Nope he didn't.

Frank Jr. started out working for Nick Calabrese who was Frank's brother. Reason? His father never wanted his own son to do the same things he did. Then when Frank Jr. got deeply involved in the family he turns on his dad. WTF is that?

It's been a while since I read the book but I definitely don't remember it happening like that. He brought Jr. into the life, if I remember correctly, when he was just a teenager. According to Kurt he did not have much of a choice, if any.

Keep in mind that at the trial he called from the bench to Kurt to testify that he was a good dad and Kurt's response was to get up and walk out of the courtroom.

Jon DiFronzo called Mike Mags' dad "stupid" for brining him in. IMO mobsters who brings their kids in tend to be the worst of the kind.

See?

didnt frank calabrese have another family and kids as well. perhaps he thought i can let these kids be criminals because ive got the other ones i can raise properly. Its kind of like domink montiglio in a way with his uncle nino. He let his nephew become a gangster but not his own kids even though he raised dominik from an early. Also it comes down to having people around you can trust and will follow blindly because of that trust and its easier to keep them in their place especially for a patriarch like calabrese.

I actually don't know what happened with that. He definitely get divorced and remarried, and he apparently has two kids who were kept entirely out of the media throughout the trial who had NOTHING to do with organized crime. But whether they were from the first wife or the second, I'm not sure.

FCS seems just like an all around pyschotic, self-obsessed individual. I have posted this countless times but during the trial Judge Zagel went out of his way to say something redeeming about all of the mobsters, including Lombardo and Marcello, and of course Nick C, but equally went out of his way to refer to FCS as a "toxic creature" with no redeeming qualities.

It's a matter of opinion but everything I've read supports that view.

Are they going to throw Frank a funeral? I have looked online and usually a wake is held within a few days of a persons death. I haven't read anything about that in any obituary. Most mobsters have funerals right?

This is a perfect example of a man who was a mobster because he earned money for the Chicago outfit and was willing to do the dirty work. Seems to me that no one cared about him as a person. From what I See they basically used him. Thats it.

From what I've heard it will be super private and not publicized.

Not sure what it's like these days but the Catholic church used to refuse to bury the gangsters... although most of them ultimately did wind up in a couple of Catholic cemeteries in the western suburbs, so who knows.

That seems like a fair assessment of Sr.'s career. Guess it makes sense considering his boss was Angelo La Pietra, who was probably the most feared mobster since Giancana.

I remember being shocked at how little Nick Calabrese was getting paid. Not sure what his lifetime "take" was, but I remember Marcello was giving him $4K a month in hopes he would keep quiet in prison--which he did for a while.

$40K a year for knocking down 15-plus guys.

The prosecuters during Secrets always maintained that if Sr. would have shared the wealth with Nick even a LITTLE more he would have never flipped.

But he felt so taken advantage of that he ultimately sunk all of 'em.

True. If he treated his son and brother better they would all still be on the streets

Wilson,

What you're failing to consider is that very often these guys create their own rats by mistreating their subordinates and refusing to share the wealth. Now I don't follow modern day Chicago all that closely. I'd rather make quality posts about areas that I'm familiar with (namely New York, New Jersey and South Florida). But this guy Calabrese certainly seems to fit the bill.

Guys like Gambino, Costello and Accardo knew that you had to let the troops eat. And that, while you commanded respect, you never abused your own people. Calabrese abused his own kids. He couldn't scrape a pimple off Tony Accardo's ass.

As far as wiseguys who push their kids into the life: I always bring up Craig Depalma. There ought to be a special section of hell reserved for Greg for what he did to that kid.

It's also worth noting that more often than not, the Genovese guys tend to push their kids away from the life (or at least away from being made). For the smarter guys, the American mob is a single generation means to an end. The end being the education and future of their children.

I was just watching the Bio "Family Secrets" Episode on Demand. I've noticed this before when they show at 0:36 minutes the audio/video footage of the Frank Sr and Jr talking... the Black couple in front of them appear to not be speaking at all or at least the black guy. The black guy also a grin on his face, arms crossed,and by his body language appears as he knows that the room is bugged...I know I sound like some conspiracy theorist,I'm thinking the guy is maybe an agent or I don't know the laws in federal prison but a court wouldn't tell an inmate that the room was bugged ..I mean when making a phone call or sending a letter they tell you that the call is being recorded or the mail may be read but that scene is just weird assuming their agents

No funeral or wake for Calabrese Sr.

http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=news/iteam&id=8955742

would of been interesting to see who showed up