| abstract | - Born in 1893 in Partinico, Sicily by the time he was in his early 20s Musso had traveled across the Atlantic and settled in Madison, Wisconsin. While in Madison Musso operated a pool hall and was said to be involved in the murder of Madison racketeer Anton Navarra in April 1924. During the early days of Prohibition Musso made a name for himself as the bootlegging king operating out of the 'Bush' section of Madison. By the mid 1920s he had moved in on the territory of Rockford, Illinois. Determined to control the most profitable racket-bootlegging, transportation and stills-Musso systematically set about eliminating or controlling the competition. It was said that by the late 1920s he along with Gaspare Calo, Anthony Riela, Joseph Zammuto and others he had fulfilled his goal. With the exception of Giovingo brothers all bootleggers, speakeasy operators and whiskey haulers answered to Musso and company. When the Giovingo refused to comply the first one, Joe, was murdered in 1930. Zammuto's rise to the top was briefly stalled when he was convicted in a sweep against gangsters involved in bootlegging. Zammuto served a brief two year hitch from 1930-1932. This would be the only noticeable time he served behind bars. Upon Zammuto's return from prison it was evident that Musso was being backed by the Milwaukee crime family and Chicago Outfit (Musso was said to be a good friend of Al Capone) along with the Zito brothers of Springfield, IL. and the St. Louis crime family making Musso the crown prince. Musso's final opponent in the bootlegging racket was the last Giovingo brother, Paul, who Musso had murdered in 1933.
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