Nicest Mobster

Ok we have a thread about the most psychotic mobsters so it got me thinking, was/is there any made men or associates who are not "horrible" people? Any you wouldn't mind a loved one living near?


thank-you for your time.

Well, if I have to pick....it would probably be that guy that Vinny described as the most pathetic....you know....the one in Omaha with one poker machine and a titty bar with one dancer.

I guess it would be cool if he lived near to my 4th cousin, or even my mother in law.

Tony Accardo comes to my mind first, and we could add Frank Costello to the list.

Carlo Gambino was said to have been exceptionally nice, even to strangers. I know it bothered a lot of the hoodlums in the family. Joe Piney and Joe Arcuri were also said to have been very friendly. Then of course Lansky and Costello.

And ofcourse the Gentle Don, Bruno

I think there are no nice gangsters in this world, but if I should choose somebody who at least seems nicer than the others, I would choose Harry Riccobene from the Philadelphia crime family. He seems a sort of Santa Claus or a gnome. On the photo on Wikipedia he doesn't look like that though, but on the others I found on internet and also in the documentaries about the Scarfo mob he seems just a nice old man. Somebody even said it was hard to put the word killer and Harry together, even when you knew who he was.

bobby baccala. nobady they al crayzi motherfuckas:)

Sam DeStefano

This is really a silly thread. These guys are gangsters. Maybe some of them have never taken another individual's life. Great. But those are generally the more intelligent guys who are in the life due to their ability to take advantage of others and destroy their finances. At the end of the day, if I had to choose one it would be Costello.

Does anyone know if Colombo was known to be particularly ruthless? He seems like a candidate.

The best I can come up with is Sammy Gravano on the merits of selling a drug that probably wasn't explicitly targeted towards the lower classes.

He was considered a tough guy and was known to be ruthless to his enemies, that I know. The Colombos were just loaded with killers. Maybe we should do a another thread "The Nicest Colombo".

Tommy Gambino was a nice guy

Yeah, he was a lot like his father. Looked like him too.

Actually many G men claim there are mobsters on opposite ends of the spectrum so it's not that silly.
Joe Pistone said Sonny Black was genuinley a nice guy and often went out of his way to help others with no expectation of reciprocation. Granted "nice guys" in the mafia are few and far between and there are likley far more psychopaths than "nice guys".

Accardo had men tortured with blow torches so I wouldn't call him nice.

Columbo was a stone cold killer, one of Profaci's favorite hit men.

I have to agree that gangsters aren't really nice guys. But as far as their reputation with outsiders, Costello's underboss Willie Moretti was considered approachable and friendly with strangers. During the Kefauver hearings, at the end his testimony he invited all the US Senators on the panel to come over to his home near the beach. I've also seen Longy Zwillman described as congenial and polite with outsiders.

Many of these guys definitely appear to be selfish bastards who don't seem to care about much. Very few really go out of their way to be nice to their fellow man, but they do exist. Keep in mind, some of these guys see themselves as Robin Hoods and even have this great urge to help those in need. As arrogant and ruthless as he was, John Gotti was truly a guy who helped a lot of poor families and people in need. Vincent Basciano is another good example of a guy who wanted to better his community. I know he was especially compassionate when it came to sick children. As much as they may have taken from the community, they also gave back a lot. Maybe they did it to justify their way of life. To sleep better. I don't know. I just don't buy into that pure evil nonsense. To me, you can be a hero and a cocksucker at the same time. Life isn't black and white. There's a lot of gray areas.

Good thinking RE: Tommy Gambino. He would NEVER have been in the mob had he not been born into it and his brains enabled him to be successful. He always seemed to me to be like an Italian Meyer Lansky.

I wouldn't go that far, but he was a sharp businessman definitely. The Italian Meyer Lansky was Carmine Lombardozzi.

Yes, of course. Not many people know this, but before he became an actor, Peter Falk was a made guy who answered directly to Tom DiBella. One of the nicest Colombos for sure.

John Gotti was truly a guy who helped a lot of poor families and people in need

Shame he didnt help Willie Boy Johnsons family when he was in the can!
Its strange how mobsters can be so generous to strangers/outsiders yet neglect those close to them.

You do know that Willie Boy Johnson had been ratting on Gotti and his crew for about 15 years? Talk about being a nice friend . Would you treat your friends like that? Would you sell you friends out for selfish reasons?

The main reason he started to rat was because he got very pissed that when he was in the can both Carmine Fatico and Gotti ignored him

Michael Franzese seems like a nice guy too, for mafia standards anyway.

carmen dinunzio in boston is truly a nice person. He is very generous and polite. Wiseguy or not one of the nicest people i have met

Tell that to Larry Champagne .

And Marat Balagula and Vladimir Reznikov. As I recall, the terms were 75% to the Columbos and 25% to the Russians.

as far as i know colombo was a hitman before becoming boss. he was the hitman that informed luchesse and gambino of there attempted planned hits

You ever hear what happened to the guys who burglarized Accardo's house?

I thought it was the Lucchese that the Russians were involved with?

Enough said.

Yeah, that's a good point. This guy is a fucking snake if you ask me. Born again or not, the only thing he cares about is making money.

Wild Bill Cutolo, he was on the board of a charity raising money for luekemia.

All the New York families, except the Bonannos, were involved with the Russians in the gas tax scam. The Luccheses were involved with Balagula and Reznikov. But the 75%/25% split was the deal Franzese and the Colombos made with their Russian partners.