Speculation: Neil Dellacroce becomes Boss in '76

Let's say history goes the other way, and in late 1976, instead of picking Paul, a dying Carlo Gambino gives his long-standing Underboss, Neil Dellacroce, the nod to succeed him as Boss. Popular history states that most of the bread-and-butter soldiers of the Family, especially of the blue collar wing of the Family, expected (and hoped) that Neil would become Boss after Carlo. Many simply felt that it was natural since he was already Carlo's number two guy since '65. Others felt he deserved it more because he was a gangster as opposed to a racketeer.

The question is, how do you feel history proceeds if Neil Dellacroce becomes Boss of the Family in October 1976? At time of Carlo's death, Neil was in prison on a tax evasion bit, he'd get out around Thanksgiving. He had also done a couple of years earlier in the '70s for contempt.

Does all the Family accept Neil as Boss? Who is Acting Boss for the month long period until Neil gets out of jail in November?

Does the Family do as well financially under a Dellacroce administration as they did under Castellano?

Does he last as long? Longer? Shorter? Does he die in jail, in his bed, or on the streets?

Is it known what his relationships with the Bosses of the other 4 Families as well as Jersey were like? IIRC Paul was fairly well liked on the Commission before becoming Boss, so he was acceptable - what about Neil?

Does he make Gotti his Underboss?

The Family would of been worse IMO.! Yes we know Neil was well respected but he wasnt the smartest gangster. Plus he was constantly under indictment or surveillance. In 76 when Carlo was dying Neil had been in jail a few years. In 79 The Ravenite was under surveillance for months and in May 79 Neil was arrested again for murder but got off because the Bergen crew murdered his co-dependent Tony Plate. But let’s say Neil was boss during this time, presumably Gotti would of been his underboss much earlier in his tenure and even acting boss when Neil was in jail or got sick. Basically Hotti would of destroyed that Family earlier. Say what you want about Paul but he did the right thing staying away from the social clubs and he knew about the unions and white collar rackets.

I agree with everything JC posted. The blue collar wing of the Gambino family (and other families' traditional rackets) were sitting-duck targets for law enforcement, and would have tripped up Dellacroce sooner rather than later--just look at how much trouble Quack-Quack's drug dealing caused. Big Paul may have lacked Dellacroce's personal force and earned loyalty, but he was a smart businessman and had plenty of "legitimate" and semi-legit interests to keep the family going.

Exactly TB. In the movie about Gotti with Armand Assante, Castellano tells Gotti that the future of the Gambino family doesn't depend on a few airport hijackings after also telling him that he has arranged a number of joint ventures with the Colombos and Genoveses. Castellano understood the range of opportunities to earn money legitimately or illegitimately. Dellacroce and Gotti saw only the range of illegitimate opportunities.

It honestly sounds like Paul could've been an amazing CEO, a Lee Iaccoca type in a legit life. Whereas Neil was a gangster and no more.

They were completely different but both had flaws. I still think Carlo made the right call

A little known part of Gambino history is that Neil was apart of a faction led by Armand Rava that tried to go against Carlo when he first took over, it ends when Rava disappears or is killed I can
Not remeber which. They were close to Anastasia and the family went thru a mini war that people don't talk or know much about. There are some old articles from a NY newspaper that mentions incidents that happened during this time. Neil was so close to Rava he named his son Armand. He became capo of Rava's crew and Carlo kept him close from then on. I was suprised to learn this because everyone said Neil always went by the rules the old boss is the boss thing but it makes since when u consider how Carlo became boss. Gotti idolized Anastasia people say but took a page out of Don Carlos book on his route to becoming boss. The "rivalry" between the blue collar and white collar factions goes back a ways.

Carlo chose Paul over Neil because Carlo had a plan for where he wanted the Gambino family to go after his death.

Carlo believed that the future of Cosa Nostra lay in legitimate business and Paul was a guy that knew how to make a lot of money from legitimate business.

more like a sicilian before anyone else and kept it in the family with paul

Like I mentioned in my earlier post Neil was in prison I believe from 73-76 and during that time Carlo was starting to get sick and Paul had stepped up as acting boss I believe. Like another poster mentioned Carlo saw that white collar crime was the future of their family and saw paul as the best guy to handle that. Also at that time it was less dangerous and more profitable than things like hijacking ,loansharking, and drug dealing. Honestly I dont even know if Neil wanted the position. he was already constantly under surveillance or indictment as Underboss. Supposedly after Paul was made boss Neil told him that he would accept any position but Paul kept him on as Underboss to keep peace at least for the time being. I still believe Paul was the right choice of the two but also have to admit he made some stupid decision in the last few years of hi reign. from fooling around with the maid, to demanding 15% of profits rather than the usual 10%, and even back in 81 when he basically handed over Conneticut Capo Frank piccolo to be murdered.

