Genovese Soldier “Nicky Bulldog” was More Canary than Canine
Nicholas Martello, also known as "Nicky Bulldog," was a Genovese Family soldier who was suspected of being an informant and paid the price.
The Genovese Family
The Genovese Family is one of the Five Families of organized crime in America. Originating in Italy, it is regarded as the “Ivy League” of the American Mafia.
History
As it developed into the strongest borgata, the Genovese Family had origins in several different towns in Sicily and later mainland Italy, making it the most diversified of the Five Families of New York City. Giuseppe (The Clutch Hand) Morello and Ignazio (Lupo the Wolf) Saietta were two early powers of what would eventually morph into the Genovese Family. Emigrating from Corleone and Palermo, Sicily, one settled in East Harlem’s “Little Italy” and the other settled in the Lower East Side in the Mulberry Street section of “Little Italy” in Manhattan. They ran a gang active in extortion, strong-arming, the Italian lottery, and a huge counterfeiting operation for its time.
Soon, a Sicilian strongman would come to power named Giuseppe Masseria who would look to dominate the Italian underworld. This would lead to the so-called Castellammarese War,” pitting Masseria’s forces and allies against those of Salvatore Maranzano and his allies. The war raged for over a year and a half with Maranzano and his allies claiming victory with Masseria’s assassination in a Coney Island restaurant in 1931. Within months, Maranzano would also be killed in a purging of several old-guard Sicilians, making way for the formulation of the Five Families as we know it today and the formation of The Commission, a regulatory body of the strongest bosses across the country.
Salvatore (Charlie Lucky) Luciano would rise to be a first among equals with Vito Genovese serving as underboss and Francesco (Frank Costello) Castiglia as consigliere. This Family welcomed many men of Neapolitan and Calabrian heritage as well as Jewish hoodlums setting the stage for what would become the most diversified, pervasive, and powerful Cosa Nostra Family in America to this very day.
A Powerhouse Lineup
With a roster topping 225 formally inducted members and over 2000 associates, The Genovese Crime Family boasted a powerhouse lineup of top mafiosi such as (Joe Adonis) Doto, (Little Augie Pisano) Carfano, (Trigger Mike) Coppola, Jerry Catena, and (Richie the Boot) Boiardo, among many other of the mob’s glitterati. With power bases in the Fulton Fish Market, the garment district, the New York-New Jersey waterfront through the (ILA) International Longshoreman’s Union, trucking, slot machine and jukebox vending, and hidden ownership in several Las Vegas casinos. The Family had satellite regimes in Massachusetts, Florida, and California and worked in tandem with Families in Chicago, Pittsburgh, New England, and elsewhere representing some of them before the Commission.
With Luciano’s jailing and eventual deportation back to Sicily in the 1940s, the leadership reins fell to Costello. And with Genovese returning from a self-imposed exile to Italy, he looked to seize the Family throne for himself which led to Costello’s attempted assassination in 1957 and a purging of several Costello loyalists. Vito’s view from the top was short-lived with his arrest and imprisonment for 15 years in 1959 for a huge heroin smuggling conspiracy.
And although the current road is not paved with gold for Cosa Nostra, the venerable Genovese Crime Family has held its own against law enforcement’s best efforts to crack its mafioso egg. The Genovese Crime Family now operates, more than ever, in a surreptitious manner allowing for their continued success!
Below is a listing of bios and snapshots on Genovese Family members and associates. They are generally listed in alphabetical order. New and updated bios will be highlighted under the Genovese Family Spotlight tab in the sidebar column.
Genovese Family Bios
NJ Waterfront Kingpin – “Tony Cheese” Marchitto
Tony Marchitto was a powerful and influential boss on the New Jersey waterfront who also served as a strong-arm and enforcer for the Genovese Family.
Vito Genovese – The Boss of All Bosses
Vito Genovese was the boss of the Genovese Crime Family and was considered the boss of all bosses during his reign.
Frank Costello – The Prime Minister
Frank Costello was one of the classiest, reserved, richest, and most influential, mafioso in history. He wasn't called "The Prime Minister" for nothing!
Vincent (Chin) Gigante
He started out as just another seemingly dime-a-dozen young Greenwich Village street thug, but The Chin was so much more than what he looked like.
Gerardo (Jerry) Catena
Genovese Family Acting Boss Jerry Catena set the record for serving the most time in prison for contempt of court convictions.
Frank (Funzi) Tieri
One of the quietest, yet most capable and successful mafiosi to have operated in NYC back during the mob’s “golden era” was Funzi Tieri.
Philip (Cockeyed Phil) Lombardo – The Boss in the Shadows
Philip (Cockeyed Phil) Lombardo was a deadly Genovese Family enforcer who eventually rose to the boss position - but nobody knew it!
Michele (Big Mike) Miranda – “The Consigliere”
Mike Miranda was a Genovese Family consigliere who law enforcement once described as "the most ruthless and feared mafioso in the United States."
Vincent (Jimmy Blue Eyes) Alo
Vincent Alo was an influential member of the Genovese Family who worked closely with Meyer Lansky in the casino business in Florida.
Ignazio (Joe Curly) Agone – Genovese Labor Extortionist
Ignazio (Joe Curly) Agone was a top labor extortionist for the Genovese Crime Family who reveled in his mobster status.
Iconic Genovese Soldier – Philip (Philly Katz) Albanese
Philly Katz Albanese was an iconic Genovese Family soldier once described by authorities as being a waterfront "kingpin."
Charles (Charlie Bullets) Albero
Charlie (Charlie Bullets) Albero was a dyed-in-the-wool hoodlum who started racking up arrests at the tender age of nine years old.
John (Buster) Ardito
John (Buster) Ardito was a top hoodlum for many decades and one of the most active and respected mafiosi in the New York City area.
Genovese Family on YouTube
Genovese Family Spotlight
From city to city and state to state, Button Guys of The New York Mafia breaks down the history of organized crime in America. Through deep-dive biographies and snapshots of mobsters to in-depth stories about mafia regimes and crews, you’ll uncover an underworld you might never have known existed – maybe even in your own hometown!
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