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Mugshot of John "Red" Hamilton, a Canadian associate of John Dillinger

A gangster is a criminal who is a member of a gang. Some gangs are considered to be part of organized crime. Gangsters are also called mobsters, a term derived from mob and the suffix -ster.^[1] Gangs provide a level of organization and resources that support much larger and more complex criminal transactions than an individual criminal could achieve. Gangsters have been active for many years in countries around the world. Some gangsters, perhaps most notably Al Capone, have become famous. Gangsters are the subject of many movies, particularly from the period between 1930 and 1960. The term "Gangster" is now used for members of street gangs.

Gangs[link]

Yakuza, or Japanese mafia are not allowed to show their tattoos in public except during the Sanja Matsuri festival.

In modern usage, the term "gang" is generally used for a criminal organization, and the term "gangster" invariably describes a criminal.^[2] Much has been written on the subject of gangs, although there is no clear consensus about what constitutes a gang or what situations lead to gang formation and evolution. There is agreement that the members of a gang have a sense of common identity and belonging, and this is typically reinforced through shared activities and through visual identifications such as special clothing, tattoos or rings.^[3] Some preconceptions may be false. For example, the common view that illegal drug distribution in the United States is largely controlled by gangs has been questioned.^[4]

A gang may be a relatively small group of people who cooperate in criminal acts, as with the Jesse James gang, which ended with the leader's death in 1882. But a gang may be a larger group with a formal organization that survives the death of its leader. The Chicago Outfit created by Al Capone outlasted its founders imprisonment and death, and survived into the 21st century. Large and well structured gangs such as the Mafia, Triads or even outlaw motorcycle gangs can undertake complex transactions that would be far beyond the capability of one individual, and can provide services such as dispute arbitration and contract enforcement that parallel those of a legitimate government.^[5]

The term "organized crime" is associated with gangs and gangsters, but is not synonymous. A small street gang that engages in sporadic low-level crime would not be seen as "organized". An organization that coordinates gangs in different countries involved in the international trade in drugs or prostitutes may not be considered a "gang".^[6]

Although gangs and gangsters have existed in many countries and at many times in the past, they have played more prominent roles during times of weakened social order or when governments have attempted to suppress access to goods or services for which there is a high demand.^{[citation needed]}

Regional variants[link]

Europe[link]

Sketch of the 1901 maxi trial of suspected mafiosi in Palermo. From the newspaper L'Ora, May 1901

The Sicilian Mafia, or Cosa Nostra is a criminal syndicate that emerged in the mid-nineteenth century in Sicily, Italy. It is a loose association of criminal groups that share a common organizational structure and code of conduct. The origins lie in the upheaval of Sicily's transition out of feudalism in 1812 and its later annexation by mainland Italy in 1860. Under feudalism, the nobility owned most of the land and enforced law and order through their private armies. After 1812, the feudal barons steadily sold off or rented their lands to private citizens. Primogeniture was abolished, land could no longer be seized to settle debts, and one fifth of the land was to become private property of the peasants.^[7]

Organized crime has existed in Russia since the days of Imperial Russia in the form of banditry and thievery. In the Soviet period Vory v Zakone emerged, a class of criminals that had to abide by certain rules in the prison system. One such rule was that cooperation with the authorities of any kind was forbidden. During World War II some prisoners made a deal with the government to join the armed forces in return for a reduced sentence, but upon their return to prison they were attacked and killed by inmates who remained loyal to the rules of the thieves.^[8] In 1988 the Soviet Union legalized private enterprise but did not provide regulations to ensure the security of market economy. Crude markets emerged, the most notorious being the Rizhsky market where prostitution rings were run next to the Rizhsky Railway Station in Moscow.^[9]

As the Soviet Union headed for collapse many former government workers turned to crime, while others moved overseas. Former KGB agents and veterans of the Afghan and First and Second Chechen Wars, now unemployed but with experience that could prove useful in crime, joined the increasing crime wave.^[9] At first, the Vory v Zakone played a key role in arbitrating the gang wars that erupted in the 1990s.^[10] By the mid-1990s it was believed that "Don" Semion Mogilevich had become the "boss of all bosses" of most Russian Mafia syndicates in the world, described by the British government as "one of the most dangerous men in the world".^[11] More recently, criminals with stronger ties to big business and the government have displaced the Vory from some of their traditional niches, although the Vory are still strong in gambling and the retail trade.^[10]

