Frank Costello was an Italian-American crime boss of the Luciano crime family.
22 Facts About Frank Costello
2.
In 1957, Costello survived an assassination attempt ordered by Vito Genovese and carried out by Vincent Gigante.
3.
However, the altercation persuaded Frank Costello to relinquish power to Genovese and retire.
4.
Frank Costello was born on January 26,1891, in Lauropoli, a frazione of the town of Cassano allo Ionio in the province of Cosenza in the Calabria region, Italy.
5.
Frank Costello committed petty crimes and went to jail for assault and robbery in 1908,1912, and 1917.
6.
That same year, Frank Costello served ten months in jail for carrying a concealed weapon.
7.
Frank Costello's idea was well received, and a conference was hosted in Atlantic City by Torrio, Lansky, Luciano and Costello in May 1929; the National Crime Syndicate was created.
8.
Frank Costello quickly became one of the biggest earners for the Luciano family and began to carve his own niche in the underworld.
9.
Frank Costello controlled the slot machine and bookmaking operations for the family with associate Philip "Dandy Phil" Kastel.
10.
Frank Costello placed approximately 25,000 slot machines in bars, restaurants, cafes, drugstores, gas stations, and bus stops throughout New York.
11.
Frank Costello brought in millions of dollars in profit from slot machines and bookmaking to the Luciano family.
12.
Frank Costello attempted to rule the crime family from prison with the help of Costello and Lansky, but found it too difficult.
13.
Frank Costello was convicted of contempt of the Senate and sentenced to 18 months in prison.
14.
Frank Costello was sentenced to five years in prison and fined $20,000.
15.
In 1954, Frank Costello appealed the conviction and was released on $50,000 bail; from 1952 to 1961 he was in and out of half a dozen federal and local prisons and jails, his confinement interrupted by periods when he was out on bail pending determination of appeals.
16.
In 1956, Adonis, a powerful Frank Costello ally, chose deportation to Italy over a long prison sentence.
17.
Frank Costello's departure left Costello weakened, but Genovese still had to neutralize one more powerful Costello ally, Anastasia, who had taken over the Mangano crime family after the disappearance of boss Vincent Mangano and the murder of his brother Philip Mangano on April 14,1951.
18.
The altercation persuaded Frank Costello to relinquish power to Genovese and retire.
19.
Frank Costello still retained power and influence in New York's Mafia and remained busy throughout his final years.
20.
Frank Costello occupied himself with gardening and displayed some of his flowers at local horticultural shows.
21.
In early February 1973, Frank Costello suffered a heart attack at his Manhattan home and was rushed to Doctors Hospital in Manhattan, where he died on February 18.
22.
Frank Costello is interred in a private mausoleum in St Michael's Cemetery in East Elmhurst, Queens.