A related question to this threads topic might be: Have the Colombos always been the weakest?
From what I can tell, the Genovese family has always been #1, the Gambinos have always been #2 (though one could argue 1A at certain times), while the three smaller families have fluctuated around over the years.
Are they very connected to the mafia in Canada? Are the Genovese? I know that it was a Bonanno dominated area for a long time, but are they still top dog after the events of the past few years? Do you know if anyone in American LCN is connected to the 'Ndrangheta in Canada? Is any family outside of the five families connected to Canada or Italy at all?
It's primarily the Bonannos that have the links to Canada. Besides the NY families, other families such as New Jersey, Philadelphia, and a few others have had connections to Italy as well over the years.
Anyone know what his status his today?
Capo? Active?
Alan Longo was indicted as the official captain of that crew back in the early 2000's so I'm not sure what his status is now.
Personally, the main reason why I classify the Genoveses as being the most influential was that the other families would always use the Genoveses as their liaison with the Commission. Gambino may have been first among equals and maybe even Castellano and Gotti afterwards, but they were just individuals. For the most part, the Genoveses as a whole were looked at with more respect by the non-NY families.
But like you said, it's mainly just a matter of personal opinion.
That's what I keep getting at. You have to look at the family as a whole, not just whoever may be the boss at a certain point. The whole point about an organized crime family is it transcends just one guy, even the boss.
Ok. So maranzano was the last boss of bosses I agree with that. I see what you guys mean by that now. But you say what I say is opinion when everything you say about the genovese is opinion as well. Just because its in quotes doesn't mean it's fact. Most aficionado's would say during their primes the Gambino's were the most powerful. And how can you say that they've never supplanted them? That's your OPINION. You don't know how much money the Genovese's had.
First, you've already demonstrated you're hardly in a position to speak for any aficionados. Second, no, I never saw their bank accounts, but it seems the Genovese were considered wealthier than the Gambinos; even when the Gambinos were the larger family. You can also look at their respective rackets in both New York and elsewhere, their national influence, etc. over the years. It seems to me that you've just read the typical books about the Gambinos and not looked into things more deeply. I used to think the same thing about the Gambinos being #1 before I learned more.
Ill quote the book Takedown:Fall of the last mafia empire
Page 198
"you have to keep in mind that although the Genovese and gambino crime families were pretty much on par with each other in terms of overall power and clout in the city, within the city's private sanitation industry , the gambino faction ALWAYS had the loudest voice"
That's a good find but, by "loudest," does Cowan mean the most
well known or the most
influential. Because I won't argue the Gambinos have always been a louder family than the Genovese.
the argument for both the gambino and genovese families is both pretty strong. I forgot about allie shades, he certainly is a powerhouse in garbage for the genovese and certainly a worthy counterpart to jimmy brown failla.
I do disagree with some of the other posters statements in saying that the genovese family didnt have a good boss; chin gigante was a great boss when he was on the street. his institution of such a high level of secrecy still permeates that family today. chin gigante mad tons of money and was definitely successful in maneuvering his family
It's ironic (and telling) that they're saying this because no family has had a more consistent and bigger supply of capable leaders than the Genovese family. It's a primary reason why they've been able to maintain their top status for so many years.
