Charles Nicoletti
Encyclopedia
Charles "Chuckie" Nicoletti, also known as "The Typewriter" "Chuckie Typewriter" (December 3, 1916 - March 29, 1977), was a top Chicago Outfit
hitman
under Outfit boss Sam "Mooney" Giancana
before and after Giancana's rise and fall.
in Chicago
. He dropped out of grammar school and when he was twelve years old, Nicoletti killed his own father, Philip Nicoletti, a native of Santa Caterina Villarmosa
, Sicily
. The elder Nicoletti was a drunkard who, in February 1929, brutally beat his own wife, forcing his son to step in; the young Nicoletti was found not guilty of justifiable homicide
. Nicoletti dropped out of school in eighth grade and soon joined the "Forty-Two Gang
." The gang's members included such future Outfit members as Giancana, Sam "Teets" Battaglia
, "Lew Farrell," "Mad Sam" DeStefano
and William "Willie Potatoes" Daddano
.
, Nicoletti was one of the most feared triggermen in Chicago and was drawing attention from the Federal Bureau of Investigation
and the Chicago police. A number of times Nicoletti and Alderisio teamed up for a "hit
," including one occasion on which they were discovered by police sitting on the floor in a car later dubbed "the hitmobile," by reporters. This car had special compartments where guns were stored and special switches to turn lights off at certain times. When questioned by police the two said they were, "... waiting for a friend."
In 1962, Nicoletti took part in an infamous torture case. He, Alderisio and Anthony Spilotro
, known as "Tony the Ant", had kidnapped 24-year-old Billy McCarthy, a thug who with the help of Jimmy Miraglia, also 24, had killed two Outfit associates with a friend. The three men started torturing McCarthy to find out the name of his accomplice. Spilotro had placed the man's head in an industrial vice and started squeezing it tighter and tighter. Suddenly, McCarthy's eye popped completely out of its socket. At that point, he revealed his accomplice's name; then both men were killed. Years later, Tony Spilotro told this story to his friend Frank Cullotta. Spilotro was impressed by Nicoletti's reaction to the gory scene: "Boy, this is a heartless guy. He was eating pasta when Billy's eye popped out." This torture scene was re-enacted in Martin Scorsese
's 1995 film, Casino
.
In the 1960s, Nicoletti was questioned by two FBI Agents, including agent William F. Roemer, to see if they could develop Nicoletti as an informant against his Outfit loyalties. According to Roemer, Nicoletti gave him the names of several car dealerships he worked at and was very cordial; apparently, all the employment leads checked out. But Nicoletti never flipped and never talked to the FBI again, though there was eventually talk in Chicago that Nicoletti did flip.
During his career as a hitman
, it has been alleged that Nicoletti was involved in as many as 20 mob hits. It has also been alleged by a number of sources that Nicoletti was involved in the assassination of President
John F. Kennedy
.http://www.jfkmurdersolved.com/frept97.htm
in a suburban Northlake, Illinois
, restaurant parking lot. He was brought to the hospital where he died six hours later. Nicoletti's car was never turned off, and consequently overheated and started on fire. Some said that Nicoletti was murdered in retaliation for a hit on a Milwaukee, Wisconsin
mob leader, but this is probably a false lead; while Milwaukee has its own mob (at the time of Nicoletti's death, headed by Frank Balistrieri
), it has long been subservient to Chicago's orders, and if Nicoletti had killed anyone in the Milwaukee mob, it would've been ordered by Chicago. Another theory is that the Outfit's day-to-day boss, Joseph "Joey Doves" Aiuppa
, believed that Nicoletti had become an informant and ordered the hit. But the real reason for Nicoletti's murder remains unclear.
Nicoletti was buried at Mount Carmel Cemetery
in Hillside, Illinois
, not far from Al Capone
and other Chicago organized crime figures. Nicoletti was due to appear before the House Select Committee on Assassinations at the time of his death. Chauncey Holt, allegedly the old tramp in the infamous JFK assassination "Three Tramps" photo, claims that he drove Nicoletti into Dallas from Licavoli Grace Ranch on the morning of the JFK assassination.
Chicago Outfit
The Chicago Outfit, also known as the Chicago Syndicate or Chicago Mob and sometimes shortened to simply the Outfit, is a crime syndicate based in Chicago, Illinois, USA...
hitman
Contract killing
Contract killing is a form of murder, in which one party hires another party to kill a target individual or group of people. It involves an illegal agreement between two parties in which one party agrees to kill the target in exchange for consideration, monetary, or otherwise. The hiring party may...
under Outfit boss Sam "Mooney" Giancana
Sam Giancana
Salvatore Giancana , better known as Sam Giancana, was a Sicilian-American mobster and boss of the Chicago Outfit from 1957-1966...
before and after Giancana's rise and fall.