He let the genovese family use there own shooters to kill that guy in Ct. I believe he made his bones and was inducted for it. Hes still alive name escapes me but is a huge earner worth millions and has been said to be retired for a long time but hes not that old 70ish

That was Gus Curcio... brother to Fat Frannie Curcio who I believe was a member of the Genoveses at the time... IMO Castellano screwed over Piccolo for his own profit interests and not for the greater good of the family... for this Castellano for all of his foresight about white collar rackets showed himself to be a self interest thief and not the long term thinker Gambino was

I say Neil would be accepted as boss. Paul or Joe Gallo could be acting boss before he gets out.
The family would still do well financially under Neil. Everything was pretty well established.
The Commission case might have played out a bit differently, but would have ultimately come to the same result. Law enforcement was closing in. Dellacroce was tied to the murder of Galante.
Gotti wasn’t made in 1976, but I can imagine Neil making him underboss eventually or at least his successor when he dies in 1985. So then Gotti takes over and things play out pretty much the same as in real life.

The big question would be what would have happened with Castellano?

Would Castellano of eventually went after Gotti in the same manner that Gotti went after Castellano? If so how and with who?

I doubt it. It's possible though. Let's say if Gotti was boss in 85' after Neil dies and Paul was a captain; Paul was close to Anthony Gaggi and it's possible a revolt against Gotti could have occured. Some of those white-collar crews would have have never accepted Gotti as Boss.

After the stolen car trial which anthony gaggi was his co defendants. Paul was gonna have gaggi killed for all the mistakes he made and shooting the cop he new it to. Sammy is on tape telling gotti how he explained this to gaggi. He fell in line. Demeo was dead in 83 his crew taken apart he was no threat to gottis huge crew in 1985.

Gaggi might of fell in line but he never met with Gotti. He was out on the streets for like 3-4 months and refused to meet one time with Gotti; even at the meeting when a majority of the captains came together and made Gotti boss. Gotti was upset but appearently never did anything about it. Yea; Gaggi was no threat but he was mutually respected by the majority of the family and stayed as a captain until he died.

gaggi in dec 85 is out on appeal from state prison for shooting the cop and is on trial in federal court for the stolen car ring. hes probaly on strict bail rules even house arrest. he end up dying in federal prison in 1988 so he must have been convicted in the stolen car trial. he probaly couldnt go to meetings and im sure no one in gotti camp wanted him coming to see him he was to hott. again when gotti had the capo meeting in january 86 gaggi probaly couldnt attend and he was a non factor at that point. his crew was abunch of old timers in brooklyn. all bookies except demeo and his guys how where far gone by 85 86

gaggi was a interesting character and grudgingly probaly had gottis respect cause all the work his crew put in the 70tys early 80tys but there run was over once gaggi shoot the cop

Was The Lamb universally respected by the other 4 bosses at that time in 1976?

Neil was respected there is no doubt about that. The problem I feel is that despite being pretty universally respected he was basically a thug. He didn't know much about white collar crimes and he was constantly under surveillance or under indictment. I mean he was in jail during the time Carlo was sick and about to die. he was also indicted n 79 but was able t escape that when the bergin crew killed his co defendant Anthony Plate. Plus he would of been convicted in the Commission trial ifhe didn't die on cancer. So Im sure that played a part in carlo's decision. I still think paul was the better option. I mean even Gravano has said him and huys like Frankie Decicco liked Paul until he started doing stupid shit with the maid, getting greedy,etc

when sammy starts doing his podcast or interviews someone has to ask him who was roy demeo's killer. theres been so much speculation but it comes down to either gaggi or testa an senter for gaggi. also wonder what the rest of the family thought of gaggi taking out his number 1 soldier. it took all his power away

Joey Testa and Anthony Senter briefly switched to the Lucchese family and got inducted before going to prison. What were the circumstances behind that again?

And is that the last notable example of a mobster switching families?

I know Albert Gallo switched to the Genovese family after the internecine warfare within the Colombos, but that was a decade or so before.

And I know Sammy Gravano was connected to the Colombos before getting inducted with the Gambino family, again a few years before Testa and Senter's draft, but I believe he was a much more peripheral figure to the Colombos than the twins were under Gaggi & De Meo.

I don't think Dellacroce gets enough "credit" for tacitly encouraging the insubordination of guys like Gotti and Ruggiero. I feel the writing was on the wall that once he passed away Gotti was going to lead an insurrection against Paul, and he did little to nip it in the bud. I don't get how he's portrayed as loyal to Castellano and the boss is the boss mantra.

I think it would've been wise of Castellano to undercut Gotti's growing power by taking out Dellacroce first. I know that probably wasn't feasible for a few reasons, but Dellacroce was hardly that integral to the Gambino's earning power as they tried to become more "legitimate".

I think there was one meeting that Gotti got mad about. He told someone "You tell that motherfucker to bring his ass up here and see me; Who the **** do he think he is. Gaggi never showed ... And nothing happened.

@JCrusher
Yea; Sammy and Frank DeCicco liked Paul at 1st. I think the maid thing really really through Sammy off.

If Neil wasn't Underboss in let's say 1976 when Carlo died. Who do you think would have been another option??

Gaggi? James Failla? Who were other heavy hitters around that time?

