The Genovese Crime Family

The Genovese Crime Family's first boss was Giuseppe "Joe the Boss" Masseria. He became the boss of bosses after the murder of Salvatore D'Aquila. He ruled until 1931. He was succeeded by one of the most famous mobsters in history, Charlie "Lucky" Luciano. He got the nickname Lucky because he was assaulted by a rival gang and was left for dead, but he survived and gained even more power. Luciano was in power until he was forced to go to Sicily in 1936 because of criminal charges against him in New York City.

Luciano was succeeded by Frank Costello. Costello was a close friend of Luciano's and kept the power in the Genovese Crime Family that Luciano had. He remained in power until he was shot in the head by Vincent "Chin" Gigante who was on orders from Vito Genovese.

The next boss of the Genovese Crime Family was its namesake, Vito Genovese. He was in charge for four years, until 1959. The family was then ruled by a three man "ruling council". This consisted of Tommy Eboli, Jerry Catena, and Mike Miranda. They were in power until 1972. Frank "Funzi" Tieri took over then. Funzi was the boss for nine years. He died in 1981. Phillip Lombardo became the boss in 1981. He was replaced only a few weeks after he took over. Anthony "Fat Tony" Salerno became the family's boss from 1981 to 1987. He was jailed in 1987 on racketeering charges, and he was replaced by the current boss, Vincent "Chin" Gigante.

Gigante was convicted in the summer of a series of racketeering charges. His sentencing date is in late November. The acting boss of the family, Liborio "Barney" Bellomo, entered a guilty plea to charges of extortion for the role of The Genovese Crime Family in the San Gennaro festival.

The street boss of The Genovese Crime Family during Gigante's incarceration is Dominick "Quiet Dom" Cirillo. He has been compared to Gigante in that he is one of the experienced men in the family. He rarely conducts business over the telephone. He is very cautious about his meeting places. Many people expect the family to continue their prosperous ways under Cirillo.