His death resulted in the ascension of James T. Licavoli to the head of the Cleveland Mob and to a bloody gang war that would essentially destroy the once-powerful crime family that Scalish had helped to develop.

Scalish oversaw the Cleveland family's aggressive move into Las Vegas and California, with Moe Dalitz taking over the failing Desert Inn from Bugsy Siegel.

Dalitz also led the development of other casinos, a major hospital, and other Las Vegas projects, many of which were financed by the mob-controlled Teamsters union.

Scalish once sat in on The Commission, the governing body in charge of allocating territories and settling disputes among Mafia families across the nation.

[7] A full-scale gang war for control of the Cleveland rackets broke out after his death between James T. Licavoli, Scalish's successor, and Irish mob boss Danny Greene.