Johnny ‘Dio’ Dioguardi was popularly called as ‘master labor racketeer’ who is said to have known all the illegal ways to make money. It was at a very young age that Dio started to be regarded as a treacherous thug, with Thomas E. Dewey, the U.S. attorney in 1936 was compelled to call him his a young gorilla.
Characteristics of Dio
It was on 28th April 1914 that Dio was born in Downtown Manhattan’s Forsyth Street. Vincent and Frank his two brothers were into legitimate work, while Thomas the third brother became a capo with the Luchesse Mafia Family. Giovanni B. Dioguardi, his father was a bicycle shop owner was killed in August 1930 in Coney Island, which according to the police officials was mob related execution.
Dio is known to have graduated grammar school from Stuyvesant High School. However, he had dropped out before the completion of two years, to work for uncle who was a gangster called James Plummeri ‘Jimmy Doyle’. Dio according to those known to him said to appear like Rudolph Valentino, the silent movie star. He grew up as tough youth, terrorizing the street vendors to give him some portion of the wares for free. His talents were realized by his uncle, who had him to work as leg breaker (schlammer) at Doyle’s Garment Center of Louie Buchalter. The specialty of Dio was said to be union related extortion, in which he had topped.
A trucking association for the garment workers was initiated by Doyle and Dio, where the truckers employed with the Garment Center had been compelled to join the union and pay up hefty union dues. Failing to make payments would mean facing the threat of broken bones and resistance would mean even death. Moreover, the truckers were also instructed as to where to buy their meats, clothing, wine, and other essential items, how much was to be spent on every item, etc. Strike ensued if the employers did not pay up extortion fees. However, after running out of luck, they found themselves imprisoned for five years.
Later, on being released, they left New York City to Allentown, Pennsylvania. Soon he got into legitimate dress wholesaling business, trucking and real estate and investments in the stock market. When he turned 40, he got inducted officially into the Luchesse Mafia family. Both his sons also became Mafia members, with one Dominick becoming a Made Man with the Luchesse Family and another son joining the Colombo Crime Family.