Al Capone

Al Capone

Thesis: From racketeering, bootlegging, and brotheling, Alphonse Capone is one of the

most well known and influential gangsters in history.

Al Capone, born to Gabriele and Teresina Capone, was born in Brooklyn, New

York. At age 5 he starrted school at Public School no.7 on Adams street. Al's school

had outbreaks of violence. Male Students engaged in fist fights with female teachers. At

age 14 he engaged in a fight between himself and a teacher. He was expelled and he

never returned to school again.

One of the biggest impacts on his life was when he and his family moved across

town. This is where he would meet his wife, Mae and gangster Johnny Torrio. Al was

exposed to Johnny Torrio because Johnny's headquarters was only a few blocks away. Al

earned pocket money by running errands for Johnny Torrio. "Torrio taught Capone the

importance of leading an outwardly respectiable life to segregate his career

from his home

life, as if maintaining a peacefull, conventional domestic setting somehow excused or

legitimized the venality of workingin the rackets. I was a form of hypocrisg that was

second nature to Johnny Torrio and that taught Capone to honor" (A&E Biography. Al

Capone, Scareface). Like youths of his time he ran in territorial gangs at first he was with

the South Brooklyn Rippers, then the Forty Thieves, and lastly the Five Point Juniors.

Capone worked hard at boreing jobs he cut paper and other odd jobs. One of his jobshe

worked at the Harward Inn as a barr tender and a bouncer. He became popular to his

customersand his boss.

One day he waited tables on a young man and his female companion. She was

Beautiful to the young Capone. He leaned over and told her, "Honey, you have a nice ass

and I mean that as a compliment." The young man hit Al. Al's temper began to rise. The

man pulled a knife and cut him three times in the face. The young man told Lucky

Luciano what happened. Then Luciano went to Frankie Yale. Then Frankie, Luciano and

the young man came together to dispense

some justice on Capone. Capone ended up just

appoligising to the man and the young woman. Frankie Yale liked Capone and decided to

take him under his wing. He showed Capone strong arm tactics, bookkeepping, loan

sharking, extortion, exacting tribute from pimps and bookmakers and also how to offer

protection to local busisnesses. Al met Mae Loughlin and didn't marry her until their child

was born. Afterwards focused on a ligetiment career

. So he moved to Baltimore and

was a bookkeeper for Peter Aiello's construction firm.

After the death of his father in 1920, he rusumed his relationship with Johnny

Torrio and moved to Chicago where Torrio had expanded his rackteering game. The

flesh trade was big at this time and the biggest pimp of them all was Big Jim. Big Jim

brought in Torrio to run his opperation. Big Jim was asssassinated by Yale, so Yale could

take over his outfit but Torrio was able to maintain the multi-million dollar a year

business. When Prohibition came about Johnny had to over see thousands of

whorehouses, gambling joints, and speakeasies. In 1921 Torrio became partners with the

young Al Capone. He made Al the fulltime manager of the Four Deuces in the Levee

area.

Torrio took his mother, who was ill, back to Italy so Al was encharged of all

business. When Johnny left, Capone made it clear that he wanted an all out conquest of

the town. While Johnny was gone Al had to get a loan, he went to Jack Guzik and Guzik

called him a dago pimp. So capone came back and shot him dead. William McSwinggin,

a prosecutor, decided to try to convict Capone but in despite of his diligence he was not

able to convict because eye witnesses developed a false memory. Dion O'Banion was a

force to be reckoned with, he set Torrio up with a raid and Torrio vowed revenge to Dion.

So three of Torrio's men went to O'Banion's flowershop and killed him dead. Dion's

funeral was a celebration of sorts to Capone and Torrio because they would take over

Dion's bootlegging territory. Torrio went down to Hot Springs, Arkansas to chill out

until things blew over. Twelve years later he returned to Chicago and he and his wife

were entering their apartment building and he was shot and wounded 3 times. Four weeks

later he shocked everyone by appearing in court to face charges about the raid and went

to jail for nine months. While he was in prison he decided to retire and leave everything to

Al. Al's power increased imeansly because he retired.

Capone and one of his associates planned the murder of Bugs Moran.

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