Did "Joltin'" Joe DiMaggio steal a secret stash of money after a prominent mobster turned up
dead? And did his son end up homeless? There's more to this "American hero" than you ever knew.
Joe DiMaggio was born on November 25, 1914, and was the son of Giuseppe and Rosalie DiMaggio,
two Italian immigrants who came to America in 1898. When Joe was still a baby,
the DiMaggios moved to San Francisco, where his father, Giuseppe, worked hard
as a fisherman. Giuseppe had hoped all his sons would follow the family's tradition of working
as fishermen, but his children had different aspirations: they wanted to play baseball.
Joe and his father clashed, as Joe wanted nothing to do with fishing, leading Giuseppe to call him,
quote, "good for nothing." The elder DiMaggio felt like professional baseball was a pipe
dream. But things changed when Joe's brother Vince signed with the San Francisco Seals,
a professional minor league baseball team. It was proof of concept,
and with encouragement from Vince, Joe would prove himself on the field and eventually
join the Seals as well. He ultimately outshone his brother, gaining national attention and a
contract offer from the New York Yankees. Joe DiMaggio was officially big league.
Despite his fame and acclaim, Joe DiMaggio was reportedly a quiet figure in both his personal
and professional lives. According to the biography "Joe DiMaggio:
The Hero's Life" by author Richard Ben Cramer, DiMaggio's taciturn nature was less
about humility and more about a worry that he would say something wrong and embarrass
himself. DiMaggio was a perfectionist on the field, and that same quality crept into his
personal life. He would rarely say a word around friends, family, or his teammates.
For example, in 1936, DiMaggio rode in a car for 3,000 miles with two teammates from San Francisco
to Florida for spring training and never said more than "I don't drive" when it was his turn.
And in 1951, he played almost the entire season beside rookie outfielder Mickey Mantle,
but didn't say a single word to him until Mantle was injured during the
World Series. Joltin' Joe's best way of talking was by winning for the Yankees,
making the fans roar in the stands while the press printed their own version of his life.
During World War II, the United States was under fear of an attack from enemy forces and went to
great lengths to protect its citizens. Some of those lengths went way too far,
including the Enemy Alien Control Act, which saw tens of thousands of people of Italian,
German, and Japanese descent arrested, held in internment camps, and even deported.
Among those designated "enemy aliens" was Joe DiMaggio's father Giuseppe. Though the
elder DiMaggio wasn't incarcerated, he was barred from visiting the family restaurant on
Fisherman's Wharf. The government also restricted his ability to travel, saying he couldn't go more
than five miles from home without permission. Eventually they even seized his fishing boat.
According to Smithsonian Magazine, General John DeWitt, leading officer in the Western
Defense Command, specifically targeted Giuseppe because of Joe DiMaggio's fame. DeWitt believed
there were "no exceptions" and felt he could make a point by arresting Giuseppe because
he didn't have citizenship papers. Eventually, though, DiMaggios' father was allowed to return
to his fishing dock, with the New York Times bringing his mistreatment into the public eye.
While Guiseppe DiMaggio was being harassed by the government,
Joe DiMaggio was serving his country. Like many major sports stars at the time,
DiMaggio entered the military during World War II, enlisting in February 1943.
DiMaggio served as a physical instructor in the Army's Special Services and played in Army
baseball games. According to the New York Post, Army documents indicated that DiMaggio had a,
quote, "defective attitude" toward military service, which isn't hard to believe when you
take into account how his father was mistreated. According to reports, DiMaggio felt he was being
exploited by the Army because they were using his status as a professional baseball player
for public relations, as his duty consisted mostly of playing exhibition baseball games.
"How do you like playing for the Army, Joe?"
"I don't mind it very much at all. As a matter of fact, I'm quite enjoying it."
Because of that, DiMaggio reportedly felt embarrassed about his service in the war,
and requested a combat assignment instead. The request was denied. Joltin' Joe was also going
through the pains of divorce from his wife, who had custody of his son, leading some in
the military to feel that he was concerned more with his personal problems than his military
obligations. He ultimately received a medical discharge in September 1945, a month after the end
of the war, for chronic ulcers. Even then, some officers felt he was faking it to get out of duty.
Whatever the case, DiMaggio finally returned to baseball in 1946 after missing three full seasons
in his prime. He promptly won the American League MVP and led the Yankees to a World Series title.
After playing with the New York Yankees for 13 seasons and winning them nine World Series titles,
DiMaggio retired from baseball in 1951 at the age of 37. DiMaggio had
been suffering from increasing pains in his heel and couldn't play his best. He said,
"And as long as the game is not fun any longer with me, I've played my last game of ball."
In 1955, DiMaggio was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. In retirement,
DiMaggio tried broadcasting baseball games and lived the life of an eligible
bachelor – until the moment he met Marilyn Monroe.