The Albanian Mafia is active in Albania, the United States, and the European Union (EU) countries, participating in a diverse range of criminal enterprises including drug and arms trafficking.^[12][13] The people of the mountainous country of Albania have always had strong traditions of famiily and clan loyalty, in some ways similar to that of southern Italy. Ethnic Albanian gangs have grown rapidly since 1992 during the prolonged period of instability in the Balkans after the collapse of Yugoslavia. This coincided with large scale migration to Europe, the United States and Canada. Although based in Albania, the gangs often handle international transactions such as trafficking in economic migrants, drugs and other contraband, and weapons.^[14] Other criminal organizations that emerged in the Balkans around this time are popularly called the Serbian Mafia, Bosnian Mafia, Bulgarian Mafia and so on.

Asia[link]

Du Yuesheng (1888-1951), a Chinese gangster and important Kuomintang supporter who spent much of his life in Shanghai

In China, Triads trace their roots to resistance or rebel groups opposed to Manchu rule during the Qing Dynasty, which were given the triangle as their emblem.^[15] The first record of a triad society, Heaven and Earth Gathering, dates to the Lin Shuangwen uprising on Taiwan from 1786 to 1787.^[16] The triads evolved into criminal societies. When the Chinese Communist Party came to power in 1949 in mainland China, law enforcement became stricter and tough governmental crackdown on criminal organizations forced the triads to migrate to Hong Kong, then a British colony, and other cities around the world. Triads today are highly organized, with departments responsible for functions such as accounting, recruiting, communications, training and welfare in addition to the operational arms. They engage in a variety of crimes including extortion, money laundering, smuggling, trafficking and prostitution..^[17]

Yakuza are members of traditional organized crime syndicates in Japan. They are notorious for their strict codes of conduct and very organized nature. As of 2009 they had an estimated 80,900 members.^[18] Most modern yakuza derive from two classifications which emerged in the mid-Edo Period: tekiya, those who primarily peddled illicit, stolen or shoddy goods; and bakuto, those who were involved in or participated in gambling.^[19]

United States and Canada[link]

As American society and culture developed, new immigrants were relocating to the United States. The first major gangs in 19th century New York City were the Irish gangs such as the Whyos and the Dead Rabbits.^[20] These were followed by the Italian Five Points Gang and later a Jewish gang known as the Eastman Gang.^[21][22] There were also "nativist" anti-immigration gangs such as the Bowery Boys. The American Mafia arose from offshoots of the Mafia that emerged in the United States during the late nineteenth century, following waves of emigration from Sicily. There were similar offshoots in Canada among Italian Canadians.^{[citation needed]}

In the later 1800s many Chinese emigrated to the United States, escaping from insecurity and economic hardship at home, at first working on the west coast and later moving east. The new immigrants formed Chinese Benevolent Associations. In some cases these evolved into Tongs, or criminal organizations primarily involved in gambling. Members of Triads who migrated to the United States often joined these tongs. With a new wave of migration in the 1960s, street gangs began to flourish in major cities. The tongs recruited these gangs to protect their extortion, gambling and narcotics operations.^[23]

The terms "gangster" and "mobster" are mostly used in the United States to refer to members of criminal organizations associated with Prohibition or with an American offshoot of the Italian Mafia (such as the Chicago Outfit, the Philadelphia Mafia, or the Five Families).^{[citation needed]} In 1920, the Eighteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution banned the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcohol for consumption. Many gangs sold alcohol illegally for tremendous profit, and used acute violence to stake turf and protect their interest. Often, police officers and politicians were paid off or extorted to ensure continued operation.^[24]

Latin America[link]

Members of Colonel Martinez's Search Bloc celebrate over Pablo Escobar's body on December 2, 1993

Most cocaine is grown and processed in South America, particularly in Colombia, Bolivia, Peru, and smuggled into the United States and Europe, the United States being the worlds largest consumer of cocaine.^[25] Colombia is the world's leading producer of cocaine, and also produces heroin that is mostly destined for the US market.^[26] The Medellín Cartel was an organized network of drug suppliers and smugglers originating in the city of Medellín, Colombia. The gang operated in Colombia, Bolivia, Peru, Central America, the United States, as well as Canada and Europe throughout the 1970s and 1980s. It was founded and run by Ochoa Vázquez brothers with Pablo Escobar. By 1993, the Colombian government, helped by the US, had successfully dismantled the cartel by imprisoning or hunting and gunning down its members.^[27]

