THE BLACK HAND FORUM

I agree, you'd think he might have heard something and reported it if it happened. If he wasn't in attendance at those inductions, he might not know, though. We know guys gossip about who got made and when, but not sure how much street gossip there is about the nuts and bolts procedure for a given ceremony. They talked about those things on the Stefanelli tapes at least, so it does come up.

The main thing is I can't imagine why Diapoulas would lie about a detail that's totally insigificant to his own story. He was Gallo's close friend and Gallo was a made member -- it makes no difference in Diapoulas' story whether or not Gallo got his finger pricked and burned a card. Maybe Gallo lied to him or Diapoulas misunderstood something. Could be that they did do an occasional verbal induction for whatever reason.

The thing about a verbal ceremony is it's in none of the attendees' interests to talk about it to other members who didn't attend. The person presiding over the induction is breaking a rule and so is the sponsor. The member doesn't want to talk about it as someone might call their membership illegitimate. We saw what happened when it leaked out about the DeCavalcante inductions, they had to redo them all. There's strong incentive for everyone at a "nontraditional" induction to keep the details quiet. Gallo telling Diapoulas would be a non-risk given he was a non-member and trusted friend.

We could take this as a sign that when the Gallo faction started "making" their own associates in the early 1960s they probably just did it verbally.

Scarpa gave a full break down of the sponsorship and induction process for a typical member. Given the amount of detail he provided, I feel like he would have mentioned if they had started doing verbal only ceremonies.

i figured benny eggs got in the 50tys maybe not. i wonder if galante did have anuff clout to get the books open. it was probaly every boss but gambino

I don’t remember offhand if Scarpa gave details about his ceremony. I feel like he did describe the ceremony in general terms but I could be wrong.

Has any member from other families gone through verbal ceremonies? If so, I wonder if it was up to the captain/admin member inducting the memebers, and some just did verbal oaths. And the Bonannos stuck with it when the books opened while other families kept it.

Wouldn't surprise me if other families, not just the Bonannos and DeCavalcantes, did a verbal-only induction on occasion.

LCNBios covered a 1957 Colombo ceremony that was full-on traditional, so they were def doing the traditional ceremony up until the books closed, but it could be like the Bonannos who did both traditional and verbal-only inductions before the books closed in '57 with no real explanation why. A difference is the Bonannos would do verbal-only inductions exclusively after the books opened in 1976, while the Colombos only did traditional inductions post-1976 from what we know.

Did Scarpa ever break his ceremony down in any public files? He must have told the FBI those details at some point but aside from telling them he was made around 1951 I don't remember seeing anything. Would be interesting to know what his ceremony was like and who was there.

MightyDR wrote: ↑Fri Jul 02, 2021 5:24 pm The New York Times actually broke this story just a few weeks after it happened.
https://www.nytimes.com/1976/03/21/arch ... Position=5

Tutti Franzese's FBI file mentions a Genovese soldier being inducted and their name is redacted. Turns out it was John Russo. Looks like Benny Eggs was made in the first wave too.

Interesting, seems like Joey Gallo went through a verbal ceremony only.

Good find on that article. Interesting how such info was released to the public way back then.


Pogo

The New York Times actually broke this story just a few weeks after it happened.
https://www.nytimes.com/1976/03/21/arch ... Position=5

Tutti Franzese's FBI file mentions a Genovese soldier being inducted and their name is redacted. Turns out it was John Russo. Looks like Benny Eggs was made in the first wave too.

Wiseguy wrote: ↑Sun May 31, 2020 9:54 am Perhaps Gambino's idea was indeed for the mob, as a large criminal organization, to die out and some of the more well connected to become more or less legitimate.

I think this is close to the truth if not unmitigated fact. I don’t ascribe any notions of nobility to his aims, but I believe Gambino saw La Cosa Nostra as a way for “his people” to make inroads into American business and culture, not as a multi-generational crime empire. Assimilation was the ultimate goal.

PolackTony wrote: ↑Tue Jun 29, 2021 8:57 am What is known about the books in Philly, Buffalo, or NE during these extended periods that the books were closed in NYC?

It was only for NY and NJ. After Valachi flipped Philly had their books closed for a brief period but then they were opened again by the early/mid 1960s. NE and Buffalo might have had their closed for a while as well but if they were it was not for the full period like NY and NJ.


Pogo

I wish we knew more about what Chicago and Detroit were doing across these time periods. While the general consensus has been that Chicago was not subject to NYC closing the books, it’s still very interesting that we have CI intel that Northside capo Joey DiVarco stated that a making ceremony would be held in ‘76 with Accardo presiding, specifically stating that the books had been closed for a “long time”. We know that guys were made in the 60s in Chicago, of course, but it still stands out that DiVarco said this in ‘76. Suggests to me that Chicago was at least somewhat responsive to the Commission edicts on the books being opened in that year. Too much that we don’t know to make a firm statement on this question, but it’s something to think about.

What is known about the books in Philly, Buffalo, or NE during these extended periods that the books were closed in NYC?

I saw that transcript not too long ago and it seemed like they were guessing on the exact year those three got made, but that it was in the early 1930s. I think it's more likely 1931.

Wouldn't rule out the possibility of guys getting in after 1931, but guys like Boiardo, Catena, and Delmore had to wait until 1944 which is evidence there wasn't an earlier opportunity to make them, at least in NJ.

B. wrote: ↑Tue Jun 02, 2020 4:46 pm

- Precedent. We know the families closed the books between 1931 and 1944, then between 1957 and 1976. I can't think of any sources who were "shocked" by these decisions, which suggests the trend goes back further and that "closing the books" for extended periods was not uncommon in the overall history of the mafia. The more we study the mafia, we know that it mostly stays the same and rarely revolutionizes itself. Like we talked about in the other thread, the Commission wasn't even as revolutionary as we once thought. Given the NYC books were closed for significant periods in the 1930s-40s, then in the 1950s-1970s, it gives some credence to Valachi's idea that the books had been closed for an extended period earlier... even if he didn't get the details right.

We also have evidence, I think it was the DeCarlo tapes, of guys getting made between 1931 and 1944. So were the books really closed during that timeframe?
If I remember correctly he says Funzi Tieri, Lorenzo Brescio and Peter DeFeo were all made by Luciano in 1933.

Commission functions outlined in the "Commission case":


Promoting and carrying out joint ventures between and among LCN families to obtain money through illegal activities

Resolving actual and potential disputes among LCN families regarding the operation, conduct and control of illegal activities including interference with interstate commerce through extortionate extensions of credit and the collection of debts by extortionate means, commonly referred to as "loansharking," infiltration and control of labor unions and labor organizations, illegal gambling, money laundering, fraud and narcotics trafficking

Sharing information regarding government witnesses and potential or perceived government witnesses

Taking steps to preserve order in, between and among the LCN families, including authorizing acts of murder

Approving or disapproving the initiation of new members or soldiers in LCN families

Controlling relations between LCN and members of the "Sicilian Mafia," an enterprise distinct from LCN in the United States

Establishing certain rules governing the families, officers and members of LCN

Keeping persons inside and outside LCN in fear of LCN by identifying LCN with threats, violence and murder

Extending formal recognition to newly-elected bosses of LCN families, and, from time to time, resolving leadership disputes within LCN families

In an article about Vito Genovese's early days in Informer Magazine, it says Carmine Franzese asked Ferdinand Boccia to attend a meeting with Mike Miranda.

He was also on the visitor's list of Antonio Paretti, "a leading member of a Neapolitan Camorra-type organization based in Coney Island, Brooklyn, and bossed by Pellegrino Morano", while Paretti was locked up. Genovese was on the list too.