Anthony “Fat Tony” Seno was one of the most respected mobsters in the history of the Genovese crime family, rising through its historic 116th Street Crew and becoming one of the family’s biggest earners. He held positions in the family hierarchy during parts of the 1970s and 1980s, and some accounts claim he allegedly served as acting street boss for official boss Vincent Gigante during the 1980s. To confuse authorities, Gigante famously feigned insanity for years, wandering the streets of Greenwich Village in a bathrobe, with some accounts claiming he would even urinate openly on the sidewalk. The ruse became so well known that when the FBI came to arrest Gigante one day, they reportedly found him naked in the shower holding an umbrella.
Gigante’s act was widely known among his fellow mobsters, and many allegedly mocked the lengths he went to in order to mislead law enforcement. In an apparent nod to that performance, Seno once sent out a Christmas card in which he was pictured dressed in a bathrobe and a novelty hat. Many observers believe the card was Seno’s way of lightheartedly poking fun at Gigante’s famous insanity act.