by Snakes » Mon Apr 20, 2020 7:49 pm
By the end of 1961, the former Key Lounge (and Pranno’s operations headquarters) had been renamed to the more elegant sounding “D’ors Lounge.” Pranno, who went by “Jimmy Prano” or "Jimmy Martel" locally, was the Outfit’s undisputed head of Stone Park and allegedly controlled elements of the local government and police department. One informant identified a Stone Park policeman as the “number one crook” in the department and alleged that he belonged to Pranno. Another described a Stone Park police sergeant as a Pranno’s “trained dog” and one of his “favorites” on the force. It is probable that either one of these unidentified officers was Anthony Amatore, a suspected Chicago Outfit member.
Due to his control over the local government, whatever Pranno said was regarded as “the law.” Despite his powerful reputation, competitors still attempted to thwart his dominance of the village. In one such incident, an independent pinball machine owner attempted to install one of his machines in a local bowling alley. The Stone Park PD got wind and Pranno gave the order to have the machine removed. Pranno also instructed the Stone Park PD to issue more summons and step up traffic stops of “suspicious” cars in the area. This was presumably to harass any outside law enforcement conducting surveillance on Pranno and his men. Additionally, the department was instructed by Pranno to not “rush” to any calls, presumably to allow any illegal activity to cease or disperse by their arrival. The only exception to this was if Pranno was the one making the call, as happened when he placed a call to the police to come break up a fight at the D’ors. Police arrived to find Pranno angrily slapping his hand with a blackjack. According to informants, Pranno also had complete control over the Stone Park PD night shift (midnight to 8AM) and was able to use the Stone Park PD telephone with impunity during this time. Pranno had so much control over the Stone Park police that their officers referred to him as “Judge Holiday” over the radio.
As earlier indicated, Pranno showed an exceedingly violent temperament. In addition to beating up some of his own employees at D’ors (both women and men), Pranno also released his wrath on customers. When two individuals were arguing at the lounge’s downstairs bar, Pranno walked up, slugged one of them in the face and attempted to hit him with a bar stool. Despite this, Pranno was apparently friendly to most of the lounge’s regulars.
Pranno also apparently controlled a local motel, the El Dorado, through a front man. The motel was almost directly behind D’ors Lounge and was where many of the women (including an alleged girlfriend of Pranno’s) who “worked” the D’ors lived. The motel was typically guarded by a Pranno henchman, who dissuaded strangers from approaching the area. The motel, like many locations in Stone Park, was also rumored to be the site of gambling in some of the back rooms. Pranno also held some influence over a local Italian doctor, and Pranno ensured to forward any of his associates to this practice in order to avoid law enforcement scrutiny.
In March of 1962, Angelo’s Lounge, a Stone Park tavern, was raided by elements of the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office. The Cook County lawmen noted that Stone Park police officers were nowhere to be found. At other times, it was alleged that Stone Park PD participated in some of the gambling at Angelo’s. As a result of this raid, informants noted that the gambling scene in early 1962 was “pretty quiet” in comparison to preceding months in an effort to thwart increased law enforcement pressure. Additionally, Pranno was constantly worrying about Cook County Police surveillance and instructed the Stone Park PD to write down plate numbers of any suspicious vehicles seen around D’ors.
A spate of restaurant fires and bombings in the Stone Park area in the summer of 1962 drew the attention of local law enforcement. Nearly a dozen restaurant fires were suspected of being the result of arson or terror tactics, presumably by the Outfit. The most likely reasons being the restaurant’s refusal to give in to extortion demands, the hesitancy of their employees to join Outfit-controlled unions, the installation of non-Outfit gambling machines on the premises, or fiscal gain via insurance settlements. One of these fires was in the previously mentioned Paradice (or Par-a-Dice) Lounge; allegedly controlled by Pranno. Pranno was even spotted parked in front of the one of the smoldering buildings, sarcastically inquiring as to what had happened.
