Susan Bruno, mob widow

Susan Bruno, the widow of slain Philadelphia mob boss Angelo Bruno, died Tuesday at home after a long illness.

Mrs. Bruno, who was believed to be in her 90s, was living with her daughter-in-law, Zaira Bruno, in South Philadelphia at the time of her death.

Radio personality Jerry Blavat, a longtime friend of the family, described Susan Bruno as a gentle, unassuming woman who loved to cook and who took great pride in her family.

"She and my mother were great friends," Blavat said yesterday. "They came from the same town, Chieti, in Abruzzo, [Italy]. She was like a mother to me. . . . Just a great lady."

Blavat said he remembered the Brunos running a grocery store at Chadwick and Moore Streets in South Philadelphia when he was a child.

He described them as "two normal people from the neighborhood."

He said Sue Bruno "never reacted" to anything negative said about her husband, who was identified by local, state and federal law enforcement investigators as the boss of the Philadelphia mob.

Those same authorities said Angelo Bruno often listed his real estate and business holdings - including property in Philadelphia and Florida and a onetime ownership of a vending company - in his wife's name.

"To her, whatever his life, he was home every day at 5 o'clock for dinner," said Blavat, who sometimes drove Angelo Bruno around Philadelphia.

Blavat also recalled Mrs. Bruno's stoicism and inner strength in the aftermath of her husband's murder.

Angelo Bruno was gunned down March 21, 1980, as he sat in a car outside their rowhouse in the 900 block of Snyder Avenue. Blavat said Mrs. Bruno asked him to help keep the media away from the viewing and Funeral Mass that followed.

"She said, 'Please, don't let them turn this into a circus,' " he said.

The Brunos were married 48 years.

"She and my mother used to have the same saying," he said. " 'Forte e gentile' . . . strong and kind."

That's the way Mrs. Bruno lived her life, Blavat said.

In addition to her daughter-in-law, Mrs. Bruno is survived by a daughter, Jeanne, of Philadelphia; six grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren. Her son, Michael A. Bruno, died in 2000.

A viewing will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. tomorrow at the Pennsylvania Burial Co., 1327 S. Broad St. A Funeral Mass will be said at 10 a.m. Friday at St. Monica Roman Catholic Church, 17th and Ritner Streets. Burial will be in Holy Cross Cemetery, Yeadon.