Sam Giancana

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Sam Giancana

Sam "Momo" Giancana (born June 15, 1908 in Chicago , † June 19, 1975 in Oak Park , Illinois ) was an American mafioso and head of the " Chicago Outfit ".

Born under the name Salvatore Giancana in Chicago's Little Italy neighborhood , the son of Sicilian immigrants was arrested over 70 times in the course of his criminal career, but only twice imprisoned for long periods. His nickname "Momo" is derived from "Mooney", a slang term that describes a madman. In fact, he has long been notorious for his irascible and unpredictably malicious behavior. In addition to Momo or Mo , he was sometimes also called Sam the Cigar (English for: "Sam the cigar").

Life

Early years

Giancana was born into poor circumstances; his mother died after a miscarriage when he was two years old. He was considered unruly and was abused by his father, in particular by being tied to an oak tree and whipped.

Giancana was then sent to a reformatory , but by the age of ten he was basically living on the street, where he met his needs for food and clothing by stealing and sleeping in cars. He joined Joey Colaro's gang when he was 12, and from then on the thefts were organized. The gang was particularly interested in cars, but bomb attacks and homicide assignments were also part of the business. Giancana turned out to be the best rider in the group. His brutality earned himself respect in the gang that had practically become his new family.

Together with other small groups of teenage criminals on Chicago's West Side, they then formed the infamous 42 gang . The Chicago Outfit soon recruited members of this youth gang for its purposes. From 1923 he drove alcoholic freight for Joe Esposito and at times also for Joseph P. Kennedy . He became Jack McGurn's chauffeur and in the outfit he showed himself to be an exceptionally talented getaway driver, successful debt collector and cold-blooded murderer. From 1924 he also worked as a contract killer for Al Capone .

In addition to the thesis that John Torrio had been injured by an assassination attempt by the North Side Gang , there were also always suspicions that Al Capone himself wanted to get his boss out of the way; in this case it is said to have been Giancana and Leonard Gianola who seriously injured Torrio in January 1925. That same year, Giancana was arrested and sentenced for car theft. When he was released from custody to join his biological family, he asserted himself there as the new head of the family against his father.

He was first charged with murder when he was 18; however, the only witness to the crime died before he could testify in court. He is said to have whistled Joey Colaro to the police and thus became the boss of the 42 gang himself. By the age of 20 he is said to have murdered around 20 people, including the murder on October 3, 1928 of his sponsor Joe Esposito . At the latest under Frank Nitti , who was considered Al Capone's successor in the outfit, he was accepted as a full member in the Chicago outfit.

On September 23, 1933, at the age of 25, Sam Giancana married Angeline De Tolve († 1954), with whom he remained married until her death. The couple had three daughters: Antoinette, Bonnie and Francine.

Kennedy and Cuba

After his admission to the Cosa Nostra and his interim rise to a leader of the " Chicago Outfit " Giancana was commissioned by the CIA in 1959, together with other members of the organization, to assassinate Fidel Castro , who had taken power in Cuba in January 1959 . Giancana himself is said to have once referred to the CIA and the Mafia as "two sides of the same coin". In the 1960 presidential campaign , Giancana donated to Kennedy, who was a Senator from Massachusetts, who was trying to be nominated by the Democratic Party . This gave rise to rumors that the Mafia had influenced the election in the state of Illinois and thus contributed significantly to Kennedy's success. Historians Edmund F. Kallina and David Kaiser question the significance of Giancana's donation, about the origin of which Kennedy may have known nothing. Even if Illinois had gone to Kennedy's rival Richard Nixon , he would still have won the election.

There is evidence that John F. Kennedy maintained ties with Giancana during his presidency. He was on friendly terms with his friend Frank Sinatra and was related by marriage to the Rat Pack friend Peter Lawford . Under Kennedy, attempts to eliminate Fidel Castro with the help of the mobsters are said to have continued - the multi-stage plan ( Operation Mongoose ) goes back to his initiative on November 30, 1961.

In addition, both are said to have had intimate relationships with Judith Campbell , a member of the upper class of Los Angeles , who is said to have served them as a messenger for news and money. Giancana is also said to have been involved in the murder of John F. Kennedy , but this has not yet been proven. Despite his connections and his undoubtedly prominent position in the Chicago outfit, Giancana is said to have never held the top management of the organization, but rather acted as the "acting boss" of the secretive Consigliere Paul Ricca and Anthony Accardo, who was about the same age .

Decline

Meanwhile, the FBI had firmly investigated Giancana and organized his constant surveillance .

“He can't play golf or get cigarettes without a couple of cars with FBI agents openly following him. He doesn't get a hotel room without a bug, and there is no longer a telephone for him that is not tapped. "

- Dagobert Lindlau

On June 28, 1963, Giancana went to court against violations of his civil rights, but he lost the trial and the FBI expanded its surveillance activities.

In 1966 Giancana was forced by his own people to give up his position as boss. The final reason for the forced resignation was his refusal to share the profits from the casinos he operates across Latin America , as well as the public display of himself alongside celebrities, particularly singers Phyllis McGuire and Frank Sinatra .

