Rock Star. Celebrity. Politician. Vincent A. “Buddy” Cianci, former mayor of Providence was all three. If Mick Jagger was the first rock star, then Keith Richards defined what it meant to be one. For 21 years and two non-consecutive terms Buddy Cianci was that definitive rock star of politics, presiding over the longest-running lounge act in the American circuit. A brilliant legal and political mind, Buddy was a cultural outsider who conquered 34 years of democratic rule and took Providence by force. But, as with every success story, there is always a dark side and Buddy’s dark side was darker than most. The Buddy Cianci story isn’t merely the story of the rise and fall of a man, but the rise and fall of a man who rose again, only to fall faster and further than even he could imagine.