Joseph Brancato was a decorated war hero, having allegedly singlehandedly wiped out an entire platoon of enemy German soldiers during WWII. He saved his entire company in the process. Later, he became a soldier in the Colombo Family and was a close boyhood friend and ally of John (Sonny) Franzese. The two hoodlums came up under a highly-respected capo named Sebastian (Buster) Aloi.
Once Sonny became a capo himself, Brancato was thought to have been named the “acting capo” for the Franzese regime and served as Sonny’s number two. When Franzese was jailed for 50 years for bank robbery conspiracy in 1970, Brancato took control of the regime.
In the early 1970s, after the shooting and attempted assassination of boss Joe Colombo, the low-key Brancato was then elevated to the “acting boss” position over the entire family, until Carmine Persico came into power.
