Who owns Satin Dolls? How 'The Sopranos' strip club where Marko Guberovic was killed is linked to real-life mafia
BERGEN, NEW JERSEY: The Satin Dolls strip club made popular by 'The Sopranos' is once again in the spotlight after a New Jersey man was violently battered to death in an assault incident, hit by a vehicle and then dragged hundreds of feet according to the police. Marko Guberovic died at 3:40 am on Saturday, May 25, after engaging in a brawl with five men outside the club which was depicted as Bada Bing in the hit HBO series.
The jiggle joint has been embroiled in controversy for more than a decade over its ownership. The place was owned by Anthony Cardinalle, a convicted racketeer with alleged connections to the Genovese crime family. In 2017, Satin Dolls was accused of solicitation of prostitution, lewd activity involving audience participation, and failure to account for "large amounts of cash moving in and out of businesses." The New Jersey Attorney General Christopher S Porrino said, "Illegal activity was glorified at the ‘Bada Bing’ in the fictional world of Tony Soprano, but it has no place in modern-day New Jersey. It’s time to shut it down.”
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Who owns Satin Dolls strip club where Marko Guberovic was killed?
Anthony Cardinalle pleaded guilty in 2013 in a racketeering conspiracy linked to the Genovese crime family. In 1995, he admitted to evading taxes by not reporting cash income from clubs. Back in 2011, a consent agreement required that the liquor licences for Satin Dolls and its Seacausus subsidiary AJ's Gentleman's Club be sold and transferred by 2015 but extensions were issued several times. In December 2017, the clubs were ordered shut and State authorities contended Cardinalle was still running the businesses even though he is a convicted racketeer and not allowed to own a liquor licence.
In 2018, Satin Dolls' liquor licence was taken over by Satin Entertainment, LLC, owned by Florida man Joseph Pallonetti but it was unclear if the bar remained a strip club. However, signs outside referred to the place as a "gentleman's club". Vincent Martin, a Lodi councilman, partnered with Pallonetti for ownership of AJ's Gentleman's club.
The transfer stipulated that Anthony, his wife Luceen and daughter Loren or any entities they hold have no direct or indirect business connection with both locations. But the couple were allowed to continue receiving rent payments for the businesses. The club was shut due to Covid-19 restrictions on March 16, 2020 but reopened in July 2020 but only for outdoor dining after Gov. Phil Murphy allowed for the reopening of outdoor dining at restaurants with proper social distancing.
A GoFundMe page has been set up for Marko Guberovic
An investigation found that Guberovic was in a fight with five men at the club and was violently battered in the exchange. He was left "incapacitated" in the left lane of Route 17 South, and the five men did nothing to remove him from the road, authorities said. He was then struck by a car which killed him. All five men have been arrested and charged with aggravated manslaughter and endangering an injured victim.
A GoFundMe page has been set up to pay for Guberovic's funeral expenses. The organizers wrote, "Marko went out of his way for anyone he could, and this is our chance to do it for him and his family. Please keep them in your prayers. His mother, father and sister; but specially his niece, Tessa, who was the absolute light of his life. Our deepest condolences to his family. We hope that this gesture can comfort you during these difficult times and that it reflects how loved he was by everyone." The organizers of this fundraiser, the Footlocker family have managed to raise $18,891 when this article was last updated. You can donate to the cause here.