Angelo "the Gentle Don" Bruno (21 May 1910 – 21 March 1980) was the boss of the Philadelphia crime family from the 1970s to 1980, succeeding Joseph Ida and preceding Philip Testa. His murder by his own consigliere, Antonio Caponigro, in 1980 led to one of the bloodiest mob wars in american history.
Biography[]
Angelo Annaloro was born in Villalba, Sicily, Italy on 21 May 1910, and he came to the United States as a teenager, settling in Philadelphia. He became a close associate of New York City gangster Carlo Gambino, and he used his grandmother's maiden name "Bruno" as his surname during his criminal career. Bruno came to own an extermination company in Trenton, New Jersey, an aluminum products company in Hialeah, Florida, and a share in the Plaza Hotel in Havana, Cuba. In 1959, Gambino secured Bruno's election as boss of the Philadelphia crime family, and Bruno operated as an old-fashioned mobster; he forbade drug trafficking, operated through bribery rather than murder, and opted to bury murder victims rather than display them. Bruno was backed by his loyal enforcers, such as Philip Testa, Felix DiTullio, and Frank Sindone.
Death[]
Several factions within the family conspired against "The Gentle Don" for his unwillingness to engage in the lucrative drug trade. His own consigliere Antonio Caponigro, thinking that he had obtained approval from The Commission to murder Bruno based on a conversation with the Genovese crime family, decided to whack Bruno. On 21 March 1980, Bruno was driven back to his home after eating out, and he smoked a cigarette before leaving the car. As the driver rolled the windows down, a man in a raincoat emerged from the shadows and shot Bruno in the back of the head with a shotgun, instantly killing him. The photo of Bruno's body, engaged in a death scream, became an iconic photo of Mafia violence.
| Don of the Philadelphia crime family | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by: Joseph Ida |
1970s-1980 | Succeeded by: Philip Testa |