And unless you knew otherwise, you would not have imagined that the bronze coffin borne up the steps contained the mortal remains of New Yorks last bigtime Mafia boss. Sonny Franzese (left) with famous boxer Rocky Graziano (center). Still do. . [10][5][4] He was arrested with nine other people on April 13, 1966,[11] and during his trial, the prosecution produced records that claimed that Franzese had killed between 30 and 50 people. John "Sonny" Franzese reportedly committed his first murder at the age of fourteen. She closed by reading a note her Sonny Grandpa had written to her. In 1970, when Franzese was 10 years old, his father began serving a 50-year sentence for conspiring to rob banks. By one account, Franzese became a full-fledged made member of the Mafia at 14, the same year Al Capone went to prison, two years before the end of Prohibition forced organized crime to find primary sources of income other than bootlegging. Sonny was tough as nails. The mourners laughed as they had at the line about taxes, making it two laughs more than at your basic old school mob boss funeral. Sonny was always nattily dressed and knew full well that reporters would describe his wardrobe in detail, his cashmere coats included: In those days, cashmere was expensive.. In a frail voice, Mr Masters can be heard on the recordings saying: The night before she died, the last time I saw her, was in Lake Tahoe at the Cal-Neva Lodge. Over the years, Franzese has listed his legitimate job as a tailor, baker and seller. He would be the last guy I thought would do that. But one of the actual bank robbers took the stand to say Franzese had overseen the heists. On June 23, 2017, Franzese was released and returned home. [20], Franzese's son, John Franzese Jr. became a government informant. Theres, there is no question about it.. Shell listen to me. He dressed like the gangsters of lore and was seen in the company of Marilyn Monroe and Jayne Mansfield. Now 102 years old, John (Sonny) Franzese, the longtime underboss of the Colombo crime family, is the epitome of the old-style crime chieftain. It has been documented that Monroe was at Sinatras lodge two weekends before her death, but now it appears that she was called back for a one-to-one chat with Giancana, a friend of Sinatra. Indonesia Franzese was sentenced to an indeterminate term with a maximum of 50 years, which essentially meant he could get out if he decided to cooperate with the government. John Sonny Franzese, center, is escorted to the Elizabeth Street police station in New York after his arrest on a 43-count gambling indictment. To Sonny, that was tantamount to throwing down the gauntlet. Wikimedia CommonsSonny Franzese (left) with famous boxer Rocky Graziano (center). Franzese told Fatato:[18]. But he said he manages to do 40 squats every morning and tries to walk as much as possible. I wouldnt talk to him. That I promise.. To avoid having a scandal surrounding having a child out of wedlock, Capobianco married Frank Grillo. [34] While married, John had gotten Cristina Capobianco, a 16-year-old cigarette girl at the Stork Club in Manhattan, pregnant with his son Michael Franzese. Over the years, Franzese listed his legitimate work as a tailor, a baker and a salesman. I dont know what happened to him. Sonny Franzese, pictured at age 100, was in prison for much of the latter part of his life. And you saved my parish and I want to thank you for that.. You asked the question the wrong way, Franzese replied. I was ashamed. I knew them all, he said. You had to remember it without writing anything down.. John Franzese as a free man in 2018. Franzese is said to have run a craps game and to have gone into loan sharking. I wasnt a guy that was afraid, you know, he said. Down in the darkened arena, a very different personal drama was playing out. Jun 23, 2017 at 11:31 pm. Her very personal tribute to the president shocked many of the fifteen thousand people in the audience. And I got in her, her drawers. Upon reflection, what he meant was that everyone in any work situation was ultimately always going to put themselves first, even if subconsciously. Franzese was 21 when he was arrested for the first time on charges of assault in 1938. He was 103 years old. [39], Franzese died in a New York City hospital, on February 24, 2020, aged 103. From breaking news to special features and documentaries, the NewsdayTV team is covering the issues that matter to you. [24] He is the first son of a New York mobster to turn state's evidence and testify against his father. Calling himself a die-hard American, he said, I was a good soldier.. He loved his children. In college you couldnt bring a phone book with you, Maurice noted, saying Franzese could remember a thousand different phone numbers., He would rattle off these phone numbers, rattle off these names, tell you what to do, Maurice recalled. How the Bounty Mutineers Found Their New Home on a Secret Pacific Island, Jeffery Deaver's Guide to Writing Page-Turning Fiction, Seven Crime Novels Centered Around Musicians Out in 2023, An Author's Guide to Stealing from the Books You Love, The Many Levels of Mystery: Whodunnit? to Whydunnit? and Beyond, The Literary Film and TV You Need to Stream in March, Tracey Rose Peyton: Exploring Six Stories of Motherhood for Enslaved Women, The Day Explorers Finally Found One of the Worlds Great Lost Shipwrecks, What If? A gunman suddenly appeared and took it. His first arrest came in 1938, for assault. The once-feared mobster was the Colombo crime family's second in command and died on February 20 of natural causes at a nursing home in upstate New York. Linked by law enforcement to multimillion-dollar bookmaking, loan sharking and extortion rackets and caught on tape alluding to multiple murders he claimed to have committed, he remained mute through more than 35 years behind bars as mob boss after mob boss violated the mobscode of silence in exchange for lighter prison sentences. In 1966, he was charged with murdering a rival gangster and dumping the body into a bay after chaining cement blocks to the victims feet. Some of their shared friends were put off by