Papavero Funeral Home

This was written by Mike Claffey, Robert Gearty, Patrice O'Shaughnessy, Helen Peterson, Fernanda Santos and Robert Ingrassia.) Mob boss John Gotti was laid to rest yesterday after a farewell procession of black stretch limousines and floral tributes symbolizing the life of a made man: a royal flush, a martini glass and racehorses. His admirers gathered by the hundreds and, undaunted by Gotti's record as a murderer, tossed red roses onto a Cadillac hearse that bore his remains. One man held a sign stating: "John Gotti Forever." A motorcade of about 75 limousines, including 19 flower cars, wound its way through Queens, past Gotti's home in Howard Beach and the crime den in Ozone Park where the man who would become America's No. 1 underworld figure made his bones.John Gotti dies of cancer at 61 in 2002 The limos carried Gotti's mother, widow, a son and two daughters, as well as leaders and foot soldiers in the Dapper Don's other family. Gotti, who died of cancer Monday in a federal prison hospital in Missouri, was a spectacle to the end. In addition to the crowds of well-wishers, the procession drew four news helicopters, undercover cops and a horde of reporters and photographers.Look back on the life of John GottiNo prayers spoken His last day in the limelight began at Papavero Funeral Home in Maspeth. Widow Victoria Gotti, wearing dark sunglasses and a black dress, arrived about 9 a.m. accompanied by the couple's daughters, Victoria and Angela, and youngest son, Peter.Pete Hamill: John Gotti's last ride Msgr. Joseph Pfeiffer of St. Helen's Catholic Church in Howard Beach - Gotti's home parish - presided over a short service before 200 people in the funeral home. No prayers were spoken; the Diocese of Brooklyn had forbidden the Gottis from holding a funeral Mass. "Everybody - his family and close friends - said their goodbyes in the manner which they felt from the heart," said Lewis Kasman, a family friend. It was over in less than 30 minutes. The women filed out ... (New York Daily News)