That Time a Consigliere of the Philly Crime Family Wanted to Kill Frank Sinatra

Jurors working the “Uncle Joe” Ligambi mob case were treated with a story, last week, when defense attorney Christopher Warren walked them through the contents of tapes made by FBI informant “Nicky Skins” Stefanelli. The tapes were made in 2011 and feature Joseph “Scoops” Licata, Stefanelli, and others talking about the good ol’ days of the mob. Like the time when Frank Sinatra told “Tony Bananas” Caponigro to be quiet during a show and Caponigro wanted to kill him.

“Sinatra was in the middle of a performance and Caponigro was talking. Sinatra stopped singing and said, ‘People didn’t come here to hear you talk, they came here to hear me sing.’ ”

“Tony wanted to . . . kill him,” Licata said on the tape. “You know what I mean? He made a remark like, ‘I’m singing.’ ”

Sinatra could be nasty, Licata added. He was a perfectionist, and when he was performing, “Nobody could move around.” [Inquirer]