A Solemn Day in Italian-American History

August 23 marks the anniversary of two tragic events in Italian-American history... the untimely death of silent film star Rudolph Valentino in 1926 and one year later in 1927, the execution of Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti.

On August 23, 1926, Valentino passed away in New York City at the age of 31. He had been admitted to the hospital on August 15 after collapsing at Manhattan’s Hotel Ambassador. He was diagnosed with appendicitis and gastric ulcers. Three days later, after having surgery, he was on the mend but then developed peritonitis and in the days following, suffered inflammation in his lungs, causing his condition to take a turn for the worse. It is reported that he was conscious in the early hours of August 23 and even talked with his doctors before falling into a coma and then succumbing to his illness. Tens of thousands of hysterical fans took to the streets of New York upon hearing the news of his death.

Sacco and Vanzetti came to America for the same reason as most of our ancestors did; to find a better life. After experiencing the reality in America for immigrants during the years of mass immigration, the men felt the working class was treated unfairly and so they became involved with Italian anarchist Luigi Galleani, an advocate for violence in the name of politics. During that time, Italian anarchists were on the government's watch list and considered dangerous enemies.

On April 15, 1920, a shoe factory paymaster and a security guard were robbed and killed in South Braintree, Massachusetts. It was a turning point in the lives of Sacco and Vanzetti. The two were accused of the crime and stood on trial twice. The presiding judge both times was Webster Thayer. A Boston Globe reporter said of Thayer, “[He] was conducting himself in an undignified way, in a way I had never seen in thirty-six years. I have seen the judge sit in his gown and spit on the floor.” Sacco and Vanzetti produced more than a dozen witnesses, most of whom were dismissed due to their broken English. Several witnesses for the prosecution, who had been interviewed by detectives shortly after the crime, changed their initial descriptions of the suspects and getaway car. Both men had alibis. They were dismissed too. Then on August 23, 1927, after worldwide pleas and protests, the two men were executed.

Click here to read my interview with filmmaker Peter Miller, who made a beautiful documentary on the story of Sacco and Vanzetti, which is available on DVD.

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