By the mid-1920s Joe Masseria had become a dominant force in the
New York liqour trade and was creating a massive fortune along the way. He was a short, fat faced man from Palermo. His rivals refered to him as "the Chinese" because his puffy cheeks narrowed his eyes. He was known for both his ability to kill and eat at a moments notice. Joe was never concerned with physical apearance. He was rude and short tempered. Yet he obtained a great amount of respect. He is responsible for recruiting such mafia "greats" as
Carlo Gambino, Joe Adonis,
Albert Anastasia, Frank Costello,
Salvatore "Lucky" Luciano, Vito Genovese, and Myer Lansky. Joe "The Boss" fought one of the bloodiest wars in Mafia history against his arch enemy
Salvatore Maranzano. Masseria fought a brilliant war until his own soldiers turned on him and carried out Masseria's murder.
