Cosa Nostra News

Northern Italy's Emilia-Romagna region is widely known for its medieval cities and seaside resorts. It also has the distinction of being the birthplace of some of the world's premier delicacies, including Prosciutto di Parma , Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, and Balsamic Vinegar . And, up until a few years ago, it was one of the few places in Italy  not typically known to have a Mafia presence. Nicola Femia was arrested for running a gambling racket. Historically, Italy's various organized crime groups tended to keep away from Emilia-Romagna, either by chance or by design. That was then.

From its inception, the American Mafia included among its plethora of rackets the slot-machine. So popular during the twentieth century's first few decades were these little games of chance, it's difficult today to truly comprehend it. NYC Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia was hands-on. Perhaps the most suitable image to remind us is the photograph above of Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia sledgehammering a machine (the scene also was captured on film footage). All the historical Mafia bosses, especially the men who served as heads of New York's Five Families—Charlie "Lucky" Luciano, Vito Genovese and, most famously of all, Frank Costello, for example—reaped fortunes from slot machine profits.