Al Capone: Difference between revisions
Content deleted Content added
m Reverted edits by 163.153.134.17 to last version by Frank (HG) |
←Blanked the page |
||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
{{Refimprove|date=September 2007}} |
|||
{{Redirect|Capone}} |
|||
{{Infobox_Criminal |
|||
| subject_name = Al Capone |
|||
| image_name = AlCaponemugshotCPD.jpg |
|||
| image_size = 250px |
|||
| image_caption = |
|||
| date_of_birth = {{birth date |1899|1|17|}} |
|||
| place_of_birth = [[Brooklyn]], [[New York]] |
|||
| date_of_death = {{death date and age|1947|1|25|1899|1|17|mf=y}} |
|||
| place_of_death = [[Palm Island (Florida)|Palm Island, Florida]], U.S. ([[Miami Beach, Florida]]) |
|||
| charge = Tax Evasion |
|||
| penalty = [[Imprisonment]] from 1932 to 1939 |
|||
| status = deceased| occupation = [[gangster]]<br>[[Rum-running|bootlegger]] |
|||
| spouse = [[Mae Capone|Mae Josephine Coughlin]] |
|||
| children = [[Albert Francis Capone]] and another son known as [[William Knight Jr]] |
|||
| grandchildren = Four Daughters from Albert Francis and Two Children from William: a son, Chris Knight, and daughter |
|||
}} |
|||
'''Alphonse Gabriel "Al" Capone''' (January 17, 1899 – January 25, 1947), commonly nicknamed ''Scarface'', was an [[Italian American]] [[gangster]] who led a [[crime]] syndicate dedicated to the [[smuggling]] and [[Rum-running|bootlegging]] of [[alcoholic beverage|liquor]] and other illegal activities during the [[Prohibition in the United States|Prohibition]] Era of the 1920s and 1930s. |
|||
Born in [[Brooklyn]], [[New York]], to Southwestern Italian emigrants Gabriele and Teresina Capone, Capone began his career in Brooklyn before moving to [[Chicago]] and becoming the boss of the [[organized crime|criminal organization]] known as the [[Chicago Outfit]] (although his business card reportedly described him as a used [[furniture]] dealer).<ref>Iorizzo, Luciano J. ''Al Capone: a biography''. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 2003. ISBN 0-313-32317-8</ref> |
|||
By the end of the 1920s, Capone had gained the attention of the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation]] following his being placed on the Chicago Crime Commission's "[[public enemy (term)|public enemies]]" list. Although never successfully convicted of [[racket (crime)|racketeering]] charges, Capone's criminal career ended in 1931, when he was indicted and convicted by the [[Federal government of the United States|federal government]] for [[Tax avoidance and tax evasion|income tax evasion]]. |
|||
==Early life in New York== |
|||
[[Image:Capone Teenager.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Mugshot of Capone c. 1938.]] |
|||
Alphonse Gabriel Capone was born In Brooklyn, New York to Gabriele (December 12, 1864 – November 14, 1920) and his wife Teresinha Bobone (December 28, 1867 – November 29, 1952), on January 17, 1899.<ref>{{cite book |title= Capone|last= Kobler|first= John|year= 1971|publisher= Da Capo Press|isbn= 0-306-80499-9|pages= 23}}</ref> Gabriele was a [[barber]] from [[Castellammare di Stabia]], a town about 15 miles (24 km) south of [[Naples]], Italy. Teresina was a [[sewing|seamstress]] and the daughter of Angelo Raiola from [[Angri]], a town in the province of [[Salerno]] in southwestern Italy. |
|||
Gabriele and Teresinha had nine children: [[James Vincenzo Capone|Vincenzo Capone]] (1892 – October 1, 1952), [[Ralph Capone|Raffaele Capone]] (January 12, 1894 – November 22, 1974), [[Frank Capone|Salvatore Capone]] (January 1895 – April 1 , 1924) Alphonse Carlota diaz (January 17, 1899 – January 25, 1947), Erminio Capone (born 1901, date of death unknown), Umberto Capone (1906 – June 1980), Matthew Capone (1908 – January 31, 1967), Rose Capone (born and died 1910) and Mafalda Gonzalez (later Mrs. [[John J. Maritote]], January 28, 1912 – March 25, 1988). |
|||
The Capone family immigrated to the [[United States]] in 1893 and settled at 95 Navy Street,<ref name="CAPONE">{{cite book |last=Schoenberg |first=Robert L. |title= '''''Mr. Capone'''''|year= 1992 |publisher=William Morrow and Company|location=[[New York, New York]]|isbn=0-688-12838-6| pages=p. 18-19}}</ref> in the [[Brooklyn Navy Yard|Navy Yard]] section of [[downtown Brooklyn]], near the Barber Shop that employed Gabriele at 29 [[Park Avenue]].<ref name="CAPONE"/> When Al was 14, the Capone family moved to 21 Garfield Place<ref name="CAPONE"/> in [[Park Slope]], Brooklyn. |
|||
Capone left school in the fifth-grade at age 14, after being expelled from Public School 133. He then worked at odd jobs around Brooklyn, including in a candy store and a [[bowling alley]].<ref>Kobler, 27.</ref> During this time, Capone was influenced by gangster [[Johnny Torrio]], whom he came to regard as a mentor figure.<ref>Kobler, 26.</ref> |
|||
After his initial stint with small-time gangs, including The Junior Forty Thieves, Capone joined the Five Points Juniors, and then the notorious [[Five Points Gang]]. He was mentored by and employed as a [[bouncer (doorman)|bouncer]] in a [[Coney Island]] dance hall and saloon called the Harvard Inn by racketeer [[Frankie Yale]].<ref>Kobler, 31.</ref><ref>Kobler, 35.</ref> It was in this field that Capone received the scars that gave him the nickname "Scarface";<ref name="five families book">{{cite web |
|||
| title = The Five Families |
|||
| publisher = MacMillan |
|||
| url = http://books.google.com/books?id=5nAt6N8iQnYC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_summary_r&cad=0 |
|||