Although Mexican drug cartels, or drug trafficking organizations, have existed for several decades, they have become more powerful since the demise of Colombia's Cali and Medellín cartels in the 1990s. Mexican drug cartels now dominate the wholesale illicit drug market in the United States.^[28] Sixty five percent of cocaine enters the United States through Mexico, and the vast majority of the rest enters through Florida. Cocaine shipments from South America transported through Mexico or Central America are generally moved over land or by air to staging sites in northern Mexico. The cocaine is then broken down into smaller loads for smuggling across the U.S.–Mexico border.^[29] Arrests of key gang leaders, particularly in the Tijuana and Gulf cartels, have led to increasing drug violence as gangs fight for control of the trafficking routes into the United States.^[30]

Cocaine traffickers from Colombia, and recently Mexico, have also established a labyrinth of smuggling routes throughout the Caribbean, the Bahama Island chain, and South Florida. They often hire traffickers from Mexico or the Dominican Republic to transport the drug. The traffickers use a variety of smuggling techniques to transfer their drug to U.S. markets. These include airdrops of 500–700 kg in the Bahama Islands or off the coast of Puerto Rico, mid-ocean boat-to-boat transfers of 500–2,000 kg, and the commercial shipment of tonnes of cocaine through the port of Miami. Another route of cocaine traffic goes through Chile, this route is primarily used for cocaine produced in Bolivia since the nearest seaports lie in northern Chile. The arid Bolivia-Chile border is easily crossed by 4x4 vehicles that then head to the seaports of Iquique and Antofagasta.^{[citation needed]}

Notorious gangsters[link]

Al Capone[link]

Mug shot of Al Capone. Although never convicted of racketeering, Capone was convicted of income tax evasion by the federal government.

Al Capone was one of the most influential gangsters during the prohibition period. Born in Williamsburg, Brooklyn in 1899 to immigrant parents, Capone was recruited by the Five Points Gang in the early 1920s. Capone’s childhood friend, Lucky Luciano, was also originally a member of the Five Points Gang. Capone would rise to control a major portion of illicit activity such as gambling, prostitution, and bootlegging in Chicago, Illinois during the early twentieth century.^[31]

Frank Costello[link]

American gangster Frank Costello, testifying before the Kefauver Committee, during an investigation of organized crime.

Frank Costello was another influential gangster. He was born in Italy but moved to America when he was four years old. He later changed his name from Francesco Castiglia to Frank Costello when he joined a gang at age 13. His name change led some people to mistakenly believe he was Irish. He worked with Charlie Luciano in bootlegging and gambling. He also had a lot of political power which enabled him to continue his business. He took charge when Luciano was arrested and expanded the gang's operations. He decided to step away from the gangster life and died peacefully in 1973.

Carlo Gambino[link]

Carlo Gambino was an influential gangster in America. From 1961 until he died in 1976, he was chairman of the American mafia. Gambino was born in Palermo, Sicily, but moved to the United States at the age of 21. Through his Castellano relatives, he joined the Masseria Family. While Lucky Luciano was the underboss in the Masseria Family, Gambino worked for him. After Luciano had Masseria killed, Luciano became the boss, and Gambino was sent to the Scalise Family. Later Scalise was stripped of his rank, and Vicenzu Mangano became boss until 1951, when Mangano disappeared. His body was never found.^[32]

The Kray twins[link]

The Kray twins, Reginald and Ronald Kray, were leading criminals in London, England in the 1950s and 1960s. They were involved in armed robberies, arson, protection rackets, violent assaults including torture and the murders of Jack "The Hat" McVitie and George Cornell. As West End nightclub owners, they mixed with prominent entertainers including Diana Dors, Frank Sinatra, Judy Garland and politicians. The Krays were highly feared within their social environment. In the 1960s they became celebrities in their own right, being photographed by David Bailey and interviewed on television. They were arrested in 1968 and both sentenced to life imprisonment.^[33]

Lucky Luciano[link]

Mugshot of Charles Luciano, Italian-American mobster, in 1936

Lucky Luciano (born Salvatore Lucania), a Sicilian gangster, is considered to be the father of modern organized crime and the mastermind of the massive postwar expansion of the international heroin trade. He was the first official boss of the modern Genovese crime family and is credited with organizing the American Mafia's ruling body.^[34]

In popular culture[link]

Gangs have long been the subject of movies. In fact, the first feature length movie ever produced was The Story of the Kelly Gang (1906), an Australian production that traced the life of the outlaw Ned Kelly (1855–1880).^[35] The United States has profoundly influenced the genre, but other cultures have contributed distinctive and often excellent gangster movies.

