Napolitano's parents were immigrants from Naples, Italy. Napolitano was born with blond hair, but by his forties it had turned a gunmetal white-silver color. To hide the embarrassing color, at least to him, he dyed it black. Earning him the nickname "Sonny Black". His children would later inherit this feature from their father, but their golden blond hair turned naturally to black over time. He was a close friend of future Bonanno crime family boss Joseph Massino, who would later order his execution, and incarcerated boss Phillip Rastelli, who knew Napolitano before he went to prison. He was close to Carmine Napolitano (May 30, 1943 - February 15, 1999), a cousin and fellow Bonanno mobster.