The Commission before the Commission

Hey all, I've been reading, well still I'm, the First Family on Holiday (Excellent book!) and came across that sometime before 1909 the Commission created and 'that it consisted of no more than a handful of the most powerful bosses from around the country....A much larger general assembly, numbering as much as 150 delegates.'
Does this mean that there was no commission when Masseria and Maranzano were 'Boss of Bosses'? and Did Luciano base is idea of the Commission on this one?

The General Assembly you are referring to did not had the duties the Commission (created in 1931) had, This assembly was a forum to select the boss of bosses and delegate "mini commissions" to deal with serious problems that had arose.
As I have said before, the idea of a Commission replacing the boss of bosses system, as a ruling and governing body, was circulated during the Castellamarese war and presented to Maranzano. And it wasn´t Lucianos idea. However, Maranzano who was about to win the war and who had his eyes steadily focused on the boss of bosses position, rejected the idea.

You can find this in the Gentile work.

I guess the General Assembly did serve as a model for the Commission in 1931. But all of the power was centralized in New York, more so than before the Commission was created.

I asked this same quesion when i first joined rd, ill see if i can find it but hairy is spot on. I think the commission is basically salvatores system but without salvatore.

Thanks Hairy!

Don´t mention it.
I might add that the General Assembly did not hold any formal power, but the boss of bosses did. He also had the power to replace or condemn any of the members of the GA to his liking.

It said that the GA met every 5 years and you said it was a forum to select the boss of bosses so when they met every 5 years was it like an election?

I cant remember who were the first families of crime....the names..Mineo,Morello,Maranzano?????Was it Profaci?

There are no records or mentions of GA meeting every five years. When a boss of bosses was selected it was supposedly for life. I believe the GA met when there was a need to elect a new boss of bosses and when there was a need to address major problems that needed to be resolved. One example is the castellammarese war when a "mini commission" was created, consisting of Nick Gentile, NJ´s Vincenzo Troia, Chicago´s Toto Lo Verde and other "men of honor" in order to bring peace between Masseria and Maranzano. This "mini commission" (which should not be confused with the Commission created in 1931) acted as messengers between the warring factions and as mediators in the dispute.
The GA dissolved in 1931 when the "Big" Commission was created. There was no need for the GA anymore because all the other smaller Families were represented by one of the bosses at the Commission.

The Commission (the one created in 1931) held original scheduled meetings every five years. The five year rule was established so that the chairs on the Commission could be ratified for a five year term. But the Commission also met to discuss issues and resolve problems in between these five-year-term-scheduled meetings.
For example, the 1956 scheduled Commission meeting in upstate New York was followed up by a 1957 meeting in Livinston, NJ when a decision was made to name a successor to Anastasia. The scheduled Commission meeting in 1961, was follwed up by meetings in 1963 to condemn Magliocco and another one, also in 1963, to discuss the Bonanno issue.

The other was D'Aquila Toodoped. And great info Hairy. I probably got confused about the five year with the GA then the Commission.

Mineo actually took over D'aquilas family and Nicola schiro was boss before Maranzano.

Short, are you done with the book? Its a hell of a good read isnt it, we just need to be thankful.for Flynn, without him we would know as much about Morello as we do the rest of those early New York leaders.

Yeh I have. Probably the second or third best mob book wrote. Really well researched. Yeh and Petrosino we could give alot of credit for.

Masseria and Maranzano were Boss of all Bosses, No Commission was set up. Luciano got the idea of the Sicilian Mafia Commission but made new rules for it and which make's it more succesful than the Sicilian Commission today.

Wait the Sicilian Mafia Commission was invented after the Commission wasnt it? I though Luciano wanted Sicily to do a similiar thing?

You're right i don't know what he was talking about.

I probably doubt it, I've seen some Docs saying Luciano copied of the Sicilian Mafia but it wasnt big until the mid 1970s when Informant's started to show, Sicilian's are the best in my eyes.

Camarel, I dont see how you can believe Crime Library, They are reference's to newspapers in the past. You wouldnt believe a Boss but you would believe a Newsreporter, Half of it is fake.

Who says i believe it i posted it because it was saying the same stuff you were i don't know why you posted that here that was on a different thread. I'm pretty sure shorts right about the Sicilians developing their commission later but i'm not positive so i'll let people who know more on the subject to answer .

You believe documentaries over people who were supposedly involved like Tommasso Buscetta.

On a non first hand account according to Buscetta a meeting took place where Bonanno apparently suggested that the Sicilian Mafia form their own type of Commission, but who knows?