United States[link]

The classic gangster movie ranks with the Western as one of the most successful creations of the American movie industry. The "classic" form of gangster movie, rarely produced in recent years, tells of a gangster working his way up through his enterprise and daring, until his organization collapses while he is at the peak of his powers. Although the ending is presented as a moral outcome, it is usually seen as no more than an accidental failure. The gangster is typically articulate, although at times lonely and depressed, and his wordly wisdom and defiance of social norms has a strong appeal, particularly to adolescents.^[36]

Publicity still of Romanian-born Edward G. Robinson, who starred in several American gangster movies

The stereotypical image and myth of the American gangster is closely associated with organized crime during the Prohibition era of the 1920s and 1930s.^[37] 1931 and 1932 saw the genre produce three classics: Warner Bros.' Little Caesar and The Public Enemy, which made screen icons out of Edward G. Robinson and James Cagney, and Howard Hawks' Scarface starring Paul Muni, which offered a dark psychological analysis of a fictionalized Al Capone.^[38] These films chronicle the quick rise, and equally quick downfall, of three young, violent criminals, and represent the genre in its purest form before moral pressure would force it to change and evolve. Though the gangster in each film would face a violent downfall which was designed to remind the viewers of the consequences of crime, audiences were often able to identify with the charismatic anti-hero. Those suffering from the Depression were able to relate to the gangster character who worked hard to earn his place and success in the world, only to have it all taken away from him.^[39] More recently, gangsters have been depicted in American popular culture in films such as The Godfather, War, Hell Up in Harlem, and Goodfellas, and in television shows such as The Sopranos).^{[citation needed]}

Latin America[link]

Latin American gangster movies are known for their gritty realism. Soy un delincuente (English: I Am a Criminal) is a 1976 Venezuelan film by director Clemente de la Cerda. The film tells the story of Ramón Antonio Brizuela, a real-life individual, who since childhood has to deal with rampant violence and the drugs, sex and petty thievery of a Caracas slum. Starting with delinquency, Ramón moves on to serious gang activity and robberies. He grows into a tough, self-confident young man who is hardened to violence. His views change when his fiancée's brother is killed in a robbery. The film was a blockbuster hit in Venezuela.^[40]

City of God (Portuguese: Cidade de Deus) is a 2002 Brazilian crime drama film directed by Fernando Meirelles and co-directed by Kátia Lund, released in its home country in 2002 and worldwide in 2003. All the characters existed in reality, and the story is based on real events. It depicts the growth of organized crime in the Cidade de Deus suburb of Rio de Janeiro, between the end of the '60s and the beginning of the '80s, with the closure of the film depicting the war between the drug dealer Li'l Zé and criminal Knockout Ned.^[41] The film received four Academy Award nominations in 2004.^[42]

East Asia[link]

The first yakusa (gangster) film made in Japan was Bakuto (Gambler, 1964). The genre soon became popular, and by the 1970s the Japanese film industry was turning out a hundred mostly low-budget yakusa films each year. The films are descendents of the samurai epics, and are closer to Westerns than to Hollywood gangster movies. The hero is typically torn between compassion for the oppressed and his sense of duty to the gang. The plots are generally highly stylized, starting with the protagonist being released from prison and ending in a gory swordfight in which he dies an honorable death.^[43]

Although some Hong Kong gangster movies are simply vehicles for violent action, the mainstream movies in the genre deal with Triad societies portrayed as quasi-benign organizations.^[44] The movie gangster applies the Taoist principles of balance and honor to his conduct. The plots are often similar to those of Hollywood gangster movies, often ending with the fall of the subject of the movie at the hands of another gangster, but such a fall is far less important than a fall from honor.^[44] The first movie made by the acclaimed director Wong Kar-wai was a gangster movie, As Tears Go By. In it the protagonist finds himself torn between his desire for a woman and his loyalty to a fellow gangster.^[45] Infernal Affairs (2002) is a thriller about a police officer who infiltrates a triad and a triad member who infiltrates the police department. The film was remade by Martin Scorsese as The Departed, which received four academy awards.^[46]

