Aldino "Doc" DiGuiseppi, Rockford LCN Associate

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Aldino “Doc” DiGuiseppi was born October 11, 1935 in Rockford to Domenico DiGuiseppi and Concetta Bautti. Aldino married Delores Shores in Belvidere, Illinois on August 13, 1959 but the union didn’t last long as she committed suicide on January 22, 1961 by swallowing sleeping pills. Aldino married again in December 1966 but that marriage ended in divorce in January 1969. By August 1971 Aldino became co-owner of the Blue Garter Lounge at 281 E. State Street along with Vincent Palmeri. Vincent was the son of Jack Palmeri, a Rockford LCN associate and front man for consigliere Joe Zito.

In January 1974 Aldino and Vincent, along with Harold Bell, started the business Medical and Commercial Collections, Inc., at 1710 Broadway and by 1977 he and Vincent along with Harlow Ballard bought State and Madison Recreation, Inc., at 301 E. State Street from J. Arthur “Bud” Lundahl. State and Madison Recreation was a pool hall and tavern that was a popular hangout with the Rockford LCN element.

In December 1981 Aldino married Donna Orleans, who was formerly Donna Ott. Donna found herself in a Rockford LCN murder investigation in January 1965 when her boyfriend, Charles LaFranka, was found strangled in the trunk of his car in Elgin, Illinois. Donna stated then that Charles failed to show for a date and she had no idea where he was. Later FBI files noted that immediately after the murder, Donna received a brand-new automobile and took an extended trip to Florida, lending the belief that perhaps she set up LaFranka to be murdered. Milwaukee LCN informant Augie Maniaci stated on the evening after the murder, the Rockford LCN inducted three new members- Sebastian “Knobby” Gulotta, Joe “Joma” Maggio and Frank Correnti. Around the time of the murder, Donna had worked as a hostess at Gulotta’s restaurant/ tavern, The Plantation.

On April 17, 1987 while working at Aldino’s Lounge, Donna was arrested in a major gambling investigation tied to the Rockford LCN. She, along with Frank “Fat Frank” Sparacino, Thomas Donovan and Sam Licari of Rockford, along with Paul Lightner of Belvidere were all charged with taking bets and distributing football parlay cards. The investigation began in September 1985 but information started trickling in to law enforcement in 1981 of a major gambling ring in Winnebago and Boone counties. Donna was charged with taking bets at Aldino’s Lounge while Donovan was arrested taking bets in the parking lot of the State and Madison Recreation business. Licari was charged with taking bets at a Loves Park, Illinois restaurant. An Illinois Department of Criminal Investigations agent became a customer in the gambling ring and identified at least 100 different customers, some of whom were placing bets daily. Donna was not the first female the Rockford LCN utilized in taking bets- in November 1966 Madeline Cichella was arrested for personally keeping a gambling house and running a bookmaking operation that did in excess of $100,000 a year from her home at 1403 Montague Street.

June 1987 saw Aldino and Donald Elmore start a business called D&E Construction which was based out of Aldino’s house at 1912 Colby Lane in Loves Park, Illinois. Elmore had previously been arrested with Rockford LCN associate Vaughn “Curly” Fitzgerald in an interstate theft ring of stolen snowmobiles in October 1971 along with 24 other people which included former alderman Hugh Deery.

In July 1988 Aldino was one of the registered agents of World Wide General Contracting, Inc. along with Jay Trost, Frank P. Vella and Frank “Gumba” Saladino. Saladino would later become part of the Chicago Outfit’s “Family Secrets” court case. Trost was a Rockford attorney and Vella was a major Rockford LCN bookmaker and gambler who collected gambling proceeds on behalf of the LCN in Winnebago, Boone, Ogle and Dekalb counties and he was mentioned prominently in Sebastian Gulotta’s FBI files as such.

The late 1980s and into the 1990s saw Aldino become the owner of Aldino’s Lounge at 110 N. 1st Street where there were exotic dancers who performed extra services on the side for price. Aldino’s Lounge was one of those businesses where “Gumba” Saladino would make LCN “street tax” collections. In late 1993 Aldino sold the lounge to Donald Elmore’s daughter, Shawnee Elmore, and she renamed the bar The American Café and she continued to have strip shows there where Saladino would continue to pick up collections. In an undercover sting in September 1999, Shawnee was arrested for allowing nude dancing and other “services” at the lounge. For a little more background, Shawnee was also arrested on March 1, 1976 on charges of selling obscene material at the Adult Book and Cinema Store at 322 E. State Street, which was one of two adult book stores and cinemas that the Rockford LCN owned.

