Felix Alderisio
Encyclopedia
Felix "Milwaukee Phil" Alderisio (1912 – September 25, 1971) was a prominent enforcer, bagman, hitman
and burglar for the Chicago Outfit
, serving as an underboss
to Salvatore Giancana ("Sam", "Momo", "Mooney") during the 1960s and as boss for a short time from 1967 before being sent to prison in 1969 and dying there.
era. One of his early arrest
s was for vagrancy
; he frequently waited outside Outfit boss Al Capone
's Lexington Hotel
headquarters in the hope of getting a job as a messenger. In the early 1930s, Alderisio's cousin Louis Fratto
brought Alderisio into the Outfit. Alderisio began working with Sam Battaglia
and John Marshall Caifano as an enforcer. Rising steadily through the ranks during the Great Depression
, Alderisio soon gained a reputation for brutality. By the end of the decade, Alderisio was working under Jake "Greasy Thumb" Guzik
, the Outfit's financial expert, as a bagman delivering payoff
s to Chicago judges and police officials.
. Throughout the next two decades, Nicoletti and Alderisio were frequently questioned by police about gangland
"hits." On May 2, 1962, police questioned the two men in a car that they had customized into a so-called, "hit mobile". The black car had special switches that independently controlled the headlights and tail lights to avoid police detection. There was a hidden compartment in the back with clamps for shotguns, rifles, and pistols. On this occasion, Alderisio and Nicoletti claimed they were, '"... waiting for a friend", and the police released them without charges.
Alderisio was suspected in carrying out 13 or 14 "hits
" for The Outfit.
to Outfit-controlled jewelry stores and wholesalers. Ironically,
Alderisio himself resided in the Gold Coast for a time; his unsuspecting neighbors were his targets. Alderisio also owned several restaurants, meat packing firms, small hotels, Rush Street
nightclubs, bordellos and striptease
joints. He controlled the prostitution in Milwaukee, and figured "large" in gambling
, narcotics and loansharking there - hence the nickname, "Milwaukee Phil."
, Alderisio was identified by federal authorities in the early 1960s as a high ranking member of the Outfit. During the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations of the U.S. Senate Committee on Government Operations
investigations on organized crime, Alderisio would plead the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution against self-incrimination
23 times and refuse to testify.
In May 1962, Alderisio participated in an infamous mob torture incident. After a barroom fight, two small-time criminals, Billy McCarthy and Jimmy Miraglia, had ambushed and killed Outfit associates Ron Scalvo and Phil Scalvo. Alderisio, Nicoletti, and Anthony Spilotro
captured McCarthy and tortured him to provide Miraglia's name. They finally placed McCarthy's head in a vise
and tightened it until one of his eyes popped out of its socket. At that point, McCarthy named Miraglia. Later that week, both McCarthy and Miraglia were found dead with their throats cut.
Often traveling abroad (either on vacation or establishing connections for smuggling heroin into the United States), Alderisio frequently visited Turkey
, Italy
, and Greece
. He was passionate about classical ruins, spending hours photographing them. During one meeting with Giancana that was recorded by law enforcement, Alderisio spent about 20 minutes describing ruins he had recently seen in Europe. Finally, Giancana lost his patience and yelled:
and battery
, bombing, racketeering, loansharking, illegal gambling, hijacking
, narcotic
s, counterfeiting, bootlegging
, bribery, extortion
, and murder-for-hire. However, Alderisio usually avoided prosecution because of the Outfit's strong political connections. Yet, acting as Outfit boss for Tony Accardo
in the late 1960s, he wasn't very popular with the "rank-and-file" Chicago mobsters. Within a short time, Alderisio was convicted of extortion and sent to prison.
On September 25, 1971, Felix Alderisio died from natural causes at the United States Penitentiary, in Marion, Illinois
. His funeral was attended by Accardo and many other Outfit members.
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...
and burglar for the Chicago Outfit
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...
, serving as an underboss
Underboss
Underboss is a position within the leadership structure of Sicilian and American Mafia crime families. The underboss is second in command to the boss...
to Salvatore Giancana ("Sam", "Momo", "Mooney") 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 criminal career as a teenager during the ProhibitionProhibition
Prohibition of alcohol, often referred to simply as prohibition, is the practice of prohibiting the manufacture, transportation, import, export, sale, and consumption of alcohol and alcoholic beverages. The term can also apply to the periods in the histories of the countries during which the...
era. One of his early arrest
Arrest
An arrest is the act of depriving a person of his or her liberty usually in relation to the purported investigation and prevention of crime and presenting into the criminal justice system or harm to oneself or others...
s was for vagrancy
Vagrancy (people)
A vagrant is a person in poverty, who wanders from place to place without a home or regular employment or income.-Definition:A vagrant is "a person without a settled home or regular work who wanders from place to place and lives by begging;" vagrancy is the condition of such persons.-History:In...
; he frequently waited outside Outfit boss 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...
