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1-18 of 18
- Organized-crime boss Joe Adonis was born Giuseppe Antonio Doto in the small town of Montemarano, Italy, near Naples. In 1915 he sneaked aboard an ocean liner docked in Naples on its way to the US. He hopped off in Brooklyn, where he had relatives (his cousin was a Vito Genovese family capo named Alan Bono). Adonis soon hooked up with a gang of street toughs who would later become major mob leaders, including Lucky Luciano. Adonis and Luciano formed a strong bond, and in the early 1920s the two borrowed money from fellow gangsters to start their own bootlegging racket. The operation was quite successful, especially in the theater district on and around Broadway, and Adonis soon began associating with some of the theatrical district's most prominent actors, writers and producers. Known to be excessively vain, he soon changed his name from Giuseppe Doto to Joe Adonis, supposedly after the Greek god of love. He became an enforcer for gang boss Frankie Yale and his partner Lucky Luciano became a hitman for Brooklyn mob boss Giuseppe Masseria. When Yale was murdered, Masseria took over his rackets. This soon led to an internecine bloodbath known as the Castellamarese War, with Masseria's gang pitted against that of Salvatore Maranzano. Luciano and Adonis fought on the side of their boss Masseria, but when the tide starting turning against the gang leader, Luciano held secret talks with Maranzano about switching sides. When he did, Adonis went with him. In April of 1931 Adonis, Bugsy Siegel, Genovese and Albert Anastasia approached Masseria in a restaurant in Coney Island and opened fire, killing him instantly.
Maranzano now headed the strongest Italian gang in the city, and organized the other Italian gangs into "families" with himself as the top boss. Luciano and his allies quickly chafed under Maranzano's rule, however, and when Luciano learned that the somewhat paranoid Maranzano had secretly ordered his murder, he decided to return the favor. On 9/10/1931, several of his gunmen burst into Maranano's Manhattan office and shot him dead.
Luciano now was the "top dog" among the Italian gangs, and revamped Masseria's organization into a national crime syndicate (sometimes called The Commission, The Outfit or The Organization), and, as a reward for helping kill Masseria gave Adonis a seat on the syndicate's "board of directors". His territory now encompassed the prime Broadway and midtown Manhattan areas, and in addition to his bootlegging and gambling rackets he began buying legitimate businesses. He also began acquiring a "stable" of politicians and police officers on his payroll, which he used to protect his rackets and those of his friends and associates, especially Luciano.
However, Adonis' and especially Luciano's power and influence did not go unnoticed by state authorities. Thomas E. Dewey, then a state prosecutor and later New York governor set his sights on Luciano, and in 1936 obtained a conviction on pandering and pimping charges against Luciano that earned him a 30-year sentence. The imprisoned mob boss left Adonis in charge of the Syndicate, with Frank Costello in charge of Luciano's family. In 1946 Luciano, in exchange for his helping the US government during World War II, was released from prison and deported to Italy. He sneaked out of Italy to meet in Havana, Cuba, with Adonis and other gang leaders. Unfortunately for him, US authorities found out about the meeting and "persuaded" the Cuban government to throw Luciano out of the country and send him back to Italy. The government also had its eye on Adonis, and when it arrested Abe Reles, a killer for the mob's enforcement arm called Murder Inc., it persuaded him to give them a wealth of information on Adonis' association with the outfit, although not enough to obtain an indictment against him (Reles couldn't testify, either, having "jumped" out of the window of a hotel room in which a half-dozen police officers were "protecting" him).
During the famous televised 1950 US Senate Kefauver Commission organized-crime hearings chaired by Sen. Estes Kefauver, Adonis, under subpoena, was forced to appear for questioning but refused to testify, repeatedly invoking his Fifth Amendment privileges against self-incrimination. In 1951 he was indicted on and pleaded guilty to charges of running illegal gambling activities and was sentenced to two years in a New York state prison. When he got out in 1953 a court declared him an illegal alien and ordered him deported to Italy. He fought the order in court, but in 1956 finally lost the battle and was deported. Although both Adonis and Luciano were now living in Italy, reportedly the two never communicated or saw each other until after Luciano died in 1962, at which time Adonis attended his funeral.
