Sam Giancana

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Giancana was born Gilormo Giangana on May 24, 1908, in The Patch neighborhood of Chicago to Antonio Giangana and Antonia DeSimmona, Italian immigrants from Castelvetrano, Sicily. He joined the 42 Gang, a juvenile street crew working for political boss Joseph Esposito. Giancana soon developed a reputation as an excellent getaway driver, a high earner, and a vicious killer. He was first arrested in 1925 for auto theft. By the age of 20 he had been the prime subject of three murder investigations but never tried for any of them. In 1929, Giancana was convicted of burglary and larceny, and sentenced to one to five years in the Joliet Correctional Center. He was released in 1932 after serving three years and nine months. During the late 1930s, Giancana became the first 42er to join the Chicago Outfit. In 1939, Giancana was convicted of bootlegging and sentenced to four years in Leavenworth Prison and Terre Haute Federal Correctional Complex. After his release in 1942, he convinced Accardo, then the Outfit's underboss, to stage a takeover of Chicago's African American "policy" (lottery) payout system. Giancana's crew was responsible for the August 4, 1952, murder of African American gambling boss Theodore Roe. When the lottery money started rolling in, the amount produced for the Outfit was in the millions of dollars a year, bringing Giancana further notice. He was present at the Mafia's 1957 Apalachin meeting; he avoided arrest by staying inside the meeting house. Giancana claimed the Chicago area was "the safest place in the world" for a major underworld meeting because he had several police chiefs on his payroll.

Reader's Guide

Giancana's significance lies in his leadership of the Chicago Outfit during a period of expansion and national attention. According to some sources, he and the Mafia were involved in John F. Kennedy's victory in the 1960 presidential election. Giancana's mistress Judith Exner stated that Giancana used his connections to persuade unions to support Kennedy. However, it is alleged that Giancana came to regret aiding Kennedy get elected due to the fact that attorney general Robert F. Kennedy made significant efforts to crack down on organized crime. During the 1960s, the CIA recruited Giancana and other mobsters to assassinate Fidel Castro. Giancana reportedly said that the CIA and Cosa Nostra were "different sides of the same coin." CIA documents released in 2007 confirmed that in September 1960, the CIA recruited ex-FBI agent Robert Maheu to meet with Johnny Roselli. Maheu offered $150,000 to have Castro killed, but Roselli refused any pay. Roselli introduced Maheu to "Sam Gold" (Giancana) and "Joe" (Santo Trafficante Jr.). Giancana suggested using poison pills to dose Castro's food and drink. The CIA gave these pills to Giancana's nominee, Juan Orta. In 1965, Giancana was convicted of contempt of court, serving one year in prison. After his release, he fled to Cuernavaca, Mexico. In 1974, he was deported to the United States, returning to Chicago. Giancana was murdered on June 19, 1975, at his home in Oak Park, Illinois, shortly before he was scheduled to appear before the Church Committee.

Did You Know?

• Giancana was born Gilormo Giangana on May 24, 1908, in The Patch neighborhood of Chicago.
• He was first arrested in 1925 for auto theft and by age 20 had been the prime subject of three murder investigations but never tried for any of them.
• Giancana was present at the Mafia's 1957 Apalachin meeting and avoided arrest by staying inside the meeting house.
• In 1959, Giancana appeared before the Select Committee on Improper Activities in Labor and Management, where Chief Counsel Bobby Kennedy chided him, saying 'I thought only little girls giggled, Mr. Giancana.'
• Giancana was murdered on June 19, 1975, at his home in Oak Park, Illinois, shortly before he was scheduled to appear before the Church Committee.