Antonio Balsamo

"You don't have the balls for this business!"

- Tony Balsamo

Antonio "Tony Balls" Balsamo is a minor character in Mafia II.

Info
Tony is an ageing spy in the Falcone Family and has worked for them almost twenty years. Before Carlo Falcone took over the family, Tony was Tomaso Falcone's personal driver and bodyguard. He was badly injured when Falcone assassinated Tomaso with a car bomb in 1966. Since then, he has spent most of his time working the Falcone family's protection shops. His most recent assignment is to protect the family's accountant, Harvey "Beans" Epstein, and the secrets he holds in his Jewish hands.

Working with Joe
When Joe Clemenza left New York City for five months to live down south, Tony was hired to watch over Joe's Apartment. Upon Joe's return, Tony got him work with the Falcone family. The pair stole a shipment of military grade weapons from the Southport docks, and afterwards he introduced Joe to Eddie Scarpa. They later robbed Maxwell's supermarket and made off with a substantial amount of money.

Guarding Harvey
While Tony and Frankie the Mick were assigned to protect the family's accountant, Harvey Epstein, the three were kidnapped by the Marina Family. They were taken to the Hernandez's Slaughterhouse to be interrogated by Lucas Hernandez about Falcone's drug operation, which resulted in Frankie's death. Vito Corleone managed to rescue the pair, and then Tony and Vito fought off Lucas and his crew. Tony later killed Hernandez by torturing him with a cattle prod before putting him through a meat grinder.

Death
When the Red Dragon Triads declared war on the Vinci Family, thinking they were responsible for the death of Xi Fong and their men at The Red Dragon Restaurant, Tony was severely beaten by Vinci's men, who were looking for answers. His injuries were so severe that Marina doctor Pablo Picasso stated he'll likely never walk again. After a few days of that event, Balls was reported dead by Falcone men, due to the un-healable injuries he had.