Joe DiMaggio fell in love with the famous actress and sex symbol Marilyn Monroe and spent 18 months
courting her. Monroe was initially reluctant to date DiMaggio, fearing he was the typical
arrogant athlete. However, on January 14, 1954, DiMaggio and Monroe married.
Publicly, the media presented them as the perfect power couple, yet behind closed doors,
it couldn't have been further from the truth. Once they were married,
their relationship began to experience a series of problems, as DiMaggio's
jealousy led to a number of fights, and he reportedly became physically abusive.
DiMaggio wanted Monroe to become more of a housewife at the same time her career was
taking off. He was also very outraged when seeing Monroe's famous skirt-blowing scene in "The Seven
Year Itch." Their marriage became a battlefield, punctuated by public shouting matches. After just
nine months, Monroe filed for divorce according to Life, she cited mental cruelty as the reason.
"What I can say as her attorney is that this is what we would say was a conflict of careers."
DiMaggio's high profile divorce from Mariyln Monore wasn't the only thing
that tarnished his squeaky clean image. According to biographer Richard Ben Cramer,
DiMaggio was financially able to walk away from his $100,000-a-year salary with the Yankees in
1951 because of his involvement with the Mafia. Mobster Frank Costello had set up
a so-called "trust fund" at the Bowery Bank for him. Whenever DiMaggio visited nightclubs
like The Stork Club or The Copacabana, $200 was deposited into the account. Costello
loved Joltin' Joe and felt he was helping his retirement out by giving him money.
This wasn't the only way DiMaggio got money from the mafia, though. DiMaggio's
involvement with the mob allegedly goes deeper and reaches into other known Mafia groups such
as the Gambinos and the Chicago Mafia. And Joltin' Joe was also involved with members
of the New Jersey mob, including the infamous Abner "Longy" Zwillman. According to Cramer,
After DiMaggio and Monroe divorced, she moved on, marrying playwright Arthur
Miller. Joe DiMaggio was crushed. He reportedly stopped drinking and sought out a therapist.
In 1961, after Monroe and Miller divorced, DiMaggio and Monroe rekindled their friendship,
and possibly more. According to reports, DiMaggio was dismayed at
how others had taken advantage of Monroe and planned to ask her to marry him again.
But he never got the chance.
On August 4, 1962, Monroe passed away. After her death, DiMaggio was devastated
and never married again. According to Biography, DiMaggio had roses delivered
to her crypt three times a week for 20 years, only stopping when the media learned about it.
During Joe DiMaggio's marriage to his first wife, actress Dorothy Arnold,
the baseball great had one son with her, Joe DiMaggio Jr. When asked about what it was like
being the son of Joe DiMaggio, Joe Jr. publicly proclaimed he had a good life growing up, saying:
But privately, there was a deep divide between the two. According to PBS,
despite engaging in a difficult custody battle over parental rights, DiMaggio Sr. seemed to
have little interest in raising his son. Joe Jr.'s ex-wife said of her former husband,
DiMaggio Jr. lived a hard life. According to The New York Times, he had a history of drug
abuse and had a few run-ins with the police. DiMaggio Jr. was also homeless for periods of
time and ended up working in a junkyard and living in a trailer during the last years of
his life. In August 1999, DiMaggio Jr., 57, passed away, mere months after his father.
At the age of 74, Joe DiMaggio was sitting at Candlestick Park when the 1989 San
Francisco earthquake hit. DiMaggio was next spotted seeking aid at a Red Cross shelter,
holding garbage bags in his hands. According to the Chicago Tribune, DiMaggio said,
Richard Cramer wrote in his book that the garbage bags DiMaggio was holding
were full of $600,000 in cash from memorabilia signings. DiMaggio was fortunate to not be hurt,
as 63 people perished and thousands were injured in the earthquake.
On March 8, 1999, DiMaggio passed away from complications of lung cancer at
the age of 84. While he was in the hospital, his son Joe Jr. was asked
why he hadn't rushed to his father's side. The younger DiMaggio responded,
The call never came, and the two never reconciled.
After his passing, the Yankees wore patches on their uniforms the whole season to commemorate
DiMaggio. Even President Bill Clinton issued a statement about DiMaggio's death, saying,
As author David Halberstam put it,
"He knew his value, he knew his worth, and the pride to be the best drove him."
His death wasn't without controversy, though. Richard Ben Cramer wrote in "The Hero's Life"
that DiMaggio was essentially held captive by lawyer Morris Engelberg for the last several
months of his life. Cramer wrote that Engelberg was stashing a hoard of DiMaggio memorabilia in
the hopes of selling it for a profit. Engleberg even allegedly had the legendary ball player's
1936 World Series ring pried from his finger moments after he passed away.
According to the Tampa Bay Times, Engelbeg flatly denied the allegations, saying,