killing dons

in a mob movie i once saw it said,
"sicilian rule: if you kill a don, you gonna ever be a don"

is that true? has no one ever killed a boss and became one in the future?

I'm not sure. John Gotti had Paul Castellano killed, not so sure about the rule though.

Like most Mafia "rules," there's no such "rule" about killing a Don. Supposedly, a guy who wants to kill a Don needs the Commission's approval. As a practical matter, he shoots first, mends fences later. Gotti never asked the Commission's approval to kill Castellano. But after the shooting, he was seen shmoozing Dons and capos from other families, who were relieved to see Castellano dead. Albert Anastasia didn't ask anyone's permission to make his boss, Vincent Magano, disappear. Vito Genovese didn't ask anyone's permission to have Anastasia killed, though he did call the famous Apalachin meeting in part to anoint Carlo Gambino as Anastasia's predecessor.

yeah that is true.. but i meant like first hand killing the don, not ordering other people to do it.

The first time I heard about such a rule was when it was said in the movie Mobsters with Christian Slater. It sounded ridiculous and I just don't believe it was ever considered let alone a rule.

yeah that is true.. but i meant like first hand killing the don, not ordering other people to do it. [/b][/quote]Albert Anastasia killed Joe Masseria, and he became a boss.
Vinnie Gigante failed to kill Costello, and he became a boss.

Why was Tommy DeSimone killed and not Henry Hill or Jimmy Conway? I know I probably need to read the book but... Also when did Jimmy Conway die? Was it last year? What is Karen Hill doing these days?

Jimmy Conway died in prison in 96

There are plenty of examples of bosses that were killed,Mangano,Castellano,Lucky Luciano killed two bosses,and still became one,so i think it's a bullshit rule.It all depends on how heavyweight you are,all the killers who ended up as boss,weren't exactly pushovers...

Yes but Don Capili means killed a don first hand. But that rule is also BS. For example: Anastasia became a boss and he killed a don personally (Joe Masseria).

Karen Hill and Henry Hill get divorced after 25 years of marriage, thats all I know about her.

THere is more than one reason why Tommy was killed, and not Henry and Jimmy.
One reason was because Tommy wasn't only killed for the Batts-murder, he also killed a John Gotti associate named Foxie. But the most important reason was that Henry Hill and especially Jimmy Burke were very good earners for the mob.

As Juventus said, little is known about Karen Hill following her divorce from Henry. Their son is now a lawyer, and their daughter an actress and film producer. The two wrote a book about their childhood experiences.

Jimmy (the Gent) Burke died in prison in 1996 of lung cancer.

It's a little difficult to sort out the real-life Tommy DeSimone from the movie Tommy. The real-life DeSimone, as Juventus posted, was whacked over some dispute inside the Gambino family. He may not have done all, or even most, of the things depicted for the movie Tommy.

Luciano Leggio of the corleonesi faction of the Sicillian LCN killed his way to the top, including killing his boss, Navarra, who was trying to kill Leggio at the same time. He went on to kill may of the bosses of the Palermo families and members of the cupola, similar to the commission in the American LCN. And unike in America, he was not afraid to kill police and judicial officials.

That "rule" is a bullshit. Anyone could kill a Don and become one someday.

Yeah,if you're tough enough,and backed up by the right people,you're probably gonna get away with it...