Joseph Anthony Colombo Sr. (; June 16, 1923 – May 22, 1978) was the boss of the
Colombo crime family
The Colombo crime family (, ) is an Italian American Mafia crime family and the youngest of the "Five Families" that dominate organized crime activities in New York City within the criminal organization known as the American Mafia. It was during ...
, one of the
Five Families
The Five Families refer to five American Mafia, Italian American Mafia Crime family, crime families that operate in New York City. In 1931, the five families were Organized crime, organized by Salvatore Maranzano following his victory in the C ...
of the
American Mafia
The American Mafia, commonly referred to in North America as the Italian-American Mafia, the Mafia, or the Mob, is a highly organized Italian-American criminal society and organized crime group. The terms Italian Mafia and Italian Mob apply to ...
in New York City.
Colombo was born in New York City, where his father was an early member of what was then the Profaci crime family. In 1961, the First Colombo War unfolded, instigated by the kidnapping of four high-ranking members in the Profaci family by
Joe Gallo. Later that year, Gallo was imprisoned, and in 1962, family leader
Joe Profaci died of cancer. In 1963,
Bonanno crime family boss,
Joseph Bonanno made plans with
Joseph Magliocco to assassinate several rivals on
The Commission. Magliocco gave the contract to one of his top hit men, Colombo, who revealed the plot to its targets. The Commission spared Magliocco's life but forced him into retirement, while Bonanno fled to Canada. As a reward for turning on his boss, Colombo was awarded the Profaci family. His only prison term would come in 1966, when Colombo was sentenced to 30 days in prison for
contempt of court
Contempt of court, often referred to simply as "contempt", is the crime of being disobedient to or disrespectful toward a court of law and its officers in the form of behavior that opposes or defies the authority, justice, and dignity of the co ...
by refusing to answer questions from a grand jury about his financial affairs.
In 1970, Colombo created the
Italian-American Civil Rights League. Later that year, the first Italian Unity Day rally was held in
Columbus Circle
Columbus Circle is a traffic circle and heavily trafficked intersection in the New York City borough (New York City), borough of Manhattan, located at the intersection of Eighth Avenue (Manhattan), Eighth Avenue, Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway, ...
to protest the federal persecution of Italians. In 1971, Gallo was released from prison, and Colombo invited him to a peace meeting with an offering of $1,000, which Gallo refused, instigating the Second Colombo War. On June 28, 1971, Colombo was shot three times by Jerome Johnson at the second Italian Unity Day rally in Columbus Circle sponsored by the Italian-American Civil Rights League; Johnson was immediately killed by Colombo's bodyguards. Colombo was paralyzed from the shooting. On May 22, 1978, Colombo died of cardiac arrest that resulted from his injuries.
Early life
Joseph Colombo Sr. was born into an
Italian American
Italian Americans () are Americans who have full or partial Italians, Italian ancestry. The largest concentrations of Italian Americans are in the urban Northeastern United States, Northeast and industrial Midwestern United States, Midwestern ...
family on June 16, 1923, in
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
.
His mother was from
Naples
Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...
,
Italy
Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
and his father, Anthony “Nino” Colombo, born in
Brazil
Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
with parents from
Potenza
Potenza (, ; ; , Potentino dialect: ''Putenz'') is a ''comune'' in the Southern Italian region of Basilicata (former Lucania).
Capital of the Province of Potenza and the Basilicata region, the city is the highest regional capital and one of ...
, Italy, was an early member of the Profaci crime family, which would eventually be renamed after his son. In 1938, he was found strangled in a car with his mistress.
Joe Colombo attended
New Utrecht High School
New Utrecht High School is a public high school located in Bensonhurst, a neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York. The school is operated by the New York City Department of Education under District 20 and serves students of grades 9 to 12.
A tot ...
in
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
for two years, then dropped out to join the
U.S. Coast Guard. In 1945, he was diagnosed with
neurosis
Neurosis (: neuroses) is a term mainly used today by followers of Freudian thinking to describe mental disorders caused by past anxiety, often that has been repressed. In recent history, the term has been used to refer to anxiety-related con ...
and discharged from the service. His legitimate jobs included ten years as a
longshoreman
A dockworker (also called a longshoreman, stevedore, docker, wharfman, lumper or wharfie) is a waterfront manual laborer who loads and unloads ships.
As a result of the intermodal shipping container revolution, the required number of dockworke ...
and six years as a salesman for a meat company.
His final job was that of a real estate salesman.
Colombo owned a modest home in
Bay Ridge, Brooklyn
Bay Ridge is a neighborhood in the southwest corner of the New York City borough (New York City), borough of Brooklyn. It is bounded by Sunset Park, Brooklyn, Sunset Park to the north, Dyker Heights, Brooklyn, Dyker Heights to the east, the Nar ...
and a five-acre estate in
Blooming Grove, New York.
