Cry Chicago (originally ''¡Viva América!'' and also released as ''The Mafia Mob'', it, La vera storia di Frank Mannata) is a 1969 Spanish-Italian

crime film Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combi ...

directed by the

Catalan Catalan may refer to: Catalonia From, or related to Catalonia: * Catalan language, a Romance language * Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia Places * 13178 Catalan, asteroid ...

film director Javier Setó (in the credit ''Saviero Seto''), starring

Jeffrey Hunter Jeffrey Hunter (born Henry Herman McKinnies Jr.; November 25, 1926 – May 27, 1969) was an American film and television actor and producer known for his roles in films such as ''The Searchers'' and ''King of Kings''. On television, Hunter ...

, Guglielmo Spoletini,

Eduardo Fajardo Eduardo Martínez Fajardo (14 August 1924 – 4 July 2019) was a Spanish film actor born in Meis (Province of Pontevedra, Pontevedra), Spain. He appeared in 183 films, 75 plays and made 2,000 television appearances between 1947 and 2002. B ...

, Víctor Israel, Pier Angeli, Margaret Lee and

Gogó Rojo Gogó Rojo (née Gladys del Valle Rojo Castro; 7 December 1942 – 26 July 2021) was an Argentine vedette (cabaret), vedette, actress and dancer. She was the younger sister of the actress Ethel Rojo. She appeared in ''Maridos en Vacaciones'', ''T ...

Plot

After the Great Depression Francesco Mannata started out to America from

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

to his brother Salvatore in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

. Francesco takes the name ''Frank Mannata'' and with Salvatore and their sister, Rosella organized a mafia empire. The mafia war breaks out between the Sicilian Mannatas and the Italo- Irish O'Connor-Messina gangs. Many people die in the conflicts (including Salvatore and Rose); finally, Frank Mannata is killed by the minor gangster Dr. MacDonald.

Cast

: Frank (Francesco) Mannata * Guglielmo Spoletini: Salvatore Mannata, Frank's brother * Margaret Lee: Lucy Barrett, Frank's wife *

: Rosella (Rose) Mannata, Frank's sister * Pier Angeli: Bambi (as Anna Maria Pierangeli), Salvatore's lover *

: Dick O'Connor, Irish gangster boos * Víctor Israel: Dr. MacDonald, doctor, consultant and gangster * Beni Deus: Timothy, Rosella's Greek husband *

Paloma Cela María Luisa Cela Molinero (4 March 1943 – 30 March 2019), better known by her stage name Paloma Cela, was a Spanish actress and model. Biography Born in Madrid, Spain, she started out as a model and made her cinema debut in the 1967 film '' ...

* Luis Induni: Buchanan, police chief of Chicago * Sun De Sanders: Patricia *

Barta Barri Barta Barri (16 August 1911 – 7 December 2003) was a Hungarian-born Spanish film actor.Pitts p. 121 Selected filmography * ''The Vila Family'' (1950) * '' Criminal Brigade'' (1950) - Mario * ''Verónica'' (1950) * '' Spanish Serenade'' (1952) ...

: Matón, O'Connor's henchman * Antonio Pica: Federel agent Ethen Lason * Ricardo Palacios: Charlie Romero, bar owner * Lola Villar: prostituta * Mike Brendel * Miguel del Castillo: O'Brian, gangster and O'Connor's mate * Juan Olaguivel: O'Brian's bodyguard and driver * Fernando Bilbao * Kathy Lagarde * Yamil Omar: Turkish immigrant * Antonia Mas: Mammy, proprietress of bordello * Rafael Vaquero * Adolfo Thous * Manuel Bermúdez Boliche * José Solís *

Armando Calvo Armando Calvo (25 December 1919 – 6 July 1996) was a Puerto Rican-born Spanish actor. His father was Juan Calvo Domenech, a Spanish actor and his mother was Minerva Lespier, a Puerto Rican. Calvo worked in Spain, Italy, and Mexico appearin ...

: Senator Charles Temple

Production

Setó's movie partly is the epigon of crime film ''They Paid with Bullets: Chicago 1929'' (1969) of

Julio Diamante Julio Diamante (27 December 1930 – 1 August 2020) was a Spanish film director and screenwriter. He directed ten films between 1959 and 1976. His 1965 film '' El arte de vivir'' was entered into the 15th Berlin International Film Festival. He ...

. While in Spain in November 1968 to film ''Cry Chicago'',

was injured in an on-set explosion when a car window near him, which had been rigged to explode outward, accidentally exploded inward. Hunter sustained a serious

concussion A concussion, also known as a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), is a head injury that temporarily affects brain functioning. Symptoms may include loss of consciousness (LOC); memory loss; headaches; difficulty with thinking, concentratio ...

. According to Hunter's wife Emily, he "...went into shock" on the plane ride back to the United States after filming. After landing, Hunter was taken to Good Samaritan Hospital in Los Angeles but doctors could not find any serious injuries. On May 26, 1969, Hunter suffered an

intracranial hemorrhage Intracranial hemorrhage (ICH), also known as intracranial bleed, is bleeding within the skull. Subtypes are intracerebral bleeds (intraventricular bleeds and intraparenchymal bleeds), subarachnoid bleeds, epidural bleeds, and subdural bleeds. ...

Van Nuys Van Nuys () is a neighborhood in the central San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California. Home to Van Nuys Airport and the Valley Municipal Building, it is the most populous neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley. History In 1909, ...

, California. He fell and struck his head on a banister, fracturing his skull. He was found unconscious and taken to Valley Presbyterian Hospital where he underwent brain surgery to repair his injuries. He died the following morning at the age of 42. This was Hunter's final completed film role.

References

External links

* {{IMDb title, id=0065252, title=¡Viva América! Spanish crime films Italian crime films 1969 films Films directed by Javier Setó Films scored by Gianfranco Reverberi 1969 crime films Films about the Chicago Outfit 1960s Italian films