Jimmy brown was the acting underboss well neil was in jail on the tax stuff. I had it wrong i thought brown was acting boss. Big paul was. It in the merry ferrel stuff

i also kinda figured out why sammy talks so much shit in his book about jimmy brown. jimmy brown was well liked threw out all familys he brought frank deccico into the family. in 1992 93 jimmy was 1/3 in charge of the family he wanted to kill abunch of sammy guy. his brother inlaw, the capo who took over his crew louie and some other guy but john gotti from prison said no and gave them all a pass. jimmy brown wanted them alll dead so its safe to say sammy found out and calls him a pussy in his book and all other stuff. sammy didnt say anything about anyone in his book as bad as he talked about brown

You sure about that? He really hated Louis Di Bono. He threatened his life right in front of Paul Castellano during a sit-down IIRC.

your rite about dibono but he was dead when the book was released 97. sammy said something like jimmy brown was such a pussy if a black guy came into his club and said im the new boss brown would say yes. something like that and he takes digs at him threw out the book and in 97 jimmy brown is in prison for murdering his own cousin.

seen another thing sammy was trying to get a guy into jimmy browns garbage racket and brown went rite to gotti who told sammy stay away

Who said gaggi never met gotti as boss and would not come in?

Yup Paul was acting boss in 75 I believe. The first half of Paul’s reign went really well. There were even some law enforcement officials who though Neil was the boss which I’m sure made Paul happy because it took any heat off him. It was really a snowball effect of bad decision on his part AND other people’s part that made that end the way it did.

Gotti was amazed after his ascension that at least one captain�Anthony Gaggi, uncle of the carcase witness against Castellano�had not adapted to the new game. He learned this during a telephone call from a soldier reporting about a dispute involving a Brooklyn restaurant. Family members had just bought into it and the landlord wanted to check them out.

The soldier said Gaggi had told him to �bring� Gotti to a sitdown with the landlord and the new
partners.

�He�s under me!� Gotti shouted. �You tell him, [to] get his ass up here to see me!�

In the meantime, concerning the inquisitive landlord, Gotti told the soldier to tell Gaggi and the
others not to engage in any more �warning shit� until a sitdown. After all, people could be reasoned with.

�People ain�t stupid, they know what we are,� Gotti said. �So what are we gonna do? What, are we gonna worry about cops now?

Mob Star

@Bronx;

Also I think in the book ''Underboss''; It says that Gaggi was the only captain who was not present during the dinner meetings when Gotti was announcing that they were investigating Paul's murder and then when Frank DeCicco proposed Gotti as boss. Gaggi refused to meet Gotti at all; and he was getting annoyed and agitated by it. Gotti became boss in Jan 1986; and Gaggi got convicted and Jailed in April of 1986. He was out on the streets a few months with JG as Boss..

My point is; Why did the whole family fall in line behind Gotti; and then you got Gaggi who refused to bow down and kiss Gotti's shoes... The mere and simple fact that Gotti couldn't call Nino in to a meeting speaks volumes. Technically that made them enemies, but Gotti couldn't reach Nino to enforce rules of conduct befitting a Captain.

Bronx I was wrong; It's actually in the book Murder Machine. Gaggi never paid homage to Gotti as the new boss of the family; or even visited his Headquarters.

then the question is did gotti break him down to soldier after he was locked up in april 86? almost seems like something gotti wouldnt do. because the guy took abunch of time. actualy how much time did gaggi get in the federal case??

i wonder if gotti broke down any of pauls capo's when he took over. people forget gotti made john gambino a capo. he did have the connecticutt dibrizzi guy killed. he was a paul guy in 86. made everyone else fall inline. his mistake was bitching to his own crew about having to go into nyc every week to report to gotti, they sold him out. i'd like to think there was more to gotti ordering his murder then that

I always felt that Frankie Decicco let Gotti be the boss basically to take the hits from the feds. He obviously knew Gotti was too flashy. Gas pipe Casso did some thing similar by letting Amuso take the title of Boss. It would have been very interesting to see how long Gotti would have lasted if Decicco never got blown up

thanks ZAV.but i believe nino was taken down by paul. gaggi did meet gotti,at the club on 86th st. decicco and gaggi did not get along at all.if he did not come to see those two guys he would had been killed ..where does that convo come from on the phone if you know? i it from a tape ? or someone telling a story..thanks Z

@Pmac;

Never read about the DiBrizzi guy until this morning. He definitely screwed up by not going to meet with Gotti. Gotti called him 3 times to NYC and DiBrizzi flat out refused... That's pretty much a death sentence... He should have seen the writing on the wall. I also read DiBrizzi reason for not meeting Gotti because when Thomas Bilotti was Underboss; He gave DiBrizzi the decision to stay in Connecticut or go to NYC...

@JCrusher

Gotti wouldn't have lasted long I'd Frank DeCicco was still alive. He was respected by the majority of the family.

@Bronx

Im not sure if Nino was bumped down by Paul; I thought he stayed on as a captain in the Gotti reign.. I'm not sure though. Where did you read that Gaggi met with Gotti at a club on 86th Street?? That's interesting.