It's not even close, that proximity to New York (which is overrated at times) notwithstanding. Tony was actually the official sitting UB at one point. So, come on now.

You have to remember, Tony has LONGTIME ties to the Bronx-Westchester faction of the Gambinos (which granted, ain't what it used to be), and truth be told he also has friends in the other two dominant families in that area. He was actually partners in a club in Morris Park back in the '80s BEFORE he was made. That's remarkable for a Connecticut guy who was only in his 30's at the time.

Now Dean's a great earner but I think you guys are reading waaaaaay too much into that "titular head of the Gambinos" comment made by an overzealous prsecutor. Back in 1990 when Tony went away on his first federal bid they said the same thing about Davy Crockett (the original Baldy up there), and it turned out that he wasn't even made (just keep that in mind when you read these online charts about today's Connecticut crew ).

When Davy finally went into WITSEC and allocuted to everything, the feds were forced to admit that the guy didn't even have his button (although he sure didn't mind letting people think he did). And this was also a guy that they labeled the "head of the Southern Connecticut Gambinos." Well, he wasn't even straightened out.

Dean's a good earner. A standup guy. He's been around Tony and Nick since he was a kid for God's sake. But he ain't Tony Megale. When Tony comes home next summer, if he keeps his stripes (and I think he will), things will revert back to him. By the time Dean gets out of prison, Tony will be well into his 60's. Maybe then you can talk about a succession. Until then it's just Internet chatter, which leads to rumor, which people eventually take as fact.

I'm sorry for being longwinded here, but you never know who's reading this stuff. And I wouldn't want the feds thinking Dean was responsible for things up there that he isn't responsible for because of speculation on a message board. I guess my point is that Fairfield only needs one boss, and New York knows it .