| accessdate = 2008-06-22 }}</ref> he inadvertently insulted a woman while working the door at a Brooklyn night club, provoking a fight with her brother Frank Gallucio. Capone's face was slashed three times on the left side. Capone apologized to Gallucio at Yale's request and would hire his attacker as a bodyguard in later life.<ref name="kobler36">Kobler, 36.</ref><ref name="LScarface">{{cite web |first= Marilyn |last= Bardsley|url= http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/gangsters_outlaws/mob_bosses/capone/scarface_4.html|title= Scarface|accessdate=2008-03-29 |publisher= Crime Library|work= Al Capone}}</ref> When photographed, Capone hid the scarred left side of his face and would misrepresent his injuries as war wounds.<ref name="kobler36"/><ref>Kobler, 15.</ref> According to the 2002 magazine from ''[[Life (magazine)|Life]]'' called ''Mobsters and Gangsters: from Al Capone to Tony Soprano'', Capone was called "Snorky" by his closest friends.<ref>''Mobsters and Gangsters from Al Capone to Tony Soprano'', ''[[Life (magazine)|Life]]'' (2002)</ref> |
|||
On December 30, 1918, Capone married [[Mae Capone|Mae Josephine Coughlin]], an Irish woman.<ref name="LScarface"/> Earlier that month she had given birth to their son, Albert Francis ("Sonny") Capone.<ref name="LScarface"/> |
|||
The date of Capone's departure from New York, with his family, to [[Chicago]] is usually set around the year of 1921.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fbi.gov/libref/historic/famcases/capone/capone.htm |title=Alphonse Capone, aka. Al, Scarface|accessdate=2008-04-01 |publisher= Federal Bureau of Investigation|work= FBI History}}</ref> Capone came at the invitation of Torrio, who was seeking business opportunities in [[Rum-running|bootlegging]] following the onset of [[Prohibition in the United States|prohibition]]. Torrio had acquired the crime empire of [[Jim Colosimo|James "Big Jim" Colosimo]] after the latter refused to enter this new area of business and was subsequently murdered (presumably by Frankie Yale, although legal proceedings against him had to be dropped due to a lack of evidence.)<ref>{{cite web|first= Marilyn |last= Bardsley|url=http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/gangsters_outlaws/mob_bosses/capone/chicago_5.html|title=Chicago|accessdate=2008-04-03 |publisher= Crime Library|work= Al Capone}}</ref> Capone was also a suspect for two murders at the time, and was seeking a better job to provide for his new family.<ref>Kobler, 37.</ref> |
|||
==Chicago== |
|||
Upon his arrival in Chicago, Al Capone assumed the position of Johnny Torrio's right-hand man. Prior to Colosimo's death, he worked various administrative jobs in the Four Deuces [[speakeasy]] and [[brothel]], which also served as Torrio's headquarters.<ref>Kobler, 67.</ref><ref name="arrive">{{cite web|first= Marilyn |last= Bardsley|url=http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/gangsters_outlaws/mob_bosses/capone/arrive_8.html|title=Capone Arrives|accessdate=2008-04-04 |publisher= Crime Library|work= Al Capone}}</ref> By 1921, Capone was the full manager of the facility.<ref name="arrive"/> |
|||
Following the death of his father in 1920, the entire Capone family moved to Chicago at Al Capone's invitation, and he purchased a new house at 7244 South Prairie Avenue on the city's [[Neighborhoods of Chicago#South side|South Side]].<ref>Kobler, 102.</ref> The house served as Capone's first headquarters. |
|||
== Activity in Cicero, Illinois == |
|||
{{Unreferencedsection|date=June 2008}} |
|||
After the 1923 election of reform mayor [[William Emmett Dever]] in Chicago, Chicago's city government began to put pressure on the gangster elements inside the city limits. To put its headquarters outside of city jurisdiction and create a safe zone for its operations, the Capone organization muscled its way into [[Cicero, Illinois|Cicero]], [[Illinois]]. This led to one of Capone's greatest triumphs: the takeover of Cicero's town government in 1924. Cicero gangster [[Myles O'Donnell]] and his brother William "Klondike" O'Donnell fought with Capone over their home turf. The war resulted in over 200 deaths along with the infamous "Hanging Prosecutor" Bill McSwiggins. |
|||
The 1924 town council elections in Cicero became known as one of the most crooked elections in the Chicago area's long history, with voters threatened at polling stations by thugs. Capone's mayoral candidate won by a huge margin but only weeks later announced that he would run Capone out of town. Capone met with his puppet-mayor and personally knocked him down the town hall steps, a powerful assertion of gangster power and a major victory for the Torrio-Capone alliance. |
|||
For Capone, this event was marred by the death of his brother Frank at the hands of the police. As was the custom amongst gangsters, Capone signaled his mourning by attending the funeral unshaven, and he cried openly at the gathering. He ordered the closure of all the [[Speakeasy|speakeasies]] in Cicero for a day as a mark of respect. |
|||
Much of Capone's family put down roots in Cicero as well. In 1930, Capone's sister Mafalda's marriage to John J. Maritote took place at [[St. Mary of Czestochowa in Cicero|St. Mary of Czestochowa]], a massive [[Neogothic]] edifice towering over Cicero Avenue in the so-called [[Polish Cathedral style]]. |
|||
==Capone's wealth and power grows in Chicago== |
|||
Severely injured in a 1925 assassination attempt by the [[North Side Gang]], the shaken Torrio turned over his business to Capone and returned to Italy. Capone was notorious during the Prohibition Era for his control of large portions of the Chicago underworld, which provided the Outfit with an estimated US $10 million per year in revenue. This wealth was generated through all manner of illegal enterprises, such as [[gambling]] and [[prostitution]],<ref name="five families book"/> although the largest moneymaker was the sale of liquor. In those days Capone had the habit of "interviewing" new prostitutes for his club himself. He contracted [[syphilis]], a disease that was not treated properly (Capone reportedly had a fear of [[hypodermic needle]]s and injections), and would lead to his death many years later. |
