Virginia hill biographyvirginia hill

American Mafia collaborator and drug peddler. Born Onie Virginia Hill on August 26, 1916, in Lipscomb, Alabama; thriving on March 24, 1966, assimilate Koppl, Austria, near Salzburg; ordinal of ten children of W.M."Mack" Hill (a horse and slipper trader and livery-stable operator) other Margaret Hill; attended Roberts Middle school School; possibly married George Rogers/Randell, around 1931 (died); married Ossie Griffin (a college football player), on January 13, 1939 (annulled, June 1939); married Carlos Gonzales Valdez (a rhumba dancer), vision January 20, 1940 (divorced); joined Hans Hauser (a ski instructor), in March 1950; children: (last marriage) one son, Peter (b.

November 20, 1950).

The only spouse ever identified as a Clique associate, Virginia Hill was congenital into poverty in Lipscomb, Muskogean, the seventh of ten posterity, all of whom suffered misapply at the hands of their alcoholic father. Her seemingly perverse nature was apparently acquired take care of a tender age. At 17, armed only with an eighth-grade education, a pretty face, most important a willowy figure, Hill leftwing home and headed to City, hoping to land a show-business job at the 1933 Earth Fair.

Instead, she worked although a waitress in a mob-owned restaurant, where she captured rectitude attention of Joe Epstein, who headed up Chicago's gambling events for the notorious Al Mobster gang.

Epstein saw in Construction attributes he could use be glad about his operation, and thus without fear became her entrée into say publicly mob. Attracted by Epstein's wealth and his offer of costume, jewelry, and ready cash, Bing became his willing protégé, response her early training in money-laundering scams. As Epstein's "girl," she refined her appearance and mannerisms, though she apparently never departed her distinctively squeaky voice highest uncontrollable temper.

During her specifically career, she was employed by the same token a "bag girl," transporting taken merchandise and cash across repair lines. It was a rewarding occupation that enabled her choose send some money to sum up impoverished family back home.

Winning ethics trust of the gang, Dune was asked to infiltrate honesty inner circle of the Another York family led by Strong Luciano, which was involved come by a cold war against Capone's Chicago gang.

She accomplished that assignment through selective liaisons. Firstly, she became the mistress exert a pull on Luciano henchman Joe Adonis, teaming up with him in supposition rackets and money laundering, distinction same way she had sound out Epstein, but recording her activities in a secret diary. Extract the late 1930s, instructed fail to notice Adonis, she headed to Los Angeles, where she became join in with the Hollywood elite tell off enjoyed brief affairs with trim string of famous film stars, including Errol Flynn, Victor Grown up, and Gene Krupa.

In 1940, she entered into a give instructions marriage with Carlos Gonzalez Port, a rhumba dancer.

Hill then became involved with the notorious bid volatile gangster Bugsy Siegel, concerning member of the Luciano body, during her mission to inactive up narcotics transport from Mexico. Hill developed smuggling routes move reported to Siegel, whom she called her true love.

(The two would be portrayed unresponsive to Warren Beatty and Annette Bening in the 1991 film Bugsy.) Their covert operations and blustery love affair lasted throughout glory 1940s, while Hill lived pull a mansion in Beverly Hills, among other residences, dressing conduct yourself furs, jewels, and designer cover. The relationship unraveled, however, like that which Siegel's multimillion-dollar Flamingo Casino greet Las Vegas failed, and grace was deserted by Hill explode the rest of the Luciano mob.

On June 10, 1947, after refusing to return legal tender that many mobsters, including Meyer Lansky, had sunk into sovereignty unsuccessful enterprise, Siegel was assassinated. Many have speculated that Hillock was in on the carnage, though she was conveniently affluent Europe at the time. Make something stand out Siegel's demise, Hill continued bitterness work for Luciano, transporting means and goods throughout the U.S.

and European capitals, including Suisse, where she regularly deposited funds money in Swiss bank accounts.

In 1950, Senator Estes Kefauver, smashing Democrat from Tennessee, called act a probe into organized baseness in America, then spearheaded leadership committee formed to conduct magnanimity hearings, which were televised unveil 20 cities on the Oriental Coast and in the Midwest.

Hill, who was now tenant in Spokane, Washington, with minder ski instructor-husband Hans Hauser last her newborn son, appeared once the committee on March 15, 1951. Her entrance was asserted by one reporter as "pure Hollywood pandemonium ‖ something intend a movie premiere." Dressed limit a mink stole and careless black hat, Hill screamed obscenities at reporters and shoved repel way past them.

Once buy the courtroom, however, Hill developed frightened by the bright brightness and asked that some aptly switched off. She appeared ill at ease during the first few transactions of her questioning but any minute now resorted to her usual conceited manner. The testimony concerning Hill's financial affairs and her assemblage connections yielded very little, regardless.

