Joseph Valachi
Joseph Valachi | |
---|---|
Italian-American Mafia member to acknowledge its existence publicly Valachi hearings | |
Spouse |
Carmela Reina (m. 1932) |
Relatives | Drug trafficking (1959) Murder (1962) |
Criminal penalty | 15 years imprisonment Life imprisonment |
Joseph Michael Valachi (September 22, 1904
Valachi was convicted of drug trafficking in 1959, and sentenced to 15 years' imprisonment. In 1962 while he and Genovese family boss
Early life
Valachi was born on September 22, 1904
Career
Minutemen
Valachi's criminal career began with a small gang, known as the Minutemen, which was so called for carrying out
Italian-American Mafia
In 1930, Valachi was
In 1953, boss Vito Genovese allegedly ordered the murder of mobster Steven Franse.[7] Genovese had given Franse the task of supervising his wife Anna while he hid in Italy.[7] Outraged over Anna's potential love affairs and her lawsuit against him, Genovese ordered Valachi to set up Franse's murder.[8] On June 18, 1953, Valachi lured Franse to his restaurant in the Bronx, where Franse was strangled to death by Pasquale Pagano and Fiore Siano (Valachi's nephew).[8]
Federal testimony
Valachi was convicted of narcotics violations in 1959 and sentenced to 15 years in prison.[9] Valachi's motivations for becoming an informer had been the subject of some debate: Valachi claimed to be testifying as a public service and to expose a powerful criminal organization that he had blamed for ruining his life, but it is also possible he was hoping for government protection as part of a plea bargain in which he was sentenced to life imprisonment instead of death for a murder, which he had committed in 1962 while in prison for his narcotics violation.[9]
Valachi and Genovese were both serving sentences for
When Valachi decided to co-operate with the
In October 1963, Valachi testified before
Although Valachi's disclosures never led directly to the prosecution of any Mafia leaders, he provided many details of
After the Justice Department first encouraged and then blocked publication of Valachi's memoirs, a biography, heavily influenced by the memoirs as well as interviews with Valachi, was written by journalist Peter Maas and published in 1968 as The Valachi Papers,[19] forming the basis for a later film of the same title, starring Charles Bronson in the titular role.
Death
On April 3, 1971, Valachi died of a
In popular culture
- The Valachi Papers, 1968 book by Peter Maas
- The Valachi Papers, 1972 film based on the book; Valachi is portrayed by Charles Bronson
- Francis Ford Coppola, in his director's commentary on The Godfather Part II (1974), mentioned that the scenes depicting the Senate committee interrogation of Michael Corleone and Frank Pentangeli are based on Valachi's federal hearings and that Pentangeli is like a Valachi figure.[24]
- In The Simpsons episode "Homie the Clown", there is a scene where Homer, having been kidnapped by the mob for resembling Krusty the Clown, attempts to explain that he's not actually Krusty with a fake name. Homer inadvertently stumbles upon Joe Valachi's name, whom the mobsters instantly recognize as "The same Joe Valachi who squealed to the Senate about organized crime."
- Godfather of Harlem, portrayed by Richard Petrocelli
- In Mark Winegardener's authorized sequel to The Godfather, The Godfather Returns, one of the Corleone family caporegimes, Nick Geraci, goes underground and writes a book about his experiences, titled Fausto's Bargain.
Notes
References
- ^ ISBN 978-0-671-63173-4. Archivedfrom the original on December 30, 2019. Retrieved December 30, 2019.
- ISBN 978-1-137-49135-0.
- ^ a b c "Their Thing, Time, August 16, 1963". Archived from the original on May 14, 2009. Retrieved February 27, 2019.
- ^ "Wedding acts, Domenico Villacci and Maria Casale (1897, April 5). Record no. 13". State Archives of Avellino. Retrieved February 7, 2023.
- ^ a b Maas, pp. 38–42.
- ^ Maas, pp. 42–43.
- ^ a b Sifakis pp. 172
- ^ a b The Dying of the Light: The Joseph Valachi Story by Thomas L. Jones (TruTv Crime Library)
- ^ a b c "History of La Cosa Nostra". fbi.gov. Archived from the original on December 19, 2019. Retrieved September 9, 2019.
- ISBN 0-02-864225-2
- ISBN 978-1-56171-195-6.
- ISBN 978-1-59869-779-7.
- ^ Kelly, G. Milton (October 1, 1963). "Valachi To Tell Of Gang War For Power". Warsaw Times-Union. Retrieved May 28, 2012.
- ^ "The rat who started it all; For 40 years, Joe Valachi has been in a Lewiston cemetery, a quiet end for the mobster who blew the lid off 'Cosa Nostra' when he testified before Congress in 1963". buffalonews.com. October 9, 2011. Archived from the original on October 2, 2019. Retrieved October 2, 2019.
- ^ Adam Bernstein (June 14, 2006). "Lawyer William G. Hundley, 80". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on October 20, 2012. Retrieved June 21, 2015.
- ^ "Killers in Prison", Time, October 4, 1963. "Killers in Prison - TIME". Archived from the original on May 16, 2009. Retrieved February 27, 2019..
- ^ "The Smell of It", Time, October 11, 1963. ""The Smell of It" - TIME". Archived from the original on May 16, 2009. Retrieved February 27, 2019..
- ^ Raab, Selwyn (2005). Five Families. New York: St. Martin's Press. pp. 135–136.
- ^ His Life and Crimes, Time, January 17, 1969. Archived July 13, 2012, at archive.today.
- Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Valachi buried Upstate". The New York Times. May 8, 1971. Archived from the original on October 2, 2019. Retrieved October 2, 2019.
- ^ https://historiclewiston.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Valachi-Buried-in-Lewiston.pdf
- ^ https://historiclewiston.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Valachi-Buried-in-Lewiston.pdf
- ASIN B00003CXAA.
External links
- CBS News: The Congress & Cosa Nostra - Joe Valachi Hearings (1963)
- Seize The Night: Joseph Valachi
- Joseph Valachi at Find a Grave
- The Dying of the Light: The Joseph Valachi Story by Thomas L. Jones.
- Michele Vaccaro, Joe Valachi, il "primo pentito", in Storia in Rete, febbraio 2014, anno X, n. 100.