|||
Demand was met by a transportation network that moved smuggled liquor from the rum-runners of the [[East Coast of the United States|East Coast]] and [[The Purple Gang]] in [[Detroit]] and local production in the form of [[Midwestern United States|Midwestern]] [[moonshine]] operations and illegal breweries. With the funds generated by his bootlegging operation, Capone's grip on the political and law-enforcement establishments in Chicago grew stronger. |
|||
Through this organized corruption, which included the bribing of Mayor of Chicago [[William Hale Thompson|William "Big Bill" Hale Thompson]], Capone's gang operated largely free from legal intrusion, operating [[casino]]s and speakeasies throughout Chicago. Wealth also permitted Capone to indulge in a luxurious lifestyle of custom suits, cigars, gourmet food and drink (his preferred liquor was [[Templeton Rye]] from [[Iowa]]), jewelry, and female companionship. He garnered media attention, to which his favorite responses were "I am just a businessman, giving the people what they want" and "All I do is satisfy a public demand."<ref name="five families book"/> Capone became a celebrity.<ref name="five families book"/> |
|||
However, this unprecedented level of criminal success drew the attention of Capone's rivals, particularly his bitter rivalries with North Side gangsters such as [[Dion O'Banion]], [[Bugs Moran]] and lieutenant [[Hymie Weiss|Earl "Hymie" Weiss]]. Such opposition led to attempts to assassinate Capone throughout the 1920s. He was shot in a restaurant, and he had his car riddled with bullets more than once. |
|||
These attacks prompted Capone to fit his [[Cadillac]] with armor plating, [[Bulletproof glass|bullet-proof glass]], run-flat tires, and a police siren. Most of the would-be assassins were incompetent and Capone was never seriously wounded, but every attempt on his life left him increasingly shaken and slightly afraid of Moran, who was almost certainly involved in most of the attacks. |
|||
Members of the gang that had wounded Torrio shot into the headquarters of Capone's gang, which was disguised as a doctor's office and an antique dealer's shop. Nobody was hurt in the raid (Capone's bodyguard threw him to the ground at the first sound of gunfire), although the headquarters was riddled with bullet holes. This event forced him to call for a truce, one that would be short-lived. |
|||
[[Image:Caponescastle.jpg|thumb| 200px|right|The Lexington Hotel, Chicago. Capone's headquarters. Known as Capone's castle. Photographed in the early 1990s; it was demolished in 1995.]] |
|||
When the headquarters moved to the [[Lexington Hotel]], Capone had it filled with his armed bodyguards around the clock. For his trips away from Chicago, Capone was reputed to have had several other retreats and hideouts located in [[Brookfield, Wisconsin|Brookfield]], [[Wisconsin]]; [[Saint Paul, Minnesota|Saint Paul]], [[Minnesota]]; [[Olean, New York]]; [[French Lick, Indiana|French Lick]], as well as [[Terre Haute, Indiana]]; [[Dubuque, Iowa|Dubuque]], [[Iowa]]; [[Hot Springs, Arkansas|Hot Springs]], [[Arkansas]]; [[Johnson City, Tennessee|Johnson City]], [[Tennessee]]; and [[Lansing, Michigan|Lansing]], [[Michigan]]. Tunnels found under the city of [[Moose Jaw]], [[Saskatchewan]], are said to have been another hideout of Capone's. As a further precaution, Capone and his entourage would often suddenly show up at a one of Chicago's train depots and buy up an entire Pullman sleeper car on night trains to places like Cleveland, Omaha, Kansas City and Little Rock/Hot Springs in Arkansas, where they would spend a week in a luxury hotel suite under assumed names with the apparent knowledge and connivance of local authorities. In 1928, Capone bought a 14-room retreat<ref name="five families book"/> on [[Palm Island (Florida)|Palm Island]], [[Florida]] close to [[Miami Beach]]. |
|||
Capone considered Moran to be a homicidal lunatic, and lived in fear of the Moran gang. The fusillade launched against his headquarters, where at least ten gunmen fired for over ten minutes, must have been particularly unnerving. Even in his last days as he lay ravaged by syphilis, Capone raved on about Communists, foreigners, and George Moran, whom he was convinced was still plotting to kill him from his Ohio prison cell. |
|||
==St. Valentine's Day Massacre== |
|||
[[Image:Al capone.jpg|thumb|250px|The St. Valentine's Day Massacre eliminated Capone's enemies, but outraged the general public]] |
|||
Capone (through his henchman [[Murray Humphreys|Murray the Hump]]) orchestrated the most notorious gangland killing of the century, the 1929 [[St. Valentine's Day Massacre]] in the [[Lincoln Park, Chicago|Lincoln Park]] neighborhood on Chicago's [[Neighborhoods of Chicago#Nouth side|North Side]]. Although details of the killing of the seven victims<ref name="five families book"/> in a garage at 2122 North Clark Street (then the SMC Cartage Co.) are still in dispute and no one was ever indicted for the crime, their deaths are generally linked to Capone and his henchmen, especially [[Murray the Hump]] (Llewellyn Morris Humphreys (1899-1965)) and [[Jack McGurn|Jack "Machine Gun" McGurn]]. McGurn is thought to have led the operation, using gunmen disguised as police and toting [[shotguns]] and [[Thompson submachine gun]]s. |
|||