In 1971, during an anti-Mafia operation, Italian police took in Adonis for questioning. As he was being interrogated he suffered a massive heart attack and died on 11/26/1971. Although the US government had declared that he wasn't a citizen, his body was flown back to the US and he was buried in a cemetery at Fort Lee, NJ. - Guglielmo Barnabò was born on 11 May 1888 in Ancona, Marche, Italy. He was an actor, known for Figaro qua, Figaro là (1950), Miracle in Milan (1951) and Be Seeing You, Father (1948). He was married to Vittorina Benvenuti. He died on 31 May 1954 in Ancona, Marche, Italy.
- Writer
- Actress
Anna Bonacci was born on 28 November 1892 in Rome, Lazio, Italy. She was a writer and actress, known for Kiss Me, Stupid (1964), Wife for a Night (1952) and The Contessa's Secret (1954). She died on 27 July 1981 in Ancona, Marche, Italy.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Tony Del Monaco was born on 27 December 1935 in Sulmona, Abruzzo, Italy. He was an actor, known for Crazy Desire (1962), Destination Fury (1961) and Peggio per me... meglio per te (1968). He died on 27 May 1993 in Ancona, Marche, Italy.- Silvana Blasi was born on 29 September 1931 in Ancona, Marche, Italy. She was an actress, known for Bed & Board (1970), Totò a colori (1952) and Bertoldo, Bertoldino e Cacasenno (1954). She was married to Francis Linel. She died on 13 May 2017 in Ancona, Marche, Italy.
- Paolo Volponi was born on 6 February 1924 in Urbino, Marche, Italy. He was an actor, known for Mamma Roma (1962), Due pezzi di pane (1979) and Io e... (1972). He was married to Giovina Jannello. He died on 23 August 1994 in Ancona, Marche, Italy.
- Vittorina Benvenuti was born on 11 June 1884 in Alessandria, Piedmont, Italy. She was an actress, known for I Have Lost My Husband (1937), Principessina (1943) and La bocca sulla strada (1941). She was married to Guglielmo Barnabò. She died on 6 May 1965 in Ancona, Marche, Italy.
- Director
- Producer
- Writer
Franco Enriquez was born on 20 November 1927 in Florence, Tuscany, Italy. Franco was a director and producer, known for Otello (1958), Resurrezione (1965) and La foresta pietrificata (1959). Franco was married to Carla Nani Mocenigo. Franco died on 30 August 1980 in Ancona, Marche, Italy.- Tonino Carino was born on 31 July 1944 in Offida, Marche, Italy. He died on 8 March 2010 in Ancona, Marche, Italy.
- Scilla Ricci was an actress, known for The Medicine Seller (2013), Ulna e Ragno (1999) and Bac blu (1998). She died on 21 December 2016 in Ancona, Marche, Italy.
- Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Sergio Emmanuele Anastasio was born on 14 June 1930 in Ancona, Marche, Italy. He was an assistant director. He died on 23 February 2016 in Ancona, Marche, Italy.- Maurizio Liverani was born on 27 November 1928 in Rovereto, Trentino-Alto Adige, Italy. He was a director and writer, known for Sai cosa faceva Stalin alle donne? (1969) and Il solco di pesca (1976). He was married to Chiara Diamantini . He died on 10 February 2021 in Senigallia, Marche, Ancona, Italy.
- Roberto Cimetta was an actor, known for The Last Three Days (1977). He died on 23 September 1988 in Ancona, Marche, Italy.
- Additional Crew
S. Charles Einfeld was born on 25 October 1901 in New York City, New York, USA. S. Charles died on 27 December 1974 in Ancona, Marche, Italy.- Music Department
J.B. Borghi was born on 25 August 1738 in Camerino, Macerata, Italy. J.B. is known for Anna (1987). J.B. died on 22 February 1796 in Loreto, Ancona, Italy.- Art Department
Valeriano Trubbiani was born on 2 December 1937 in Macerata, Marche, Italy. He is known for The Ship Sails On (1983) and Parola e gesto di scultore (2015). He died on 30 August 2020 in Ancona, Marche, Italy.- Gianni Mura was born on 9 October 1945 in Milan, Lombardy, Italy. He was married to Paola Gius. He died on 21 March 2020 in Senigallia, Marche, Ancona, Italy.
- Giorgio Merighi was born on 20 February 1939 in Ferrara, Emilia-Romagna, Italy. He was an actor, known for Simon Boccanegra (1976), Gala Performance (1963) and Prestige de la musique (1963). He was married to Elena Cervigni. He died on 12 January 2020 in Jesi, Ancona, Italy.