Chicago Tribune Annette Nitti Profile

[SolarSolano]

In tales of the Chicago Outfit, the widowed Annette Nitti mostly stayed in the shadows
BY RICK KOGAN
Chicago Tribune
AUG 31, 2020 AT 2:34 PM
https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertai ... msftsearch


The name Annette Caravetta Nitti does not echo in the alleyways of local infamy.

Perhaps that is understandable. The gangster history of Chicago — glorified in movies, television, themed restaurants, touristy tours — is dominated by men and you know many by their names and nicknames: Al Capone (Scarface), George Moran (Bugs), Tony Accardo (Big Tuna), Paul Ricca (The Waiter), Joseph Lombardo (The Clown), and on and on.

As I have written before, “Old mobsters never die. They won’t even fade away. Instead, they wind up ... tucked firmly in our consciousness. This is especially, perhaps even uniquely, true of Chicago, this hotbed of gangster-dom where many people could today tell you more about (bygone mobsters) than they could about candidates running for local office.”

Ever hear of Louise Rolfe?

She is a woman who has a role in an ancient (1945) book “Chicago Murders” by Sewell Peaslee. He tells of the day, shortly after the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre, that in trying to tracking down the killers, police detectives “broke into the Stevens Hotel suite occupied by Jack McGurn, well-known in machine-gun circles (and) found him very comfortably ensconced with a very attractive blond named Louise Rolfe.”

She told the police that she and McGurn had occupied the suite for a month, never leaving. The detectives asked if she was married. As Peaslee relates: " ‘Not yet,’ said Louise shyly.”

Peaslee nicknamed Rolfe “The Blond Alibi.”

Mrs. Nitti is one of the principal characters in the story I began recently about the checkered past of the 33 W. Kinzie St. building that now houses the centerpiece of the seven-restaurant Harry Caray gastronomic empire. It is richly tied to the city’s history and has connections with the city’s early pioneers and recent sports stars and celebrities. During this pandemic, Grant DePorter, the CEO of the Harry Caray’s Restaurant Group, has been devoting considerable time to historical research of the building.

He will tell you that few of those he has encountered were as remarkable as Annette.

“She has to rank as the toughest and smartest female of the Al Capone era and beyond,” he says.

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There are photos of Annette on his restaurant’s walls and they show a formidable looking person.

She came to prominence as a secretary for a man named Edward “Easy Eddie” O’Hare, who was a racetrack owner and Capone’s attorney/crony. He was also, as they say in the mob biz, a “rat,” testifying as a prime witness against Capone in the tax evasion trial that landed Capone in prison from 1931 to 1939.

The week of Capone’s release, Annette is said to have helped arrange the murder of O’Hare, who was shotgunned to death while driving his car near the intersection of Ogden Avenue and Rockwell Street. His two killers were never found.

In the wake of that murder, Annette, who had been given power of attorney over O’Hare’s assets, began to sell, trade and otherwise exercise those considerable holdings.

In 1942, she married Frank Nitti (nee Nitto), who had been serving as either mob boss or puppet for others — there will ever be some debate about his status — during Capone’s imprisonment. As a nuptial gift, Nitti he gave his new bride $75,000. DePorter, among many others, believes this could been payment for helping arrange the hit on O’Hare. She used that money to purchase the building that is now Harry Caray’s.

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Unfortunately, her marriage did not last long. On March 19, 1943, Nitti, facing trial and possible imprisonment for his role in a Hollywood movie studio extortion scheme, drank himself into a semi-stupor and fatally shot himself three times as he wandered in the railroad yard only blocks from his Riverside home.

As she battled grief (I assume), Annette also began lengthy battles on legal-financial fronts. But she and the 10-year-old Joseph, the son Frank Nitti had adopted during a previous marriage, had always kept in close contact with O’Hare’s son, Butch. Raised mostly in St. Louis, he became a World War II hero when, on Feb. 20, 1942, he singlehandedly downed a number of Japanese bombers attacking his aircraft carrier. This would make him the first naval aviator recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor. In presenting the award, President Franklin D. Roosevelt referring to O’Hare’s skill as “the most daring single action in aviation history.”