's Lexington Hotel
The Mystery of Al Capone's Vault
The Mystery of Al Capone's Vaults was a one-time live American television special broadcast in syndication in April 1986 hosted by Geraldo Rivera. The program was centered around the opening of a secret vault once owned by noted gangster Al Capone...
headquarters in the hope of getting a job as a messenger. In the early 1930s, Alderisio's cousin Louis Fratto
Louis Fratto
Louis Thomas Fratto , born Luigi Tomaso Giuseppi Fratto, also known as "Lew Farrell" and "Cock-eyed", was a labor racketeer and organized crime figure in Chicago, Illinois, from the 1930s to 1960s. Fratto was allegedly shifted over to become Des Moines, Iowa's, top crime boss in about 1940, until...
brought Alderisio into the Outfit. Alderisio began working with Sam Battaglia
Sam Battaglia
Samuel "Teets" Battaglia was a Chicago mobster and high-level member of the Chicago Outfit criminal organization.-Early career:...
and John Marshall Caifano as an enforcer. Rising steadily through the ranks during the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, Alderisio soon gained a reputation for brutality. By the end of the decade, Alderisio was working under Jake "Greasy Thumb" Guzik
Jake Guzik
Jake "Greasy Thumb" Guzik was the financial and legal advisor, and later political “greaser”, for the Chicago Outfit.-Early life:...
, the Outfit's financial expert, as a bagman delivering payoff
Bribery
Bribery, a form of corruption, is an act implying money or gift giving that alters the behavior of the recipient. Bribery constitutes a crime and is defined by Black's Law Dictionary as the offering, giving, receiving, or soliciting of any item of value to influence the actions of an official or...
s to Chicago judges and police officials.
The Hitmobile
In the 1950s, Alderisio started working as an enforcer with Charles "Chuckie" NicolettiCharles Nicoletti
Charles "Chuckie" Nicoletti, also known as "The Typewriter" "Chuckie Typewriter" , was a top Chicago Outfit hitman under Outfit boss Sam "Mooney" Giancana before and after Giancana's rise and fall.-Early years:...
. Throughout the next two decades, Nicoletti and Alderisio were frequently questioned by police about gangland
Gangland killing
A gangland killing is a murder carried out by organized criminals. According to FBI Uniform Crime Reports, there were 425 gangland killings from 2000 to 2004, 0.6% of all murders committed in the United States during that time...
"hits." On May 2, 1962, police questioned the two men in a car that they had customized into a so-called, "hit mobile". The black car had special switches that independently controlled the headlights and tail lights to avoid police detection. There was a hidden compartment in the back with clamps for shotguns, rifles, and pistols. On this occasion, Alderisio and Nicoletti claimed they were, '"... waiting for a friend", and the police released them without charges.
Alderisio was suspected in carrying out 13 or 14 "hits
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...
" for The Outfit.
Criminal enterprises
Alderisio headed a group of cat burglars that operated in Chicago's upscale Gold Coast district. These thieves specialized in rare gems and jewelry, which they fencedFence (criminal)
A fence is an individual who knowingly buys stolen property for later resale, sometimes in a legitimate market. The fence thus acts as a middleman between thieves and the eventual buyers of stolen goods who may or may not be aware that the goods are stolen. As a verb, the word describes the...
to Outfit-controlled jewelry stores and wholesalers. Ironically,
Alderisio himself resided in the Gold Coast for a time; his unsuspecting neighbors were his targets. Alderisio also owned several restaurants, meat packing firms, small hotels, Rush Street
Rush Street (Chicago)
Rush Street is predominantly a northbound one-way street in the Near North Side community area of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States...
nightclubs, bordellos and striptease
Striptease
A striptease is an erotic or exotic dance in which the performer gradually undresses, either partly or completely, in a seductive and sexually suggestive manner...
joints. He controlled the prostitution in Milwaukee, and figured "large" in gambling
Gambling
Gambling is the wagering of money or something of material value on an event with an uncertain outcome with the primary intent of winning additional money and/or material goods...
, narcotics and loansharking there - hence the nickname, "Milwaukee Phil."
Rise to underboss
During the 1950s and 1960s, Alderisio's crew was responsible for picking-up payoffs from North Side restaurants and nightclubs. He also served as the principle bagman for North Side bookmaking operations, delivering millions of dollars in payments each week to the Outfit leadership. Serving directly under Giancana and later under Gus "Gussie" AlexGus Alex
Gus Alex was a Greek-American mobster and high ranking member of the Chicago Outfit, who succeeded Jake Guzik as the Syndicate's main political "fixer".-Early life:...
