Russo, Vito Anthony (11 July 1946–7 Nov. 1990), film historian and gay/AIDS activist, was born in New York City, the older son of Manhattan natives Angelo (“Charles”) Russo and Angelina (“Annie”) Salerno Russo. Charles’s parents hailed from Caserta, Italy, while Annie’s parents also came to America from Italy, from Messina, Sicily. Charles worked primarily in Manhattan in construction. The Russos were Roman Catholic, although teenager Vito grew very skeptical of Catholicism as he embraced his homosexuality....
