Guarino Moretti | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1894-02-24)February 24, 1894 Bari, Apulia, Kingdom of Italy |
| Died | October 4, 1951(1951-10-04) (aged 57) |
| Cause of death | Gunshots |
| Other names | "Willie Moore" |
| Occupation(s) | Mobster, businessman |
| Known for | Frank Costello'sright-hand man |
| Allegiance | Genovese crime family |
| Criminal charge | Robbery |
| Penalty | 1 year in prison |
Guarino "Willie" Moretti (February 24, 1894 – October 4, 1951), also known asWillie Moore, was anItalian-American mobster who served asunderboss of theGenovese crime family and top member ofNew Jersey faction under the administration of his cousinFrank Costello.
Born Guarino Moretti inBari, Apulia, southern Italy, Moretti immigrated to the United States with his family to live inNew Jersey.
On January 12, 1913, after being convicted of robbery in New York City, Moretti was sentenced to one year in state prison inElmira, New York. He was released after several months.[1]
From 1933 to 1951, Moretti, in association withJoe Adonis,Settimo Accardi andAbner Zwillman, ran lucrative gambling dens in New Jersey and upstate New York. His operations were based out of his homes inHasbrouck Heights (located inBergen County, New Jersey, just outside New York City) andDeal (located inMonmouth County, New Jersey along theJersey Shore).[2]
Moretti was the godfather of then-unknown singerFrank Sinatra. Sinatra's first wife, Nancy Barbato, was a paternal cousin ofJohn Barbato, a Moretti associate. Moretti helped Sinatra get bookings in New Jersey clubs in return for kickbacks. Finally, in 1939, Sinatra signed a recording contract with band leaderTommy Dorsey. However, by the early 1940s, Sinatra had achieved national popularity and wanted to sign a more lucrative recording contract, but Dorsey refused to release him from their existing contract. A rumour claimed that Sinatra asked Moretti for help, and it was alleged that Moretti jammed a gun barrel down Dorsey's throat and threatened to kill him if he did not release Sinatra. Dorsey eventually sold the contract to Sinatra for one dollar.[3]
In the late 1940s, Moretti became acquainted with comediansDean Martin andJerry Lewis while they were performing at Bill Miller'sRiviera nightclub inFort Lee, New Jersey. In earlier years, Moretti andAbner "Longy" Zwillman were watching the club's cardroom when it was previously owned by Ben Marden. In 1947, Martin, Lewis, Sinatra, and comedianMilton Berle all performed at the wedding reception of Moretti's stepsister.[citation needed]
In 1950, the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Organized Crime started an investigation known as theKefauver hearings, named after its chairman, Sen.Estes Kefauver. Along with other members of the Genovese family, Moretti, by then widely known by his alias "Willie Moore," was called to testify. Moretti was the only one who cooperated with the committee. While the other mobsters refused to testify by repeatedly invoking theFifth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which provides legal protection against self-incrimination, the garrulous Moretti told jokes, spoke candidly, and generally played it up for the cameras. For example, when asked how long he'd been in the Mafia he replied, "What do you mean, like do I carry a membership card that says 'Mafia' on it?" And when asked how he operated politically he said, "I don't operate politically, if I did I'd be a congressman." The Senators and spectators in the room often broke out laughing at his sarcastic responses.[citation needed]
As it was being alleged that Moretti's mental condition was possibly deteriorating from advanced-stage syphilis,[4] it was feared that he was becoming too talkative. An open contract was placed by the mob commission to have him killed. Twelve years later, government witnessJoe Valachi described a conversation withGenovese crime family bossVito Genovese about the Moretti murder:
It was supposedly a mercy killing because he was sick. Genovese told me, 'The Lord have mercy on his soul, he's losing his mind.'[5]
On October 4, 1951, Moretti was lunching with four other men atJoe’s Elbow Room Restaurant inCliffside Park, New Jersey. The waitress remembered the men, the only patrons in the restaurant, joking together in Italian before she went into the kitchen. At 11:28 am, the restaurant staff heard shots fired and ran into the dining room. Moretti was lying dead on his back on the floor with bullet wounds to the face and head. By some accounts, the shots to his face were a sign of respect. The gunmen had already fled the restaurant.[1] The waitress was able to tentatively identify the man who brought him to the restaurant asAnastasia Crime Family capo John "Johnny Roberts" Robilotto. The shooters are suspected to have been Philadelphia mobsterAntonio Caponigro and Joseph "Pepe" LiCalsi.
On the day of Moretti's murder, Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis had a lunch date scheduled with Moretti. However, earlier that morning, Lewis learned that he had contracted themumps and both men totally forgot about lunch. Later, while trying to reach Moretti to apologize and explain, they learned from the television news that he was dead.[6]
Moretti's funeral service was conducted at Corpus Christi Church inHasbrouck Heights, New Jersey. Moretti was buried at St Michael's Cemetery inSouth Hackensack, New Jersey. Over 5,000 mourners attended the burial, resulting in a circus-like atmosphere that required police intervention.[7]
| American Mafia | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Frank "Chee" Gusage | Genovese crime family Underboss 1937–1951 | Succeeded by |