The massacre was Capone's effort to dispose of organized crime rival [[Bugs Moran|"Bugs" Moran]]. The North Side gang had become increasingly bold in hijacking the Outfit's booze trucks and encroaching on the South Side and Capone was ready to put it to an end. |
|||
After all efforts to secure a truce had failed, Capone, his accountant/chief extortionist [[Jake Gusik|Jake "Greasy Thumb" Gusik]], and [[Frank Nitti|Frank "The Enforcer" Nitti]] agreed that they'd have to risk the political heat that would come from wiping out Moran and his gang or face eventual elimination at the hands of the North Siders. They assigned the task to McGurn and told him to use "outside torpedoes" to avoid implication. McGurn secured the services of triggermen from New York, Tennessee, Detroit, and downstate [[Illinois]]. |
|||
They rented an apartment across from the Clark Street trucking garage that served as a Moran headquarters to monitor their targets' habits and movements and placed a call to the garage offering to sell a truckload of [[whiskey]] stolen by freelancing [[Sicily|Sicilian]] immigrants from a Capone shipment. Such freelancers often hijacked such shipments from both gangs and sold them to the highest bidders, so no suspicions were aroused in the Moran camp. The stolen booze (high-grade Canadian whiskey) was brought to the garage, and the deal was done. |
|||
As hoped, the entire Moran gang was there. Unknown to the North Siders, these "freelancers" were being paid by McGurn to set them up for the kill. On February 13, the freelancers called again and set up another transaction for the next day. The freelancers were expected to drive the truck right into the garage, where McGurn hoped the entire Moran gang would again be assembled. At the set time, a stolen Chicago police car pulled up and uniformed "officers" entered the building, along with others who had been standing nearby. |
|||
Apparently, the gang members thought that they had been scammed and that they had been set up for a raid. They sheepishly lined up to cooperate in the belief that their lawyers would fix things downtown, as they had many times before. Moran arrived 10 minutes late, spotting what he thought to be a police car outside, decided to keep walking and did not enter the garage. |
|||
It is believed that a local [[optometrist]] was also one of the victims, an innocent bystander and not part of Moran's gang.<ref name="five families book"/> The optometrist, who supplemented his income through bootlegging and liked to hang out at the garage with the gang members, had been mistaken that morning for Moran because he was of similar height and wore the same color gray hat and coat favored by the North Side chieftain. After the supposed Moran entered, the lookouts triggered the "raid." At the last moment one of the gang-members realized that Chicago police officers never carried machineguns, but it was too late. |
|||
Forensic evidence shows that the seven victims were almost cut in two by machine gun fire and that many of the victims had their faces shot off by [[shotgun]] blasts for good measure. The photos would cause public sympathy to fall out of Capone's favor, and federal law enforcement to focus more closely on investigating Capone's activities.<ref name="five families book"/> |
|||
However, the local police turned the other way in regards to the events. They made no real efforts to solve the crime or delve further into the killings.<ref name="five families book"/> People in the neighborhood saw the police go in and heard what they thought were a series of backfires, which were common at a garage. The "police" later led some men out to the car and left. |
|||
The grisly scene was discovered after the mechanic's dog began to howl so loudly that neighbors went in to see what was wrong. [[Frank Gusenberg]], a member of the Moran gang, survived long enough to be questioned in a hospital before he died. However, when asked "Who shot you?" Frank replied, "Nobody shot me," denying any justice on the murderers. |
|||
Although Moran escaped, all his chief deputies were killed and his illegal liquor operation in Chicago rapidly declined. When asked by reporters if he believed Capone was behind the killings, Moran scornfully replied "Only Capone kills like that!" |
|||
An indignant Capone countered, "Oh yeah! Listen ... they don't call that guy 'Bugs' for nothing!" in a reference to Moran's reputation for savagery. With his remaining resources, Moran marked Capone and his key underlings for extermination. |
|||
Capone arranged to have himself jailed in Philadelphia for a year to avoid numerous "murder for hire" outfits that were hunting for him. McGurn was gunned down at a bowling alley on the anniversary of the garage slaughter, and two others involved in the killing disappeared. |
|||
Moran eventually ran out of resources and fled to Ohio, allowing Capone to return to Chicago, where he quickly found himself in the legal quagmire that effectively removed him from power. It is generally thought that Capone precipitated his own decline with the garage killings. Graphic photos of bodies lying in pools of blood were plastered all over the papers. |
|||
A secret convocation of Chicago civic leaders initiated an all-out effort to drive Capone from power. Nevertheless, had Capone and his gang done nothing, the North Side gang likely would have succeeded in killing their rivals and taking over the entire city. Moran and his associates were driven by a visceral hatred of the "South Side Scum," whom they considered to be sexual deviants and degenerates who dealt in prostitution and drug peddling and allowed debased [[jazz]] musicians to play in their bars.{{fact|date=June 2008}} |
