At Wednesday night's screening of "Buddy" in Salomon 101, the crowd was composed mostly of local residents who were sympathetic to the former mayor. To this day, Vincent Cianci Jr. is revered as a legend in Providence, despite the seemingly appropriate mourning period having long passed.
It's almost like he isn't currently serving a 64-month prison term for racketeering conspiracy.
Cianci's staying power in the minds of Providence citizens is puzzling. He has been forced to resign from office twice (he pleaded no contest to felony assault in 1984), yet 38 percent of the respondents to a poll cited in the film say they would vote for Cianci if he were let out of prison and ran for mayor today.
So how has Cianci remained relevant while he's doing time? Sure, he gave Providence the facelift it desperately needed. He even literally moved and unearthed a river - or at least was able to secure the funds to do so. He is credited with turning the "armpit of New England" into "the Renaissance City." Providence got a much-needed self-confidence boost with him as its mayor.
However, it was essentially a fresh coat of paint on a car that had worse problems under the hood. City Hall ran on a system of kickbacks and payoffs under Cianci. Operation Plunder Dome unearthed a full criminal operation running through Cianci's office.
In the end, it was his charisma that carried Buddy to legendary status. Cianci was the politician that everyone wants to have working for him. He got enough results to assuage anyone's fears that he was ineffective and used his charm to fill in the rest. Heck, his name was "Buddy" - he wasn't your mayor, he was your pal. Who cares if he was giving no-bid contracts if the streets were getting plowed? He made Providence a place that people could say they were from and get comments about their wacky mayor, not about how awful the city was.
He's not the only politician who has built a legacy on a strong personality. FDR made the leap from president to American legend based in part on his fireside chats during the Great Depression and at the start of World War II. Republicans are baffled by Bill Clinton's popularity to this day; likewise, Democrats are baffled by George W. Bush's popularity in red states. But perhaps these partisans shouldn't be puzzled. One need only look to the flourishing Cult of Buddy to realize that Americans are willing to forgive almost any failing - even rampant corruption and cronyism - if they're captivated by the man responsible.
