Casino Movie Mob Bosses

Kansas City Crime Family
Allies
Founded by	Joseph DiGiovanni
Named after	Nicholas Civella
Founding location	Kansas City, Missouri, United States
Years active	1912–present
Territory	Kansas City metropolitan area and the entire states of Missouri and Nebraska, as well as Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Oklahoma and Washington, D.C.
Ethnicity	'Made men' are Italians, Italian Americans, the other ethnicities employed as 'associates'.
Criminal activities	Racketeering, extortion, murder, gambling, loan sharking, skimming, waste management, narcotics, bookmaking, and bribery
Rivals	Various gangs over Kansas City, including their allies.

All Casino Bosses
Casino Movie Mob Bosses Psycho

Former mafia boss, Michael Franzese (showcases his experience and expertise while reviewing scenes from pop culture depicting l.

The Kansas City crime family is an Italian-AmericanMafiafamily based in Kansas City, Missouri.

History[edit]

Early history[edit]

Watch the Casino movie trailer for the film starring Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci and Sharon Stone. Directed by Martin Scorcese, Casino tells the story of sports handicapper Frank 'Lefty' Rosenthal in mob-run Las Vegas during the 1970's.
In Casino the story revolves around the mob stealing from the Tangiers casino by skimming off the top of all money earned. In order to get away with this, they seem to have their people in place - they get their man, Sam 'Ace' Rothstein to run it, they arrange the loan which allows the casino.
Clothes Make the Mob in ‘Casino’: Director Scorsese Sought an Authentic Look That Required Lots of Bad Rags From the ‘70s and an Army of Minor Players From N.Y.
A tale of greed, deception, money, power, and murder occur between two best friends: a mafia enforcer and a casino executive compete against each other over a gambling empire, and over a fast-living and fast-loving socialite.

The Italian-American organized crime family began when two Sicilian mafiosi known as the DiGiovanni brothers fled Sicily to Kansas City, Missouri, in 1912. Joseph 'Joe Church' DiGiovanni and Peter 'Sugarhouse Pete' DiGiovanni began making money from a variety of criminal operations or rackets shortly after their arrival.^[1]

Their fortunes greatly improved with the introduction of Prohibition, when they became the only group bootlegging alcohol in Kansas City.^[1] Their rackets at this time were controlled by John Lazia, who later became the leading figure when the organisation expanded. The gang was given virtually a free hand to operate by their bossTom Pendergast, head of the Pendergast Machine that controlled Kansas City's government at the time. Under Pendergast, Kansas City became a wide-open town, with absolutely no alcohol-related arrests being made within city limits during the entirety of Prohibition. The DiGiovanni family directly benefited from this lack of enforcement of prohibition laws.^[1]

Post-Prohibition[edit]

When Prohibition ended in 1933, the family, although already involved in various rackets, allegedly began extorting bars. On July 10, 1934, Lazia was assassinated, probably on the orders of his underboss, Charles Carrollo, who ruled as boss until his arrest in 1939 for tax evasion. His underboss Charles Binaggio then became the new boss and expanded the family's areas of labor into racketeering. With the help of Binaggio, Forrest Smith was elected in the Missouri gubernatorial race of 1948, and he took office on January 10, 1949. Binaggio was seen as a liability to the Mafia's nationwide commission, and it was decided that Binaggio should be killed. He was assassinated on April 6, 1950, and his successor Anthony Gizzo died of a heart attack in 1953.

Nicholas Civella[edit]

The new boss was now Nicholas Civella, who greatly expanded the family's rackets and forged alliances with families from other cities, making the organization very powerful. Civella used the Teamsters to fund casinos in Las Vegas. In 1975, Civella was imprisoned on gambling charges for betting on the 1970 Super Bowl, played between the Minnesota Vikings and the Kansas City Chiefs. Around this time, there was a war in the family over control of the River Quay entertainment district, in which three buildings were bombed and several gangsters were killed.