Gangster films make up one of the most profitable segments of the South Korean film industry. Films made in the 1960s were often influenced by Japanese yakuza films, dealing with internal conflict between members of a gang or external conflict with other gangs. The gangsters' code of conduct and loyalty are important elements. Starting in the 1970s, strict censorship caused decline in the number and quality of gangster movies, and none were made in the 1980s.^[47] In the late 1980s and early 1990s there was a surge of imports of action movies from Hong Kong. The first of the new wave of important home grown gangster movies was Im Kwon-taek's General's Son (1990). Although this movie followed the earlier tradition, it was followed by a series of sophisticated gangster noirs set in contemporary urban locations, such as A Bittersweet Life (2005).^[48]

See also[link]

Gangs portal

References[link]

External links[link]

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Gaetano "Tommy" Lucchese (December 1, 1899 – July 13, 1967),^[1] also known as "Tom Brown," or "Three-Finger Brown,"^[1] was an American mobster who became the Boss of the Lucchese crime family in New York City. Lucchese's surname has been misspelled as "Luchese" or "Luckese"^[2] and is pronounced Lou-kay-zee.

Early life[link]

Gaetano Lucchese was born on December 1, 1899 in Palermo, Sicily^[1][3] The surname "Lucchese" suggest a family origin from the Northern Italian city of Lucca. Lucchese's parents were Guiseppe and Maria Lucchese. In early 1911, the Lucchese family immigrated to the United States,^[4] settling in Manhattan's Italian neighborhood of East Harlem.^[3][5] Lucchese's father Giuseppe worked hauling cement. Lucchese worked in a machine shop until 1915, when an industrial accident amputated his right thumb and forefinger.^[2][6][7]

Criminal career[link]

107th Street gang[link]

After his accident Lucchese spent more time with his friends. Lucchese along with Charlie "Lucky" Luciano, formed the 107th Street gang. Members of the gang stole wallets, burglarized stores, and engaged in other hustles. The 107th Street gang operated under the protection of Bronx-East Harlem family boss Gaetano "Tom" Reina. By the age of eighteen, Lucchese had started a window washing company in East Harlem; anyone refusing to buy window washing would have their windows broken.^[5][6]

In 1920, Lucchese was arrested in Riverhead, Long Island on auto theft charges. During his booking, a police officer compared of Lucchese's deformed hand with that of Mordecai "Three Finger" Brown, a popular Major League Baseball pitcher.^[8] The cop nicknamed Lucchese "Three Finger Brown", an alias that Lucchese always disliked.^[2] In January 1921, Lucchese was convicted ^[9] of auto theft, he was sentenced on March 27, 1922 to three years and nine months in prison.^[4] Lucchese served thirteen months at Sing Sing Correctional Facility before he was paroled.^[5] It would be Lucchese's first and only conviction.^[6][7]

Lucchese was released from prison in 1923, three years into prohibition. His old friends Charlie Luciano, Frank Costello, and Meyer Lansky, had become partners with Jewish gangster Arnold "the Brain" Rothstein selling bootleg alcohol. During the 1920s, Lucchese became a strong ally to Luciano's and became a top member of Gaetano Reina's crime family.^[6] In August 1927, Lucchese was arrested under the alias of "Thomas Arra", he was charged with receiving stolen goods.^[7][9] On July 18, 1928 Lucchese was arrested along with his brother-in-law Joseph Rosato for the murder of Louis Cerasulo, the charges were later dropped.^[2][7][9]

Castellammarese War[link]

In 1930, the Castellammarese War was being fought between two rival crime bosses in New York, Giuseppe "Joe the Boss" Masseria and Salvatore Maranzano. At this time, Lucchese and Gaetano Gagliano were both leaders in the Reina family, which was aligned with Masseria.^[10] However, Reina decided to secretly change his allegiance to Maranzano because Masseria was demanding a large share of Reina's ice distribution business. Gagliano then told Masseria about Reina's betrayal in hopes of becoming the new boss of the Reina gang. On February 26, 1930, Masseria gunman Vito Genovese shot and killed Reina outside his mistress apartment.^[10] Masseria then made his ally Joseph Pinzolo boss of the Reina gang, ignoring Gagliano.

