Ever since the Roaring Twenties, the american gangster has been glorified and romanticized as a sort of modern day Robin Hood. The very name conjures up images of pleasantly smoky speakeasies, flappers in glittering gowns, and hard-livin', fast-talkin' gangsters (YAHOO). Yet pictures of costly silken suits and diamond encrusted pocket watches hardly seem like fitting attire for the likes of common mobsters. It seems inconceivable that they could have hit enough people over the head to afford such luxuries. Respectable working families looked up to these rough riders as the ultimate success story demonstrating the survival of the fittest and the ingenuity of the American man. Men such as Al Capone and “Bugs” Moran led lavish lives and were looked upon with jealousy by business men, even while they swindled the working class out of their paycheck.What was it about the Roaring Twenties that gave the American gangster his appeal? How could America romanticize the man behind the Valentines’ Day Massacre? The facts were certainly shocking, yet this nation still idealizes the jazz-filled speakeasies and sharply dressed ladies men. Why is this? Was it a shift in focus on the part of the media, or did the actual definition of a mobster change during that time period?
The term “gangster” or “mobster” was coined in the early 1900’s. At that time it was used to denote back alley thugs who used strong arm tactics to steal from or swindle individuals unlucky enough to come within their grasp. Far from the romanticized image they carry today, gangsters of the early 1900’s were regarded as crooks and felons, the scum of society that would never rise above alley way robberies. Then came the Prohibition. The way Billy Sunday described it reflect...
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...will always find a way to do that which is wrong. Prohibiting the good men from regulating it will invariably lead to government of the crafty, manipulative, and strong armed. The 1920’s prohibition of alcohol neither eliminated booze nor fragmented the gangs of America. Prohibition merely served to escalate both. It changed American gangsters forever, and romanticized their escapades as the daring exploits of an American entrepreneur. So to answer the question, yes. The very definition of mobsters and gangsters changed during the Prohibition, leaving behind their own addition to America’s diverse cultural history.
Works Cited
(YAHOO) . "How the Prohibition changed America." Yahoo. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Jan 2012.
(OCAP) "Organized Crime and Prohibition." University at Albany - SUNY. Web. 08 Feb. 2010. .
January 1920, the opening year of the 18th Amendment that sought banning “the manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors” within the United States and its US territories. Many Americans relate this era with speakeasy, public law breaking, and a public disregard for the establishment of prohibition. The 18th Amendment was the first constitutional amendment that sought to limit the rights of citizens and their rights to drink. This would become an attempt that many would soon come to realize as one of the greatest failures in law enforcement in American History. For if an American wants to drink, those with the American spirit for rebellion will surly offer him one.
One of the biggest controversies of the twentieth century is the eighteenth amendment. Mississippi was the first state to pass the bill of prohibition. From there on out the entire country followed in Mississippi’s lead in the crusade of prohibition. The eighteenth amendment was a law, which tried to reform and protect the American people against alcohol, as some called, “the devil’s advocate”. The outcome of prohibition was more negative than positive and reeked more havoc than good on the American society.
Sandbrook is incorrect to remark that from the moment the Volstead Act came into effect, America’s National gangsters saw it as a business opportunity. This is because the early years of Prohibition were years where enforcement was particularly strict, which made the distribution of alcohol very risky. Yet regardless, by far criminals who had the most to gain were gangsters such as Al Capone, who made $100 million a year from speakeasies and casinos alone. Violence played a large role in organised crimes during the years of Prohibition, with an increase in burglary, theft and battery assaults by a total of 22%. There were also wars between gangsters over each other’s territory, and the most famous act of violence during the years of Prohibition came from Capone’s army of 700 gangsters, who committed over 300 murders in Chicago. Willoughby points out that although organised crime existed in the years before and after Prohibition, it was “albeit on a smaller scale.” This is convincing as the affluence that the twenties created, along with demands for alcohol provided alternative opportunities for organised crime. Arguably, Clements acknowledges that even after the repeal of Prohibition, the wealth that corrupted illegal organisations accumulated made them turn to other areas where they could make a vast amount of profit, such as prostitution, gambling and drugs. Certainly,
There is a thin line that exists between the depiction of a villain and a gangster that Hollywood has mastered walking on. While villains and gangsters may do many of the same things in movies, like stealing and killing, they each do them for different reasons. Villains enjoy crime because that is what gets them off; some may feel they are doing society a favor, like Uncle Charlie in Hitchcock’s Shadow of a Doubt, and others are more simply portrayed as naturally evil or mentally ill. But Gangsters are doing what they do for something American society can relate to—to make a living and, ultimately, get to the top.
As more and more immigrants began to spread throughout the US, more and more gangs of people began to emerge. Gangs were usually made up of people of a common ethnicity, whether it be Irish, Italian, or Hispanic. These gangs were usually victims of anti-immigrant policies and looked for strength in numbers. As gangs became more and more sophisticated they realized they could make profits from the power they were accumulating. One of the most recognizable examples is the bootlegging of alcohol during the Prohibition. When federal officials attempted to enforce legislation such as the Volstead Act, there was a surge of illegal sales and profits. In 1927, Al Capone and his gang racked up over $60 million from bootlegged alcohol. With all of this money came tons of violence, people were getting murdered in broad daylight just so others could have a sum of all of this wealth. Soon Mob families would own clubs or casinos to increase their wealth. The attendees weren’t only made up of rich mob bosses, the alcohol, dancing, and gambling attracted many ordinary
It is said that for every market that is destroyed, a new underground market is created. This was exactly the case with prohibition. Though domestic violence did decrease, much crime increased. Bootlegers (people who made/sold their own whiskey) popped up everywhere. Speakeasies, which were underground bars, were frequented by virtually everyone. Seceret drinking was considered a glamorous thing-even in Washington parties. Bootlegging gangs began to increase, thus an increase in street crime occured. One of the most famous of these gangsters was Al Capone. Capone's bootlegging ring earned him approximately 60,000,000 dollars a year. One example of gang related crime was the St. Valentines Day Massacre, in which Capones's gang gunned down and killed seven members of "Bugs" Morgans' gang.