Operation Strawman[edit]

The Kansas City FBI, suspecting mob involvement at the Tropicana Casino in Las Vegas, set up a broad investigation, known as Operation Strawman, which involved wiretapping phones of reputed mobsters and their associates in Kansas City. From the evidence collected by taps and other eavesdropping in the late 1970s, the FBI discovered a conspiracy to skim money from the Tropicana Casino.

Operation Strawman learned that Joe Agosto, head of the Tropicana's Folies Bergere show, controlled the skimming in the Tropicana. Agosto was secretly sending cash from the casino to Kansas City organized-crime chief Nick Civella and Joseph Aiuppa of Chicago, as well as Cleveland and Milwaukee mobsters.

In 1981, a grand jury in Kansas City indicted Agosto, Kansas City mob boss Nick Civella, Civella's brother Carl Civella, mob member Carl DeLuna, and Carl Thomas, who had directed the illegal skimming of cash at the Tropicana with two others. The defendants were convicted in 1983.^[2]

Recent history[edit]

William 'Willie the Rat' Cammisano, Sr., became the family's next boss until his death in 1995. Anthony Civella then became the new boss. He died in 2006.

The Kansas City family had an estimated 25 made members as of the late 1990s, according to the FBI.

The current boss of the family is believed to be John Joseph Sciortino, also known as 'Johnny Joe', godson of Anthony Civella. The current underboss is believed to be Peter Simone.

On July 21, 2008, Carl 'Tuffy' DeLuna, former underboss to Nick Civella and brother-in-law to Anthony Civella, died.

In August 2008, retired FBI agent William Ouseley published his history of the KC crime family from 1900 to 1950 in a book titled Open City.

On March 20, 2009, Blackhand Strawman, a documentary of Kansas City's organized crime history, was released in theaters in Kansas City.

On March 1, 2011 retired FBI agent William Ouseley published his history of the KC crime family from 1950 to 2000 in a book titled Mobsters in Our Midst.

On November 25, 2013, the documentary film Gangland Wire was released to theaters. This film uses audio clips from FBI wiretaps to tell the story of how law enforcement uncovered a massive conspiracy to control Las Vegas casinos.

On March 11, 2010, the FBI indicted Gerlarmo Cammisano, James Moretina, Michael Lombardo, and James DiCapo for allegedly operating a 'multi-million-dollar internet gambling scheme'.

Gerlarmo Cammisano, son of William 'Willie the Rat' Cammisano, served as the 'master agent' of the sports bookmaking operation, which was based in the Kansas City area. Gerlarmo Cammisano's brother, William D. Cammisano, Jr., pleaded guilty for his role in the sports bookmaking operation. In January 1992, Moretina pleaded guilty to a federal money laundering charge and was sentenced to 37 months. Moretina served as president of a firm that distributed illegal video gambling machines. He and his business partner, purported mob underboss Peter J. Simone, operated the Be Amused Vending and Amusement Co. Moretina is the son of Charles Moretina, who was convicted in the 1980s for skimming Las Vegas casino gambling receipts.

Prior to the indictment, six individuals pleaded guilty in connection with the investigation, including three – Vincent Civella and brothers Michael and Anthony Sansone – who are the son and grandsons of former Kansas City boss Anthony 'Tony Ripe' Civella. According to Scott Burnstein's Gangster Report, the Kansas City mob is on its last legs with 12 made men or less. The family still has some gambling and loansharking with some extortion involving drugs and the strip club industry.^[3]

Historical leadership[edit]

Bosses (official and acting)[edit]

