Lorraine Franzese is famous thanks to her father, Sonny Franzese, an American mobster, former member, and underboss of the Colombo crime family. She was one of the eight children of the mobster; the others include John Franzese Jr and Michael, who were both parts of the Colombo crime family.
Personal Life
Lorraine Franzese is married and has children and grandchildren. However, she has kept details of her husband and children from the public. Upon her father’s release from prison in 2017, she was overjoyed and said she was happy seeing him happy and enjoying his freedom out of jail.
So little information is out to the public regarding Lorraine Franzese, and it is unclear what she is up to lately. Maybe she is staying at her home and spending time with her family.
Her Father
Lorraine’s father started his involvement in criminal activities in the late 1930s; at the time, he worked for Joseph Profaci, the leader of the Profaci crime family, which was renamed the Colombo crime family. He was arrested multiple times for crimes, but he was released after some time and went back to doing his crime business.
Lorraine’s father was drafted into the U.S. Army for the second world war, but he was released as he had a mental disorder. Sonny was a committed member of the Colombo crime family and was later promoted to captain in the 1950s. He was involved in fraud, loansharking and racketeering.
In the 1960s, Sonny had risen through the ranks to become the underboss working under Joseph Colombo. Besides crime, Sonny Franzese had a dry-cleaning store based in Brooklyn. Lorraine’s father also used illegal means to gain money from recording labels resulting in some of them being closed.
The Impact of Lorraine’s Father’s Arrests on His Family
As Lorraine Franzese’s father went in and out of prison, it negatively affected his family; his wife was often devastated, and his children did not build a bond with their father as he was often absent. It must have been tough for Lorraine, who would have wanted to spend time with her dad
Her Brother’s Betrayal of the Colombo crime Family
John Franzese Jr was part of the Colombo crime family when the FBI approached him to be their informant. Lorraine’s brother wanted to turn his life around and stop crime, so he accepted the FBI’s proposal. Sonny tried to kill Franzese Jr as he had testified against, but he was under police protection which kept him safe. With the evidence and testimony provided by Lorraine’s brother, his father was sentenced to eight years in prison in 2011.
Michael Franzese, Lorraine’s brother, accused John of lying about his father and did not get along for a long time. Despite his tussle with his father, John Franzese Jr met his father and asked for his forgiveness before his death.
Her Father’s Death
Lorraine Franzese’s father died on February 24, 2020, aged 103, after spending some time in a nursing home. His remains were interred at St. John Cemetery, Queens, New York City.