A
Gangster is a criminal who is a member of a
crime organization, such as a
gang.
The terms are most commonly used in reference
to members of the criminal organizations associated with American prohibition and
the American
offshoot of
the Italian
Mafia, such as the Chicago
Outfit, the Philadelphia
Mafia, and the Five Families, and
individuals such as Al Capone and Bugsy Siegel. Gangsters have been
romanticized in popular culture in films such as
The Godfather series and TV shows like
The Sopranos.
The word "mobster" is a term derived from
Latin and
Aramaic. The word
mobi means large gathering in Aramaic, and similarly,
mob in Latin means crowd. The full term mobster means
member of a crowd.
History
As American society and culture developed, new
immigrants were migrating to the United States.
One of the first influential and popular gangs was the
Five Points Gang. During the late 1800s and
early 1900s, the streets of New York were ruled by Irish gangs
(
Whyos and
Dead
Rabbits) and Jewish gangs like the
Monk
Eastman gang.
The Prohibition Era
Al Capone
The stereotypical image and myth of the American gangster is most
closely associated with the organized crime entities of the
Prohibition era of the 1920s and 1930s. In 1920, the
Eighteenth
Amendment of the United States Constitution banned the sale,
manufacture, and transportation of alcohol for consumption. Many
gangs sold alcohol illegally for tremendous profit, and used acute
violence to stake turf and protect their interest. Often, police
officers and politicians were paid off or extorted to ensure
continued operation.
Al Capone was one of
the most influential gangsters during this period. Born in
Williamsburg, Brooklyn in 1899 to immigrant parents, Capone was
recruited by the
Five Points Gang
in the early 1920s. Capone’s childhood friend,
Lucky Luciano, was also originally a member of
the Five Points Gang.
Capone would rise to control a major portion
of illicit activity such as gambling,
prostitution, and bootlegging in Chicago, Illinois
during the early twentieth century.
Lucky Luciano
A
Sicilian gangster, Luciano is
considered the father of modern
organized crime and the mastermind of the
massive postwar expansion of the international
heroin trade. He is the first official boss of the
modern
Genovese crime family,
and is credited with organizing the American Mafia's ruling
body.
Gambino, Anastasia, and Costello
Carlo Gambino was an influential
gangster in America.
He was born in Palermo, Sicily
but moved to America
at
21. Through his Castellano relatives, he joined the Masseria
Family. While Lucky Luciano was the underboss in the Masseria
Family, Gambino worked him. After Luciano had Masseria killed, he
became the boss and Gambino was sent to the Scalise Family. Later
Scalise was stripped of his rank, and Vicenzu Mangano became boss
until, 1951 when Mangano disappeared.
Albert Anastasia took over the family but
in 1957, Gambino had him killed because he wanted to be boss. From
1961 until he died in 1976 Carlo Gambino was the chairman of the
American Mafia.
Frank Costello was
another influential gangster. He was born in Italy but moved to
America when he was 4 and changed his name from Francesco Castiglia
to Frank Costello when he joined a gang at age 13. He worked with
Charlie Luciano in
bootlegging and
gambling. He also had a lot of political power
which enabled him to continue his business. He became in charge
when Luciano was arrested and he expanded this operation and became
a very powerful man. He decided to step away from the gangster life
and died peacefully in 1973.
See also
References
External links