Did comic's dad have mob links?

Jerry Seinfeld's bar mitzvah was paid for by the mob, a new book claims.

The unauthorised biography of the comedy star claims his father Kal was friends with Mafia godfather Carlo Gambino,

They were neighbours in Long Island and were 'poker-playing buddies', author Jerry Oppenheimer claims in Seinfeld: The Unauthorised Biography.

He claims Gambino regularly gave the young Jerry "gleaming silver dollars" and donated an 'eye-popping" cheque to pay for his Jewish coming-of-age ceremony.

The friendship also help Kal in his own business ventures.

"Kal Seinfeld would mention to debtors that he was playing poker with Gambino that evening," the biographer told MSNBC. "It was a bulletproof way to get deadbeat debtors to pay their bills."

Seinfeld refuses to comment on specific allegations in the book - including that he dabbled in Scientology.

But he issued a general statement through his publicist saying: "This is an unauthorized biography written by a tabloid writer formerly employed by the National Enquirer. Its credibility is self-explanatory."

Published: 22 Jul 2002