Langella was born in 1938 to first generation immigrants from Campania, Italy. He grew up in Brooklyn and was a close associate of future mob boss Carmine Persico. It is believed that Langella secretly became a "made man" in the Colombo family during a time when the New York crime families were not accepting new members. Langella is the father of reputed Colombo soldier Vincent Langella. Crime writer Selwyn Raab described Langella as: