But....he definitely had a group of his own. Initially this would have been the Bug and Meyer mob of the twenties, part of which later morphed into what would be called Murder Inc. But Lanksy also had his own personal gambling casinos, horsetracks and nightclubs in Florida, Kentucky and upstate NY. Then of course all the other business and interests which you mention. He was in partnerships, to be sure. But he was more than just an investor.
Murder Inc. was formed by Lepke Buchalter. Lansky may have used their hitters from time to time, but their biggest user (and occasional supplier of shooters) was Albert Anastasia. Go here:
http://www.gangsterbb.net/threads/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=367602&page=1&fpart=3There were differences between Jewish OC and the Italian versions, the most relevant here being that post WW2 we just don't see new young Jewish influx into OC. So Lansky's group gradually shrunk and/or went legit.
True. Lansky, Siegel, Dalitz, Zwillman, Landsburgh, etc., went on to build Vegas. Money washed away their sins, except Lansky's. The government continued to have an, uh, "erection" for him.
As Jack Dragna said "Meyer's got a Jewish family built along the same lines as our thing. But his family's all over the country. He's got guys like Lou Rhody and Dalitz, Doc Stacher, Gus Greenbaum,, sharp ******** guys, good businessmen, and they know better than to try to ******** with us."
Depends how you define "family." They were his partner in various enterprises (like Vegas hotels, Bahamas casinos, racetracks, etc.). But they weren't part of a permanent mob that took orders from Lansky, though they may have deferred to him as a senior partner in their mutual enterprises.