, Alderisio was identified by federal authorities in the early 1960s as a high ranking member of the Outfit. During the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations of the U.S. Senate Committee on Government Operations
United States Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
The United States Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs has jurisdiction over matters related to the Department of Homeland Security and other homeland security concerns, as well as the functioning of the government itself, including the National Archives, budget and...
investigations on organized crime, Alderisio would plead the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution against self-incrimination
Self-incrimination
Self-incrimination is the act of accusing oneself of a crime for which a person can then be prosecuted. Self-incrimination can occur either directly or indirectly: directly, by means of interrogation where information of a self-incriminatory nature is disclosed; indirectly, when information of a...
23 times and refuse to testify.
In May 1962, Alderisio participated in an infamous mob torture incident. After a barroom fight, two small-time criminals, Billy McCarthy and Jimmy Miraglia, had ambushed and killed Outfit associates Ron Scalvo and Phil Scalvo. Alderisio, Nicoletti, 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...
captured McCarthy and tortured him to provide Miraglia's name. They finally placed McCarthy's head in a vise
Vise
Vise may refer to:* Miami Vise, a defunct AFL team* Vise , a mechanical screw apparatus* Vise , an architectural element* Venus In-Situ Explorer * The Vise, TV show* Visé, BelgiumPeople with the surname Vise:...
and tightened it until one of his eyes popped out of its socket. At that point, McCarthy named Miraglia. Later that week, both McCarthy and Miraglia were found dead with their throats cut.
Often traveling abroad (either on vacation or establishing connections for smuggling heroin into the United States), Alderisio frequently visited Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, and Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
. He was passionate about classical ruins, spending hours photographing them. During one meeting with Giancana that was recorded by law enforcement, Alderisio spent about 20 minutes describing ruins he had recently seen in Europe. Finally, Giancana lost his patience and yelled:
"Phil, goddammit! Ruins! I got copperPolice officerA police officer is a warranted employee of a police force...
s coming out of my eyeballs and you sit there telling me about ruins! Listen to me, Phil, listen real good! Ruins ain't garbage! Forget about them goddamn ruins!"
Later years
Over several decades of criminal activity, Alderisio was arrested at least 36 times for assaultAssault
In law, assault is a crime causing a victim to fear violence. The term is often confused with battery, which involves physical contact. The specific meaning of assault varies between countries, but can refer to an act that causes another to apprehend immediate and personal violence, or in the more...
and battery
Battery (crime)
Battery is a criminal offense involving unlawful physical contact, distinct from assault which is the fear of such contact.In the United States, criminal battery, or simply battery, is the use of force against another, resulting in harmful or offensive contact...
, bombing, racketeering, loansharking, illegal gambling, hijacking
Carjacking
Carjacking is a form of hijacking, where the crime is of stealing a motor vehicle and so also armed assault when the vehicle is occupied. Historically, such as in the rash of semi-trailer truck hijackings during the 1960s, the general term hijacking was used for that type of vehicle abduction,...
, narcotic
Narcotic
The term narcotic originally referred medically to any psychoactive compound with any sleep-inducing properties. In the United States of America it has since become associated with opioids, commonly morphine and heroin and their derivatives, such as hydrocodone. The term is, today, imprecisely...
s, counterfeiting, bootlegging
Rum-running
Rum-running, also known as bootlegging, is the illegal business of transporting alcoholic beverages where such transportation is forbidden by law...
, bribery, extortion
Extortion
Extortion is a criminal offence which occurs when a person unlawfully obtains either money, property or services from a person, entity, or institution, through coercion. Refraining from doing harm is sometimes euphemistically called protection. Extortion is commonly practiced by organized crime...
, and murder-for-hire. However, Alderisio usually avoided prosecution because of the Outfit's strong political connections. Yet, acting as Outfit boss for Tony Accardo
Tony Accardo
Antonino Joseph Accardo , also known as "Joe Batters" or "Big Tuna", rose from small-time hoodlum to the position of day-to-day boss of the Chicago Outfit in 1947, to ultimately become the final Outfit authority in 1972, until his death...
in the late 1960s, he wasn't very popular with the "rank-and-file" Chicago mobsters. Within a short time, Alderisio was convicted of extortion and sent to prison.
On September 25, 1971, Felix Alderisio died from natural causes at the United States Penitentiary, in Marion, Illinois
Marion, Illinois
The city of Marion is the county seat of Williamson County, Illinois. The 2010 census counted 17,193 residents, making Marion the 25th most populated city outside of the Chicago Metropolitan Area, in Illinois, and the second most populous city in Southern Illinois, outside of the Metro-East, behind...
. His funeral was attended by Accardo and many other Outfit members.
Further reading
- Demaris, Ovid. Captive City: Chicago in Chains. New York: Lyle Stewart Inc., 1969.
- Demaris, Ovid. The Last Mafioso. New York: Bantam Books, 1981. ISBN 0553270915
- Kwitny, Jonathan. Vicious Circles: The Mafia in the Marketplace. New York: W.W. Norton, 1979.
- Thomas, Evan. The Man to See: Edward Bennett Williams - Ultimate Insider; Legendary Trial Lawyer. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1991. ISBN 0671689347