Who Is Michael Franzese Real Dad? Celebrity

Publish date: 2024-05-20

Michael Franzese’s father, John “Sonny” Franzese, was an underboss in the Colombo crime family. In a shocking display of good parenting, Michael’s father didn’t want him to follow in his footsteps, so Michael initially studied pre-med at Hofstra University.

Michael Franzese was born to infamous Colombo underboss John (Sonny) Franzese and his second wife Cristina Capobianco. Circumstances as such made him grow up in the world of mafia and crime. In February of 2020, Michael’s father passed away at the age of 103. John had stayed active in the mafia entirely into his nineties.

Where did Michael Franzese get his money?

Authorities believe the money was laundered through Franzese’s film production company, Miami Gold, to offshore bank accounts in Austria and Panama. Franzese bought a home in Delray Beach , Florida. In 1986, Fortune Magazine listed Franzese as number 18 on its list of the “Fifty Most Wealthy and Powerful Mafia Bosses”.

Franzese was sentenced to 10 years in prison and ordered to pay $14.7 million in restitution on the federal charges, agreeing to sell his assets including a mansion in Old Brookville, New York, the Miami Gold production company, and use proceeds from the Knights of the City film.

Indictment and prison. In April 1985, Franzese was acquitted of racketeering charges. In another case in December 1985, Franzese was charged in both Florida and New York in regards to counterfeiting and extortion from the gasoline bootlegging racket. In New York, Franzese was one of nine people indicted on 14 counts.

Franzese had claimed that at the height of his career, he generated up to $8 million per week. In 1986, he was sentenced to 10 years in prison on conspiracy charges, released in 1989, rearrested in 1991 for a parole violation, and ultimately released in 1994.

During the 1970s, he began to enter the world of legitimate business and by the mid 1980s Franzese had a stronghold on various businesses such as car dealerships, leasing companies, auto repair shops, restaurants, nightclubs, a contractor company, movie production and distribution companies, travel agencies and video stores.

In July 2020 , he appeared in the Fear City: New York vs The Mafia Netflix docuseries. Franzese released an autobiographical biopic, God The Father, in 2014, which was released in theaters across 20 cities in the United States.

Franzese had initially believed that he had been adopted by John after his mother divorced Frank Grillo , who Franzese thought to be his biological father. Michael says he had gone by the name “Michael Grillo” until he was 18 years old. However, it was later discovered that John, already married with three children, had gotten the 16-year-old Capobianco, a cigarette girl at the Stork Club in Manhattan, pregnant with Michael, so Capobianco married Grillo to avoid having a scandal surrounding having a child out of wedlock. After the mob allowed John to divorce his first wife, Grillo disappeared, and he married Capobianco.

Who is Michael Franzese?

Michael Franzese is a former New York mobster and caporegime of the Colombo crime family. His life has been full of ups and downs. From being named the “Fifty Most Wealthy and Powerful Mafia Bosses” to being sentenced to more than a decade in prison, he has been through almost every good and bad times. Here, we explore in detail the supposedly …

But then, at some point, the father-son had settled their differences. In the family, Michael also had two siblings, John Franzese Jr., and Lorraine Franzese.

Meantime, Michael Franzese’s net worth, after witnessing decades of risings and falls, rests to $1 million (according to celebritynetworth.com).

Circumstances as such made him grow up in the world of mafia and crime. In February of 2020, Michael’s father passed away at the age of 103. John had stayed active in the mafia entirely into his nineties. And, at the age of 94, he was sentenced to prison on extortion charges.

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As a result, Michael had to drop out of school to help his family, financially. Young Michael was taken under the wing of Joe Colombo, the boss of the crime family. Moving on to the path, Michael became an official member of the mob in 1975.

The eldest of all, Julia Marie Franzese, with 15.7 thousand followers on Instagram, is an actress. She appeared in the 2011’s and 2016’s movie, the musical Dance Angels, and My B.F.F., respectively. Also, Don’t Miss: Orlando Soria Wiki: Partner, Net Worth, Height, Parents.

After they got married in 1984, they had stayed together. From what it seemed, Camille mostly chose to live away from the spotlight, raising three kids her three kids, Julia, Amanda, and Miquelle, with Michael. The pair appeared to have raised their children well off.

Where was Michael Franzese born?

Franzese was born in New York City, New York, on May 27, 1951. He was the son of Combo crime family underboss John Sonny Franzese, and his mother was Christian Capobianco-Franzese. Later on, Michael moved to Long Island, and it eventually became home to most of his operations. He attained his high school education from Long Island, and later in 1961, he joined Hofstra University for a pre-med program.

He got into organized crime in 1967 after his father John Franzese was sentenced to a 50 years’ imprisonment, and Michael had to make money for his family. Michael abandoned the life of crime after becoming a born again Christian while he was serving a term in prison. He became a motivational speaker as well as a writer.

Michael Franzese Net Worth. As of July 2021, The net value of Michael Franzese is $1 million. This is a big decline from when he was a mobster where he was reportedly making $8 million in a week, but things changed after his retirement from organized crime. His current wealth has come from him being a writer and a motivational speaker.

Franzese co-authored his first book called Quitting the Mob in 1992. In the book, he discussed his criminal activities, life with his father, among other personal issues. In the year 1994, Michael publicly denounced organized crime and became a motivational speaker.

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