Early years
Nicoletti grew up in an impoverished and dysfunctional familyDysfunctional family
A dysfunctional family is a family in which conflict, misbehavior, and often abuse on the part of individual members occur continually and regularly, leading other members to accommodate such actions. Children sometimes grow up in such families with the understanding that such an arrangement is...
in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. He dropped out of grammar school and when he was twelve years old, Nicoletti killed his own father, Philip Nicoletti, a native of Santa Caterina Villarmosa
Santa Caterina Villarmosa
Santa Caterina Villarmosa is a comune in the Province of Caltanissetta in the Italian region Sicily, located about 80 km southeast of Palermo and about 13 km north of Caltanissetta....
, Sicily
Sicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
. The elder Nicoletti was a drunkard who, in February 1929, brutally beat his own wife, forcing his son to step in; the young Nicoletti was found not guilty of justifiable homicide
Justifiable homicide
The United States' concept of justifiable homicide in criminal law stands on the dividing line between an excuse, justification and an exculpation. It is different from other forms of homicide in that due to certain circumstances the homicide is justified as preventing greater harm to innocents...
. Nicoletti dropped out of school in eighth grade and soon joined the "Forty-Two Gang
Forty-Two Gang
The Forty-Two Gang was a teenage street gang in Chicago during Prohibition. Like Brooklyn's Italian and Jewish street gangs of Brownsville and Ocean Hill, the Forty-Two Gang served as a "farm team" for future members of the Chicago Outfit...
." The gang's members included such future Outfit members as Giancana, Sam "Teets" Battaglia
Sam Battaglia
Samuel "Teets" Battaglia was a Chicago mobster and high-level member of the Chicago Outfit criminal organization.-Early career:...
, "Lew Farrell," "Mad Sam" DeStefano
Sam DeStefano
Sam "Mad Sam" DeStefano was an Italian-American gangster who became one of the Chicago Outfit's most notorious loan sharks and sociopathic killers. Chicago-based Federal Bureau of Investigation agents such as William F. Roemer, Jr., considered DeStefano to be the worst torture-murderer in the...
and William "Willie Potatoes" Daddano
William Daddano, Sr.
William Daddano, Sr. , also known as "William Russo" and "Willie Potatoes," was a top enforcer and loan shark for the Chicago Outfit and a participant in some high-profile robberies.-Early years:...
.
Outfit assassin
By the late 1950s, along with Felix AlderisioFelix Alderisio
Felix "Milwaukee Phil" Alderisio was a prominent enforcer, bagman, hitman and burglar for the Chicago Outfit, serving as an underboss to Salvatore Giancana during the 1960s and as boss for a short time from 1967 before being sent to prison in 1969 and dying there.-Early life:Alderisio began his...
, Nicoletti was one of the most feared triggermen in Chicago and was drawing attention from the Federal Bureau of Investigation
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
and the Chicago police. A number of times Nicoletti and Alderisio teamed up for a "hit
Contract killing
Contract killing is a form of murder, in which one party hires another party to kill a target individual or group of people. It involves an illegal agreement between two parties in which one party agrees to kill the target in exchange for consideration, monetary, or otherwise. The hiring party may...
," including one occasion on which they were discovered by police sitting on the floor in a car later dubbed "the hitmobile," by reporters. This car had special compartments where guns were stored and special switches to turn lights off at certain times. When questioned by police the two said they were, "... waiting for a friend."
In 1962, Nicoletti took part in an infamous torture case. He, Alderisio and Anthony Spilotro
Anthony Spilotro
Anthony "The Ant" Spilotro was an Italian-American mobster and enforcer for the Chicago Outfit in Las Vegas during the 1970s and 1980s. His job was to protect and oversee the Outfit's illegal casino profits...
, known as "Tony the Ant", had kidnapped 24-year-old Billy McCarthy, a thug who with the help of Jimmy Miraglia, also 24, had killed two Outfit associates with a friend. The three men started torturing McCarthy to find out the name of his accomplice. Spilotro had placed the man's head in an industrial vice and started squeezing it tighter and tighter. Suddenly, McCarthy's eye popped completely out of its socket. At that point, he revealed his accomplice's name; then both men were killed. Years later, Tony Spilotro told this story to his friend Frank Cullotta. Spilotro was impressed by Nicoletti's reaction to the gory scene: "Boy, this is a heartless guy. He was eating pasta when Billy's eye popped out." This torture scene was re-enacted in Martin Scorsese
Martin Scorsese
Martin Charles Scorsese is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film historian. In 1990 he founded The Film Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to film preservation, and in 2007 he founded the World Cinema Foundation...
's 1995 film, Casino
Casino (film)
Casino is a 1995 crime drama film directed by Martin Scorsese. It is based on the non-fiction book of the same name by Nicholas Pileggi, who also co-wrote the screenplay for the film with Scorsese...
.
