Sonny Franzese's 4th of July Plans: Freedom and Fireworks

The 93-year-old mob veteran's continued freedom is thanks to the jury which finished its fourth day of deliberating on extortion and racketeering charges against Sonny and three pals without reaching a verdict.

What weekend plans were in store for the reputed underboss of the Colombo crime family, the mobster who once controlled most bars and nightclubs on Long Island, along with record companies and movie distributors?

"Shoot off a few fireworks," he answered with a grin.

The Voice has a marvelous tale in this week's issue about Franzese's alleged shakedown of a bar on Avenue B, of all places. Like all of our best material, it is kept well-hidden on the Web page since that eye-space is reserved for the low-IQ crowd and those lacking the necessary focus to read a full printed paragraph.