1912-1931 – Joseph 'Joe Church' DiGiovanni
1931-1934 – John 'Brother John' Lazia – murdered in 1934.
1934-1939 – Charles 'Charlie the Wop' Carrollo – convicted in 1939.
1939-1950 – Charles Binaggio – murdered
1950-1953 – Anthony Gizzo
1953-1983 – Nicholas Civella – convicted in 1977 and 1980, deceased in 1983.
- Acting 1977-1979 – Carl 'Tuffy' DeLuna – imprisoned in 1979.
- Acting 1979-1983 – Carl 'Cork' Civella
1983-1984 – Carl 'Cork' Civella – convicted in 1984.
1984-1995 – William 'Willie the Rat' Cammisano
1995-2006 – Anthony 'Tony Ripe' Civella – arrested in 1992.
- Acting 1992-2006 – John 'Johnny Joe' Sciortino
2006-present – John 'Johnny Joe' Sciortino

Current family members[edit]

Administration[edit]

Boss John 'Johnny Joe' Sciortino
Underboss Peter 'Las Vegas Pete' Simone^[4]
Consigliere Frank DeLuna – the FBI in Missouri believes he is the aide to Sciortino.

Caporegimes[edit]

William Cammisano, Jr. – a current captain and son of former Kansas City mob boss William 'Willie the Rat' Cammisano Sr. His first conviction was in 1989 for obstruction of justice after he intimidated a witness involved in a murder trial; he was released 3 years later. He has been the suspect of numerous gangland executions during the 1980s. Cammisano is also blacklisted from every casino in Kansas City and Las Vegas.^[5] In 2010, he pleaded guilty to running a massive illegal gambling operation which amounted to $3.5 million over the course of 3 years; he received 1 year.^[6]^[7]

References[edit]

^ ^a^b^cOuseley, William (12 June 2008). Open City: True Story of the KC Crime Family 1900-1950. Leathers Publishing. ISBN978-1585974801.
^'Tropicana ONE'. www.onlinenevada.org.
^'State Of The Syndicate: The Kansas City Mafia Today'. The Gangster Report.
^'Kansas City mafia continues to dwindle'. About the Mafia. Retrieved 17 May 2016.
^'William Dominick Cammisano, Jr'. Nevada Gaming Control Board. Retrieved 17 May 2016.
^'Remembering Kansas City's mob past'. Kansas City Business Journal. Steve Vockrodt. Retrieved 17 May 2016.
^'William 'Willie' Cammisano Jr. pleads guilty to running illegal gambling operation; son of 'Willie the Rat' Cammisano'. The Pitch. Justin Kendall. Retrieved 17 May 2016.

Sources[edit]

Retrieved from 'https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Kansas_City_crime_family&oldid=998451580'

“Casino”, a 1995 film by Martin Scorsese about the rise and fall of the mafia’s stranglehold on Las Vegas starring Robert DeNiro and Sharon Stone, recently celebrated the 25th anniversary of its release in November of 1995. “Casino” is one of the best films ever made about Las Vegas and the first 45 minutes of the film is a both an homage to Sin City and vintage Scorsese.

“Casino” is often referred to “Goodfellas in Vegas” and there’s certainly an element of truth to that assessment. Like every one of Scorsese’s films, he’s telling multiple stories at once while making a social commentary about American greed and violence.

Release: November 1995
Produced by: Barbara De Fina
Written by: Nicholas Pileggi and Martin Scorsese
Directed by: Martin Scorsese
Distributed by: Universal Pictures

On the surface, “Casino” is a gangster flick set in Vegas, but it’s also about a tragic love story that inevitably leads to the downfall of a gambling empire. “Casino” is both a love letter and cautionary tale about the mafia’s involvement in Las Vegas before corporations took over in the 1980s and turned it into adult Disneyworld.

Scorsese made “Casino” with a budget between $40 million and $50 million, and it earned $116 million at the box office.

Casino: Based on a True Story

Scorsese’s film is directly inspired and based on “Casino: Love and Honor in Las Vegas”, a non-fiction written by Nicholas Pileggi, which focuses on the mafia as silent partners in Las Vegas casinos in the 1970s and early 1980s. Pileggi tells the story about a Chicago bookmaker named Frank “Lefty” Rosenthal, who was tapped by mafia bosses to run the Stardust Casino in Las Vegas. Lefty’s childhood friend, Anthony Spilotro, is also sent to Vegas to watch Lefty’s back and provide security for the Stardust. In Sin City, Spilotro and his crew quickly rise to power as Las Vegas’ most-notorious crime figure.

