Al Capone

Alphonse Gabriel Capone (January 17, 1899 – January 25, 1947), more popularly known as Al "Scarface" Capone, was a famous American Gangster in the 1920s and 1930s, although his business card is reported to have said he was a dealer in used furniture. A Neapolitan born in New York, Capone began his career in Brooklyn before moving to Chicago and becoming that city's most notorious crime figure. By the end of the 1920s Al Capone was on the Bureau of Investigation's "Most Wanted" list. His downfall occurred in 1931 when he was indicted and convicted by the federal government for income tax evasion and sent to the notorious island prison of Alcatraz. He died in 1947 at his estate in Miami, Florida.

Capone in Chicago

The Capone family moved to a small, unassuming house at 7244 South Prairie Avenue in a Chicago suburb that would serve as Al Capone's first headquarters. Initially, Capone took up grunt work with Johnny Torrio's outfit, but the elder Torrio immediately recognized Capone's talents and by 1922 Capone was Torrio's second in command, responsible for much of the gambling, alcohol, and prostitution rackets in the city of Chicago.

Related Topics:
Chicago - Johnny Torrio - 1922 - Gambling - Alcohol - Prostitution - Racket

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Only a few years later, Torrio's rivals in the North Side gangs made an attempt on his life. Severely injured, the shaken Torrio returned to Italy and gave the reins of the business to Capone. Capone was notorious during Prohibition for his control of the Chicago underworld and his bitter rivalries with gangsters such as Bugs Moran and Hymie Weiss. Raking in vast amounts of money from illegal gambling, prostitution and alcohol (some estimates were that between 1925 and 1930 Capone was making $100 million a year), the Chicago kingpin was largely immune to prosecution due to witness intimidation and the bribing of city officials, such as Chicago mayor William "Big Bill" Hale Thompson. Capone was reputed to have several other retreats and hideouts including French Lick, Indiana, Hot Springs, Arkansas and Johnson City, Tennessee.

Related Topics:
Italy - Prohibition - Bugs Moran - Hymie Weiss - 1925 - 1930 - Kingpin - Witness intimidation - William "Big Bill" Hale Thompson - French Lick, Indiana - Hot Springs, Arkansas - Johnson City, Tennessee

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In 1928, Capone bought a retreat on Palm Island, Florida. It was shortly after this purchase that he orchestrated seven of the most notorious gangland killings of the century, the 1929 St. Valentine's Day Massacre. Although details of the massacre are still in dispute, and no person has ever been charged or prosecuted for the crime, the killings are generally linked to Capone and his henchmen, especially Jack "Machine Gun" McGurn, who is thought to have led the operation. By staging the massacre, Capone was trying to dispose of his arch-rival Bugs Moran who controlled gang operations on the North Side of Chicago Moran himself was late for the meeting and escaped otherwise certain death.

Related Topics:
1928 - Palm Island - Florida - St. Valentine's Day Massacre - Jack "Machine Gun" McGurn - Chicago

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Throughout the 1920s, Capone himself was often the target of attempted murders.

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