'Godfather' of city gets TV spotlight
Vincent Isoldi isn't a household name in the Steel City — or anywhere else, for that matter.
At least, not yet.
But that isn't stopping the A&E cable television network from billing Isoldi, 48, as the “Godfather of Pittsburgh” who built an empire of nightclubs and restaurants and dabbles in other activities to support his family.
The show, which will air on the network this fall in eight one-hour episodes, is scheduled to begin shooting in a couple of weeks. It will focus on Isoldi's family, including his wife, Carla, and his businesses, including Club Erotica in McKees Rocks. A pilot episode has been filmed.
Isoldi declined comment, citing an agreement with producers of the television show. A publicist for the show also declined comment.
For a man dubbed the “godfather” of a city of 300,000 residents, Isoldi is primarily known for his popular gentleman's club. Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald said he doesn't know him. Neither does Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto, who held his 49th birthday bash in October at now-defunct Taverna 19, which was housed in a Strip District building Isoldi owns.
“I have no clue why he picked that” name for the show, Isoldi's brother, Angelo Isoldi, told the Tribune-Review on Friday. “But I think the show will be interesting.”
Records indicate Isoldi is more of a businessman than a made man.
His criminal record is spotless, save for a March 2011 summary conviction. He was delinquent on several thousand dollars in taxes to different entities, including $4,000 to West Jefferson Hills School District in 2003, $2,500 to Allegheny County in 2008 and $7,000 to Equitable Gas in 2009, but paid up.
Besides Club Erotica, Isoldi owns several buildings in the Strip District and a few in between. He operated Isoldi's Restaurant in the Strip and Vincenzo's Hair Care in Northway Mall, public records show. Both are closed.
“He's been nothing but a gentleman in his business dealings,” said McKees Rocks police Chief Robert Cifrulak. “When I suggest changes for security or safety reasons, he's been very accommodating. The reality is he owns a strip club. His may not be a popular business, but he's a good businessman.”
Isoldi, an immigrant who arrived from Italy when he was 7, grew up in Mt. Washington. He lives in a $1.8 million mansion along the ritzy Club at Nevillewood golf course in Collier and a $435,000 townhouse in Somerset County near the Seven Springs Mountain Resort. He owns a condo in Collier and recently sold a modest waterfront home in Naples, Fla., according to public records.
Isoldi incorporated a company called Stiffy's Inc., with another brother, Franco, as its treasurer, in 1994. Stiffy's operates Club Erotica and other businesses along Island Avenue in McKees Rocks, where Isoldi owns at least four other buildings he acquired between 2001 and 2004. He incorporated another company, V.I. Productions, in 1999. The treasurer for V.I. Productions is Jeffrey Fedele, a brother-in-law.
Businesses located in buildings Isoldi owns have made headlines.
Shateecha Roach, a 27-year-old mother of two, was gunned down at Fever nightclub on New Year's Day 2012 and a University of Pittsburgh basketball player got in a fight outside Pure nightclub in 2007.
Adam Brandolph is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. He can be reached at 412-391-0927.
