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| “ | That half-breed is no grandson of mine! | „ |
| ~ Sinatra disavowing his own grandson for being biracial. |
Manfredi Sinatra is a minor antagonist in the Law & Order universe, appearing in "What Happens in Puglia", the pilot episode of Law & Order: Organized Crime. He is a powerful mob boss whose son, Richard Wheatley, is the archnemesis of series protagonist Elliot Stabler.
He was portrayed by Chazz Palminteri, who also portrayed Santino "Sonny" LoSpecchio in A Bronx Tale, Mr. Walken in Little Man, Kasada in Animal, Smokey in Stuart Little, Primo Sidone in Analyze This, Perry Cannavaro in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, and Buster in Lady and the Tramp II: Scamp's Adventure.
Early life[]
Sinatra is one of the most powerful, well-connected mob bosses in New York City, with rackets in gambling, prostitution, drug smuggling, and protection.
The NYPD, particularly its Organized Crime Bureau, tried for years to shut his empire down and put him in prison, but his army of lawyers and public persona as a legitimate businessman and philanthropist kept him out of danger. He also avoided direct involvement in his crimes whenever possible by giving much of the day-to-day business of his criminal syndicate to his son, Richard.
While Sinatra entrusts his business to Richard, however, they have a deeply dysfunctional relationship. Sinatra, an unrepentant racist, regularly disrespects Richard's Black wife, Pilar, and their adult mixed-race children, Dana and Richard Jr., calling his own grandchildren "half-breeds". Richard, in turn, despises his father, and disavows his family name by taking his first wife Angela's last name, Wheatley.
Eventually, Detective Elliot Stabler of the Organized Crime Bureau starts investigating Sinatra and Wheatley's businesses in Puglia, Italy, and Sinatra, unbeknownst to his son, becomes Stabler's confidential informant, betraying his son to stay out of prison. When Stabler and his family visit New York City to attend an award ceremony for his former partner, Captain Olivia Benson, Richard's men plant a bomb in Stabler's car that kills his wife, Kathy.
"Whatever Happens in Puglia"[]
Stabler arranges a meeting with Sinatra and accuses him of planting the bomb that killed Kathy. Sinatra denies it, however, proclaiming that he always makes a point of leaving his enemies' families alone, and that if he wanted Stabler dead, he would have killed him long ago. Stabler also asks him what connection he had to Angela's late son Rafiq, who was murdered while working for Wheatley; Sinatra says he had none and dismisses Rafiq as a "low-life".
Sinatra visits Richard and makes polite small talk with Pilar until she leaves, at which point he insults her and his grandchildren with ethnic slurs. He also confronts his son about killing Stabler's wife, saying he has brought unnecessary police attention on the family. When Wheatley claims he knows nothing about it and says he is a legitimate businessman, Sinatra laughs at him, saying that his contacts back in Puglia have told him about Wheatley latest scam, selling counterfeit COVID-19 vaccine. Wheatley coldly tells him to show himself out.
Knowing it is only a matter of time before Stabler arrests him, he leaves Stabler a message to meet him at the Wonder Wheel and claims to know who killed Kathy. He then arranges a meeting at Wonder Wheel with Wheatley, intending to let Stabler arrest his son in return for letting him go. Wheatley arrives with his right-hand man, Izak Bekher, and the three of them ride the Wonder Wheel. Sinatra pretends to want to mend his relationship with his son and disingenuously apologizes for disrespecting his wife and children. Wheatley knows his father is setting him up, however, and has Bekher shoot him dead. They leave the body on the ferris wheel for Stabler to find moments later. Wheatley then takes his father's place as the official head of his criminal empire, while hypocritically claiming to mourn his loss.
External links[]
- Manfredi Sinatra on the Law & Order Wiki