...ough with the times. The men in those gangs were willing to die for the people they worked and many of them did. They would also kill someone in an instant if ordered to or if they crossed their family or gang. Lives were alway in danger during the prohibition era because of the measure people would take to ensure their own safety. it was survival of the fittest and the gangster of the era and organized crime were at the top of the food chain.
Prohibition was passed to eradicate the demand for liquor but had the inadvertent effect of raising the crime rates in America. Robert Scott stated, “Prohibition was supposed to lower crime and corruption, reduce social problems, lower taxes needed to support prisons and poorhouses, and improve health and hygiene in America” (Scott 2). As the demand for alcohol increased, people began to find new methods to mask the production and consumption of liquor. It became easier to break the rules. Organized crime blossomed and many law-abiding citizens turned into criminals.
the mob or mafia today. Capone was a man who of the many prohibition leaders,
At first prohibition was popular among those who had suppored it, and tolerated by the others. But before long, unmistakable grumbling was heard in the cities. To meet the uninterrupted demand for alcohol, there sprang up bathtub ginworks and basement stills, tight and discrete illegal supply networks, and speakeasies: secret, illegal bars remembered chiefly today as where, for the first time, women were seen smoking in public. Commerse in alcohol plunged underground, and soon fell under the control of thugs and gangsters, whose organizations often acquired their merchandise legally in Canada. Violence aften settled commercial differences-
Prohibition in the United States was a measure designed to reduce drinking by eliminating the businesses that manufactured, distributed, and sold alcoholic beverages. The Eighteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution took away license to do business from the brewers, distillers, vintners, and the wholesale and retail sellers of alcoholic beverages. The leaders of the prohibition movement were alarmed at the drinking behavior of Americans, and they were concerned that there was a culture of drink among some sectors of the population that, with continuing immigration from Europe, was spreading (“Why Prohibition” 2). Between 1860 and 1880 America's urban population grew from 6 million to more than 14 million people. The mass of this huge increase found itself toiling in factories and sweatshops and living in horrible social conditions; getting drunk was there only highlight in life.
People turned more and more towards criminal activity, organized criminals such as the American mobsters and European crime syndicates thrived, most common people looked upon these organizations as heros. Criminals like Al Capone, Bonnie and Clyde and John Dillinger were headliners of the era. Jobs were scarce and people needed to provide for their families, gangsterism was dangerous but provided an easy way to make money. When the American government passed the eighteenth Amendments outlawing alcohol, people who enjoyed a drink became criminal for doing so. It was organized criminals who supplied the booze. In January of 1920 the American government banned the sale and supply of alcohol, the government thought that this would curb crime and violence, prohibition did not achieve its goals, leading more toward higher crime rates and excessive violence. Alcohol was seen as the devil's advocate and banning the substance would help improve the quality of American lives. It caused an explosive growth in crime with more than double the amount of illegal bars and saloons operating than before prohibition. The government set up the “Federal Prohibition Bureau” to police prohibition, this did not deter people and organized crime continued to be the main supplier of booze. With a large coastline it was almost impossible to police with only five percent of alcohol ever being confiscated. Bribing government officials was common, and people were increasingly crafty in the way they
George “Bugs” Moran was one of the most famous gangsters of all time due to his fame during the prohibition era, and constant fighting with Al Capone (“Bugs Moran” National Crimes…par. 3). He was also one of the very few gangsters who was actually street smart because of his crime starting at such a young age (“Bugs Moran” par. 2). He got the nickname of “Bugs; because he was a rather violent criminal, so everyone thought he was “buggy” (Bardsley par. 1). His “buggy” attitude showed by him driving his rival gangs absolutely nuts making most of them, especially Capone, regret that they ever left New York and stepped foot in Chicago (Keefe 6). One of Moran’s rival gangsters once stated, “If I’d known what I was getting into, I’d never have left the Five-Point outfit in New York” (Keefe 6). Although Moran has been rather a mystery until now, his legacy of being the powerful leader of the north side gang will last forever (Keefe 9).
The newly established Federal Prohibition Bureau had only 1,550 agents, and “with 18,700 miles of vast and virtually unpoliceable coastline, it was clearly impossible to prevent immense quantities of liquor from entering the country.” Not even 5% of smuggled liquor was ever actually captured and seized from the hands of the bootleggers. Bootlegging has become a very competitive and lucrative market with the adaptation of prohibition. This illegal underground economy fell into the hands of organized gangs who overpowered most of the authorities. Most of these gangsters, secured their businesses by bribing an immense number of city officials.
Prohibition, the greatest thing that has happened, was what most “dry” people thought. Yes, prohibition did stop a lot of people from consuming alcohol. Prohibition helped turn some “wets”, people who consumed alcohol, into “drys”, which were individuals that did not consume alcohol. Unfortunately, there was a huge downside to prohibition. Throughout the times of prohibition, the rate of gang activity that was involved in daily life rose dramatically due to the desire to obtain alcohol despite the fact that it had been made illegal.