Loading AI tools
American politician From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Frank Mazzei (November 22, 1912 – September 27, 1977) is a former Democratic member of the Pennsylvania State Senate.[5] One of his big accomplishments during his political career was creation of the Pennsylvania Lottery. In 1975 he was arrested for taking kickbacks and was jailed until 1977.[6]
Frank Mazzei | |
|---|---|
Mazzei in 1977 | |
| Member of the Pennsylvania Senate from the 43rd district | |
| In office November 29, 1967[1] – June 2, 1975[2] | |
| Preceded by | John Devlin |
| Succeeded by | James Romanelli |
| Constituency | Parts of Allegheny County |
| Personal details | |
| Born | November 22, 1912 Greensburg, Pennsylvania[3] |
| Died | September 27, 1977 (aged 64) Magee-Womens Hospital |
| Resting place | Queen of Heaven Cemetery Peters Township[4] |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Grace[4] |
| Children | Dominic[4] |
| Residence | Library, Pennsylvania[4] |
He began his career as a ward captain in the 17th ward in the South Side in Pittsburgh and later worked as a clerk and paymaster for the "Allegheny County Workhouse."[4] He served as an alternate delegate to the Democratic National Convention in 1956 and 1964.[3] He was a member of the Knights of Columbus.[3]
He was elected to represent the 43rd senatorial district in the Pennsylvania State Senate in a special election in 1967.[1] He was known as a "dapper dresser" and for his monogrammed shirts.[4] He was powerful politician who rarely needed to campaign.[4] His legislative career is best known for being the main force behind the creation of the Pennsylvania Lottery.[4]
He was convicted on federal extortion charges for taking $20,000 in kickbacks on state office in the South Side space leased to BMI Corporation.[4] He was acquitted of perjury charges in that same trial,[4] but was sentenced to 1 to 5 years in prison on others.[4] He was unanimously expelled from the Pennsylvania State Senate on June 2, 1975, making him the first person expelled from that chamber.[2][7] He entered federal prison in December 1975.[4]
He was paroled from a federal prison facility in Missouri in Spring 1977 because he was severely stricken with cancer.[4] At the time of his death on September 27, 1977, he was awaiting a separate federal trial, with 69 co-defendants, in connection to a bail bond scheme.[4]
Seamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.
Every time you click a link to Wikipedia, Wiktionary or Wikiquote in your browser's search results, it will show the modern Wikiwand interface.
Wikiwand extension is a five stars, simple, with minimum permission required to keep your browsing private, safe and transparent.
