Originally posted by Willie Cicci:
Each Mafia family has a "core" group of about 100-200 "Made" guys, who are absolutely pure Sicilian. They are also called wise guys or good fellows.
The core of Made men is outnumbered by a large number of associates. Associates (or "connected guys") do not have to be Sicilian, and can't become Buttons, Capos, etc. Mafia families are made up of mainly connected guys, with only a tiny number of Made guys.
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There is no requirement that made guys in American Mafia families have to be 100% Sicilian. Some Dons (Frank Costello and Vito Genovese, to name two) weren't Sicilian. John Gotti was of Neapolitan extraction. So was Joe Valachi. The requirement is that a made guy has to be Italian on both sides of his family.
It's true that most families have a larger number of unmade associates than made guys.
