In 2013, the first season of the American series "City of Gangsters" was released on television. The director of this masterpiece is Frank Darabonta, known to many in the movie The Walking Dead. In this tape, the main roles are played by John Burntal, Edward Burns and many others. The series tells in detail about the life of America in the 40s, shows the viewer who the gangsters are, how they appeared and what they did. The main storyline is a confrontation between the police and criminal structures.
Deciphering the concept
For those who are not keen on watching such television products, but want to find out who gangsters are, this article is intended. As you know, our speech is filled with a huge number of borrowed words. The term "gangster" is one of them. This word came to us from the New World. Initially, street gangs (gang gangs) appeared in America. They were called gangs. The word gangster helped clarify membership in a gang. Translated, it means "a person who is a member of a criminal group in the United States in the 20-40s of the 20th century."
Alphonse Gabrielle Capone
Chicagoans know first hand what gangsters are. At one time (in the early twenties of the twentieth century), one of the notorious “fathers” of criminal business throughout the country lived on the territory of the city. The name of this man is Al Capone. Having moved with his family to Brooklyn from Naples, he brought his “zest” into the criminal structure of the USA, which the Italian mafia raised in him. The gangsters of his organized criminal group were known for their cruelty, quick reprisal and adamant.
It is noteworthy that the main "white" business of Al Capone was the creation and restoration of furniture. However, bootlegging, pimping, the sale of drugs, weapons and gambling were hidden under such a commonplace business.
It is noteworthy that it was thanks to this criminal authority that laundries appeared everywhere in America. In order to hide his income from the banned business, Al Capone ordered the construction of laundromat laundries throughout the city. The price of services was set so low that these establishments became popular among all segments of the population. It was impossible to track the number of visitors. Thus, the profit also remained unaccounted for. Thanks to this, Al Capone was able to hide his "dirty" amounts in the "net" income of the laundries. Since that time, a steady expression has appeared - “launder money”.
"Fathers" of the criminal world in life imprisonment
Tell who the gangsters are, maybe the story of Alcatraz prison, where, in turn, Al Capone and many other gangsters spent several years of his life. Located on an island off the coast of San Francisco, this establishment during its operation was one of the most secure and reliable of all available similar institutions of strict regime. Escape from here was almost impossible. That is why the most cruel and merciless criminal elements from all over the country were exiled here.
They, in addition to the already known Al Capone, include:
- George Kelly , nicknamed the "Machine" Kelly. He was sentenced to life imprisonment for murders, abductions and other mafia cases. At that time, this gangster was considered the first enemy of the American state.
- Roy Gardner is a famous gangster and thief. He received his "glory" by robbing trains. While serving his sentence, the mafiosi wrote the book “Hell Alcatraz”, in which he told his biography, and also described the prison life and other criminal authorities.
Chicago Bandits
In addition to the gangsters who were serving their sentences in one of America's harshest federal prisons, other criminal figures also went down in history. Among them is the Chicago mafia element Stanley Moore, nicknamed the Inquisitor. His fame, like many other gangsters, was of dubious quality. He "earned his name" on the fact that he unscrupulously and severely "knocked out" debts from debtors. At the same time, he was also responsible for executing those people who in any way interfered with the gang’s “right cause”.
In addition to the Americans, among the famous gangsters of America there were immigrants from Asia. One of them was Mr. Sing. He possessed special skill. He was brought to business if it was necessary to present the murder as an accident due to poisoning. The Asian killer used rare oriental poisons in his profession.
Another fearsome authority of the time was a Chicago gangster nicknamed the Bone Hand. Together with his assistants, he was involved in the sale of drugs, gambling, “sheltering” brothels and brothels, murders and robberies.
It is noteworthy that even though these representatives of the criminal world lived almost a century ago (in the 20–40s of the 20th century), photos of Chicago gangsters were perfectly preserved in police bases and historical archives.