O’Hare would die on Nov. 26, 1943 while leading the U.S. Navy’s first nighttime fighter attack launched from an aircraft carrier. His plane and his body were never recovered. But in 1949, with the enthusiastic support of Robert R. McCormick, the publisher of the Tribune, the name of the city’s Orchard Depot Airport was changed as a tribute to O’Hare. (Annette and Joseph were among the “dignitaries” at the formal and lavish renaming ceremony in March 1963, when President John Kennedy spoke of O’Hare’s bravery).

Annette was ever doing battle with the ferocious forces of the IRS and others. One of those was Alex Greenberg, a mob accountant. She demanded that he give her the $2 million that she claimed Nitti had entrusted to him for her. He refused and in December 1955 he was fatally shot and stabbed along with his wife Pearl after they had dined at a restaurant named the Glass Dome Hickory Pit on the South Side.

She tried keep a low profile, though she and son Joseph would help run Caravetta Foods, a wholesale business that was started by her father, Louis. It was an Italian food import business, one of its main product was Parmesan cheese and it was for a few years headquartered in the Kinzie Street building. She sold that building in 1969 and lived a quiet life until her death in 1981. She is buried in Mt. Carmel Cemetery in west suburban Hillside. There are a lot of other gangsters buried there. Some you might have heard of, some not. Nitti’s grave is not far from those of her husband and Capone.

DePorter tells me that he is in contact with members of the Nitti and Caravetta families and that they continue to provide him with memorabilia and stories, feeding his passion for the past and his attempts to bring in into the present.

He has carved from a recently discovered second floor space in the restaurant a handsome private party room that he has named Nitti’s Speakeasy. It has its own menu and few special cocktails. One is “The Black Widow,” a nickname given to Annette by a writer. It is a concoction made of gin, lemon juice, honey, blackberry preserves and a lemon twist.

“It is a just a nod to this fascinating woman,” he says. “She seems to deserve that.”

Not exactly my kind of drink but I might be tempted.

rkogan@chicagotribune.com

[SolarSolano]

Wonder if she is related to Richard Caravetta, a former well-known committeeman in Cicero who was indicted with Betty Loren-Maltese.

[funkster]

Wonder if she is related to Richard Caravetta, a former well-known committeeman in Cicero who was indicted with Betty Loren-Maltese.

Would it shock you? lol

[SolarSolano]

Would also note her last name was spelled "Nitto" within her obituary.

[Dwalin2014]

Would also note her last name was spelled "Nitto" within her obituary.

"Nitto" is the correct spelling of the surname. "Nitti" was a misspelling that stuck, by some giornalist or cop if I remember correctly, the same as with Luciano Leggio/Liggio.

[Villain]

The guys who did the job on Greenberg were allegedly Alderisio and Nicoletti but besides that, the hit went off track a little bit, meaning the first bullet didnt stop Greenberg as he charged towards his attackers. I think Battaglia also took care of Nittos wife regarding cash and stuff

[SolarSolano]

The guys who did the job on Greenberg were allegedly Alderisio and Nicoletti but besides that, the hit went off track a little bit, meaning the first bullet didnt stop Greenberg as he charged towards his attackers. I think Battaglia also took care of Nittos wife regarding cash and stuff

I imagined this guy Greenberg as a little bald accountant - he's charging Phil and Chucky while they are shooting at him? You gotta be tough to do that.

[Villain]

The guys who did the job on Greenberg were allegedly Alderisio and Nicoletti but besides that, the hit went off track a little bit, meaning the first bullet didnt stop Greenberg as he charged towards his attackers. I think Battaglia also took care of Nittos wife regarding cash and stuff

I imagined this guy Greenberg as a little bald accountant - he's charging Phil and Chucky while they are shooting at him? You gotta be tough to do that.

I hear you lol well to be around guys like Nitto, Capone or Humphreys at the time, you needed to be a tough guy lol the newspapers say that Greenberg was having dinner with his wife and daughter at the Glass Dome Hickory Pit, 2724 S. Union av. As he was leaving, he was shot by two hitmen. Greenberg suddenly staggered after the men as they fled on foot. Greenberg collapsed about 12 feet of the curb and the killers were never caught.

