Brian Damage
12-20-2006, 05:32 PM
December 20, 2006 -- The son of the legendary late Giants owner Wellington Mara tackled and choked a fellow broker on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange yesterday after the man mocked the team, sources said.
Veteran floor trader Bob Tomasulo, a 57-year-old grandfather, was assaulted and barraged with obscenities in front of stunned co-workers after kidding with Stephen Mara about the Giants' embarrassing 36-22 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday, witnesses and Tomasulo told The Post.
"Mara started screaming, 'I'm gonna f- - -ing kill you! Don't f- - - around with my family! Don't insult my family!' " one broker said.
"Bob was like, 'Hey, what is your problem? It's just a game!' And Mara yells, 'No, it's not just a game, it's my f- - -ing family!' "
Tomasulo said the bizarre broker brouhaha broke out at around 10:30 a.m., after he walked past Mara and pretended to do a basketball jump shot, mocking the celebratory on-field routine performed by Big Blue players after touchdowns and sacks.
Tomasulo, an Eagle fan, said that he and Mara, 47, had enjoyed a friendly sports rivalry for years and that last week, the son of the former Giants owner kiddingly told him, "We're gonna kick your guys' you-know-what."
"I said, 'Yeah, probably,' " Tomasulo recalled.
"[Yesterday] morning, I just did that stupid little jump shot, and I said, 'Maybe you have a basketball team instead of a football team.'
"[Mara] just snapped. He charged me like an animal. He charged me like he wanted to sack me.
"At first, he got me in a bear hug and bent me over a trading post. At first, I thought it was a joke. Then he proceeded to choke me. I passed out for a minute."
A broker who witnessed the incident said, "When it was over, Mara walked back to his booth and was just kind of laughing it off."
Veteran floor trader Bob Tomasulo, a 57-year-old grandfather, was assaulted and barraged with obscenities in front of stunned co-workers after kidding with Stephen Mara about the Giants' embarrassing 36-22 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday, witnesses and Tomasulo told The Post.
"Mara started screaming, 'I'm gonna f- - -ing kill you! Don't f- - - around with my family! Don't insult my family!' " one broker said.
"Bob was like, 'Hey, what is your problem? It's just a game!' And Mara yells, 'No, it's not just a game, it's my f- - -ing family!' "
Tomasulo said the bizarre broker brouhaha broke out at around 10:30 a.m., after he walked past Mara and pretended to do a basketball jump shot, mocking the celebratory on-field routine performed by Big Blue players after touchdowns and sacks.
Tomasulo, an Eagle fan, said that he and Mara, 47, had enjoyed a friendly sports rivalry for years and that last week, the son of the former Giants owner kiddingly told him, "We're gonna kick your guys' you-know-what."
"I said, 'Yeah, probably,' " Tomasulo recalled.
"[Yesterday] morning, I just did that stupid little jump shot, and I said, 'Maybe you have a basketball team instead of a football team.'
"[Mara] just snapped. He charged me like an animal. He charged me like he wanted to sack me.
"At first, he got me in a bear hug and bent me over a trading post. At first, I thought it was a joke. Then he proceeded to choke me. I passed out for a minute."
A broker who witnessed the incident said, "When it was over, Mara walked back to his booth and was just kind of laughing it off."