Lucchese was born Gaetano Lucchese on December 1, 1899, in Palermo, Sicily. He is reputed to be one of the most infamous bosses of New York City in the twentieth century. Lucchese’s family emigrated to the US when he was 11, residing in East Harlem.
His father supported the family by working as a concrete carrier. It didn’t take long for Lucchese to start getting involved with street gangs. His first group was known as the 107th street gang, led by the infamous Lucky Luciano.
His parents were unimpressed, pressuring him to find honest work and avoid getting involved in the city’s criminal underworld. He eventually found employment in a machine shop, where he suffered a terrible accident that caused him to lose his thumb and index finger on his right hand.
This prompted Lucchese to quit his job and return to a life of crime. He established a window-washing business- nothing more than an extortion ring.
Lucchese was detained in 1921 for car theft. Because of the injury to his right hand, one of the police officers gave him the nickname “Three Finger Brown.” After being found guilty, Lucchese was transferred to the Sing Sing Correctional Facility in New York. This was his last conviction.
In the 1920s, mob leader Joe the Boss Masseria was immediately interested in Lucchese and Luciano. It quickly became clear that Lucchese was not one to play around, brutalizing and murdering those who crossed the mafia. It is well known that Luciano declared Lucchese to be his absolute favorite hitman.
During the Castellammarese War between rival crime lords Giuseppe Masseria and Salvatore Maranzano, Lucchese and Luciano showed themselves to be skilled con artists. For complete control of New York, Masseria and Maranzano engaged in combat.
In this deadly power struggle, almost 100 mob members perished. Masseria was slain in a Coney Island restaurant on April 13, 1931. Salvatore Maranzano established a new network of crime families in New York City after the War, with himself as the head of each family.
Unfortunately, Maranzano was killed in his office on September 10, 1931. This murder had been planned by Lucchese and Luciano. He was the one who revealed to the shooters who the individual was who was Marazano. The system of organized crime was strengthened by Luciano.
Lucchese rose to become the crime family’s underboss under the leadership of Gaetano Gagliano. After working for Gagliano for 22 years as a devoted underboss, Lucchese became the helm of the criminal family in 1953.
Under his direction, the Lucchese syndicate grew its corporate interests to include trucking firms, trade groups, and clothing companies. It also made friends with celebrities like Dean Martin, Jimmy Durante, and Frank Sinatra. He was well-liked and respected by his soldiers, yet he could also use brutal force.
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At least 30 murders are said to have implicated Lucchese. Lucchese was brought to Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center in August 1965 with a brain tumor and a cardiac condition.
On July 13, 1967, he passed away at his Lido Beach, Long Island, home. Almost a thousand people, including politicians, judges, police officers, drug dealers, pimps, and hitmen, attended his burial.
