On this episode of Our American Stories Al Capone became the most famous gangster in America but Laurence Bergreen argues that his rise would have been almost unimaginable without Prohibition Born to an Italian immigrant family in Brooklyn Capone found his opportunity in the vast underground economy created when the government outlawed alcohol eventually rising to the top of Chicago's criminal world while cultivating the public image of a businessman and local benefactor Bergreen author of Capone The Man and the Era separates the man from the legend tracing Capone's rise his conviction for tax evasion his imprisonment at Alcatraz [... more]

The story of Al Capone, a notorious gangster who rose to fame in the 1920s, is a tale of opportunity, crime, and the corrupting influence of power. Born in Brooklyn to Italian immigrant parents, Capone's family struggled to make a living in a city where they faced prejudice and discrimination. However, with the advent of Prohibition, Capone saw an opportunity to make a fortune by smuggling and selling alcohol. He quickly became one of the most powerful men in Chicago, but his success was short-lived as he was eventually brought down by tax evasion charges. Capone's life was marked by a tragic decline into dementia and madness, a result of his untreated neurosyphilis. His legend has endured, however, and he remains a fascinating figure in American history, a symbol of the excesses and corruption of the Jazz Age. [... more]