Travolta grew up in New Jersey, like Roselli and Sinatra, where everybody listened to Roselli. Travolta’s been passionate about this singer for a long time…
Evanier’s biography, titled Making the Wiseguys Weep: the Jimmy Roselli Story, was published in 1998 and Travolta had wanted to make a film about him ever since.
Travolta, 63, the Oscar-nominated star of Saturday Night Fever and Pulp Fiction, is in line to play the lead.
Evanier said Roselli and Sinatra grew up five houses apart in Hoboken: “Sinatra was 10 years older and actually auditioned Roselli, who was a shoeshine boy.