In May 1993 Aldino and Donald Elmore developed land at 5223 Torque Drive in Machesney Park, Illinois and Aldino built The Finish Line bar, which would often employ exotic dancers and Frank “Gumba” Saladino would stop in once a month and pick up the Rockford LCN’s “street tax” payments. This went on until April 3, 2002 when Aldino was arrested and charged with having a strip club show at The Finish Line, but he only paid a modest fine for this.

In October 2010, Aldino along with owners Frank Maragi, Jr. and Vincent Palmeri, sold the business they owned at 105 N. Union Street in Byron, Illinois for $206,000. The business was the Union Street Tavern and Maragi was the son of Frank Maragi, Sr., who was a longtime Rockford LCN associate who was mentioned prominently in FBI files and was listed as one of those who was “a member of a local syndicate that controlled gambling in Rockford in 1946-1947.”

Aldino eventually passed away on June 26, 2016 in Machesney Park at the age of 80.

[B.]

Cool to learn about the associates of small / obscure Families like this.

In a city like Rockford I wonder what the process was for putting someone "on record".

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Cool to learn about the associates of small / obscure Families like this.

In a city like Rockford I wonder what the process was for putting someone "on record".

Good question and I need to delve more into the associates because it's difficult most times to figure out who they are but I think they were a real strength for the family. I have FBI files from the 1990s that outline many names but they're all redacted and I have to rely on what I personally know, what I've heard and go from there in the research.

[LarryC]

*DiGiuseppi

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*DiGiuseppi

I'm unsure what you mean

[LarryC]

*DiGiuseppi

I'm unsure what you mean

You’re misspelling the name.

[cavita]

Aldino, his brother and their father all spelled it differently. I just picked one spelling- the way the father spelled it.

[LarryC]

I’ve seen the obits. They spelled it correctly. Like in the article following your screenshot, it’s spelled correctly. Anyone with an iota of knowledge with Italian language knows “giu” makes the “ju” sound. The other is just ignorance of the language.

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I know this. I have relatives named Giuseppe and it's spelled correctly that way. Just for my research and keeping track of things I'm spelling his name as his father did. Other newspaper articles for Aldino they've spelled it DiGuiseppi.
Please don't respond to any of my posts anymore coming at me that way.

[PolackTony]

Domenico DiGiuseppe used the “DiGuiseppe” spelling since at least 1929, when his naturalization document used the latter spelling. Presumably it was an error by the people filing his naturalization and he kept using it from then on. Spelling errors like this were common on US documents for Italian immigrants back in the day, given unfamiliarity with the Italian language and orthographic conventions on the part of Anglo-Americans and the generally low level of literacy of many Italian immigrants in this era.

The family was Abruzzese. Concetta Bautti was from the comune of Penna Sant’Andrea, Teramo. On his WW1 draft card, Domenico’s birthplace was given as “Castell dea Strango, Teramo” [sic]. While I at first though that this was Castel di Sangro in L’Aquila province, it’s odd that the province would be off, and I’m thinking that it is more like to have been a corruption of Castellalto, Teramo, which is a comune where the Di Giuseppe surname is documented.

[LarryC]

Domenico DiGiuseppe used the “DiGuiseppe” spelling since at least 1929, when his naturalization document used the latter spelling. Presumably it was an error by the people filing his naturalization and he kept using it from then on. Spelling errors like this were common on US documents for Italian immigrants back in the day, given unfamiliarity with the Italian language and orthographic conventions on the part of Anglo-Americans and the generally low level of literacy of many Italian immigrants in this era.

The family was Abruzzese. Concetta Bautti was from the comune of Penna Sant’Andrea, Teramo. On his WW1 draft card, Domenico’s birthplace was given as “Castell dea Strango, Teramo” [sic]. While I at first though that this was Castel di Sangro in L’Aquila province, it’s odd that the province would be off, and I’m thinking that it is more like to have been a corruption of Castellalto, Teramo, which is a comune where the Di Giuseppe surname is documented.

And that’s an informed answer. Thank you.