on the other hand he did lose a lot of cash gambling. He also had to borrow $200k from Hesh near the end of the series. I can’t recall why he needed that money.
He took the loan to cover his gambling debts.
My impression is that MichaelEmouse is correct and it’s more like a franchise.
If you’re a mid-level mobster, it’s not like you’re employed by anyone who gives you a paycheck (for the most part). Your “family” has the right to commit certain types of crimes in certain areas, and within that area you can go out and set up a racket (as long as it’s not something that someone else in your “family” is already doing). As part of your membership you have to kick back a certain percentage to the guys higher up. But if you seize on a very good scam and you’re capable about setting it up and running it, then you can do very well, and better than other people who are nominally higher up than you in the food chain.
You’re not going to do better than the “big boss”, and in fact if you’re too successful the big boss might just decide that he deserves an even bigger cut. But you can do well enough.
It’s also one way you get promoted. Ralph Ciffareto was widely disliked by his peers, but he was also an excellent “earner” - he kicked a lot of money upstairs. Ultimately he forces Tony’s hand into being promoted to capo simply because he is too valuable economically to a variety of interests to keep shunting aside.
The reason Tony doesn’t live in a house similar to the other characters, is because he was willing to move out of the old neighborhood. Have you ever been in the homes in any Little Italy east of the Mississippi River? Families that moved there in the 80’s are ‘the new people who live in the Casella place, across from the deli’. “Where Bullitt and Chico used shoot craps? Yea, Mr. Casella is buried next to my grandparents plot at St. Christopher’s.”
In the biggest small town on the Great Lakes, I have relatives who can tell you every family that lived in every home back to before the war (well before they were born) in Little Italy. After fifty years of being married and living ‘out west’, I was in a deli and mentioned my parents were married in the church around the corner and someone with the sir name of the deli was in the wedding and it was distinctive to us because they were married by a neighborhood guy who was just ordained as a priest performing his first wedding. Guy came out from the back and told me:”No one uses that nickname any longer—it has become offensive to the gentleman in question. But you get a pass this time, you aren’t from here, you didn’t know.” Then he asked me if my mother’s first name was (her actual name). When I answered in the affirmative, he said real fondly: “Your mother is First name, Maiden name. She lived up by the reservoir in a house your great grandfather built for your grandparents when they got engaged, not actually in little Italy. You are related to the (yet another Italian sir name), he is in charge of the whole airport now. Did you know your mom’s uncles used to run numbers for my uncle Sal? Hey, your cousin is my foot doctor now, we went to Prep together, and when we won state his dad hosted a big party for the whole team. Most of your generation moved out to (newly created suburb), your cousin keeps his practice in town- right on 26th and ….”
After fifty-three years living thousands of miles away, all of that history was known by simply mentioning who performed a wedding over fifty-four years earlier, and confirming my mother’s first name. In other quarters, I heard similar stories about my father and paternal uncle – whose grandfather worked the steamships……. I learned, when speaking to old timers, if they mentioned that my aunt (actually my mother’s aunt) Gina used to babysit their kids; I needed to mention her husband’s name, and who her kids married to prove my bona fides. Then it was okay I didn’t grow up there- I was ‘from’ the neighborhood. All of that to say, if the State troopers, County law enforcement, or especially City cops had business in that area, the residents were likely to know before the ones serving the warrants.
I feel compelled to point out that all of the still living generations (at least) are all legitimate, law abiding citizens, as are almost all of the residents of that area – past and present. Even though there is no criminal reason or need, there is a very strong sense of loyalty in the community (which includes the clergy as a RC church is the center of the neighborhood). It is a comfort to me and mine, all straight laced citizens to say the least. I can imagine it would be an even greater comfort to someone who might actually need that kind of loyalty. And just as an afterthought, remember when Olivia went into the home and the guys learned no one could search her things? The guys ALL moved their mother’s to the very same nursing home even though the privacy rules would apply in any other home as well. There is an innate sense of community and closeness in that circle and it extends to geography. My family owns four houses on the same block, we aren’t right next door- but I can walk to a sanctuary in two minutes if I needed to. Tony way out in Jersey is sacrificing something to have the big fancy house.
In a legitimate franchise operation you’re getting something of value for your franchise fee. In turn, you’re selling a product for which there is a public demand.
There’s no clear equivalent to this in organized crime. If I’m the head of organized crime in a city and I “sell” you a territory on the East Side, I’m not selling you anything I have any legal ownership of. I’m just threatening you by telling you my criminal organization is bigger than yours and if you don’t pay me a share of what you steal then I will hurt you.
Lower-level criminals prey on the public. Higher-level criminals then prey on those lower-level criminals.
Remember when AJ was thinking how “rich” his family was and he got invited to his friend from school’s house. If I recall her father was a film director and their place made the Sopranos look poor. Kinda rocked AJ’s world.
I don’t think this was the case for Ralph. Tony’s ego won’t let him bump Ralph to captain, even after Tony punches him. He’s even considering whacking him to resolve their dispute. But Gigi dying is like a reset button for Tony — he can fix the mistake of bumping Gigi in the first place and make good on punching Ralph by giving him what he wants so badly. That’s why he promotes him. So he isn’t made captain because he’s a good earner, it’s almost in spite of it.
