Vito Spatafore

Grew up… in the hyper-masculine world of the mafia. He’s the nephew to renowned gangster Richie Aprile, who taught him everything he knows about the world of the mob.

Living… in Belleville, N.J. During the day, Vito lives his life as a solider for Richie Aprile’s crew. By night, Vito sometimes lives in a different scene. If his friends and family found out how he spends his time after hours, his life could be at stake.

Profession… “solider” in organized crime. Vito has been around long enough to be familiar with the rules of mob life. This is not merely a profession, it’s a lifestyle. Mobsters in North Jersey live and die by certain rules, respect “family values” (as they define them) and stand proudly as traditional men. Let’s just say there’s only one acceptable category of sexual orientation.

Interests… boxing, cooking, and leather. During the day, it’s difficult to tell Vito apart from any of his friends or co-workers. But the leather often comes out at night, when Vito visits gay bars far from home so nobody he knows will see him.

Relationship Status… married with children. Vito has learned to put up an image of himself as a typical family man. He loves and cares about his wife and kids, but recently he’s been having some strange urges, which he tries to brush off as side effects of prescription drugs. “It was the medication I was on,” he tells his boss Tony Soprano, “for my blood pressure.”

Challenge… confronting the lie that he’s living. Vito’s double life is getting stressful for him, but he doesn’t know how to be himself in front of his old friends and colleagues. As he once puts it, “Sometimes you tell a lie so long, you don’t know when to stop.”

Personality… not sure – even to himself. Vito has spent such a long time playing the role of the macho mobster that it’s difficult to see his true personality. At “work,” he’s a solid and loyal earner, and at home he’s a decent father and husband. But until he can be honest with himself and others about his sexuality, he’s a mystery even to himself.