{{Short description|American mobster}} {{Use American English|date=May 2026}} {{Use mdy dates|date=May 2026}} {{Infobox person | name = Anthony Giordano | birth_date = {{Birth date|1914|06|24}} | birth_place = St. Louis, Missouri | death_date = {{Death date and age|1980|08|29|1915|06|24}} | death_place = St. Louis, Missouri | resting_place = Calvary Cemetery, St. Louis, Missouri | occupation = Organized crime | parents = | spouse = Catherine P. Burns | children = William Giordano (adopted) }}
'''Antonio Rico Giuseppe Giordano''' (June 24, 1914 – August 29, 1980) was the boss of the St. Louis crime family.<ref>Walsh, Denny (May 29, 1970). "Investigative Report: A Two-Faced Crime Fight in St. Louis". ''Life Magazine''</ref><ref name="Editorial 1980">Editorial. "Giordano, St. Louis Mobster Boss, Dies." ''Chicago Tribune'', August 30, 1980, pp. W19.</ref>
==Early life== Anthony Giordano, nicknamed "Tony G", was born June 24, 1914, in St. Louis, Missouri. He married Catherine P. Burns,<ref name="legacy.com">St. Louis Post-Dispatch [http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/stltoday/obituary.aspx?n=catherine-p-giordano-burns&pid=100461652 "Catherine P. (Burns) Giordano Obituary"]. Retrieved July 19, 2011.</ref> and together they adopted a son named William Giordano.<ref>Auble, John (2002). ''A History of St. Louis Gangsters''. St. Louis, Missouri: The National Criminal Research Society. Pp. 36.</ref>
==St. Louis crime family== Beginning in 1938, Giordano was arrested more than fifty times; his charges included carrying concealed weapons, robbery, holdups, income tax evasion, and counterfeiting tax stamps.<ref name="may">[http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/gangsters_outlaws/family_epics/louis/6.html "The St. Louis Family"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100824113228/http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/gangsters_outlaws/family_epics/louis/6.html |date=2010-08-24 }} by Allan May TruTV Crime Library</ref> In his early years, Giordano wore the wide-brimmed pearl gray hats, expensive suits, and rings favored by many mobsters of that time.
He was uncle to Matthew "Mike" Trupiano,<ref name="Editorial 1980"/> who later became boss. Giordano was also a cousin to the Licavolis. He was an uncle to St. Louis crime family capo James Giammanco.
Giordano was known for his explosive temper. In 1965, he threatened a Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agent who was trying to ask him questions at his restaurant. On another occasion, in 1970, Giordano grabbed and physically threatened a priest who was trying to retrieve a stolen church vehicle at Giordano's towing company.<ref>[http://www.crimemagazine.com/anthony-giordano-st-louis-hot-head "Anthony Giordano: St. Louis Hot Head"] by Allan May Crime Magazine</ref>
==Criminal career== In the early 1950s, Giordano made several trips to Anzio, Italy, to smuggle heroin into the United States. The US Federal Bureau of Narcotics observed him on three trips but did not gather enough evidence to indict him. In 1956, Giordano was convicted of income tax evasion for his vending machine company and was sentenced to four years in federal prison. When family boss John Vitale retired in 1960, Giordano took over the St. Louis crime family.<ref name="may"/> By the 1960s, Giordano had assumed a lower profile as a blue-collar worker. He and his wife lived in a conservative home in southwest St. Louis. Giordano was often seen in work clothes at his rental properties performing carpentry or plumbing chores. In February 1968, he was arrested as a suspected gambler during a citywide crackdown on gamblers.<ref name="may"/> In 1972 he was convicted of illegally skimming gambling proceeds from the Aladdin Hotel & Casino in Paradise, Nevada, through the Emprise Corporation with Michael "Big Mike" Polizzi and Anthony "Tony Z" Zerilli, members of the Detroit Partnership.
In 1975, Giordano was convicted on charges of secretly trying to obtain ownership in the New Frontier Hotel and Casino in Paradise, Nevada, and was sent to prison.<ref name="Editorial 1980"/> He was released in 1977.<ref name="Editorial 1980"/> Giordano died on August 29, 1980,<ref name="Editorial 1980"/> and was buried on September 2, 1980, in Calvary Cemetery, St. Louis City, Missouri.<ref>Catholic Cemeteries of the Archdiocese of St. Louis [http://search.stlcathcem.org/lotdetail.aspx?lotid=0196&secid=031&row=&cem=04 "Anthony Giordano Burial Record"] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120327195743/http://search.stlcathcem.org/lotdetail.aspx?lotid=0196&secid=031&row=&cem=04 |date=March 27, 2012 }}. Retrieved July 18, 2011.</ref> His wife Catherine survived him and died December 29, 2007.<ref name="legacy.com"/> She was buried on January 2, 2008, in Calvary Cemetery, St. Louis City, Mo.<ref name="legacy.com"/>
==References== {{Reflist|colwidth=30em}}
==External links== *[http://www.crimemagazine.com/anthony-giordano-st-louis-hot-head Anthony Giordano: St. Louis Hot Head] by Allan May Crime Magazine. *[http://www.americanmafia.com/Cities/St_Louis.html St. Louis Family]. AmericanMafia.com. *"[https://web.archive.org/web/20080707014613/http://www.crimelibrary.com/gangsters_outlaws/family_epics/louis/7.html Giordano]", ''The St. Louis Crime Family''. Crime Library.
{{S-start}} {{S-bus}} {{S-bef|before=John "Johnny V." Vitale|as=boss}} {{S-ttl|title=St. Louis crime family<br />Acting boss|years=1960s-1980}} {{S-aft|after=John "Johnny V." Vitale}} {{end}}
{{American Mafia}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Giordano, Anthony}} Category:1915 births Category:1980 deaths Category:American crime bosses Category:Gangsters from St. Louis Category:American gangsters of Italian descent Category:Deaths from cancer in Missouri Category:American people convicted of tax crimes Category:Prisoners and detainees of the United States federal government Category:20th-century American people