After his disempowerment, Giancana left Chicago in 1967 and went to Cuernavaca , Mexico . In 1974, under pressure from the US authorities, he was expelled from the Mexican government of the country and brought back to the USA.

Giancana now moved to Oak Park near Chicago. He had already received a summons before the Church Committee , which was investigating the involvement of the CIA and the Cosa Nostra in various attempts to assassinate Fidel Castro .

death

On June 19, 1975, while he was preparing a meal of Italian sausages and hot peppers, he was shot dead in the basement of his new home, although the house was under close surveillance by the FBI and Chicago police at the time of the crime. The unknown killer shot Giancana in the head with a silencer and six more times in the mouth, which can be seen as a deterrent for other potential " pentiti ".

Because of the summons before the Church Committee, the CIA came under direct suspicion. However, it is now considered more likely that he was murdered by the outfit itself. In particular, his former friend Joseph Aiuppa is said to have feared that the booted Giancana would use the upcoming hearing to reveal internals. In this case, Dominick Blasi is said to have been charged with the act; but Harry Aleman and Anthony Spilotro were also frequently associated with the murder.

Giancana was buried in a family mausoleum in the Mount Carmel Cemetery in Chicago. At his funeral there were scuffles with journalists who were relatives of the dead man who were present. a. Louis Daddano - were attacked.

estate

On June 24, 1975 and September 22, 1975, John Roselli testified before the US Senate Select Committee on Intelligence (SSCIA) - chaired by Senator Frank Church , and therefore named after him - about his involvement in Operation Mongoose .

For years, Roselli was the liaison for the outfit in Las Vegas and Hollywood and the main contact - also for Giancana - with the CIA. After the assassination of Giancana - one of his most important supporters - Roselli retired to Miami , Florida ; was summoned again on April 23, 1976 to testify in the John F. Kennedy murder .

When he was due to testify again three months later, Roselli had disappeared without a trace on July 28, 1976. On August 23, 1976, his body was found in a 55 gallon oil drum off the coast of Florida.

Giancana in books and films

Several biographies have been written about Giancana. A biography published by his daughter Antoinette under the title Mafia Princess was filmed with Tony Curtis in the role of Giancanas. This TV movie received mostly bad reviews. The 1995 TV film The Godfather and the Showgirl ( Sugartime ), in which Giancana was played by John Turturro , is about Giancana's relationship with Phyllis McGuire. Giancana is portrayed by Rod Steiger in the television miniseries Sinatra and played by Robert Miranda in the film The Rat Pack .

The British docu-drama series On the Mafia Network - The FBI's Secret Files dealt with Giancana in the first of 13 episodes; It was first broadcast in Germany ( ZDF ) on May 18, 2012.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ http://www.nndb.com/people/979/000113640/ , accessed on August 3, 2012
  2. ^ David Kaiser : The Road to Dallas. The Assassination of John. F. Kennedy . Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA 2008, pp. 55-67
  3. ^ Edmund F. Kallina: Courthouse over White House: Chicago and the Presidential Election of 1960 . University Press of Florida, Orlando 1989; David Kaiser: The Road to Dallas. The Assassination of John. F. Kennedy . Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA 2008, pp. 88 ff. And 145
  4. ↑ a b Dagobert Lindlau: The Mob. Research on organized crime, dtv , Munich 1989, p. 224 f., ISBN 3-455-08659-4

swell

  • Giancana, Sam and Chuck. Double Cross: The Explosive, inside Story of the Mobster Who Controlled America . New York: Warner Books, 1992. ISBN 0-446-51624-4
  • Giancana, Sam and Chuck. Giancana. An inside report from the US Mafia . Bergisch Gladbach: Bastei-Lübbe, 1995, ISBN 3-404-60404-0 (extremely exaggerated and speculative biography)
  • Giancana, Antoinette and Renner, Thomas C. Mafia Princess . New York: William Morrow & Company, Inc., 1984
  • Hersh, Seymour M. Dark Side of Camelot . New York: Little, Brown and Company, 1997, ISBN 0-316-35955-6
  • Morgan, John M. Prince of Crime . New York: Stein and Day, 1985
  • Nash, Jay Robert. Bloodletters and Badmen . New York: M. Evans & Co., 1973
  • Sifakis, Carl. Encyclopedia of Crime . New York: Facts On File, 1982, ISBN 0-8160-5694-3
  • Zion, Sidney. Loyalty and Betrayal: The Story of the American Mob . San Francisco: Collins Publishers, 1994

Web links

predecessor Office successor
Anthony Accardo Head of the “ Chicago Outfit ” of La Cosa Nostra
1957 - 1966 		Sam Battaglia
personal data
SURNAME Giancana, Sam
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Giancana, Salvatore (maiden name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American mafia boss in Chicago
DATE OF BIRTH June 15, 1908
PLACE OF BIRTH Chicago , Illinois, USA
DATE OF DEATH June 19, 1975
Place of death Oak Park , Illinois, USA