Pranno was arrested in Maywood (a neighboring community of Stone Park) in February 1962 for driving 62 mph in a 35 mph zone and for having no driver’s license (Pranno’s having been revoked in 1957 for a litany of offense, including speeding and running red lights). Pranno was taken into custody and could not pay the 100 dollar release bond as he only had 80 dollars on his person. Pranno contacted a local bail bondsman to assist him with his release. This bail bondsman was allegedly controlled by Pranno and gave Pranno a piece of any bail bonds his business handled in the Stone Park area. Pranno then proceeded to not appear for three straight court appearances (sending a lawyer in his stead) concerning this charge and it was alleged that Pranno was using his contacts in the Stone Park police to attempt to get the Maywood charges dropped. In May of 1862, Pranno’s attorney appeared at court and stated that Pranno could not personally attend as he had recently suffered a heart attack, although Pranno himself was seated in the gallery! Curiously, Pranno was not arrested for any of his pending charges and was allowed to leave the court room undisturbed. The case was continued to September, where Pranno was finally convicted and ordered pay a 100 dollar fine and serve 10 days in the county jail. However, Pranno cited health reasons and the judge responded by ordering a new trial and raising Pranno’s bond to $2,500. Finally, in November, 1963 (a full year and nine months since Pranno’s initial offense), Pranno paid the 100 dollar fine and served his 10-day sentence in the county jail.
However, this bizarre saga was not quite over. Pranno could also be facing charges for falsifying state documents, falsely claiming that he had no driving restrictions on previous license applications. Pranno avoided detection through the use of various pseudonyms and false addresses. For this malfeasance, Pranno could potentially be liable for charges on a state level and could face up to 14 years in prison if found guilty at trial.
Eventually, Pranno’s vehicle was well-enough known to surrounding police departments to prompt Pranno to purchase a new one. In addition to this precaution, Pranno began parking directly in friend of D’ors in order for Pranno to keep an eye on it at all times. Later Pranno moved it to a more secure location behind the lounge alongside a wall belonging to the El Dorado motel.
By the end of 1961, the former Key Lounge (and Pranno’s operations headquarters) had been renamed to the more elegant sounding “D’ors Lounge.” Pranno, who went by “Jimmy Prano” or "Jimmy Martel" locally, was the Outfit’s undisputed head of Stone Park and allegedly controlled elements of the local government and police department. One informant identified a Stone Park policeman as the “number one crook” in the department and alleged that he belonged to Pranno. Another described a Stone Park police sergeant as a Pranno’s “trained dog” and one of his “favorites” on the force. It is probable that either one of these unidentified officers was Anthony Amatore, a suspected Chicago Outfit member.
Due to his control over the local government, whatever Pranno said was regarded as “the law.” Despite his powerful reputation, competitors still attempted to thwart his dominance of the village. In one such incident, an independent pinball machine owner attempted to install one of his machines in a local bowling alley. The Stone Park PD got wind and Pranno gave the order to have the machine removed. Pranno also instructed the Stone Park PD to issue more summons and step up traffic stops of “suspicious” cars in the area. This was presumably to harass any outside law enforcement conducting surveillance on Pranno and his men. Additionally, the department was instructed by Pranno to not “rush” to any calls, presumably to allow any illegal activity to cease or disperse by their arrival. The only exception to this was if Pranno was the one making the call, as happened when he placed a call to the police to come break up a fight at the D’ors. Police arrived to find Pranno angrily slapping his hand with a blackjack. According to informants, Pranno also had complete control over the Stone Park PD night shift (midnight to 8AM) and was able to use the Stone Park PD telephone with impunity during this time. Pranno had so much control over the Stone Park police that their officers referred to him as “Judge Holiday” over the radio.
As earlier indicated, Pranno showed an exceedingly violent temperament. In addition to beating up some of his own employees at D’ors (both women and men), Pranno also released his wrath on customers. When two individuals were arguing at the lounge’s downstairs bar, Pranno walked up, slugged one of them in the face and attempted to hit him with a bar stool. Despite this, Pranno was apparently friendly to most of the lounge’s regulars.