|||
Moran had also repeatedly vowed to avenge the deaths of his close friends and mentors O'Banion and Weiss (the latter being gunned down on the steps of Holy Name Cathedral on State St). It is said that Nitti became enraged with McGurn (whom he considered to be a rival) over Moran's escape and the unfavorable publicity that ensued. |
|||
==Federal income taxes and downfall== |
|||
[[Image:Al-capone-cell.jpg|thumb|Al Capone's privileged cell in [[Eastern State Penitentiary]], where he spent 10 months in 1929 – 1930 for possession of a concealed weapon.]]{{wikisource|IRS investigation of Al Capone}} |
|||
While Chicago police showed no interest in substantially investigating the St. Valentine's Day Massacre, the federal administration of President [[Herbert Hoover]] was embarrassed by Capone's open disregard of the law, especially with his bootlegging in defiance of Prohibition laws. Hoover ordered a closer look at Capone's activities.<ref name="five families book"/> |
|||
Capone always did his business through front men, he had no accounting records in his own name, and even his mansion was in his wife's name. However, accountant [[Al Alcini]]{{who}} started linking Capone to his earnings. This brought the federal government's attention to the fact that Capone was not paying substantial [[income tax]]. The federal income tax laws allowed the federal government to pursue Capone for [[tax evasion]],<ref name="five families book"/> their best chance of convicting him. |
|||
Pursuing Capone were Treasury agent [[Eliot Ness]] and his hand-picked team of incorruptible [[Bureau of Prohibition|U.S. Prohibition agents]], "[[The Untouchables (law enforcement)|The Untouchables]]," and agent [[Frank J. Wilson|Frank Wilson]] of the Treasury Department's Bureau of Internal Revenue (now called the [[Internal Revenue Service]]). During a routine warehouse raid, they discovered in a desk drawer a crudely coded set of accounts. Ness then concentrated on pursuing Capone for his failure to [[Taxation of illegal income in the United States|pay tax on his substantial illegal income]]. |
|||
Eliot Ness played a minor role in the arrest and conviction of Capone, but many years later represented himself as the main hero in his book. It is more likely government accountants sorted out the paper trail.<ref name="five families book"/> Some question if Ness ever met Capone.{{Fact|date=September 2008}} |
|||
Capone was tried in a [[Chicago Federal Building|federal court]] in 1931. The Alcinis tried to help Capone, but he pleaded guilty to the charges on advice of his [[legal counsel]], hoping for a [[plea bargain]]. But after the judge refused his [[lawyer]]'s offers and the [[jury]] was replaced on the day of the trial to frustrate Capone's associates' efforts to bribe or intimidate the original panel, Capone was found guilty on five of 22 counts of tax evasion for the years 1925, 1926, and 1927, and willful failure to file tax returns for 1928 and 1929.{{Fact|date=November 2007}} |
|||
Capone's legal team offered to pay all outstanding tax and interest and told their client to expect a severe fine. The judge sentenced him to eleven years in a federal prison and one year in the county jail, as well as an earlier six-month contempt of court sentence.<ref>For court decisions regarding Al Capone and his tax problems, see ''Capone v. United States'', 56 F.2d 927, 3 U.S. Tax Cas. (CCH) paragr. 885 (7th Cir. 1932), ''cert. denied'', 286 U.S. 553 (1932); and ''United States v. Capone'', 93 F.2d 840, 38-1 U.S. Tax Cas. (CCH) paragr. 9011 (7th Cir. 1937), ''cert. denied'', 303 U.S. 651 (1938),</ref> Capone ultimately served only six and a half years because of good behavior in prison.<ref name="ch11">[http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/gangsters_outlaws/mob_bosses/capone/chapter_11.html Al Capone: Chicago's Most Infamous Mob Boss - The Crime library<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> He also had to pay fines and court costs totaling $80,000.<ref>[http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/gangsters_outlaws/mob_bosses/capone/trial_26.html Al Capone: Chicago's Most Infamous Mob Boss - The Crime library<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> |
|||
In March 2008, the Internal Revenue Service released [[s:IRS investigation of Al Capone|5 selected documents]] relating to the investigation of Al Capone that had previously been considered confidential.<ref>"Historical Documents relating to Alphonse (Al) Capone, Chicago," Internal Revenue Service, U.S. Dep't of the Treasury, at [http://www.irs.gov/foia/article/0,,id=179352,00.html]/</ref> |
|||
==Capone's image== |
|||
Part of the reason Capone was taken to task in this way was his status as a celebrity. On the advice of his publicist, he stopped hiding from the media by the mid-1920s and began to make public appearances. When [[Charles Lindbergh]] performed his famous transatlantic flight in 1927, Capone was among the first to push forward and shake his hand upon Lindbergh's arrival in Chicago. |
|||
Capone often tried to whitewash his image and he liked to be seen as a community leader. For example, he started a program to fight [[rickets]] by providing a daily milk ration to Chicago school children, which was continued for decades after his death. During the [[Great Depression]], Capone opened up many soup kitchens for the poor and homeless. |
|||
Capone retained a personal style. He sent hundreds of dollars worth of flowers to funerals of important opponents. On occasion, Capone and some of his men attended rivals' funerals. In one instance, Capone's men killed a rival gang leader and Capone sent $5,000 worth of flowers to the funeral. In a fight between Capone's men and another gang, an innocent woman was shot, but not fatally, and required hospital treatment. Capone paid her hospital bills. |
