From the slot machine trust of the early 1900s to the prolific Prohibition era bootleggers allied with Al Capone, and for decades beyond, organized crime in Chicago Heights, Illinois, represented a vital component of the Chicago Outfit. Louis Corsino taps interviews, archives, government documents, and his own family's history to tell the story of the Chicago Heights 'boys' and their place in the city's Italian American community in the twentieth century.
Debunking the popular idea of organized crime as a uniquely Italian enterprise, Corsino delves into the social and cultural forces that contributed to illicit activities. As he shows, discrimination blocked opportunities for Italians' social mobility and the close-knit Italian communities that arose in response to such limits produced a rich supply of social capital Italians used to pursue alternative routes to success that ranged from Italian grocery stores to union organizing to, on occasion, crime.
Prohibition Era Slot Machine
Prohibition Era Slot Machines
Louis Corsino is a professor of sociology at North Central College.
Prohibition Era Guns
Legendary Dragon Grill was a legacy of Prohibition. In the form of slot machines, poker, dice, and chuck-a-luck. Maceo brothers exemplified the era of fancy supper clubs cum illegal. Windy City slot by Endorphina is a high variance gangster-themed slot set in 1930s prohibition Chicago. Run whiskey, gamble in backrooms and you could win up to 5000x your bet on this 5-reel 10 payline slot.