He married Lucille Faiello in 1944, and had five children including sons Christopher Colombo, Joseph Colombo Jr. (1946–2014) and Anthony Colombo (1945–2017).
First Colombo War
Colombo followed his father into the Profaci family. He became one of the family's top
enforcers, and soon became a
capo.
On February 27, 1961, the Gallos kidnapped four of Profaci's top men: underboss Magliocco, Frank Profaci (Joe Profaci's brother), capo Salvatore Musacchia and soldier John Scimone.
Profaci himself eluded capture and flew to sanctuary in Florida.
[Cage, Nicholas (July 17, 1972]
"Part II The Mafia at War"
''New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
New York may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* ...
'' pp.27-36 While holding the hostages, Larry and Albert Gallo sent Joe Gallo to California. The Gallos demanded a more favorable financial scheme in return for the hostages' release. Gallo wanted to kill one hostage and demand $100,000 before negotiations, but his brother Larry overruled him. After a few weeks of negotiation, Profaci made a deal with the Gallos. Profaci's consigliere Charles "the Sidge" LoCicero negotiated with the Gallos and all the hostages were released peacefully.
[Capeci (2001), p.303] However, Profaci had no intention of honoring this peace agreement. On August 20, 1961, Profaci ordered the murder of Gallo family members Joseph "Joe Jelly" Gioielli and Larry Gallo. Gunmen allegedly murdered Gioilli after inviting him to go fishing.
Larry Gallo survived a strangulation attempt in the Sahara club of
East Flatbush by
Carmine Persico and Salvatore "Sally" D'Ambrosio after a police officer intervened.
[Raab (2006), pp.321-324] The Gallo brothers had been previously aligned with Persico against Profaci and his loyalists;
The Gallos then began calling Persico "The Snake" after he had betrayed them.
The war continued and resulted in nine murders and three disappearances.
With the start of the gang war, the Gallo crew retreated to the Dormitory.
In late November 1961, Joe Gallo was sentenced to seven-to-fourteen years in prison for murder.
[Capeci (2001) p.305] On June 6, 1962, Profaci died and was succeeded by longtime underboss
Joseph Magliocco. In 1963,
Joseph Bonanno, the head of the Bonanno crime family, made plans to assassinate several rivals on the
Mafia Commission—bosses
Tommy Lucchese,
Carlo Gambino, and
Stefano Magaddino, as well as
Frank DeSimone.
[Staff (September 1, 1967]
"The Mob: How Joe Bonanno Schemed to kill – and lost"
''Life
Life, also known as biota, refers to matter that has biological processes, such as Cell signaling, signaling and self-sustaining processes. It is defined descriptively by the capacity for homeostasis, Structure#Biological, organisation, met ...
'' p.15-21 Bonanno sought Magliocco's support, and Magliocco readily agreed. Bonanno was not only bitter from being denied a seat on the Commission, but he and Profaci had been close allies for over 30 years prior to Profaci's death. Bonanno's audacious goal was to take over the Commission and make Magliocco his right-hand man.
Magliocco was assigned the task of killing Lucchese and Gambino, and gave the contract to one of his top hit men, Colombo. However, the opportunistic Colombo revealed the plot to its targets. The other bosses quickly realized that Magliocco could not have planned this himself. Remembering how close Bonanno was with Magliocco (and before him, Profaci), as well as their close ties through marriages, the other bosses concluded Bonanno was the real mastermind.
The Commission summoned Bonanno and Magliocco to explain themselves. Fearing for his life, Bonanno went into hiding in
Montreal
Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...
, leaving Magliocco to deal with the Commission. Badly shaken and in failing health, Magliocco confessed his role in the plot. The Commission spared Magliocco's life, but forced him to retire as Profaci family boss and pay a $50,000 fine. As a reward for turning on his boss, Colombo was awarded the Profaci family.
At the age of 41, Colombo was one of the youngest crime bosses in the country. He was also the first American-born boss of a New York crime family. When NYPD detective
Albert Seedman (later the NYPD chief of detectives) called Colombo in for questioning about the death of one of his soldiers, Colombo came to the meeting without a lawyer. He told Seedman, "I am an American citizen, first class. I don't have a badge that makes me an official good guy like you, but I work just as honest for a living."
[Raab, Selwyn. ''The Five Families: The Rise, Decline & Resurgence of America's Most Powerful Mafia Empire''. New York: St. Martins Press, 2005. p. 187]
On May 9, 1966, Colombo was sentenced to 30 days in jail for
contempt
In colloquial usage, contempt usually refers to either the act of despising, or having a general lack of respect for something. This set of emotions generally produces maladaptive behaviour. Other authors define contempt as a negative emotio ...
by refusing to answer questions from a
grand jury
A grand jury is a jury empowered by law to conduct legal proceedings, investigate potential criminal conduct, and determine whether criminal charges should be brought. A grand jury may subpoena physical evidence or a person to testify. A grand ju ...
about his financial affairs.