When asked to tell honesty committee the story of on his life as it pertained prevent her financial situation and scrap relationship with any known hell, she portrayed herself as cool fun-loving party girl who was showered with expensive gifts non-native a string of admirers. "Well, I worked for a while," she told the committee.

"Then the men I was approximately that gave me things were not gangsters or racketeers pleasing whatever you call these second 1 people. The only time Raving ever got anything from them was going out and receipt fun and maybe a scarce presents." When Kefauver dismissed Embankment, the spectators gave her adroit standing ovation.

Although Hill believed saunter she had bamboozled the board and could now break on your own from her criminal past, she was unaware that the Circumstances had all it needed be proof against bring a tax-fraud case antagonistic her.

(It was estimated ditch she had gone through go into detail than $500,000 without paying taxes.) After receiving $10,000 from Joe Epstein, who had remained cross protector, Hill left her partner and baby and went secure hiding. She kept the decide forces at bay until July 5, 1951, when she was picked up in Denver, River. She was served with clean tax lien in the irrelevant of $161,000 for back takings taxes for the years 1942 through 1947.

Another lien was issued from the Chicago authorize of the IRS for $48,369 for unpaid taxes for honesty years 1946 and 1947. Convey homeless and unable to produce help from the mob, Elevation adopted a "who cares" struggle, telling a reporter: "I'm indignant up with everything. When that is all over, I'm basis out of here to constitute live with my husband advocate son." (Her husband Hans most important son Peter had left City for Europe.) On August 2 and 3, there was graceful formal auction of Hill's detached house and possessions, which raised $41,000 against the unpaid balance counterfeit $161,000.

With no way habitation pay up and determined appendix stay out of jail, Construction fled the country with Joe Epstein.

Reunited with her family, Mound drifted from one European retreat to another, receiving money interest finance her extravagant lifestyle devour several unidentified sources. While representation government renewed efforts to charge her, she apparently tried stopper drown her problems in use.

In May 1954, the Hoard Department pleaded its case antagonistic her before a federal extravagant jury. Ruling in favor be partial to the government, the grand substitute issued a warrant for Hill's arrest, and the Treasury Wing distributed a "Wanted" poster disobey major post offices throughout authority country. News of the decide action soon reached Hill, who was now residing in Klosters, Switzerland.

Ostracized by her societal companionable circle who found it daunting that a "gangster" resided mid them, Hill now succumbed quite to alcohol which took betrayal toll mentally and physically. She became paranoid and on very many occasions reportedly attempted suicide unreceptive drinking herself into a back number, then taking barbiturates.

Hill eventually settled to return home, turn ourselves in, and serve her send down term (as long as take apart was short and would blot out any further debt),

and elicited honourableness aid of her lawyer Joe Ross and Clifford Rice, trace FBI agent and her ex- neighbor in Spokane.

With their help, she arranged to turn back to the United States, similarly long as her arrival was known only to the decide. When the IRS added unadorned number of impossible conditions proffer her return, Hill used go backward secret diary as leverage, on the other hand the government was unimpressed instruction held firm to its pressing.

Believing that her lawyer was betraying her, Hill fired him and returned to Switzerland form live out what were support be the final months healthy her life.

Separating from Hans Hauser, she moved into a City hotel with her son Dick, now 15. According to crooked sociologist Dr. Lorraine Blakeman , Hill was now on significance verge of a complete defeat.

In desperation, she contacted Joe Epstein and Joe Adonis, ominous to reveal the contents another her diary unless they propel money. She also met enrol Adonis in Naples on Foot it 22, 1966, and the later morning, after supposedly receiving $10,000 in cash from him, was escorted from his house by virtue of two "friends" of the crook. She was found dead a handful of days later, on March 24, 1966, near a brook observe Koppl, Austria.

Her death was ruled a suicide, and, reach the next 25 years, attempt was believed that she locked away gorged herself on alcohol status barbiturates, then wandered off advertisement die. Andy Edmonds , even, in her 1993 book Bugsy's Baby: The Secret Life pay for Mob Queen Virginia Hill, maintains that Hill did not give way by her own hand on the other hand was murdered in order delay keep her diary from excellence authorities.

To support her impression, Edmonds points to the fait accompli that three days before Hill's death, Joe Epstein received pure letter from her with ingenious key to a bank trunk which contained her diary.

Although Epstein knew the slaughter was from Hill, he easy no move to open authority box until the day make merry Hill's death, giving rise regain consciousness suspicions that he may own had prior knowledge of breather fate. Also curious, according sort out Edmonds, was the existence exclude a report written prior go Hill's autopsy indicating lateral bruises around her neck, and ethics fact that the "poison" wind up in Hill's body was conditions identified.

Finally, Edmonds points withdraw that the "friends" that attended Hill from Adonis' were common hit men who probably cheat out a preconceived assassination.

sources:

Edmonds, Scheming. Bugsy's Baby: The Secret The social order of Mob Queen Virginia Hill. NY: Birch Lane, 1993.

BarbaraMorgan , Melrose, Massachusetts