Angry about being used, Gagliano and Lucchese formed a splinter group within the gang with Stefano Rondelli, Dominick Petrilli, and Joseph Valachi. Their group was aided by a general hatred of Pinzolo within the gang. On September 9, 1930, Pinzolo was lured to an Manhattan office leased by Lucchese. Pinzolo was then shot and killed by either Girolamo Santucci or Dominick Petrilli. Luckily for the conspirators, Masseria attributed the Pinzolo killing to Maranzano. Masseria then appointed Gagliano as the new gang boss.

At this time Charlie Luciano, one of Masseria's top lieutenants along with his allies, the Young Turks, secretly planned to end the Castellammarese war. Luciano began with secretly negotiating with Maranzano to end the Castellammarese war.^[6] Luciano persuaded Gagliano and Lucchese to secretly switch sides to Maranzano and they planned to destroy Masseria. On November 5, 1930, the Masseria-allied "Manfredi family" (later called the Gambino family) boss Alfred "Al Mineo" Manfredi and underboss Steve Ferrigno were murdered in the Bronx by Gagliano and Maranzano gunmen. At this point, Maranzano believed that Lucchese and Gagliano were now his men, but in actuality their loyalty was only to Luciano. Lucchese became one of Luciano's favored hitmen and was alleged to have participated in at least 30 murders.

On April 15, 1931, with the connivance of Luciano, a hit squad of Vito Genovese, Albert Anastasia, Joseph Adonis and Bugsy Siegel shot and killed Masseria at a Coney Island restaurant.^[10] With Masseria's death, the Castellammarese War was over and Maranzano was the victor.

Mob reorganization[link]

After Masseria's murder, Maranzano restructured the Sicilian and Italian gangs in the United States into a group of crime families modeled after the Mafia families of Sicily. The former Reina gang became one of the five crime families of New York City, with Gagliano as its boss and Lucchese as the underboss. ^[10]

In September 1931, Lucchese participated in Maranzano's murder. Soon after Masseria's death, Maranzano grew suspicious of Charlie Luciano's growing power and arranged his murder. However, Luciano discovered the plot and moved to kill Maranzano first. On September 10, 1931, Lucchese went to see Maranzano at his office to discuss a matter on behalf of his boss, Gaetano Gagliano. Lucchese's real purpose was there to point out Maranzano to a group of Jewish hitmen dressed as policemen and federal Internal Revenue Service (IRS) agents, who then killed him. After Maranzano's death, Luciano created a national Mafia Commission to rule the new Cosa Nostra families and adjudicate disputes. As family boss, Gagliano received a commission seat. However, despite its democratic trappings, Luciano held the real power in the Commission.

Underboss to Gagliano[link]

Tommy Lucchese was underboss for Gaetano Gagliano, who was one of the members of the Mafia commission. The New York City underworld was organized and peaceful because of Charles "Lucky" Luciano, but he was soon arrested in 1936 on compulsory prostitution charges and then deported in 1946. Gagliano would keep his family during a tough time, being out numbered in the Commission by the Bonanno family, Magaddino family, Profaci family and the Mangano family alliance. The Gagliano family during WWII was involved in black market sugar, gasoline rations, stamps, and meat. In 1946, Lucchese attended the mob Havana Conference in Cuba as Gagliano's representative.

On January 25, 1943, Lucchese became a naturalized United States citizen in Newark, New Jersey.^[1][4]

Boss of the family (1951−1967)[link]

In 1951, Gagliano died of natural causes. Lucchese, Gagliano's underboss for 22 years, took control of what was now the Lucchese crime family. Lucchese appointed mobsters Stafano LaSalle as underboss and Vincenzo Rao as consigliere. That same year, Lucchese formed an alliance with Luciano crime family underboss Vito Genovese and Anastasia crime family underboss Carlo Gambino with the long term goal of gaining control of the Commission.

Lucchese became one of the most well-respected Cosa Nostra bosses of the Post-War era. He maintained close relationships with New York City politicians, including Mayors William O'Dwyer and Vincent Impellitteri. Lucchese concentrated on the core Cosa Nostra values of making money, keeping a low public profile, and avoiding criminal prosecution. The Lucchese family kept control over Manhattan's Garment District and the related trucking industry, taking control of key union officials and trade associations.