It’s crazy how deep the plot of that show goes. David Chase and all the other writers and directors did an incredible job of world-building, and around 85% of the acting was top notch (I do remember a few duds - usually minor characters. But I don’t think the guy who played Vito was really up to the task of his expanded storyline in the final season.)
It’s explained in the show that Tony’s father-in-law Hugh built the house. I think it’s safe to assume that Tony bought the unimproved lot, and Hugh subsequently built the house at very little cost to Tony and Carmela. As has been demonstrated on the show and mentioned here, Hugh has the ability to cut corners in his work and get the authorities to look the other way, either through bribery or his mob connection to Tony’s family; it’s never really made clear, but I kind of assumed Hugh was semi-connected and that he was fully aware of Tony’s “work” and was happy to use it to his advantage when he could.
This is part of the reason why Hugh is frequently shown taking Tony’s side on stuff and speaking of him with approval. Hugh is completely fine being in on this. Carmela’s mother, on the other hand, seems to not approve of Tony. She’s pretty consistently cold to him and scornful of him when she talks about him; she had hoped Carmela would really marry “up” into true “high society”, and Tony doesn’t cut it for her, regardless of how much money he actually has.
This was one really unrealistic thing about the show; no guys like this would ever, ever say something like that. It would absolutely never be acknowledged. I highly doubt any Mafia members would even do it at all, because of the disapproval it would bring if it was ever found out. People in prison talk about everything. The ‘inmate grapevine’ spreads gossip faster than virtually any other environment, because there is so little else to do; it also extends beyond prison, through guys who are paroled or on probation and then on to the guys on the street. I don’t believe any member of the Mafia would risk it, I don’t care how horny he was in the joint.
But even if they did, I would bet every last cent that I own that no actual member of the Mafia has ever said, at any point in time, “they get a pass for it” with regard to gay sex in prison.
I think Tony married Carmela in part because she was from a connected family. The DeAngelis’s are related/intermarried with both the Moltisantis and (through them) the Blundettos. Christopher is Hugh’s grand-nephew. They’re all interrelated.
Hugh was Dickie Moltisanti’s uncle, whom Tony revered as a mentor, so I don’t think we have to assume anything.
That was his girlfriend Devin I think. Her father had a Picasso.
They also had a first edition pressing of Rubber Soul in mint condition. Which really upset me when A.J.'s friend grabbed the record and said, “Hey, look at this!” If I had a record worth thousands of dollars and somebody put their grubby mitts on it without permission, I’d strangle the bastard. :mad:
they go by or used to the "al capone "reasoning : the bigger the house prettier the car ect meant the more attention you got "
a lot mobsters have legal jobs by shaking down a payroll slot from someones business and you didn’t outspend your income at least visibly
actually what many people consider the most successful mobster tony "joe batters "arrcado in history lived in a middle class house in a nicer part of Chicago but it wasn’t remarkable than most suburban houses
called the “street tax”
in bill romers last book he says its how the Chicago boys stay in business after losing vegas in the 80s and 90s
Remember the only reason Ralphie survived both Tony and Johnny Sack’s respective rages was because he was the key to the Esplanade scam, which generated millions in income and kept the NY boss happy. Money trumped everything and Cifaretto apparently generated a lot of it - it was his only saving grace, but it literally saved his life( well, until it didn’t ). He was explicitly mentioned as Tony’s biggest earner once he became capo. Gigi Cestone dieing may have created a reset possibility for the Aprile crew, but it was a reset I’m sure Tony doesn’t make if Cifaretto was just your average mook. But Cifaretto had both seniority of a sort and native ability going for him - he couldn’t be ignored without making Tony look out of touch and ungrateful.
I think there is more to it than this. It’s not just that the higher ups are extorting money from the lower levels.
What the lower-level criminals get in return is access to a whole web of criminal contacts and facilities.
You need to sell stolen goods? You need forged documents? You need a safe house? You need drugs to sell? You need some heavies to lean on someone? You need money laundered? You need a crooked cop, or bureaucrat, or lawyer, or doctor? You need to set up a fake website? Usually someone in the ‘organization’ will know someone who can do it, and the lower level members have access to this whole criminal network - for a price.
This is what they get in return.
The only reason Johnny Sack calls off the hit on Ralph is because he walks in on Ginny gorging herself with junk food. Maybe you’re confusing him with Carmine, who did put a price on Ginny’s honor and wouldn’t let John clip him because of the Esplanade. Either way, I’m not saying Ralph wasn’t a top earner. I’m saying he wasn’t made a captain because he was a top earner.
But he already did ignore Ralph by putting Gigi in as captain first, despite Ralph’s seniority (I forget if he had seniority but I’ll go with it for the argument) and how good an earner he was. And then when Tony goes to Junior for advice, he still says he doesn’t know who he’d put in as captain if he removed Gigi. So it’s pretty obvious that Tony doesn’t care a whit about how good an earner Ralph is when it comes to who will be captain.
I guess Hesh had plenty of money as the $200k loan to Tony seemed like no big deal to him. He was probably making a lot from the record royalties he mentioned in 1 episode.