry:

“She tried to explain it to me. She said, ‘He could go places. He had money. He was an action guy. There I was, going out with little schmendricks. They were going to be accountants. If we were lucky, we’d go to Chinese food in the mall. With Henry, I would go to the Copa. And I would have a ringside table. And people always looked and me and thought, ‘Who is she?’”

In the meantime, Henry Hill’s ex-wife Karen Friedman Hills began consuming significant quantities of the cocaine that Henry was both using and selling. Karen and Henry, according to their children, Gregg and Gina, would have people over for wild, cocaine-fueled parties during which partygoers would have sex in public, use cocaine in Gina’s Miss Piggy mirror, and sometimes even offer the kids a snort.

Karen Friedman Hill’s party, however, was quickly coming to an end When Henry was sentenced to ten years in jail for extortion in 1974, Karen was left to fend for herself without the assistance of Henry’s gangster colleagues.

Henry Hills’ ex-wife later recalled, “I’ve read about how these guys take care of each other when they’re in jail, but I’ve never seen it in life. If they don’t have to help you, they won’t.”

Karen Friedman Hill rapidly realized that being neglected by her husband’s underworld associates was not the worst thing that could happen to her. According to Henry’s memoir Gangsters and Goodfellas, Tommy DeSimone one of Hill’s friends and associates allegedly beat up and attempted to rape Karen when he was in prison. Henry provided little information concerning the allegation, claiming that he didn’t learn about it until much later.

Karen Friedman Hill, on the other hand, was having an affair with Paul Vario while her husband Henry was in prison. And DeSimone’s attempted rape did not sit well with Vario. The attempted rape and several other unauthorized murders carried out by DeSimone, caused Vario to have him killed in 1979.

Henry was arrested for narcotics trafficking. Karen’s role in the operation is questionable, although she did, at the very least, assist Henry in hiding cocaine from the cops, as depicted in the film.

When Karen Friedman Hill’s husband Henry Hill was apprehended, he only had three options. The first was going to jail and very likely being killed. The only other choice was to return to the street and die. The third alternative was to turn informant and cooperate with the authorities. He chose the only reasonable course of action and volunteered to testify against his associates.

When Henry became a police informant, his family was placed in witness protection. Gregg was 13 years old at the time, while Gina was just 11 years old. They were too young to comprehend what was taking place. All they were informed was that they would never see their friends or return to their home.

In 2004, Karen Friedman Hill and Henry Hill’s children Gregg and Gina published a book titled On the Run: A Mafia Childhood, which gives readers an insight into the family’s lives. The book also details their involvement with the mafia and how they spent their childhood. They and their mother were given new identities as part of the witness protection program, and their lives were constantly in danger. Like nomads, they moved from place to place, inventing new names and making new companions. The kids often felt like they were on the run from the mafia. Gregg and Gina also discuss how Karen’s parents and two younger sisters, Adrianne and Sandy, assisted with their care in the book.

Karen Friedman Hill and Henry Hill separated in 1989 but weren’t officially divorced until 2002. In the meantime, both made separate lives for themselves outside of the Witness Protection Program and never did suffer retribution for Henry’s testimony.

Karen Friedman Hill now

Karen Friedman Hill has remained out of the limelight since the family came out of the Witness Protection Program. As of today continues to use an alias to protect her identity, as do her two children, Gregg and Gina.

Henry, on the other hand, who’d bounced around across the U.S. and ultimately landed in southern California, died of complications related to heart disease at the age of 69 in 2012.

Karen Friedman Hill net worth

Much is not known about the net worth of Friedman Hill as her total earnings have not been published anywhere. According to Networth Idol, Karen’s husband Henry had a net worth of $150 Million

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