Genovese "il Messaggero"

[funkster]

Angelo Prisco was originally from Melrose Park (unsure of how long he lived there), I have always wondered if he maintained connections with the Outfit.

[SolarSolano]

Angelo Prisco was originally from Melrose Park (unsure of how long he lived there), I have always wondered if he maintained connections with the Outfit.

Seriously? No fucking idea - wonder where he lived. I grew up in Melrose Park never heard of that - also never heard of Angelo Prisco prior to coming on these boards though Two strong genovese connections to Melrose imagine that.

[eboli]

I've seen that Lombardo was Coppola's acting captain in NYC while Salerno carried messages from FL and helped run the crew. Florida was where the Genovese made a lot of their contacts with other families and Pussy Russo's duties involved meeting with other families in FL and bringing back organizational updates. Not a shocker that the powerhouse Coppola crew was also utilized for these contacts.

Lombardo's messenger duties go way back. They can be traced to the 1930s when he was traveling to Mexico and Cuba on business.

Russo's mentor Richie Boiardo was raised in Chicago and had contact with alleged Capone associates in NJ.

Boiardo immigrated to the states in 1901, when he was 11 years old, and spent a few years as a teenager working in construction in Illinois, Montana, South Dakota, North Dakota, Idaho, etc. After 1906/1907, he moved with his adoptive mother to Newark. He had a working relationship with the Chicago Outfit. In 1930 Capone traveled to Chicago to broker a peace treaty between Boiardo and Abner Zwillman.

[PolackTony]

Giancana is on wiretaps speaking Italian with Joseph Costello and others. It could have been a dialect or something that was confusing - also Giancana seemed like a character who liked to fuck with some exceptionally scary guys on the east coast. Balls on that guy lol.

IIRC, Giancana and Costello were both speaking English (apart from Costello using terms like Capodecina and Avvocato) while an unknown 3rd party was speaking to them in “Italian”. So clearly Giancana understood well enough. BTW I’ve wondered if this had been Catuara, given that he was from Sicily and may have had reason to be involved in the Costello/Fusco beef that Giancana was helping to mediate in Laporte’s absence. If so, then all three would’ve been Sicilians.

[funkster]

Angelo Prisco was originally from Melrose Park (unsure of how long he lived there), I have always wondered if he maintained connections with the Outfit.

Seriously? No fucking idea - wonder where he lived. I grew up in Melrose Park never heard of that - also never heard of Angelo Prisco prior to coming on these boards though Two strong genovese connections to Melrose imagine that.

Lol yup. Crazy shit.

[SolarSolano]

Giancana is on wiretaps speaking Italian with Joseph Costello and others. It could have been a dialect or something that was confusing - also Giancana seemed like a character who liked to fuck with some exceptionally scary guys on the east coast. Balls on that guy lol.

IIRC, Giancana and Costello were both speaking English (apart from Costello using terms like Capodecina and Avvocato) while an unknown 3rd party was speaking to them in “Italian”. So clearly Giancana understood well enough. BTW I’ve wondered if this had been Catuara, given that he was from Sicily and may have had reason to be involved in the Costello/Fusco beef that Giancana was helping to mediate in Laporte’s absence. If so, then all three would’ve been Sicilians.

I think a lot of the Armory Lounge tapes have Giancana at certain points using Italian. I also believe Queenie Simonelli and others who were there regularly also spoke Italian with him - I'm trying to find a link.

[B.]

I'd guess if Giancana had any struggle with the language, it may have been Sicilian dialect. The 1960s bugs of Sicilian- and Sicilian-American US bosses shows they used their native dialect. Given the attitude some of these Sicilians had about the mafia and their preference for their own, they may have been less accomodating to those who didn't speak dialect as fluently. The New York guys were also speaking it much more frequently, whereas in Chicago they no doubt had less practice.

[PolackTony]

Angelo Prisco was originally from Melrose Park (unsure of how long he lived there), I have always wondered if he maintained connections with the Outfit.

Seriously? No fucking idea - wonder where he lived. I grew up in Melrose Park never heard of that - also never heard of Angelo Prisco prior to coming on these boards though Two strong genovese connections to Melrose imagine that.

Lol yup. Crazy shit.

This came up in the recent Visconti podcast thread. The only source that I’ve seen stating that Prisco was born in MP is Wikipedia. When I looked into it, I didn’t see any documents corroborating this and it seemed more likely he was born in NYC. There were/are Priscos in Chicago that could be related to him, though it may just be from back in Italy. Never seen anything linking Prisco personally to Chicago, though admittedly I’m no expert on the guy.

[funkster]

Interesting. I might have first read about it on the GBB or Real Deal board, honestly cannot remember where. It was definitely somewhere other than Wiki though. Thanks for pointing that out, i missed that thread.

[Villain]

Giancana is on wiretaps speaking Italian with Joseph Costello and others. It could have been a dialect or something that was confusing - also Giancana seemed like a character who liked to fuck with some exceptionally scary guys on the east coast. Balls on that guy lol.