In the 1960s, Nicoletti was questioned by two FBI Agents, including agent William F. Roemer, to see if they could develop Nicoletti as an informant against his Outfit loyalties. According to Roemer, Nicoletti gave him the names of several car dealerships he worked at and was very cordial; apparently, all the employment leads checked out. But Nicoletti never flipped and never talked to the FBI again, though there was eventually talk in Chicago that Nicoletti did flip.
During his career as a hitman
Hitman
A hitman is a person hired to kill another person.- Hitmen in organized crime :Hitmen are largely linked to the world of organized crime. Hitmen are hired people who kill people for money. Notable examples include Murder, Inc., Mafia hitmen and Richard Kuklinski.- Other cases involving hitmen...
, it has been alleged that Nicoletti was involved in as many as 20 mob hits. It has also been alleged by a number of sources that Nicoletti was involved in the assassination of President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
.http://www.jfkmurdersolved.com/frept97.htm
Marked in death
On March 29, 1977, Nicoletti received three .38 slugs to the back of his head while waiting in his OldsmobileOldsmobile
Oldsmobile was a brand of American automobile produced for most of its existence by General Motors. It was founded by Ransom E. Olds in 1897. In its 107-year history, it produced 35.2 million cars, including at least 14 million built at its Lansing, Michigan factory...
in a suburban Northlake, Illinois
Northlake, Illinois
Northlake is a city in suburban Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 11,878 at the 2000 census. The city's moniker is "The City of Friendly People".-Geography:...
, restaurant parking lot. He was brought to the hospital where he died six hours later. Nicoletti's car was never turned off, and consequently overheated and started on fire. Some said that Nicoletti was murdered in retaliation for a hit on a Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Milwaukee is the largest city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, the 28th most populous city in the United States and 39th most populous region in the United States. It is the county seat of Milwaukee County and is located on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan. According to 2010 census data, the...
mob leader, but this is probably a false lead; while Milwaukee has its own mob (at the time of Nicoletti's death, headed by Frank Balistrieri
Frank Balistrieri
Frank Peter Balistrieri , also known as "Mr. Big", "Frankie Bal", "Mr. Slick", and "Mad Bomber", was a Milwaukee Mafia boss who was a central figure in skimming during the 1980s.-Early years:...
), it has long been subservient to Chicago's orders, and if Nicoletti had killed anyone in the Milwaukee mob, it would've been ordered by Chicago. Another theory is that the Outfit's day-to-day boss, Joseph "Joey Doves" Aiuppa
Joseph Aiuppa
Joseph John Aiuppa , also known as "Doves," "Mourning Doves," "O'Brien," or "Joey Doves," was a Chicago mobster who became a leader of the Chicago Outfit.-Early career:...
, believed that Nicoletti had become an informant and ordered the hit. But the real reason for Nicoletti's murder remains unclear.
Nicoletti was buried at Mount Carmel Cemetery
Mount Carmel Cemetery (Hillside)
Mount Carmel Cemetery is a Roman Catholic cemetery located in the Chicago suburb of Hillside, Illinois. Mount Carmel is an active cemetery, located within the jurisdiction of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago. The cemetery is located near the Eisenhower Expressway at Wolf and Roosevelt...
in Hillside, Illinois
Hillside, Illinois
Hillside is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 8,155 at the 2000 census.One notable landmark in Hillside is the Mount Carmel Cemetery. On the grounds of the cemetery are the graves of a number of organized crime figures, such as Al Capone and Dion O'Bannion...
, not far from Al Capone
Al Capone
Alphonse Gabriel "Al" Capone was an American gangster who led a Prohibition-era crime syndicate. The Chicago Outfit, which subsequently became known as the "Capones", was dedicated to smuggling and bootlegging liquor, and other illegal activities such as prostitution, in Chicago from the early...
and other Chicago organized crime figures. Nicoletti was due to appear before the House Select Committee on Assassinations at the time of his death. Chauncey Holt, allegedly the old tramp in the infamous JFK assassination "Three Tramps" photo, claims that he drove Nicoletti into Dallas from Licavoli Grace Ranch on the morning of the JFK assassination.
Further reading
- 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
- Groden, Robert J. and Livingstone, Harrison Edward. High Treason. New York: Berkley Books, 1990. ISBN 0-425-12344-8
- Hinckle, Warren and Turner, William W. The Fish is Red: The Story of the Secret War Against Castro. New York: Harper & Row, 1981. ISBN 0-06-038003-9
- Marrs, JimJim MarrsJim Marrs is an American former newspaper journalist and New York Times best-selling author of books and articles on a wide range of alleged cover ups and conspiracies. Marrs is a prominent figure in the JFK conspiracy press and his book Crossfire was a source for Oliver Stone's film JFK...
. Crossfire: The Plot That Killed Kennedy. New York: Carroll & Graf, 1990. ISBN 0-88184-648-1