All Casino Bosses

Scorsese and Pileggi co-authored the screenplay for “Casino”, but changed the names of all the main figures involved. Lefty Rosenthal becomes Ace Rothstein in the film, while Tony Spilotro becomes Nicky Santoro.

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Casino: Ace Go to Vegas

“Casino” starts in 1973. The teamsters union, which has deep connections to the Chicago mafia, loans $62.7 million to real estate developer Philip Green (Kevin Pollack) to open a new casino in Las Vegas called the Tangiers.

The Italian mafia bosses send a Jewish bookmaker and gambler, Sam “Ace” Rothstein (Robert DeNiro), to manage the Tangiers. After running into problems as a sports bettor and bookie. Ace is thrilled to operate in Las Vegas were gambling and bookmaking is legalized.

“I was given paradise on Earth,” said Ace in a voiceover. “Las Vegas washes away your sins, like a morality car wash.”

Ace micromanages the Tangiers, which becomes highly profitable. Meanwhile, the mafia secretly takes their cut by skimming profits from the count room.

“In the casino, the cardinal rule is to keep them playing and keep them coming back. The longer they play, the more they lose. In the end, we get it all.”

While gamblers flock to Las Vegas, criminals and cheaters are also drawn to Sin City for a quick score.

“Since the players are trying to beat the casinos, the dealers are watching the players,” said Ace. “The boxmen are watching the dealers. The floormen are watching the boxmen. The pit bosses are watching the floormen. The shift bosses are watching the pit bosses. The casino manager is watching the shift bosses. I’m watching the casino manager, and the eye in the sky is watching them all.”

When Ace catches a cheater, the security enacts swift and violent “cheaters’ justice” in the back room to deter future cheaters.

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Nicky and Ginger

The mob also sends enforcer Nicky Santoro (Joe Pesci) to keep an eye on Ace and the casino. Most importantly, Santoro ensures the mob can “skim” the profits without any impediments. He’s also a deterrent if any other mobsters from other cities try to cheat or muscle their way in on the Tangiers.

As Nicky succinctly put it, “There’s a lots of holes in the desert, and lot of problems buried in those holes.”

Nicky expands his empire in the shadows of Las Vegas in criminal activities ranging from loansharking to high-end robberies.

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At the heart of casino is a tragic love story between two star-crossed lovers. Ace falls in love with a high-class prostitute and hustler named Ginger McKenna (Sharon Stone).

“Ginger had the hustlers’ code,” explained Ace. “She knew how to take care of people. And that’s what Vegas is all about. It’s kick-back city.”

Ginger admitted that she’d never truly love Ace, he thinks otherwise and proceeds with the nuptials. Ginger loves the lavish lifestyle with money, clothes, jewelry, and drugs.

“For a girl like Ginger, love cost a lot of money,” added Ace.

The more that Ace tried to domesticate Ginger, the further they grew apart.

Ginger’s ex-boyfriend/pimp Lester (James Woods) is a low-rent golf hustler from LA that weaves in and out of Ginger’s life, mostly when he’s broke and needs money. When Ginger unsuccessfully tries to run away with Lester, she eventually drifts towards Nicky to protect her.

Ace finally gives up on Ginger after she robbed his “kidnapping” money, or a stash of over $1 million in a safe deposit box at a bank in Los Angeles.

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The Fall, Goodbye Vegas

As the 1970s bleed into the 1980s, cocaine abuse accelerates the lunacy. Ginger grows more uncontrollable. Nicky’s criminals ways get sloppier, which draws more attention from both authorities and the press.

