Kiss of death (mafia)

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The kiss of death (Italian: Il bacio della morte) is the purported sign given by a mafioso boss or caporegime that signifies that a member of the crime family has been marked for death, usually as a result of some perceived betrayal. It is unclear how much is based on fact and how much on the imagination of authors, but it remains a cultural meme and appears in literature and films. For example, in the film The Valachi Papers, Vito Genovese (Lino Ventura) uses the kiss of death to inform Joe Valachi (Charles Bronson) that his betrayal of "the family" is known, and that he will be executed. The "kiss" has also been portrayed as a way to terrify someone into submitting to extortion or repaying debt.

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