You’ve probably heard the name. Frank "Mr. Big" Balistrieri was the man who basically owned Milwaukee for decades. He wasn't just a guy with a bad reputation; he was the undisputed king of the Milwaukee crime family. But when you look past the headlines about Las Vegas casino skimming and FBI wiretaps, there's a real, living frank balistrieri family tree that tells a much more complicated story. It's a story of deep Sicilian roots, high-society aspirations, and a father whose shadow was so dark it eventually swallowed his sons' careers.
Honestly, the Balistrieri legacy is kinda tragic if you look at it from the perspective of his kids. They weren't just "mob kids"—they were Marquette-educated lawyers. They had paths to legitimacy that their father never did. Yet, the gravity of the family name was just too strong to escape.
The Sicilian Foundation: Where It All Started
To understand Frank, you have to look at his parents. He was born in 1918 to Joseph Balistrieri and Benedetta Picciurro. Like many families in Milwaukee’s Third Ward, they were Sicilian immigrants. His father was a laborer, a guy who worked for the city. Normal stuff. But the connections were already there. Frank was the firstborn, named after his paternal grandfather, sticking to that classic Sicilian tradition.
The family tree got a major power boost when Frank married Antonina "Nina" Alioto in 1938. This wasn't just a romance; it was a merger. Nina was the daughter of John Alioto, who happened to be the boss of the Milwaukee Mafia at the time. By marrying Nina, Frank basically stepped into the royal family of the local underworld. By the early 1960s, he didn't just have a seat at the table—he was sitting at the head of it.
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The Children: Joseph, John, and the "Evil Force"
Frank and Nina had four children: Joseph Phillip, Benedetta Catherine, John Joseph, and Catherine. This is where the frank balistrieri family tree gets really interesting for anyone following the legal drama of the 80s.
Joseph and John weren't street thugs. Far from it.
- Joseph P. Balistrieri (1940–2010): A brilliant man. He loved opera. He traveled to Europe for concerts. He was a sharp-dressing lawyer who lived at the Shorecrest Hotel.
- John J. Balistrieri (1948–2024): Also a lawyer, educated at Valparaiso University. He was deeply involved in the Italian community and charitable golf tournaments.
But in 1984, the whole thing came crashing down. The FBI ran a sting involving a vending machine company, and both sons were caught up in it alongside their father. They were convicted of extortion. This ruined them. They were disbarred. They went to prison.
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In a pretty shocking move later on, the sons actually repudiated their father. They called him an "evil force" in court. They argued that they were basically trapped by the culture they were born into. Joseph once said that his father had made their very births a scandal. It’s a heavy thing to say about your own dad, but when your dad is "Mr. Big," the pressure must have been soul-crushing.
The Other Siblings
The daughters, Benedetta and Catherine, stayed largely out of the spotlight compared to their brothers. Benedetta passed away in 2009. John's obituary from June 2024 mentions his sister Catherine (married to George Busateri) as one of the survivors. While the men were dealing with federal indictments and the fallout of the Las Vegas skim, the women of the family mostly maintained a quiet, private existence in Milwaukee.
The Extended Branches: Brothers and Cousins
Frank wasn't a lone wolf. His brother, Peter "Pitch" Balistrieri, was his right-hand man. When Frank was in prison (which happened more than once), Peter stepped up as the acting boss. He was the one keeping the gears turning on the ground.
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Then you have the cousins. Peter "Pitch" Picciurro—who owned the famous Pitch’s Lounge and Restaurant—was a blood relative through Frank’s mother. The Picciurro name is almost as synonymous with Milwaukee's Italian history as Balistrieri. These weren't just business associates; they were family. They ate dinner together, went to the same churches (like Old St. Mary’s), and were buried in the same cemetery (Holy Cross).
Why the Balistrieri Family Tree Matters Now
Even though the "Milwaukee Family" is considered dormant or extinct today, the name still carries weight. You see it in the local news when one of the descendants passes away or when someone tries to get a law license reinstated.
- Legal Precedent: The cases against the Balistrieris changed how the FBI handled organized crime in the Midwest.
- Cultural History: The family is a huge part of the history of Milwaukee’s Third Ward and the Italian-American experience in Wisconsin.
- The Human Element: It’s a cautionary tale about how hard it is to break away from family expectations, no matter how much education you have.
If you’re looking into the frank balistrieri family tree for genealogy or history, keep in mind that many descendants today live totally normal, quiet lives. They are business owners, professionals, and neighbors. The "crime family" era ended with Frank’s death in 1993 and the passing of his immediate associates.
Actionable Insights for Researchers
If you're digging deeper into this history, don't just look at crime blogs. Check the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel archives—reporters like Amy Rabideau Silvers and Cary Spivak covered this family for decades with incredible detail. Also, look into the 1950 and 1940 US Census records for the Milwaukee Third Ward; they show the families living blocks apart, painting a picture of a very tight-knit community that was the backbone of Frank's power. For the most recent updates on the family lineage, obituaries from funeral homes like Becker Ritter often provide the most accurate lists of surviving grandchildren and great-grandchildren.