The
Ralphette Culinary Society?
After that retired soft drink bottler, Ralph Capone who made his fortune in the
Prairie State and lived a peaceful retirement in the
Dairy State. 
Ralph Capone From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ralph "Bottles" Capone Sr. (January 12, 1894 - November 22, 1974) was a Chicago mobster and an older brother of
Al Capone. Ralph got the nickname "Bottles" from his involvement in the beverage industry.
Born
Raffaele James Capone, Ralph Capone was brought to Chicago by his brother Al and placed in charge of the
Chicago Outfit's bottling plants during
Prohibition. The Outfit was attempting to monopolize non-alcoholic beverages and soft drinks (specifically
ginger ale and
soda water, commonly used in
mixed drinks) during this period when the sale of alcohol was banned. Ralph made large profits for the Outfit and became the dominant
soft drink vendor other than
Coca-Cola during the
1933 World's Fair. In April 1930, Ralph was included in
Frank J. Loesch's "
public enemies" list.
Following Al's conviction for
tax evasion in 1931, Ralph remained with the Outfit. He hosted several high-level Outfit conferences from Al's residence in
Palm Island,
Florida. As the manager of Chicago's
Cotton Club, Ralph was reportedly involved in syndicate gambling and vice districts. In 1935, Ralph was convicted of tax evasion.
In many ways, Ralph was a front man for the Outfit. Authorities once described him as an "elder statesman" of the Outfit. In 1950, the
United Press described Ralph as
"…in his own right … one of the overlords of the national syndicate which controls gambling, vice, and other rackets". In actuality, Ralph held relatively little power in the Outfit and the
National Crime Syndicate. This finally became evident during his testimony before the
U.S. Senate Kefauver Committee in 1950. His nephew Alphonse Capone Jr. later changed his notorious name to Ralph but was called "Sonny" by his Capone relatives. The
Chicago Outfit which at the time was run by
Sam Giancana was taking care of Sonny financially, as they would the widows of Chicago Oufit members. He was trying to start a restaurant called Sonny's Grotto in
Miami Beach, Florida. It was agreed that Sonny would still receive his usual stipend, but the request for $24,000 was turned down by
Sam Giancana while it was agreed upon by
Murray Humphreys,
Gus Alex and Frank Ferraro. The restaurant would later go bankrupt. A month after Ralph's Senate testimony, his nephew,
Ralph Capone, Jr. committed suicide by swallowing cold tablets and vodka.
In the 1930's Ralph purchased a home and later a tavern and resort in
Mercer, Wisconsin. The tavern was named "The Rex Bar".
After his release from prison, he moved to Wisconsin and lived there until his death.
On November 22, 1974, Ralph Capone Sr. died of natural causes in
Hurley, Wisconsin. He was survived by his wife Madeleine M. Capone. He was cremated at Park Hill Cemetery in
Bloomington, Illinois. His widow Madeleine eventually remarried Serafino "Suds" Morichetti. "Suds" had been "Bottles" Capone's best friend and long-time business partner.