IIRC, Giancana and Costello were both speaking English (apart from Costello using terms like Capodecina and Avvocato) while an unknown 3rd party was speaking to them in “Italian”. So clearly Giancana understood well enough. BTW I’ve wondered if this had been Catuara, given that he was from Sicily and may have had reason to be involved in the Costello/Fusco beef that Giancana was helping to mediate in Laporte’s absence. If so, then all three would’ve been Sicilians.

I think a lot of the Armory Lounge tapes have Giancana at certain points using Italian. I also believe Queenie Simonelli and others who were there regularly also spoke Italian with him - I'm trying to find a link.

[motorfab]

I have a question: As little as I know about him, Santo Sorge (whose true affiliation is very unclear) seemed to be a messenger between the American & Sicilian Families. Can we consider him as a Messagero or does that have nothing to do with it ?

[CabriniGreen]

I have a question: As little as I know about him, Santo Sorge (whose true affiliation is very unclear) seemed to be a messenger between the American & Sicilian Families. Can we consider him as a Messagero or does that have nothing to do with it ?

Great example there....

[eboli]

I have a question: As little as I know about him, Santo Sorge (whose true affiliation is very unclear) seemed to be a messenger between the American & Sicilian Families. Can we consider him as a Messagero or does that have nothing to do with it ?

Sorge was a made member of either the Genovese or Bonanno crime family. He was involved in drug trafficking and ran bookmaking and numbers rackets in East Bronx. Sorge was born in Caltanissetta, Sicily, and had extensive connections to Italian politicians. His political sway made him an influential player in international mafia politics. Some documents describe him as a messenger of Luciano, but it's difficult to pinpoint his exact rank in American organized crime. He might've been a caporegime or a soldier with special privileges, direct with the administration. Sorge was a cousin of Sicilian mafia boss Giuseppe Genco Russo, also known as Zi Peppi Jencu. His political clout in Italy stemmed from this blood relation.

He was most definitely a messenger, but it's unclear whose and for what purpose.

[motorfab]

I have a question: As little as I know about him, Santo Sorge (whose true affiliation is very unclear) seemed to be a messenger between the American & Sicilian Families. Can we consider him as a Messagero or does that have nothing to do with it ?

Sorge was a made member of either the Genovese or Bonanno crime family. He was involved in drug trafficking and ran bookmaking and numbers rackets in East Bronx. Sorge was born in Caltanissetta, Sicily, and had extensive connections to Italian politicians. His political sway made him an influential player in international mafia politics. Some documents describe him as a messenger of Luciano, but it's difficult to pinpoint his exact rank in American organized crime. He might've been a caporegime or a soldier with special privileges, direct with the administration. Sorge was a cousin of Sicilian mafia boss Giuseppe Genco Russo, also known as Zi Peppi Jencu. His political clout in Italy stemmed from this blood relation.

He was most definitely a messenger, but it's unclear whose and for what purpose.

Yes, he also had a past in France and was deported in 1932. Unfortunately I never found an article about him, or where he was. Probably Marseille or Paris the high places of the underworld or Grenoble which has a large colony coming from the province of Caltanissetta. He was perhaps there with a false name. But it's only a supposition, I have no idea. Just checked, he was born in Mussomeli like Genco Russo

This is the first time that I see a reference to him related to the Bonannos, do you have a something specific about that ? According to the FBN he was associate with Galante & Joe B

[eboli]

I have a question: As little as I know about him, Santo Sorge (whose true affiliation is very unclear) seemed to be a messenger between the American & Sicilian Families. Can we consider him as a Messagero or does that have nothing to do with it ?

Sorge was a made member of either the Genovese or Bonanno crime family. He was involved in drug trafficking and ran bookmaking and numbers rackets in East Bronx. Sorge was born in Caltanissetta, Sicily, and had extensive connections to Italian politicians. His political sway made him an influential player in international mafia politics. Some documents describe him as a messenger of Luciano, but it's difficult to pinpoint his exact rank in American organized crime. He might've been a caporegime or a soldier with special privileges, direct with the administration. Sorge was a cousin of Sicilian mafia boss Giuseppe Genco Russo, also known as Zi Peppi Jencu. His political clout in Italy stemmed from this blood relation.

He was most definitely a messenger, but it's unclear whose and for what purpose.

Yes, he also had a past in France and was deported in 1932. Unfortunately I never found an article about him, or where he was. Probably Marseille or Paris the high places of the underworld or Grenoble which has a large colony coming from the province of Caltanissetta. He was perhaps there with a false name. But it's only a supposition, I have no idea. Just checked, he was born in Mussomeli like Genco Russo

This is the first time that I see a reference to him related to the Bonannos, do you have a something specific about that ? According to the FBN he was associate with Galante & Joe B

It was in an FBN memo from the 1940s. The same memo referenced an NYPD report which identified Carmine Galante as a 'small-time hood' or something of that nature, so it should be taken with a grain of salt. As you know, years later Sorge was described as a lieutenant of Luciano.