Sinatras arrogance. It was a free-for-all, Sonny recalled. [29][30][31][28], Franzese is listed as an associate producer of the 2003 film This Thing of Ours, which starred James Caan. By turns avuncular and crude, he answered questions about his extraordinary life. He could be heard saying on one tape that he had committed numerous murders, but he was acquitted the only time he was ever charged with homicide. "Listen, it broke my heart. But he did it.. Get the day's top news with our Today's Headlines newsletter, sent every weekday morning. NEW YORK Legendary Colombo family capo John "Sonny" Franzese, who rubbed elbows with Frank Sinatra and Marilyn Monroe before a bank robbery rap eventually made him the nation's oldest. McShane writes for the New York Daily News. He hung out with Sinatra and fellow Rat Pack member Sammy Davis Jr. at the legendary Copacabana nightclub in New York. The renowned tough guy spent his time in prison without ever igniting his mafia comrades following a 1967 conviction that was widely considered an organized crime both internally and externally. Notorious Colombo crime underboss John 'Sonny' Franzese Sr - known as 'The Nodfather' for falling asleep during one of his trials - has died at the age of 103. That advice was accompanied by a warning. China And he gloated over his own Oceans 11-style celebrity. Hoffa was buried somewhere very wet and deep, out of New York and Jersey. I wouldnt put a dog in a jail pod., John (Sonny)Franzeseis helped into his daughter's Brooklyn home by family members in June 2017. Credit: Craig Ruttle. At 100 years old, mobster John (Sonny) Franzese the oldest inmate in the federal prison system was released Friday from a Massachusetts . the news A new account claims she spent the night before her death at his retreat in Lake Tahoe She flew home to Los Angeles early the following. She died in 2012. The bottom line, he said: I never hurt nobody that was innocent.. That man can do jail time standing on his head.. Did a lot of time. What the hell are you doing? Maybe all the drugs he took. vaccine On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. On a side note sonny is so old, looking at the era he came up in he mustve seen it all, stories would be insane to listen to. 09:25 GMT 28 Apr 2011 The granddaughter had arranged for a gospel group headed by a singer/piano player known on Instagram as The Black Franz Liszt to perform at the funeral. More posturing followed, and Jayne tried to gentle Sonny, telling him not to get too excited. One night while the singer was performing onstage, Sonny struck up a conversation with her. Johnny got up, but couldnt help but protest: Sonny, youre too much. Al then lived in Miami after Alcatraz with his mind gone. In 1931, Franzese was straightened out, or inducted into the mob, when he was just 14, his son John said. Your goal in life is to succeed.. He beat a life sentence. The Rat Pack? Customers came to see the glittering roster of performers onstage, but were just as thrilled when they spotted celebrities, and mobsters, in the audience. Her boyfriend was not far away on stage, but Sonny was not at all concerned. Legendary Colombo family capo John (Sonny) Franzese, who rubbed elbows with Frank Sinatra and Marilyn Monroe before a bank robbery rap eventually made him the nation's oldest federal. Once asked if he knew Sinatra, the gangster was quick to turn around the question: You asked the question the wrong way. He lived to be 103 years old. Both the grandson and the granddaughter recalled Sonny Grandpa saying that you have to listen to gospel music. I couldnt get a [liquor] license., Asked why he couldnt get a license, he said, smiling, I was a bad guy.. Email Or Call (888) 847-9869. She had once asked him how he managed not to imbibe and still fit in during his days as a man about town at nightclubs with the real lookers., He said the waiters only put just enough white wine in the seltzer so others would think he was drinking, she remembered. 82.4k. He cared about his money and was particularly entrepreneurial in infiltrating legitimate businesses. A reminder of the life the elder Franzese had lived came with a eulogy by a man who introduced himself as Maurice, an unofficial adopted son and proprietor of Cinema World Studios in Brooklyn. [4], In 1967, Franzese gained a financial interest in a new recording company, Buddah Records. . If youre smart, Sonny told me, you can avoid some of those taxes, Cassato said, drawing laughter even from those who appeared to be feeling the loss most keenly. Rupolo was shot and stabbed several times before his feet were attached to two concrete blocks and his hands tied before being dumped into Jamaica Bay. In the 1950s and 1960s, Franzese listed his official occupation as an owner of a dry-cleaning store in Brooklyn. Death and. During a break in the proceedings, the elder Franzese rolled into the mens room in a wheelchair. The charges wereand continue to bewidely viewed as false. [26] Prosecutors had asked for a sentence of 12 years, while Franzese's lawyer asked for leniency based on a variety of ailments, including partial blindness and deafness, gout, and heart and kidney problems. The cassette tapes were found by his nephew, Jeff Platts, and have now been made public. In 1963, Joe Valachi became the first big Mafia informant, testifying before Congress and giving America its first look inside the mob. Cassato turned solemn without being somber at the end of the funeral, saying that Franzese now rested in Gods love and grace. You know, Ive been away at college for a couple of years, Franzese said. [5], Franzese operated out of New York City and New Jersey and was involved in racketeering, fraud, and loansharking. After six months, his family returned with Franzese to their home in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, where his father ran a bakery. Yet he was tried for murder only once, and he was acquitted. They hit on me like I was Rudolph Valentino. His son Michael, who initially followed his father into the crowd, eventually left organized crime and became a born-again Christian and motivational speaker.