Jimmy Altieri
| “ | Whoah, easy for you to say. I don't get young ones like before.
|
„ |
| ― Jimmy Altieri |
Biography
Former capo in the DiMeo/Soprano crime family. Present at Christmas celebrations in 1995, in a flashback scene in the episode, "...To Save Us All From Satan's Power."
James "Jimmy" Altieri is a caporegime in the DiMeo Crime Family. Jimmy possesses many similar characteristics to his peers such as Big Pussy Bonpensiero. He has thick black hair and is obese, as Tony noted the informants were 'two fat fucks with black hair'. Jimmy first appears on the show in the episode "Meadowlands" at a "Captain's Dinner", discussing Junior. Jimmy had to have been a capo since at least 1995 because he appears in a flashback sequence during a 95' Christmas Party celebration in the season 3 episode "...To Save Us All From Satan's Power". In the episode "Nobody Knows Anything", Jimmy was arrested for gun charges while running an illegal card game. The FBI found pool tables full of guns. He was probably "flipped" at this time, although it was never proven. Big Pussy Bonpensiero was also present and arrested but was already working for the feds at this point (Agent Skip Lipari stated he had been with them since 1998. Although, it is interesting to note that Tony thinks Pussy "flipped" in 1995). Very little is known about Altieri, for his existence on the show is brief and is rarely emphasized in the episodes in which he does appear. Jimmy was married to Franni Altieri and had a son, James Altieri Jr., revealed in "Commendatori". Jimmy and Tony were the youngest captains.
Jimmy is executed by Silvio Dante after it is revealed that he's an FBI informant
Vin Makazian, Tony's inside detective (who works clandestinely for Tony and does his dirty work from time to time, which included observing Dr. Melfi), informs Tony that Big Pussy Bonpensiero is "wired for sound" (that is he is an informant). Tony finds this very difficult to believe. Shortly after Jimmy's arrest, he is released. He shows up one night at Tony's home during dinner. He and Tony walk into the basement where Jimmy begins asking Tony a lot of questions, making Tony very suspicious. Tony finds Jimmy's behavior very peculiar and also believes he was released too promptly after his arrest. Tony then begins to suspect that Makazian mistook Jimmy for Pussy as they are similar in appearance. Pussy abruptly disappears after being confronted by Paulie Gualtieri. Earlier in the episode, Vin Makazian, who had suffered from chronic depression, had committed suicide by jumping off a bridge, so Tony was not able to confirm whether Vin had confused Jimmy and Pussy.
Jimmy's deceased corpse is tossed in an alley with a rat stuffed in his mouth as a message job
Tony decides to go with his instincts and decides that Jimmy is an informant. At a meeting with other administrators and capos, it is apparent to everyone else Jimmy is acting somewhat odd. As such, Uncle Junior sanctioned a hit on Jimmy and said he wanted a message to be sent. Christopher lured Jimmy to a hotel room in Times Square with a beautiful Russian girl as bait. Once Jimmy was seated in the room, Silvio came in and put a gun to the back of his head. Jimmy realized what was about to happen and went for a gun in his ankle holster, but Christopher beat him to it. Christopher and Silvio taunt him by saying he should call for help down his microphone (a wire) - at which point Silvio shot him in the back of his head. Given that he said "Mother of God", and "Oh my God" under his breath in a serious way and didn't deny being a rat when he was at gunpoint, it likely was true that Jimmy was an informant. As for the message, Jimmy's body was found in an alley with a rat stuffed in his mouth. Christopher even went so far as to call in a bomb threat to Jimmy's wake, to which Dante replied, "See now, that's over the top." Carlo Gervasi subsequently takes over Jimmy's abandoned crew after Jimmy's demise. There is an image of Jimmy in a scene with the FBI, he still appears on their Soprano's "family tree" and with other informants the FBI knew as soon as they lost contact meaning Jimmy probably was not an informant.
Appearances
- Played by: Joe Badalucco
- Appears in: "Meadowlands", "Pax Soprana", "Boca", "The Legend of Tennessee Moltisanti", "Nobody Knows Anything", "Isabella", "I Dream of Jeannie Cusamano", "...To Save Us All From Satan's Power"
Trivia
- The rat being stuffed into Jimmy's mouth after his demise is a mafia message job which indicates that he was a traitorous rat (or in this case, an FBI informant).