Bill Bonanno Biography

A member of the infamous Bonanno mob, one of New York’s five mafia families. He was appointed by his father to consigliere, the second highest position in the mob, during the mid-1960s. His appointment started the “Banana Wars” and resulted in the exile of the Bonanno family to Arizona. Bill Bonanno’s father came to the United States from Sicily with his parents in 1906. He started off in a Brooklyn-based bootlegging and gunrunning operation that thrived during prohibition, eventually becoming the head of one of New York’s five biggest crime families. Bill Bannono became a “made” member of the family in his 20s, and spent a total of 12 years in prison during his life. He published his autobiography, “Bound by Honor: A Mafioso’s Story,” in 1999.