1932 Murder of John Bazzano

January 2011 Contents
Feature Article
By Thomas Hunt and Michael A. Tona

Recently reorganized under the Commission system,

in 1932 the American Mafia reacted quickly to a

bloody revival of old underworld rivalries

A Test of Resolve

By Thomas Hunt

and Michael A. Tona

   "As a member of the Mafia criminal network in the United States and a veteran of Prohibition Era gang wars, Pittsburgh underworld boss John Bazzano surely knew he was in jeopardy when he received a summons from higher-ups in mid-summer of 1932.
   "Vito Genovese wanted to see him in New York City. Second in command of Charlie 'Lucky' Luciano’s massive underworld empire, Genovese was one of the elite criminal leaders in the country, certainly the most powerful Neapolitan gangster.
   "An order to appear before a more senior gang boss did not come with an explanation. It did not need one. Mafiosi understood that attendance was mandatory. Though the call to such a meeting often preceded the harshest form of underworld discipline, refusal of the summons surely meant death."

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Thirty-nine and a half pages including eight pages of notes, thirty-eight images and three maps.