Anastasia got his start on the Brooklyn docks, rising in the ranks of the mob-controlled longshoreman's union. Known as the Mad Hatter, Anastasia was a larger-than-life mob boss. The Sicilian-born criminal brought his brother Anthony along for a ride through the world of crime. The Mad Hatter was a hot-tempered hood who killed another longshoreman early in his career. This faux pas landed him a reserved room on death row. He was granted a second trial when four of the witnesses who had testified in the first trial suddenly reversed their statements. When four key witnesses suddenly went missing before the second trial could be held, Anastasia walked.

King Hood

In other trials over the years, witnesses had a tendency to turn up dead, guaranteeing acquittals for Anastasia. One man and his wife vanished, never to be heard from again. The fact that blood stains splattered their home was a clear indication of foul play. Another man was found in the trunk of a car in the Bronx, and yet another was dumped in the Passaic River in New Jersey.

The Hatter served Lucky Luciano with gleeful enthusiasm during the violent power struggle. He was allegedly one of the four-man hit team that whacked Masseria. And given that publicity would have been bad for his particular line of work outside of Mafia circles, we will never really know how many people met their end at the Mad Hatter's hands.

Coming Up

Luciano and fellow mobster Frank Costello could keep Anastasia on a reasonably short leash. Anastasia was a loose cannon, and cooler heads in the Mafia kept a watchful eye on him. He was loyal to these two bosses. Though they knew he was loyal, they felt that he was unstable. Anastasia was promoted despite his apparent incompetence. His two benefactors made him boss of the Mangano crime family, much to the indignation of Vince Mangano. This created an enmity that ended when Mangano's brother was murdered and Vince joined the ranks of the mysteriously missing folks who got in the way of Anastasia's ambition.

His benefactors backed up Anastasia's claim that he had uncovered a plot against him and his actions were in self-defense. As a result, the Commission deemed the hit justified and Anastasia was free from reprisals. For a little while at least.

Anastasia enjoyed his new position, but his handlers had their own reasons for promoting him. Frank Costello was in the midst of a rivalry with Vito Genovese as the two crime lords vied for control of the interests and rackets of the recently deported Lucky Luciano.

Anastasia was more interested in killing than making lucrative business deals. His lack of subtlety and finesse made him a liability rather than an asset in the long run. He even ordered the hit of a man he saw on television. The man had testified as a witness against celebrated bank robber Willie Sutton. Sutton was the man who, when asked why he robbed banks, offered the now-famous reply, “That's where the money is.” Anastasia was outraged at the witness's attitude and had him murdered. This of course violated the mob's unwritten rule not to mess with outsiders. It shines too much light on them and creates too many problems. The fact that a high-level Mafioso would so casually order a hit raised the red flag for the other members of the Commission. Anastasia's explanation was an offhanded, “I hate stoolies.”

Just a Little off the Top

In 1957, Tampa mob boss and Havana casino magnate Santo Trafficante Jr. wrote Anastasia a letter filled with lavish promises of Anastasia's chances of getting in on the operation of the Havana Hilton. Santo was flying to New York with two Cuban investors and told Anthony “Cappy” Coppola, Anastasia's trusted bodyguard and a frequent visitor to Trafficante's casinos in Cuba, to take care of his buddies.

The first night the group was in town, they got a surprise visitor at their suite. Joe DiMaggio, who was reportedly friendly with Anastasia, came up to say hello to Trafficante and his boys. Speculation was that DiMaggio was going to be one of the investors and faces of the Havana Hilton if Anastasia was let in on the deal. This was Anastasia's last shot. His brash attitude and the typical churning of underworld waves had brought some storm clouds on his rosy future as boss of the Mangano family.

On October 25, 1957, Anastasia went to the barbershop of the Park Sheraton Hotel in New York City. Two masked men entered and the Lord High Executioner was himself offed in a hail of bullets. The fact that his bodyguard did not quickly join his boss in the barbershop after parking the car indicates that there was a conspiracy in his own family, no doubt led by the man who succeeded him, Carlo Gambino. Coincidentally Trafficante was staying at the Park Sheraton and left only hours before.

Albert Anastasia's murder