Alliance with Gambino and Genovese[link]

On November 17, 1952, U.S. Attorney General James P. McGranery initiated denaturalization proceedings against Lucchese. In its filing, the government claimed that Lucchese did not reveal his entire arrest record when applying for citizenship in the 1930's.^[4]

In 1957, Lucchese and his allies decided to attack the bosses of the Luciano and Anastasia crime families to gain Commission control. On May 3, 1957, gunman Vincent Gigante slightly wounded Costello. by the assassination attempt, Costello soon retired, leaving Genovese as boss.^[11] On October 25, 1957, Profaci crime family gunman Joe Gallo and his crew murdered Anastasia in a hotel barbershop; Carlo Gambino became the new family boss.^[12]

In 1957, Genovese called a national mob meeting to legitimize his control of the Luciano family. The meeting was held at rural home of mobster Joseph "Joe the Barber" Barbara in Apalachin, New York. On November 14, 1957, the New York State Police raided the meeting and arrested 61 fleeing gangster. ^[13] Lucchese had not yet arrived in Apalachin and therefore avoided arrest. However, his consigliere Vincenzo Rao, Gambino, Genovese and other mob leaders were detained. Genovese's humiliation motivated the new alliance of Luciano, Costello, Lansky, Gambino and Lucchese to set up Genovese's later elimination. Two years later, with the help of the alliance, Genovese was arrested in Atlanta, Georgia on narcotics trafficking charges. He was sent to prison for 15 years. Genovese died in prison in 1969^[13] . With the alliance backing him, Gambino now controlled the Commission.

On April 8, 1958, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the 1952 denaturalization ruling against Lucchese on a legal technicality. However, the next day, U.S. Attorney General William P. Rogers started a new case against Lucchese.^[14]

Lucchese and Gambino[link]

In 1962, Carlo Gambino's oldest son, Thomas Gambino, married Tommy Lucchese's daughter Frances.^[15] Over 1,000 guests attended the wedding. Carlo Gambino presented Lucchese with a $30,000 gift. In return, Lucchese gave Gambino a part of his rackets at Idlewild Airport (now called John F. Kennedy Airport).^[16] Lucchese exercised control over airport management security, and all the airport unions. As a team, Lucchese and Gambino now controlled the airport, the Commission, and most organized crime in New York City.^[17][18][19]

War with Bonanno and Profaci[link]

In 1962 Lucchese and Gambino began to back the Gallo crew from the Profaci Family in the war against their boss Joe Profaci. Both Gambino and Lucchese saw the war as a way to take over rackets that were under control of the Profaci family, because the Profaci's were too involved in their war. On June 6, 1962 Boss Joe Profaci died of cancer and his underboss Joseph Magliocco became the new boss and kept fighting the war against the Gallo crew. Magliocco had support of most of the Profaci family and support from other family boss Joe Bonanno of the Bonanno Family.

The war finally came to an end in 1963 when Gallo crew capo Joe Gallo was arrested. Joe Magliocco and Joe Bonanno decided they needed revenge on Lucchese, Gambino, Magaddino for the Gallo war and the Bonanno war. They decided they needed to have them killed so Magliocco ordered capo Joe Colombo to kill all three Bosses (Tommy Lucchese, Carlo Gambino, and Stefano Magaddino). Joe Colombo went to the Mafia Commission instead and talked about the plot to murder them. Magliocco showed up to the Commission and was stripped of his Boss title and forced into retirement. Joe Colombo became the new boss of the Profaci Family, now the Colombo Family. Joe Bonanno decided to go into hiding and his last ally, Joe Magliocco, died of high blood pressure. Even Bonanno's ally from Tampa, Florida, Boss Santo Trafficante, was against him.

The Commission then stripped Joe Bonanno of his Boss title and put in capo, Gaspar DiGregorio, as the new boss. Upset by the Commissions decision Joe Bonanno started a war; it was later called the Banana war (1962–1967). The war continued for years and in October 1964 Joe Bonanno was kidnapped by Buffalo crime family members Peter and Antonino Magaddino. Buffalo boss Stefano Magaddino (who was also a cousin to Bonanno) asked him to retire and end the war. Joe Bonanno refused and continued the war and began to see victory when he suffered a heart attack and would finally retire. The Commission had won and put in another capo, Paul Sciacca, as the new boss of the Bonanno Family.

