Actually, I missed that, or at least didn’t interpret it as a “go” signal.
What’s really interesting is that Russo the person had, or claims he has, mob experience. The Carlo of the movie looked like a minor character actor. If Russo isn’t a complete fabricator, then he’s a good actor for going down-role for the Carlo character.
As an aside, Howie Carr wrote that the guy who played Moe Greene was in real life associated with the White Bulger mobsters of Boston.
The guy who played luca Brasi was the real deal.
A bodyguard for one of the five families.