Other sources say that Greenberg’s murder was executed on the request made by Louis Fratto, Alderisio’s cousin and Ralph Pierce. Story goes that Pierce was sought as a threat because of the statement he made once publicly at Greenberg by saying, "We'll take care of you!'" The threat was made in 1943 at a preliminary hearing in the trial of the Hollywood extortion case. The reason was Greenberg was a government witness. Another story goes that later during a police raid on Greenberg the cops found a piece of paper with Fratto’s name on it with a number of payments meant for him.

[Frank]

The guys who did the job on Greenberg were allegedly Alderisio and Nicoletti but besides that, the hit went off track a little bit, meaning the first bullet didnt stop Greenberg as he charged towards his attackers. I think Battaglia also took care of Nittos wife regarding cash and stuff

I imagined this guy Greenberg as a little bald accountant - he's charging Phil and Chucky while they are shooting at him? You gotta be tough to do that.

I hear you lol well to be around guys like Nitto, Capone or Humphreys at the time, you needed to be a tough guy lol the newspapers say that Greenberg was having dinner with his wife and daughter at the Glass Dome Hickory Pit, 2724 S. Union av. As he was leaving, he was shot by two hitmen. Greenberg suddenly staggered after the men as they fled on foot. Greenberg collapsed about 12 feet of the curb and the killers were never caught.

Other sources say that Greenberg’s murder was executed on the request made by Louis Fratto, Alderisio’s cousin and Ralph Pierce. Story goes that Pierce was sought as a threat because of the statement he made once publicly at Greenberg by saying, "We'll take care of you!'" The threat was made in 1943 at a preliminary hearing in the trial of the Hollywood extortion case. The reason was Greenberg was a government witness. Another story goes that later during a police raid on Greenberg the cops found a piece of paper with Fratto’s name on it with a number of payments meant for him.

Is it true than that he was stealing Outfit money in Vegas.

[Villain]

Is it true than that he was stealing Outfit money in Vegas.

Dont remember anything about Vegas but he probably knew their guy over there Gus Greenbaum

[Frank]

Is it true than that he was stealing Outfit money in Vegas.

Dont remember anything about Vegas but he probably knew their guy over there Gus Greenbaum

Maybe Im getting there names mixed up.

[Villain]

Is it true than that he was stealing Outfit money in Vegas.

Dont remember anything about Vegas but he probably knew their guy over there Gus Greenbaum

Maybe Im getting there names mixed up.

Maybe since Greenbaum was the one who schemed from the Vegas scheme

[PolackTony]

The guys who did the job on Greenberg were allegedly Alderisio and Nicoletti but besides that, the hit went off track a little bit, meaning the first bullet didnt stop Greenberg as he charged towards his attackers. I think Battaglia also took care of Nittos wife regarding cash and stuff

I imagined this guy Greenberg as a little bald accountant - he's charging Phil and Chucky while they are shooting at him? You gotta be tough to do that.

I hear you lol well to be around guys like Nitto, Capone or Humphreys at the time, you needed to be a tough guy lol the newspapers say that Greenberg was having dinner with his wife and daughter at the Glass Dome Hickory Pit, 2724 S. Union av. As he was leaving, he was shot by two hitmen. Greenberg suddenly staggered after the men as they fled on foot. Greenberg collapsed about 12 feet of the curb and the killers were never caught.

Other sources say that Greenberg’s murder was executed on the request made by Louis Fratto, Alderisio’s cousin and Ralph Pierce. Story goes that Pierce was sought as a threat because of the statement he made once publicly at Greenberg by saying, "We'll take care of you!'" The threat was made in 1943 at a preliminary hearing in the trial of the Hollywood extortion case. The reason was Greenberg was a government witness. Another story goes that later during a police raid on Greenberg the cops found a piece of paper with Fratto’s name on it with a number of payments meant for him.

Wait wasn't this guy also called Lou Greenberg? In both Frank Eghigian's and George Murray's (The Legacy of Al Capone) accounts, Greenberg didn't come across as just a balding, bespectacled little accountant. He was a gangster and saloon keeper going back to the 1910s IIRC and was something of a mentor to Nitto when he first arrived in Chicago. He owned a saloon during the 20s near the Maxwell St ghetto and was pals with O'Bannion and Weiss early on before siding with the Capone Organization.