|||
Capone could often be seen sitting in box seats with his son and bodyguards at [[Chicago White Sox]] and [[Chicago Cubs]] games, giving autographs to [[baseball]] players.<ref name="five families book"/> He, his brother Ralph, and Gusik regularly went to the race tracks in Chicago, as well as during their security forays into Arkansas and Nebraska. He was also an [[opera]] fan and liked [[circus]]es and [[rodeo]]s, where he would buy huge blocks of tickets and distribute them among low-income neighborhoods. |
|||
Capone and Nitti were both fans of [[New Orleans]]-style jazz music and were instrumental in the rise of such talents as [[Louis Armstrong]] and others, who regularly played at Capone speakeasies on the South Side. [[Bob Hope]] related performing, when he was an up and comer, at one of these clubs, where he was terrified of the prospects of bombing in front of such a crowd.{{fact|date=June 2008}} |
|||
[[Image:Al Capone.jpg|thumb|right|150px|Al Capone during his heyday]] |
|||
Capone gained a great deal of admiration from many of the poor in Chicago for his flagrant disregard of the Prohibition law that they despised. He was viewed for a time as a lovable outlaw, partially because of his extravagant generosity to strangers and often lending a hand to struggling [[Italian-American]]s. His nightclub, the [[Cotton Club (Chicago)|Cotton Club]], became a hot spot for new acts, such as [[Charlie Parker]] and [[Bing Crosby]]. He was often cheered in the street. |
|||
Such efforts, however, did not change his reputation for violence and murder within the city. Capone did not help his own PR problems by being linked to an incident where two men were bludgeoned to death with [[baseball bat]]s after they were thought to be disloyal to the Outfit– accounts of this incident put the bat in Capone's hands. The brutal murders of the St. Valentine's Day massacre also didn't help, as they made people view Capone as a killer and socially unacceptable figure.<ref name="five families book"/> |
|||
Capone headed a list of "[[Public enemy (term)|public enemies]]" corrupting the city compiled by the chairman of the [[Chicago Crime Commission]], [[Frank J. Loesch]], in April 1930. The list was published by [[newspaper]]s nationwide, and Capone became known as "Public Enemy Nº. 1." |
|||
== Prison time == |
|||
In May 1932, Capone was sent to [[United States Penitentiary, Atlanta|Atlanta]], a tough federal prison, but he was able to take control and obtain special privileges. He was then transferred to [[Alcatraz Island#Federal Prison|Alcatraz]], where tight security and an uncompromising warden ensured that Capone had no contact with the outside world. Capone entered Alcatraz with his usual confidence, but his isolation from his associates, and the repeal of Prohibition, meant his empire was beginning to wither. He attempted to earn time off for good behavior by being a model prisoner and refusing to participate in prisoner rebellions. When Capone attempted to bribe guards he was sent to [[solitary confinement]]. |
|||
During his early months at Alcatraz, Capone made an enemy by showing his disregard for the prison social order when he cut in line while prisoners were waiting for a haircut. [[James C. Lucas]], a [[Texas]] bank robber serving 30 years, reportedly confronted the former syndicate leader and told him to get back at the end of the line. When Capone asked if he knew who he was, Lucas reportedly grabbed a pair of the barber's scissors and, holding them to Capone's neck, answered "Yeah, I know who you are, greaseball. And if you don't get back to the end of that fucking<!--Original reads "fucking". Every time the quotation is restored, somebody censors it; Wikipedia is not censored--> line, I'm gonna know who you were."<ref> Sifakis, Carl. ''The Mafia Encyclopedia''. New York: Da Capo Press, 2005. ISBN 0-8160-5694-3 </ref> |
|||
Capone earned the contempt of many of the inmates in Alcatraz when he refused to take part in a prisoners' strike after a sick inmate, accused of [[malinger]]ing, was denied medical treatment and died. Continuing his work in the prison laundry, Capone was continually harassed by other prisoners and often called a "scab" or "rat." He was eventually allowed to remain in his cell until the strike was resolved. |
|||
Shortly after returning to work, an unidentified inmate threw a heavy lead sash at Capone's head, but he suffered only a deep cut on the arm after being pushed out of the way by convicted bank robber [[Roy Gardner (bank robber)|Roy Gardner]]. |
|||
Reassigned to mopping up the prison bathhouse, Capone was nicknamed the "wop with the mop" by inmates. He was later stabbed in the back by Lucas, who was sentenced to solitary confinement. Capone was hospitalized for a week. He suffered further harassment and unsuccessful attempts on his life throughout his prison sentence, including spiking his coffee with [[lye]] and attacking him as he was walking towards the dentist's office. He remained under protection from several inmates (possibly from payoffs by the Chicago Outfit). |
|||
Though he adjusted relatively well to his new environment, his health declined as his [[syphilis]] (contracted as a youth) progressed, and he spent the last year of his sentence in the prison hospital, confused and disoriented.<ref name="ch11"/> Capone completed his term in Alcatraz on January 6, 1939, and was transferred to the Federal Correctional Institution at Terminal Island in California, to serve his one-year [[misdemeanor]] sentence. He was released on November 16, 1939, spent a short time in a hospital, then returned to his home in Palm Island, Florida. |
