Tampa Has Lost One Of Its True Fortunes; Fortune Silvio "Tino" Bosco, 78
Hoodini
Published: Nov 26, 2006
TBO.com
http://www.tbo.com/news/metro/MGBFDS2YYUE.html
If it is people who give a city its character, then we were blessed to
have known Fortune Bosco. He died last week.
I kept running into Fortune in the oddest places - a softball game in
New York, a bocce ball court behind a bakery, the Krispy Kreme close
to midnight. Maybe that added color to his colorful story.
And what a tale his life was, although Fortune's early days are a
little hazy. He used to tell me stories, and like a good spaghetti
sauce, they were wonderful but never quite consistent.
He grew up in Italy and played professional soccer in Rome.
At some point he worked for Interpol, the international police agency
based in Paris. He said he helped provide security for the likes of
Queen Elizabeth II and President Eisenhower when they were in France.
For starters, it was 50 years ago this year that the ill-fated luxury
liner Andrea Doria collided with another ship and went down. Two years
earlier, the liner had brought Fortune to America. The day after she
sank, Fortune, who was by then working for the ship's company, went
out in a boat to interview survivors.
'The Most Beautiful Woman'
He was at it for days. One night, cold and tired, he stopped in at the
company canteen where "the most beautiful woman there ever was"
brought him some coffee.
She said of him, "His tie was hanging around his ear and his hair was
standing straight up."
Despite all that, a year later he married Marjorie Nettleton, the
woman in the canteen.
A few months later, Fortune had a bout with pneumonia and they decided
they needed the Florida climate.
Fortune, who had a doctorate in law and economics from the University
of Rome, enrolled at the University of Miami and went on to law school.
How the couple wound up in Tampa I'm not sure.
Fortune's World
I was a sports writer and was on Long Island at the girls' world
softball championships, which featured a team from Tampa. I sat in the
bleachers next to a guy whose granddaughter or niece was on the Tampa
team.
It was Fortune Bosco.
For the next seven innings, I heard stories about Mussolini, Italians
trying to escape the fascists, the philosophy of Fortune and why
America was so great. It was a long seven innings.
But we were fast friends. Back in Tampa, where he wrote a weekly
column in Italian for the trilingual newspaper La Gaceta, I could
count on several calls a week to talk about (or more likely listen to)
his thoughts on the politics of everything.
He was so many things.
He started an adopt-a-nun program to aid retired nuns.
There's a bocce ball court with his name on it in Ybor City.
Almost blind, he was on the Mayor's Alliance for People with Disabilities.
If it was after 9 p.m. and you wanted to find Fortune, your best bet
was to stop off at the Krispy Kreme on Kennedy Boulevard and look for
the chess game in the back.
Best of all, he was one of the good guys.
I will miss him greatly.
Steve Otto's column appears Sundays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
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http://legacy.com/TBO/Obituaries.asp?Page=Lifestory&PersonId=20074478
Fortune Bosco
BOSCO, Fortune Silvio "Tino," 78, of Tampa, died Thursday, November
23, 2006. Mr. Bosco was born in Lanciano, Italy December 18, 1927. He
earned a law degree from the University of Rome and then served in the
Italian National Police, ending his career as an Interpol agent. In
1954, he emigrated to the United States. He met his future wife,
Marjorie Nettleton, on July 25, 1956, when both assisted survivors of
the Andrea Doria and then Stockholm collision. The couple moved to
Florida in 1957. He earned a second law degree from the University of
Miami, School of Law in 1964. He was hired by the U.S. Justice
Department and transferred to Tampa, serving in the Office of Economic
Opportunity as a Civil Rights attorney. Mr. Bosco was an avid
Hurricanes fan and was rarely seen without his UM baseball cap. His
favorite pastimes included playing bocce ball, discussing politics
with his friends and writing La Pagina Italiana for La Gaceta. He was
a member of the Sons of Italy, Mona Lisa Lodge, the Italian Club of
Tampa as an honorary member of the Board of Directors and the Lion's
Club. The family wishes to thank Dr. Chatoor and his staff for their
loving care. In lieu of flowers contributions may be made to LifePath
Hospice, 3010 W. Azeele St., Tampa, FL 33609. Active pallbearers are;
Tyler Bosco, George Turner, Alexander Bosco, Al Belluccia, Arthur
James and Dr. Robert Metnick. Honorary pallbearers are; Edward
DeCambra, Henry Marhaeni, Bill McBride, William Poe, Sr., Joseph
Caltagirone and Giorgio Bosco. He is survived by Marjorie Bosco;
daughter, Abby and son-in-law, Arthur James; and grandchildren,
Michael, Hannah and Jackson; daughter Betsy and son-in-law, George
Turner; and grandson, Justin; son Lt. Colonel Tyler and
daughter-in-law, Laura Bosco; and grandchildren, Melanie, Alexander,
Emily and Gabriella. Catholic funeral services will be held at 10 a.m.
Tuesday, November 28, 2006 at Boza ' Roel Funeral Home, 4730 N.
Armenia Ave., Tampa, with the Rev. Msgr. Laurence Higgins officiating.
Entombment will follow in Myrtle Hill Mausoleum. The family will
receive friends Monday evening from 6-9 p.m., with recitation of the
Catholic Wake Rite at 7 p.m. and Sons of Italy, Mona Lisa Lodge Rites
at 7:30 p.m. at the funeral home.
--
Flat Mouth never met George W. Bush...
"Tell him I blame him for the children we have lost, for the sickness
we have suffered, and for the hunger we have endured. The fault rests
on his shoulders."
~ Aysh-ke-bah-ke-ko-zhay (Flat Mouth), Leech Lake Ojibwe speaking of
Territorial Governor Alexander Ramsey