THE GANGSTER CHRONICLES

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SUMMARY:
This extraordinary series explores the inside story of the mobsters who ruled the crime empires of America for over 100 years. Whether it is Al Capone, Bugsy Siegel, Lucky Luciano, Dutch Schultz or John Gotti, gangsters have a mystique about them that captures the public's interest.

DOCUMENTARY / CRIMES & DISASTERS, 3 x 60 Minutes, 1999

DETAILED SYNOPSIS:
Whether it’s Alphonse “Scarface” Capone, Charles Lucky” Luciano, Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegal, Meyer Lansky, Dutch Schultz, or even John Gotti, gangsters have a mystique about them that has captured the public’s interest. It is this persona that has kept the world intrigued with the 20th century gangster.

From the establishment of the mob in New York’s Lower East Side - through the lawlessness and growth of the underworld spawned by prohibition - to today’s ruthless bosses, comes the inside story of the mobsters who have ruled the crime empires of America for over 100 years.

This authentic three-video series set explores the mystique, the characters and events that helped create The Gangster Chronicles.

I. The Roaring Twenties - Approx. 60 Minutes Black & White and Color

At the end of World War I, European immigrants flooded into America. The moved into ghettos, rarely able to find decent work, and were generally shunned by the rest of society.

On January 16th, 1920, prohibition went into effect and closed every bar in the nation. Millions of drinkers were suddenly turned into criminals and forced to go underground to satisfy their thirst.

Two young, ambitious first generation immigrants saw an incredible opportunity to provide, for a price, a once legal product to the masses. Their names were Johnny “Papa” Torrio and Alfonse “Scarface” Capone. They were not the first bootleggers and would have some stiff competition, but in the end, Capone would use the thirteen years of prohibition to turn himself into the Godfather of Crime.

II. The Violent Years - Approx. 60 Minutes Black & White and Color

By the end of the 1920’s, the depression had hit America hard, millions were jobless as a result of the stock market crash and thousands more were forced off their farms by the great dust storms in the Midwest. But, for organized crime, the depression was a boon. More and more people were turning to alcohol to try and forget their misery, and the prospect of easy money made illegal gambling extremely popular. As the law finally caught up with Al Capone, many others were ready to take his place. New York gangsters, Meyer Lansky and Charlie “Lucky” Luciano, along with friends like Frank Costello and Bugsy Siegel, helped to forge a more organized criminal empire.

The depression also spawned many criminals who operated independent of Mob control, including kidnapper George “Machine Gun” Kelly, bank robber and murderer John Dillinger, and the infamous duo of Bonnie and Clyde.


III. Crime, Inc. - Approx. 60 Minutes Black & White and Color

As Lucky Luciano and his fellow gangsters continued to spread their tentacles of crime across the nation, Bugsy Siegal went to Hollywood to become the Mafia’s point man out west. Bugsy brought the rackets n the West Coast under mob control, but he also had a big dream that he hoped would turn Nevada sand into mobster gold. Although Bugsy would not live to see his dream come true, his legacy grew, creating the gaudy, money-soaked world of Las Vegas.

With the upswing of gambling in the legal casinos of Nevada and Cuba, money laundering became big business. Rumors of possible CIA involvement in these schemes and several other illegal dealings could never be proven but the links between the two organizations seemed to grow stronger.

As the years passed, a new style of gangster was born in John Gotti. Like “Scarface” Al Capone, Gotti loved to be in the public eye,. Arrested on numerous occasions, he became known as the “Teflon Don” because none of the arrests seemed to stick. The law eventually caught up with Gotti when several friends turned against him, but the mob as it has for over one hundred years, continues on.
Unsurpassed natural beauty and unexpected scenic delights are at every turn. Shot by world renowned aerial camera expert Russ Heinl.

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