''Pay or Die'' is a 1960 American biographical and crime film directed by Richard Wilson and starring

Ernest Borgnine Ernest Borgnine (; born Ermes Effron Borgnino; January 24, 1917 – July 8, 2012) was an American actor whose career spanned over six decades. He was noted for his gruff but relaxed voice and gap-toothed Cheshire Cat grin. A popular perfor ...

Zohra Lampert Zohra Lampert is an American actress, who has had roles on stage, film and television. She performed under her then-married name of Zohra Alton early in her career. Among her performances were as the title character in the 1971 cult horror film ...

Howard Caine Howard Caine (born Howard Cohen; January 2, 1926 – December 28, 1993) was an American character actor, probably best known as Gestapo Major Wolfgang Hochstetter in the television series '' Hogan's Heroes'' (1965–71). He also played L ...

, Alan Austin, and

Robert F. Simon Robert Frank Simon (December 2, 1908 – November 29, 1992) was an American character actor. Earlier years Simon began acting with Mansfield's Community Players organization when he worked as a clerk in a meat market. Following that experience ...

. The film is a dramatization of the career of New York City police officer

Joseph Petrosino Joseph Petrosino (born Giuseppe Petrosino, ; August 30, 1860 – March 12, 1909) was an Italian-born New York City Police Department (NYPD) officer who was a pioneer in the fight against organized crime Organized crime (or organised crime) ...

, a pioneer in the fight against organized crime in America. The film deals primarily with Petrosino and his Italian Squad's opposition to the extortion rackets of the

Black Hand Black Hand or The Black Hand may refer to: Extortionists and underground groups * Black Hand (anarchism) (''La Mano Negra''), a presumed secret, anarchist organization based in the Andalusian region of Spain during the early 1880s * Black Hand (e ...

in lower Manhattan's

Little Italy Little Italy is a general name for an ethnic enclave populated primarily by Italians or people of Italian ancestry, usually in an urban neighborhood. The concept of "Little Italy" holds many different aspects of the Italian culture. There are s ...

Plot

The rookie Petrosino convinces the Police Commissioner of New York City to allow him to form a special squad to combat The Black Hand on its own grounds, as success depends on the ability to speak Italian and to convince the ordinary citizens of the tenements that gangsters are not heroes to worship. Petrosino's initial opponent is Lupo Miano, a leading extorntionist. But he soon suspects it runs deeper than Lupo's obvious rackets. Rather shy socially, Petrosino is astonished when to find out the daughter of a family he assisted, Adelina Saulino, is in love with him, and they are eventually married. Things come to a head when the Hand attempts to extort money from the famous opera singer Enrico Caruso. Petrosino appoints himself the singer's personal bodyguard. But only a forgotten hat saves the singer from a car bomb that kills his chauffeur. Neighborhood people observed the bomber running from the scene, blood pouring down his face. Numerous citizen tips lead Petrosino to a hideout where he smuggles himself in wrapped up in a giant bale of cotton. He arrests the bomber after a violent and public fistfight. Petrosino hits on a new tactic---travel to Italy and see if local gangsters are wanted in Italy and can be deported to face surer justice in their own country. The tactic is successful beyond his wildest dreams. But Petrosino also uncovers evidence of a nationwide crime Syndicate; and that a leading Little Italy citizen, Luigi Di Sarno, is a fugitive wanted in Sicily for double murder. He conveys this message back home by mail; trusting rookie cop Johnny Viscardi to carry on for him if the worst happens. The day before Petrosino is to return to New York, he is lured to a meeting with a traitorous informant and shot down in the street. At the New York funeral home, Viscardi notices Di Sarno spit into Petrosino's coffin---all Viscardi needs to arrest the true head of the Blackhanders.

Cast

as Police Lt. Joseph Petrosino *

as Adelina Saulino * Alan Austin as Johnny Viscardi *

Renata Vanni Renata Vanni (October 12, 1909 – February 19, 2004) was an Italian-born American film actress.Pitts p.99 She was better known for the films ''Pay or Die'', ''A Patch of Blue'' and ''Lady in White''. Filmography * '' El Paso'' (1949) as Lupit ...

as Mama Saulino * Bruno Della Santina as Papa Saulino *

as Police Commissioner *

Robert Ellenstein Robert Ellenstein (June 18, 1923 – October 28, 2010) was an American actor. The son of Meyer C. Ellenstein, a Newark dentist, Ellenstein grew up to see his father become a two-term mayor from 1933 to 1941. He served in the United States Army ...

as Luigi Di Sarno *

as Enrico Caruso * Barry Russo as Lupo Miano (as John Duke) *

Vito Scotti Vito Giusto Scozzari (January 26, 1918 – June 5, 1996), also known as Vito Scotti, was an American character actor who played both dramatic and comedy roles on Broadway, in films, and later on television, primarily from the late 1930s to the ...

as Officer Simonetti *

John Marley John Marley (born Mortimer Marlieb, October 17, 1907 – May 22, 1984) was an American actor who was known for his role as Phil Cavalleri in '' Love Story'' and as Jack Woltz—the defiant film mogul who awakens to find the severed head ...

as D. Caputo, Ragman * Delia Nora Salvi as Miss Salvi, Di Sarno's Secretary

International titles

This film was also released under the following titles: *''La mafia'' – France *''Maksa tai kuole'' – Finland *''Pagar o morir'' – Venezuela *''Pagare o morire'' – Italy *''To telesigrafo tou thanatou'' – Greece (transliterated ISO-LATIN-1 title) *''Zahl oder stirb'' – West Germany

References

External links

* * * * *

List of American films of 1960 A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to: People * List (surname) Organizations * List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America * SC Germania List, German rugby union ...

1960 films 1960 crime drama films Allied Artists films Films about Italian-American organized crime Films set in the 1900s Organized crime films based on actual events American crime drama films Films scored by David Raksin Films directed by Richard Wilson (director) 1960s English-language films 1960s American films {{1960s-crime-drama-film-stub