Ace loses his edge as well due to his increasing martial problems. He also runs into issues with local state officials and they deny him a gaming license. Ace hits the airwaves to express his grievances. The blitz of press irked the bosses back home. They were also growing increasingly concerned about Nicky’s cowboy antics. When the monthly “skim” from the Tangiers is reduced from $700,000 at its peak to just a few thousand dollars, the bosses decide it’s time to liquidate their problems.

Nicky and his brother are inevitable whacked in a cornfield somewhere between Vegas and Kansas City.

The mafia also attempt to kill Ace by blowing up his car. However, he catches a lucky break and survives the bombing. Ace realizes his luck in Vegas — in love, life, and with gambling — has run out. He “retires” from the gaming business and relocates to San Diego where he returns to handicapping horse races and betting on sports.

Casino ends with bittersweet soliloquy from Ace over a montage of the modern-day Las Vegas run by beancounters and corporations.

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Casino: 120 Characters and 7,000 Extras

Scorsese likes to cast actors he worked with on previous projects, so it wasn’t a shock to see both Joe Pesci and Robert DeNiro return to the screen together.

Scorsese included many old-school Vegas entertainers in “Casino”, including comedian Don Rickles in a straight role as casino manager Billy Sherbert.

Performers such as Frankie Avalon and Jerry Vale appear in “Casino” as himself. Long-time Las Vegas mayor, and former mob lawyer, Oscar Goodman also makes a cameo. Dick Smothers from the Smothers Brothers fame plays a crooked state senator.

CASINO CAST

Sam ‘Ace’ Rothstein (Robert DeNiro)
Nicky Santoro (Joe Pesci)
Ginger McKenna (Sharon Stone)
Billy Sherbert (Don Rickles)
Philip Green (Kevin Pollack)
Lester Diamond (James Woods)
Andy Stone (Alan King)
Frank Marino (Frank Vincent)
Senator (Dick Smothers)
Remo Gaggi (Pasquale Cajano)
Oscar Goodman (as Himself)
Frankie Avalon (as Himself)
Jerry Vale (as Himself)

“Casino” earned multiple nominations at the Academy Awards. Sharon Stone earned an Oscars nomination for best actress, but she lost out to Susan Sarandon (“Dead Man Walking”). However, Stone won the Golden Globe for her portrayal of Ginger McKenna. Cinephiles often highlight Stone in “Casino” as her greatest on-screen performance.

Scorsese was snubbed at the Oscars, but he earned a nomination for best directing at the Golden Globes.

The costume and wardrobe budget for this film exceeded $1 million.

Casino Easter Eggs and Did You Know?

Scorsese often casts his parents in his films. Catherine Scorsese is most known from her cameos in “Goodfellas” as Joe Pesci’s mother. In “Casino”, she plays Piscano’s mother. It’s her final film role before she passed away in 1997.

The legendary Saul Bass created the opening credits for “Casino”, in addition to “Goodfellas”.

The fictional Tangiers Casino is based on the Stardust Casino, where Lefty Rosenthal managed in the 1970s.

Exteriors for the Tangiers were filmed outside the old Las Vegas Hilton and the Flamingo. Interiors of the Tangiers were filmed inside the Riviera Casino between 2am and 10am. Scorsese cast real dealers, pit bosses, and floor managers to create an air of authenticity to the gambling scenes.

The famous money count scene was filmed on a soundstage in Hollywood. Nevada gaming laws would not allow a film crew inside a real counting room.

Sharon Stone won the role of Ginger, but Scorsese considered other actresses including Madonna, Nicole Kidman, Uma Thurman, Melanie Griffith, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Rene Russo.

Scorsese knew that the ratings committee would flag the gratuitous usage of the f-bomb (over 420 times) and other violent scenes. He included the “head in the vice” scene and intended to sacrifice it to the MPAA in order to keep the rest of his film intact, but it surprisingly did not get flagged. The vice scene is a true story that appeared in Pileggi’s book when Tony Spilotro tortured someone using a vice to extract information.

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