|||
== Physical decline and death == |
|||
Capone's control and interests within [[organized crime]] had decreased rapidly after his imprisonment, and he was no longer able to run the [[Chicago Outfit|Outfit]] after his release. He had lost weight, and his physical and mental health had declined, most noticeably with the onset of [[dementia]]. |
|||
On January 21, 1947, Capone had an [[Apoplexy|apoplectic]] stroke. He regained consciousness and started to improve but contracted pneumonia on January 24, and suffered a [[cardiac arrest]] the next day (possibly associated with the complications of third-stage [[neurosyphilis]]).{{Fact|date=February 2007}} |
|||
Capone himself died after the arrest and was buried in [[Mount Olivet Cemetery (Chicago)|Mount Olivet Cemetery]], in Chicago's far South Side between the graves of his father, Gabriele, and brother, Frank. However, in March 1950, the remains of all three family members were moved to [[Mount Carmel Cemetery (Hillsdale)|Mount Carmel Cemetery]] in Hillside, Illinois, west of Chicago. |
|||
== Cultural Icon == |
|||
<!-- Commented out: [[Image:Randall7shotgangster.jpg|thumb|right|240px|Bugsy (left) in [[Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased)]] in the episode ''[[Murder Ain't What it Used to Be]]'']] --> |
|||
One of the most notorious American gangsters of the 20th century, Capone has been the subject of numerous articles, books, and films. Capone's [[personal]] and character have been used in fiction as a model for crime-lords and criminal [[Mastermind (Role Variant)|masterminds]] ever since his death. His accent, mannerisms, facial construction, sometimes his physical stature, type of dress, and often even [[parody|parodies]] of his name are found in various [[cartoon]] series [[villain]]s as well as some movies. These characters are often shown as wily and crafty, rather than contemptible, criminal characters. |
|||
=== Film === |
|||
Capone has been portrayed on screen by [[Nicholas Kokenes]], [[Wallace Beery]], [[Paul Muni]], [[Barry Sullivan (actor)|Barry Sullivan]], [[Rod Steiger]], [[Neville Brand]], [[Jason Robards]], [[Eric Roberts]], [[Ben Gazzara]], [[Robert De Niro]], [[William Devane]], [[Titus Welliver]], [[Anthony LaPaglia]] and [[William Forsythe (actor)|William Forsythe]]. In the 1932 film ''[[Scarface (1932 film)|Scarface]]'', Capone was fictionalized as "[[Tony Camonte (character)|Antonio 'Tony' Camonte]]" (played by [[Paul Muni]]). In 1983 the film ''Scarface'' [[Scarface (1983 film)|was remade]] by [[Al Pacino]], Capone was fictionalized as "[[Tony Montana]]" which actually received more recognition than its predecessor. |
|||
=== Literature === |
|||
*In [[Mario Puzo]]'s 1969 novel, ''[[The Godfather (novel)|The Godfather]]'', Capone played a small role in the fictionalized "[[Salvatore Maranzano]] mob war" of 1933. (In real life, Maranzano had been killed in 1931). In the novel, Maranzano refuses [[Vito Corleone|Don Vito Corleone's]] request for a partnership and sharing of the [[gambling]] and other rackets that Maranzano controls in New York City. According to the novel, Maranzano asks his good friend Al Capone to send two of his best gunmen to New York to finish off the upstart, before the war could take full effect. However, Corleone hitman [[Luca Brasi]] and his men intercept the two Capone gunmen at the train station, usher them into a cab, and bring them to a warehouse. Brasi hacks the limbs off one man with an ax, causing him to bleed to death. The second gunman swallows his towel-gag in fear and suffocates. Corleone then sends a message to Capone, telling him, a [[Naples|Neapolitan]], to stay out of the affairs of two [[Sicilians]], and to never to come to New York City, as it is "unhealthy for Neapolitans". The Don considered Capone a "stupid, obvious cutthroat." Capone sends back word that he will no longer interfere. |
|||
*Capone was featured in the [[Kinky Friedman]] novel "The Love Song of J. Edgar Hoover". |
|||
*In [[Kim Newman]] and [[Eugene Byrne]]'s novel ''[[Back in the USSA]]'', Al Capone is President and Chairman of the [[alternate history]] United Socialist States of America, serving as an analog of [[Joseph Stalin]]. [[Jimmy Hoffa]] and [[Frank Nitti]] take the place of [[Vyacheslav Molotov]] and [[Lavrenti Beria]]. Also more recently, a historical fiction book was written by [[Gennifer Choldenko]] called Al Capone Does My Shirts. |
|||
*In Peter F. Hamilton's trilogy "Nights Dawn" Capone comes back from the dead and builds a new empire called the Organization. |
|||
=== Television === |
|||
The 1959 television film and TV series ''[[The Untouchables (1959 TV series)|The Untouchables]]'' highlights Capone and his era, perpetuating the myth of the personal war between Capone and Federal Agent [[Eliot Ness]]. |
|||
In the anime series [[Soul Eater]] Al Capone is depicted as a greedy man who is searching for Witch Angela's powers. He and his gang were killed by Mifune after attempting to enter Angela's castle. Al Capone was Black Star's target which then angered Black Star. |
|||
==See also== |
|||
* [[Gang]] |
|||
* [[Gangster]] |
|||
* [[Mafia]] |
|||
* [[American Mafia]] |
|||
* [[Organized crime]] |
|||
* [[Timeline of organized crime]] |
|||
* [[Italian organized crime]] |
|||
* [[List of criminal organizations]] |
|||
== References == |
|||
{{reflist|2}} |
|||
== Further reading == |
|||
*Kobler, John. ''Capone: The Life and Times of Al Capone''. New York: Da Capo Press, 2003. ISBN 0-306-81285-1 |
|||
*Pasley, Fred D. ''Al Capone: The Biography of a Self-Made Man''. Garden City, New York: Garden City Publishing Co., 2004. ISBN 1-4179-0878-5 |