Death and burial[link]

On July 13, 1967, Tommy Lucchese died of a brain tumor at his home in the Lido Beach area of Long Island. The funeral service was held at the Catholic Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal Church in Ridgewood, Queens. Lucchese was buried at Calvary Cemetery in Queens, New York. Over 1,000 mourners, including politicians, judges, policemen, racketeers, drug pushers, pimps, and hitmen, attended the ceremony. Undercover policemen photographed the attendees.^[20]

Lucchese's first choice as a successor had been Antonio "Tony Ducks" Corallo, but Corallo was in prison when Lucchese died. Lucchese's second choice, Ettore Coco, was also in legal trouble and served a short time as boss. Another possible candidate was consigliere Vincenzo Rao, but he too was dealing with criminal charges. The Commission finally selected capo Carmine Tramunti as temporary acting boss until Corallo was released from prison.

Relatives/Personal life[link]

• Maria Lucchese - Tommy Lucchese's mother.
• Giuseppe Lucchese - Tommy Lucchese's father.

• Joseph "Joe Brown" Lucchese - the younger brother of Tommy Lucchese. Joseph worked at a horse track and was a capo in the Lucchese family. Joseph worked closely with Aniello "Neil" Migliore running Queens-based illegal gambling operations. Joseph died during the early 1970s.^{[21][22][23][24]}

• Robert Lucchese - the son of Tommy Lucchese. Robert attended the United States Military Academy at West Point and served as a Lieutenant in the US Air Force.^[4] Robert and Thomas Gambino controlled trucking firms in the Manhattan Garment District.^[25]

• Thomas F. Gambino - the son of Carlo Gambino and the husband of Tommy Lucchese's daughter Frances. Thomas Gambino was a capo in the Gambino family. Gambino and Robert Lucchese controlled many trucking firms in the Garment District.^[25][26]

• Joseph "Joe Palisades" Rosato - the husband of Lucchese's sister Rose.^[27] Rosato was involved in the Garment District rackets. In 1963, government witness Joseph Valachi identified Rosato as a Lucchese capo in public hearings.^[7][24]

In popular culture[link]

• In the 1981 television miniseries "The Gangster Chronicles" – Lucchese was portrayed by Jon Polito^[28]
• In the 1981 film Gangster Wars – Lucchese was portrayed by Jon Polito ^[29]

References[link]

Notes[link]

Sources[link]

Further reading[link]

• Davis, John H. Mafia Dynasty: The Rise and Fall of the Gambino Crime Family. New York: HarperCollins, 1993. ISBN 0-06-016357-7
• Kwitny, Jonathan. Vicious Circles: The Mafia in the Marketplace. New York: W.W. Norton, 1979. ISBN 0-393-01188-7
• Moldea, Dan E. The Hoffa Wars. New York: Charter Books, 1978. ISBN 0-441-34010-5
• Raab, Selwyn. Five Families: The Rise, Decline, and Resurgence of America's Most Powerful Mafia Empires. New York: St. Martin Press, 2005. ISBN 0-312-30094-8
• Tommy Lucchese, the quiet don in Malba by Ron Marzlock (November 23, 2011) Queens Chronicle
• A Death in the Family by Thom L. Jones. Real deal mafia.com

External links[link]

• Find a Grave: "Thomas 'Three Finger Brown' Luchese"

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Henry Hill, Jr.
FBI mugshot taken in 1980.
Born	(1943-06-11) June 11, 1943 (age 69) Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Residence	Basking Ridge, NJ
Nationality	American
Known for	Former Mobster
Spouse	Lisa Caserta Karen Friedman 1965-2002 (filed for divorce in 1990, finalized in 2002)
Children	3
Parents	Henry Hill, Sr. (Irish-American) Carmella Hill (Italian-American)

Henry Hill (born June 11, 1943)^[1] is a former American mobster. A Lucchese crime family associate, Hill became an FBI informant whose life story was documented in the book Wiseguy, written by crime reporter Nicholas Pileggi. The 1990 Martin Scorsese film, Goodfellas, was based on the book, with Hill played by Ray Liotta.