Italian-American Civil Rights League
In April 1970, Colombo created the
Italian-American Civil Rights League. That same month, his son Joseph Colombo Jr. was charged with melting down coins for resale as silver ingots.
In response, Joseph Colombo Sr. claimed FBI harassment of Italian-Americans and, on April 30, 1970, sent 30
picketers outside FBI headquarters at Third Avenue and 69th Street to protest the federal persecution of all Italians everywhere; this went on for weeks.
On June 29, 1970, 50,000 people attended the first Italian Unity Day rally in
Columbus Circle
Columbus Circle is a traffic circle and heavily trafficked intersection in the New York City borough (New York City), borough of Manhattan, located at the intersection of Eighth Avenue (Manhattan), Eighth Avenue, Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway, ...
in
New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
.
In February 1971, Colombo Jr. was acquitted of the federal charge after the chief witness in the trial was arrested on
perjury
Perjury (also known as forswearing) is the intentional act of swearing a false oath or falsifying an affirmation to tell the truth, whether spoken or in writing, concerning matters material to an official proceeding."Perjury The act or an insta ...
charges.
Under Colombo's guidance, the League grew quickly and achieved national attention. Unlike other mob leaders who shunned the spotlight, Colombo appeared on television interviews, fundraisers and speaking engagements for the League. In 1971, Colombo aligned the League with
Rabbi
A rabbi (; ) is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi—known as ''semikha''—following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of t ...
and political activist
Meir Kahane
Meir David HaKohen Kahane ( ; ; born Martin David Kahane; August 1, 1932 – November 5, 1990) was an American-born Israel, Israeli Orthodox Judaism, Orthodox ordained rabbi, writer and ultra-nationalist politician. Founder of the Israeli pol ...
's
Jewish Defense League, claiming that both groups were being harassed by the federal government. At one point, Colombo posted
bail
Bail is a set of pre-trial restrictions that are imposed on a suspect to ensure that they will not hamper the judicial process. Court bail may be offered to secure the conditional release of a defendant with the promise to appear in court when ...
for 11 jailed JDL members.
''The Godfather''
In the spring of 1971,
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation, commonly known as Paramount Pictures or simply Paramount, is an American film production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the flagship namesake subsidiary of Paramount ...
started filming ''
The Godfather
''The Godfather'' is a 1972 American Epic film, epic crime film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, who co-wrote the screenplay with Mario Puzo, based on Puzo's best-selling The Godfather (novel), 1969 novel. The film stars an ensemble cast inc ...
'' with the assistance of Colombo and the League. Due to its subject matter, the film originally faced great opposition from Italian-Americans to filming in New York. However, after producer
Albert Ruddy met with Colombo and agreed to excise the terms "Mafia" and "Cosa Nostra" from the film, the League cooperated fully.
The first meeting involved Ruddy, Colombo, Colombo's son Anthony and 1500 delegates from Colombo's Italian-American Civil Rights League.
Ruddy would afterwards hold numerous meetings with Anthony, which led to assurance that the film would be based on individuals and would not defame or stereotype a group.
Shooting
In early 1971, Joe Gallo was released from prison. As a supposedly conciliatory gesture, Colombo invited Gallo to a peace meeting with an offering of $1,000.
Gallo refused the invitation, wanting $100,000 to stop the conflict, which Colombo refused to pay.
At that point, acting boss
Vincenzo Aloi issued a new order to kill Gallo.
On March 11, 1971, after being convicted of perjury for lying on his application to become a
real estate broker
Real estate agents and real estate brokers are people who represent sellers or buyers of real estate or real property. While a broker may work independently, an agent usually works under a licensed broker to represent clients. Brokers and age ...
, Colombo was sentenced to two and half years in state prison.
The sentence, however, was delayed pending an appeal.
On June 28, 1971, Colombo was shot three times in the head and neck by Jerome A. Johnson, a 24-year old
African American
African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
man at the second Italian Unity Day rally in
Columbus Circle
Columbus Circle is a traffic circle and heavily trafficked intersection in the New York City borough (New York City), borough of Manhattan, located at the intersection of Eighth Avenue (Manhattan), Eighth Avenue, Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway, ...
sponsored by the Italian-American Civil Rights League; Johnson was immediately killed by Colombo's bodyguards.
Aftermath
Colombo was paralyzed from the shooting.
On August 28, 1971, after two months at
Roosevelt Hospital in Manhattan, Colombo was moved to his estate at Blooming Grove.