|||
*Schoenberg, Robert J. ''Mr. Capone''. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1992. ISBN 0-688-12838-6 |
|||
*Ferrara, Eric - ''Gangsters, Murderers & Weirdos of the Lower East Side; A self-guided walking tour'' 2008 |
|||
== External links == |
|||
* [http://www.theamericanstoryteller.com/story-details.cfm?story=196 Listen online – The Life Story of Al Capone - The American Storyteller Radio Journal] |
|||
* [http://www.southbeach-usa.com/news/pop-culture-history/2007/08/13/the-unwelcomed-visitor-al-capone-in-miami/ Miami Beach USA] The Un-Welcomed Visitor: Al Capone in Miami. (with photos) |
|||
*[http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/bday/0117.html Obituary, NY Times, January 26, 1947 ''Capone Dead At 48; Dry Era Gang Chief''] |
|||
*[http://www.archives.gov/southeast/exhibit/popups.php?p=4.1.3 Selective Service System Records]—Has photograph and registration card. |
|||
*[http://www.alphonsealcapone.com/ Collection of Al Capone pictures] |
|||
*[http://foia.fbi.gov/foiaindex/capone.htm Complete FBI files on Al Capone] |
|||
*[http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=170&pt=Alphonse%20'Al'%20Capone Find-A-Grave Alphonse ‘Al’ Capone] |
|||
*{{cite web |url=http://www.crimelibrary.com/gangsters_outlaws/mob_bosses/capone/hart_10.html?sect=15 |title= A short profile of his older brother Vincenzo |archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20071227021425/http://www.crimelibrary.com/gangsters_outlaws/mob_bosses/capone/hart_10.html?sect=15 |archivedate=2007-12-27}} |
|||
*[http://crimemagazine.com/brothers_capone.htm An article on the Brothers Capone] |
|||
*{{imdb name|id=135330|name=Al Capone}} |
|||
*[http://www.johnsonsdepot.com/chicago/chicago.htm johnsonsdepot.com "Little Chicago" (Johnson City, Tennessee)] |
|||
*[http://bcyesteryear.com/fulltext.php?article=125 "Al Capone at the Windsor Hotel" Johnson City, TN Press, July 30, 2007.] |
|||
*[http://timesnews.net/article.php?id=3660707 "Did Al Capone once hide out in Johnson City?" Kingsport Times-News. July 31, 2006.] |
|||
*[http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/gangsters_outlaws/mob_bosses/capone/index_1.html Al Capone] at the [[Crime Library]] |
|||
*[http://www.alcaponebio.com/ Exclusive Capone content, bio, photos, time line and related people] at Mr. Capone author Robert L. Schoenberg's [[Official Capone Site]] |
|||
*[http://www.alcaponehideout.com/ Al Capone's Hideout in Courderay, Wisconsin] A formerly known Capone hideout. Now a museum in Courderay, Wisconsin |
|||
*[http://east-village.com/gangs/ Gangs of the Lower East Side; Profiles, time line, map, and more] |
|||
{{start box}} |
|||
{{succession box | title=[[Chicago Outfit]] Boss <br> 1925-1932 | |
|||
before=[[Johnny Torrio]] | after=[[Frank Nitti]] | years=}} |
|||
{{end box}} |
|||
{{DEFAULTSORT:Capone, Al}} |
|||
[[Category:1899 births]] |
|||
[[Category:1947 deaths]] |
|||
[[Category:Alcatraz inmates]] |
|||
[[Category:American Roman Catholics]] |
|||
[[Category:American tax evaders]] |
|||
[[Category:Bootleggers]] |
|||
[[Category:Chicago Outfit bosses]] |
|||
[[Category:Al Capone| ]] |
|||
[[Category:Italian-American mobsters]] |
|||
[[Category:People from Brooklyn]] |
|||
[[Category:People from Chicago, Illinois]] |
|||
[[Category:People from Miami, Florida]] |
|||
[[Category:Deaths from stroke]] |
|||
[[Category:Prohibition-era gangsters]] |
|||
[[Category:Italian-Americans]] |
|||
[[Category:The Untouchables]] |
|||
[[Category:Five Points Gang]] |
|||
[[Category:American drug lords]] |
|||
{{Link FA|de}} |
|||
{{Link FA|hu}} |
|||
[[af:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[ar:آل كابوني]] |
|||
[[bs:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[bg:Ал Капоне]] |
|||
[[ca:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[cs:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[cy:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[da:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[de:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[et:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[el:Αλ Καπόνε]] |
|||
[[es:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[eo:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[eu:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[fa:آل کاپون]] |
|||
[[fr:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[ga:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[ko:알 카포네]] |
|||
[[hr:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[id:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[it:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[he:אל קפונה]] |
|||
[[lb:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[lt:Al Kaponė]] |
|||
[[hu:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[nl:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[ja:アル・カポネ]] |
|||
[[no:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[nn:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[pms:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[pl:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[pt:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[ru:Аль Капоне]] |
|||
[[sq:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[sk:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[sl:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[sr:Ал Капоне]] |
|||
[[sh:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[fi:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[sv:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[tr:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[bat-smg:Al Capone]] |
|||
[[zh:艾爾·卡彭]] |
|||