Angelo started his working life at the ripe old age of ten, mowing neighbors’ yards and washing their cars. He eventually moved on and worked as a short order cook for a Hobo Joe’s restaurant and as a pizza maker for Pizza Hut before finding his way to the United States Naval Academy. Among his more unusual adventures at the Academy was his selection to spend 2 months on a summer exchange cruise with the Mexican Naval Academy (La Heroica Escuela Naval Militar) making port visits at Islas Mujeres, Mexico, Cartegena, Colombia, Buenos Aires, Argentina, and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil before returning to Veracruz, Mexico. Once back at Annapolis, Angelo completed his senior year and graduated in the top ten percent of the Class of 1980.
Following graduation, Angelo attended a joint service school for intelligence officers and was assigned to VF-211, an F-14 squadron at Miramar Naval Air Station in San Diego. He did a Western Pacific-Indian Ocean cruise with VF-211 aboard USS Constellation (CV 64). His duties included supervising an intelligence staff of five personnel, tasking intelligence collection assets, reconnaissance mission planning, and evaluation of all carrier battle group reconnaissance photography. He was responsible for developing the intelligence standard operating procedures for the new tactical airborne reconnaissance pod system (TARPS). While deployed aboard USS Constellation, Angelo was designated as the intelligence center briefing coordinator for major carrier battle group exercises.
Angelo’s next assignment was at the Pentagon as a member of a newly created joint service intelligence team. There, he researched and analyzed the tactical military and political situation in Central America, provided daily briefings to Director, Defense Intelligence Agency, and periodic briefings to members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Congressional Staff. His duties further included identifying intelligence information deficiencies and tasking national collection assets as needed. Angelo also established a Pentagon/U.S. Embassy liaison position with the U.S. Embassy, El Salvador. He was awarded both the Defense Meritorious Service Medal and Joint Service Commendation Medal for his work.
Upon leaving the Navy, Angelo, his wife, and their first-born son, spent eighteen months in Anchorage, Alaska. While there, he was the Executive Director of the Alaska Libertarian Party and worked as a construction manager for a small custom home builder. Angelo and his family then moved to Maryland where he took a job as a Senior Writer/Editor at Martin Marietta’s Middle River plant. In this position, Angelo supervised editorial and graphics staff in the preparation of marketing presentations, videotapes, technical documents, brochures, responses to proposals, and tradeshow displays for the company. He also produced large scale, multimedia briefings for government contract reviews and supervised the production of presentation materials for Mr. Norm Augustine, then Chairman and CEO of Martin Marietta.
While at Martin Marietta, Angelo attended the University of Maryland School of Law (evening division), graduating in the top ten percent of his class in January 1992. Angelo, his wife and three children then moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico, in part for the free grandparent babysitting services, but also to take a job with the Modrall Sperling Law Firm, then the largest firm in the state. New Mexico has been home ever since.
Angelo was made a partner at Modrall Sperling and spent twenty years with them, primarily as a trial lawyer. His trial practice focused on civil litigation and representation of both large and small businesses and individuals on a wide range of diverse topics such as employment disputes, construction defects and liens, commercial and contract disputes, and trust and probate matters. In addition, he provided a complete range of legal services to a wide variety of small businesses and entrepreneurs including two independent film production companies. His work and advice included entity formation, business planning, preparation of financing documents (Private Placement Memorandum, Subscriber Agreements, etc.), contract negotiation and drafting, intellectual property matters, immigration, and general legal representation. While at Modrall Sperling, Angelo founded and was the head of the firm’s Film and Entertainment practice group.
Lured by the adventure of doing something completely new and having to drink from a fire hose, Angelo left the warm, comfortable embrace of his law firm to pursue an opportunity as vice president of operations for EvansWerks, LLC, a small invention and design company working on a portable digital film projector and later the Anthem One professional lighting system. Here, Angelo was responsible for numerous aspects of the company’s operations including, invention prototyping, purchasing, logistics, regulatory compliance, contract negotiations, and financial and tax matters. He also continued to practice law as a solo attorney.
Angelo retired from the law after thirty-two years and is a now a recovering attorney. Having spent his entire life with the written word, he is unwilling to give it up and decided to take the deep dive into being a full-time writer. Angelo now focuses on telling compelling stories that highlight and explore concepts like honor, integrity, sacrifice, and courage, as well as bringing attention to little know pieces of history, for example, have you ever heard of Milunka Savic? For those who don’t know, she is the most decorated female combatant in modern history.
Angelo also provides common sense commentary (at least he thinks it’s common sense) on issues of the day. He has a large tinfoil hat and explores all things conspiracy related. His life’s motto is “I have questions.” This may trace back to the second grade where he was inducted into the “We Never Guess, We Look it Up” Club sponsored by the Funk and Wagnall’s encyclopedia company.
Angelo was born near Cape Canaveral Florida where he had the privilege of watching from his own backyard every U.S. manned space shot from Freedom 7, the first Mercury program flight, through Apollo 17, the last U.S. landing on the moon.