The best American Mafia boss, in my opinion, was Frank Costello, "the chairman of the board," who took over from Charlie Luciano after the latter's jailing. He was probably the model for Vito Corleone, in that he had the gambling and the unions, was very politically powerful ("had all the judges in NY"), eschewed traffic in drugs and women, and had the vision to put his hand into gambling as far away as New Orleans, Nevada and Cuba. He was convicted only once, survived an assassination attempt, retired when it was time to do so, and died peacefully. Charlie Luciano deserves credit for arranging for the demise of the "moustache Petes" Masseria and Maranzano, and, instead of trying for the title of capo di tutti capi, setting up the Commission, which accomplished the same thing for him. He also had an eclectic view of talent, reaching out for non-Sicilian and non-Italian advisers and associates. But Luciano wasn't smart enough to keep away from high-profile crimes like narcotics and large-scale prostitution. These proved to be his demise. After only five years on top, he was given a 30-year sentence, then deported, then died in exile--not exactly a grand capstone to a great career. As for Capone: he wasn't Mafia; he wasn't even a Sicilian. There was a Mafia in Chicago at the time, called the Unione Siciliano, which was a kind of racketeering clearing house with political muscle. Capone payed fealty to its head, Mike Merlo, and when Merlo died, tried (not always successfully) to have one of his own, Sicilan guys as head of the Unione.