Pranno also apparently controlled a local motel, the El Dorado, through a front man. The motel was almost directly behind D’ors Lounge and was where many of the women (including an alleged girlfriend of Pranno’s) who “worked” the D’ors lived. The motel was typically guarded by a Pranno henchman, who dissuaded strangers from approaching the area. The motel, like many locations in Stone Park, was also rumored to be the site of gambling in some of the back rooms. Pranno also held some influence over a local Italian doctor, and Pranno ensured to forward any of his associates to this practice in order to avoid law enforcement scrutiny.
In March of 1962, Angelo’s Lounge, a Stone Park tavern, was raided by elements of the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office. The Cook County lawmen noted that Stone Park police officers were nowhere to be found. At other times, it was alleged that Stone Park PD participated in some of the gambling at Angelo’s. As a result of this raid, informants noted that the gambling scene in early 1962 was “pretty quiet” in comparison to preceding months in an effort to thwart increased law enforcement pressure. Additionally, Pranno was constantly worrying about Cook County Police surveillance and instructed the Stone Park PD to write down plate numbers of any suspicious vehicles seen around D’ors.
A spate of restaurant fires and bombings in the Stone Park area in the summer of 1962 drew the attention of local law enforcement. Nearly a dozen restaurant fires were suspected of being the result of arson or terror tactics, presumably by the Outfit. The most likely reasons being the restaurant’s refusal to give in to extortion demands, the hesitancy of their employees to join Outfit-controlled unions, the installation of non-Outfit gambling machines on the premises, or fiscal gain via insurance settlements. One of these fires was in the previously mentioned Paradice (or Par-a-Dice) Lounge; allegedly controlled by Pranno. Pranno was even spotted parked in front of the one of the smoldering buildings, sarcastically inquiring as to what had happened.
Pranno was arrested in Maywood (a neighboring community of Stone Park) in February 1962 for driving 62 mph in a 35 mph zone and for having no driver’s license (Pranno’s having been revoked in 1957 for a litany of offense, including speeding and running red lights). Pranno was taken into custody and could not pay the 100 dollar release bond as he only had 80 dollars on his person. Pranno contacted a local bail bondsman to assist him with his release. This bail bondsman was allegedly controlled by Pranno and gave Pranno a piece of any bail bonds his business handled in the Stone Park area. Pranno then proceeded to not appear for three straight court appearances (sending a lawyer in his stead) concerning this charge and it was alleged that Pranno was using his contacts in the Stone Park police to attempt to get the Maywood charges dropped. In May of 1862, Pranno’s attorney appeared at court and stated that Pranno could not personally attend as he had recently suffered a heart attack, although Pranno himself was seated in the gallery! Curiously, Pranno was not arrested for any of his pending charges and was allowed to leave the court room undisturbed. The case was continued to September, where Pranno was finally convicted and ordered pay a 100 dollar fine and serve 10 days in the county jail. However, Pranno cited health reasons and the judge responded by ordering a new trial and raising Pranno’s bond to $2,500. Finally, in November, 1963 (a full year and nine months since Pranno’s initial offense), Pranno paid the 100 dollar fine and served his 10-day sentence in the county jail.
However, this bizarre saga was not quite over. Pranno could also be facing charges for falsifying state documents, falsely claiming that he had no driving restrictions on previous license applications. Pranno avoided detection through the use of various pseudonyms and false addresses. For this malfeasance, Pranno could potentially be liable for charges on a state level and could face up to 14 years in prison if found guilty at trial.
Eventually, Pranno’s vehicle was well-enough known to surrounding police departments to prompt Pranno to purchase a new one. In addition to this precaution, Pranno began parking directly in friend of D’ors in order for Pranno to keep an eye on it at all times. Later Pranno moved it to a more secure location behind the lounge alongside a wall belonging to the El Dorado motel.