Tommy Lucchese

Lore & Background

Gaetano Lucchese emigrated to the United States in early 1911 with his family, settling in Manhattan's East Harlem. After an industrial accident in 1915 amputated his right thumb and forefinger, he spent more time with the 107th Street gang, which operated under the protection of Bronx–East Harlem family boss Gaetano Reina. By the early 1920s, Lucchese had become a strong ally of Charlie "Lucky" Luciano and a top member of Reina's crime family. His first arrest was in 1920 for grand larceny after stealing a car; during booking, a police officer compared his deformed hand to that of pitcher Mordecai "Three Finger" Brown, giving him the alias he always disliked. Convicted in January 1921, he was sentenced on March 27, 1922 to three years and nine months in prison, serving thirteen months at Sing Sing before parole—his only conviction. During the Castellammarese War, Lucchese alerted Luciano that Salvatore Maranzano planned to kill him. On September 10, 1931, after Lucchese identified Maranzano with a movement of his head, hitmen posing as IRS agents murdered Maranzano in his office. Afterward, Luciano created The Commission, and Tommy Gagliano headed one of the five families, with Lucchese as his underboss.

Reader's Guide

Tommy Lucchese's significance lies in his long tenure as a Mafia leader and his role in shaping organized crime in New York City. As underboss to Tommy Gagliano from 1932 onward, he was the family's public face, attending the 1946 Havana Conference as Gagliano's representative. He formed an alliance with Louis Buchalter, controlling many locals of the International Ladies Garment Workers Union, and the family dominated unions in trucking, construction, and food industries. Lucchese made millions through knockdown loans to cash-strapped garment manufacturers and had ownership interests in more than a dozen garment shops in New York and Pennsylvania. After Gagliano's death in 1951, Lucchese became boss, renaming the family the Lucchese crime family and appointing Stefano LaSalle as underboss and Vincenzo Rao as consigliere. That year, he formed an alliance with Vito Genovese and Carlo Gambino to gain control of the Commission. His political connections helped him become a naturalized citizen in 1943 and obtain a Certificate of Good Conduct. The government sought to revoke his citizenship in 1952, but the petition was dismissed on a technicality, upheld by the Supreme Court in 1958. Lucchese was only arrested six times, never serving a lengthy prison sentence.

Did You Know?

• Lucchese's nickname 'Tommy Three-Finger Brown' came from a police officer comparing his deformed hand to that of Major League Baseball pitcher Mordecai 'Three Finger' Brown.
• He was only convicted once in his life, serving thirteen months at Sing Sing for auto theft.
• Lucchese identified Salvatore Maranzano for hitmen by moving his head, leading to Maranzano's murder on September 10, 1931.
• His daughter Frances married Tommy Gambino, son of Carlo Gambino, forming a strong bond between the Lucchese and Gambino crime families.
• Lucchese never served a lengthy prison sentence despite being arrested six times between 1920 and 1935.

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