Also, are you sure Lombardo really wasn't the official boss anymore after 1981? He was around for other 6 years.
No I´m not sure. But according to Cafaro (if I´m not mistaken), Lombardo fully retired in 1981.
Benny Squint ran to Florida when he retired and didn't look back. You can take that to the bank. I've heard that in his last years he was reluctant to even "put in a good word" for any of his old cronies when they needed it. He was old, tired and he wanted to stay retired. God knows he earned it.
Chin was the official boss as of 1981. But in one recorded conversation later on, Fat Tony talked about how, if Chin and Lombardo didn't like the way he was doing the job, they could have it back. That seems to suggest Lombardo still had some say or whatever, despite being out of the picture for the most part.