In 1975, a court-ordered examination showed that Colombo could move his thumb and forefinger on his right hand. In 1976, there were reports that he could recognize people and utter several words.
After the Colombo shooting,
Joseph Yacovelli became the acting boss for one year before
Carmine Persico took over.
Although many in the Colombo family blamed
Joe Gallo for the shooting, the police eventually concluded that Johnson was a lone gunman after they had questioned Gallo. Since Johnson had spent time a few days earlier at a Gambino club, one theory was that
Carlo Gambino organized the shooting. Colombo refused to listen to Gambino's complaints about the League, and allegedly spat in Gambino's face during one argument.
However, the Colombo family leadership was convinced that Joe Gallo ordered the murder after his falling out with the family. Gallo was murdered on April 7, 1972.
Death
On May 22, 1978, Colombo died of cardiac arrest at St. Luke's Hospital (later St. Luke's Cornwall Hospital) in
Newburgh, New York
Newburgh is a City (New York), city in Orange County, New York, United States. With a population of 28,856 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is a principal city of the Kiryas Joel–Poughkeepsie–Newburgh metropolitan area. ...
.
Colombo's funeral was held at
St. Bernadette's Catholic Church in
Bensonhurst and he was buried in
St. John Cemetery in the
Middle Village section of Queens.
In popular culture
* Colombo features in the first episode of UK history TV channel
Yesterday's documentary series ''Mafia's Greatest Hits''
* In "
Christopher
Christopher is the English language, English version of a Europe-wide name derived from the Greek language, Greek name Χριστόφορος (''Christophoros'' or ''Christoforos''). The constituent parts are Χριστός (''Christós''), "Jesus ...
", an episode of ''
The Sopranos
''The Sopranos'' is an American Crime film#Crime drama, crime drama television series created by David Chase. The series follows Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), a New Jersey American Mafia, Mafia boss who suffers from panic attacks. He reluct ...
'',
Silvio Dante
Silvio Manfred Dante is a fictional character on the HBO TV series ''The Sopranos'', portrayed by Steven Van Zandt. He is the consigliere and right-hand man to Tony Soprano in the DiMeo crime family. John Magaro portrays a young Silvio Dante ...
claims that Colombo was the founder of the first Italian-American anti-defamation organization. However, the American Italian Anti-Defamation League was founded before Colombo's Italian-American Civil Rights League
* In 2015, Joe Colombo's oldest son, Anthony Colombo, authored ''Colombo: The Unsolved Murder''
a biography/memoir with co-author
Don Capria
* The 2019
Martin Scorsese
Martin Charles Scorsese ( , ; born November17, 1942) is an American filmmaker. One of the major figures of the New Hollywood era, he has received List of awards and nominations received by Martin Scorsese, many accolades, including an Academ ...
film ''
The Irishman'' depicts the assassination attempt on Colombo, who is played by John Polce.
* Colombo is played by
Giovanni Ribisi in the 2022
Paramount+
Paramount+ (formerly known as CBS All Access in the United States and 10 All Access in Australia) is an American Video on demand#Subscription models, subscription video on-demand Over-the-top media service, over-the-top Streaming media, stream ...
limited
streaming
Streaming media refers to multimedia delivered through a network for playback using a media player. Media is transferred in a ''stream'' of packets from a server to a client and is rendered in real-time; this contrasts with file downl ...
series ''
The Offer'', which details the making of the film ''
The Godfather
''The Godfather'' is a 1972 American Epic film, epic crime film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, who co-wrote the screenplay with Mario Puzo, based on Puzo's best-selling The Godfather (novel), 1969 novel. The film stars an ensemble cast inc ...
''.
* Colombo is portrayed by
Michael Raymond-James
Michael Raymond-James (born Michael Weverstad; December 24, 1977) is an American actor. He is best known for playing René Lenier in the first season of the HBO series '' True Blood'', Britt Pollack on the FX series ''Terriers'', Neal Cassidy/B ...
in the third and fourth seasons of the television series ''
Godfather of Harlem'', which premiered in 2023.
References
Further reading
* Capria, Don and Anthony Colombo. Colombo: The Unsolved Murder. New York: Unity Press, 2015,
* Reppetto, Thomas. Bringing Down the Mob. New York: Henry Holt and Company, 2006.
* Moore, Robin and Barbara Fuca. Mafia Wife. New York: MacMillan, 1977,
{{DEFAULTSORT:Colombo, Joe
1923 births
1978 deaths
20th-century American criminals
American civil rights activists
American Christian Zionists
American male criminals
American shooting survivors
American Kahanists
Bosses of the Colombo crime family
Burials at St. John's Cemetery (Queens)
Criminals from Brooklyn
New Utrecht High School alumni
People from Blooming Grove, New York
People from Bay Ridge, Brooklyn