I guess that I was looking for a 'general' answer that could be positive or negative, but either way, influential. And I thank you for providing both.

I stand by my original statement that I consider Meyer Lansky to be the most influential gangster of the 20th century. This was a man who, as you pointed out above, counseled many Mafia Dons. He was a man who "always made money for his partners," and his influence reached out to both the underworld and the political world.

He would be the one to convince those around him and involved with him that they not only could make money from the illegitimate enterprises they were involved in, but that they could take that money that was made illegitimately and parlay it into legitimate businesses. He basically educated those within the underworld who were really nothing more than uneducated street thugs.

He was a man who amazingly brokered a deal with the U.S. Government which allowed his friend and partner, Charlie Lucky, to be released from prison so that he could once again live freely and run things from within Italy.

It was Meyer Lansky who was able to convice other mafiosi that investing in a 'desert stopover for G.I.s' would make them money for years and years to come.

His influence reached out to world leaders of other nations.


Capone did have an influence in certain mob circles, but his influence was somewhat limited and lasted maybe for a decade or two.

On the other hand, Meyer Lansky's influence within the mob and also within political cirlcles, spanned over several decades. It was not limited to only a select few, but it was an influence that reached out to many different mob circles across the country and perhaps even around the world.




Don Cardi