The account given by Murray is that Greenberg was hit because he refused to pay out what was owed to Anna Ronga (Nitto's ex) for Nitto's adopted son Joseph. Nitto had apparently entrusted Greenberg with millions in assets for safekeeping to be disbursed to his family if something happened to him, and once Joe Nitto reached maturity Greenberg reneged.

Villain, one thing that always stuck out to me about this account was -- since when did the Outfit care much about guys' families once they died? If anything, they'd be trying to stick their hands in the pot. The other accounts centering on Vegas or Ralph Pierce thus might make more sense. But maybe it was several things and one was the straw that broke the camel's back. Certainly if Greenberg did renege.on the Nittos than the Outfit may have used that to further justify the hit on Greenberg.

[Villain]

Wait wasn't this guy also called Lou Greenberg? In both Frank Eghigian's and George Murray's (The Legacy of Al Capone) accounts, Greenberg didn't come across as just a balding, bespectacled little accountant. He was a gangster and saloon keeper going back to the 1910s IIRC and was something of a mentor to Nitto when he first arrived in Chicago. He owned a saloon during the 20s near the Maxwell St ghetto and was pals with O'Bannion and Weiss early on before siding with the Capone Organization.

The account given by Murray is that Greenberg was hit because he refused to pay out what was owed to Anna Ronga (Nitto's ex) for Nitto's adopted son Joseph. Nitto had apparently entrusted Greenberg with millions in assets for safekeeping to be disbursed to his family if something happened to him, and once Joe Nitto reached maturity Greenberg reneged.

Villain, one thing that always stuck out to me about this account was -- since when did the Outfit care much about guys' families once they died? If anything, they'd be trying to stick their hands in the pot. The other accounts centering on Vegas or Ralph Pierce thus might make more sense. But maybe it was several things and one was the straw that broke the camel's back. Certainly if Greenberg did renege.on the Nittos than the Outfit may have used that to further justify the hit on Greenberg.

Yes thats the same guy and as i already said, Greenberg maybe looked small and baldy but he did his time and was a real tough guy. It seems that Greenberg was quite respected but he made more than few mistakes which led him to his own demise. Also if Alderisio and Nicoletti did the job on Greenberg, than its possible that they were sent by Fratto who in turn was the Outfits boss in Des Moines at the time but answered to Battaglia.

The old Capone guard always took care of the families of their deceased members like Nitto, Campagna or Capone. When the younger generation took over, old timers like Humphreys fought to keep the old tradition but guys like Giancana and Alex nixed it, like for example in Capones case. In addition, im not sure but i think there was also a problem with Campagnas hidden stash...the family couldnt find it or something like that...

[SolarSolano]

The guys who did the job on Greenberg were allegedly Alderisio and Nicoletti but besides that, the hit went off track a little bit, meaning the first bullet didnt stop Greenberg as he charged towards his attackers. I think Battaglia also took care of Nittos wife regarding cash and stuff

I imagined this guy Greenberg as a little bald accountant - he's charging Phil and Chucky while they are shooting at him? You gotta be tough to do that.

I hear you lol well to be around guys like Nitto, Capone or Humphreys at the time, you needed to be a tough guy lol the newspapers say that Greenberg was having dinner with his wife and daughter at the Glass Dome Hickory Pit, 2724 S. Union av. As he was leaving, he was shot by two hitmen. Greenberg suddenly staggered after the men as they fled on foot. Greenberg collapsed about 12 feet of the curb and the killers were never caught.

Other sources say that Greenberg’s murder was executed on the request made by Louis Fratto, Alderisio’s cousin and Ralph Pierce. Story goes that Pierce was sought as a threat because of the statement he made once publicly at Greenberg by saying, "We'll take care of you!'" The threat was made in 1943 at a preliminary hearing in the trial of the Hollywood extortion case. The reason was Greenberg was a government witness. Another story goes that later during a police raid on Greenberg the cops found a piece of paper with Fratto’s name on it with a number of payments meant for him.

Ironically, 2724 is a sicilian social club - Saint Joseph Mens Club. I've been to their parades frequently. I used to eat at the Hickory Pit when it was on Halstead near Comiskey and haven't had better ribs since then.