A picture is worth a thousand words, they say, the latest release from
Arcadia Publishing's 'Images of America' series showcases such
photographic storytelling - this time the focus is Miami and Mobsters.
Where
did all the gangsters go when it was cold and blustery? Where it was warm of
course, and Avi Bash's new book Organized Crime in Miami covers
everything from the 'land boom' of the Roaring Twenties to the
flow of both liquor and mobsters that drenched 'Magic City.'
Bash,
a lifelong resident of Miami and longtime collector/researcher of
organized crime history and relics, filled the 127 page book with rare photographs
and documents culled from his own collection, all detailed and accompanied by fascinating anecdotal
information. The narrative takes readers through the who, what, why and
when of the underworld's foray into the tropical paradise.
Interestingly,
Bash points out that although it was Al Capone's vacation presence that
garnered much of the world's attention on an underworld presence in the
region - in reality, vice lords had been there for quite some time.
Not only did Big Al bring on a hurricane of media attention, but he also
often brought in his cronies from Chicago, New York and beyond. This
wasn't all rest and relaxation of course, and as Bash demonstrates
through mugshots and arrest reports - most of these guys were operating
the gambling empire both in Miami and nearby Cuba.
Among the 191 amazing photographs in Organized Crime in Miami,
readers will see a very rare Benjamin 'Bugsy' Siegel mugshot, family
photos of various mob associates (Meyer Lansky's brother Jake for
example), and stunning examples of the architecture from Capone's Palm
Island estate to the majestic Biltmore Hotel where Thomas 'Fatty' Walsh
was gunned down.
