Al Capone, Chicago And The American Betting Boom Of The Prohibition Period

How 'Scarface' built an empire on both illicit booze and illegal gambling.

On January 17th 1920, the 18th amendment outlawing the distribution and consumption of ‘intoxicating liquors’ came into effect in the United States. With it, America entered the Prohibition era, a period aimed at weaning the country off the alcohol which had been widely and roundly accused of corrupting the moral fabric of the predominantly Christian country.

But like a lot of things designed to do good, Prohibition backfired quite spectacularly. Though alcohol was outlawed, its continued abundance is underlined by the fact that, in the 13 years before the 18th amendment was repealed, the US imported more cocktail shakers than all the world’s other countries combined. America’s dry days also ushered in an age when the gun held sway and a relatively new vice, gambling, swept the country.

It was Chicago – home of one Alphonse Gabriel Capone – where gambling became a particularly big deal. With booze off the menu and financial ruin commonplace in the wake of the Wall Street Crash, blue-collar Chicagoans sought distraction from the hardships of life. And so they made their way to the pool halls, the race track and the speakeasies that had sprung up across town offering a sympathetic ear, illegal hooch, and the opportunity to win a few extra dollars playing cards, roulette or craps.

In the early days, the Chicago rackets were the preserve of men like Mont Tennes, Dion O’Bannion and James O’Leary, true old skool gambling kingpins. As the gangsters grew aware of exactly how much money was to be made through gaming – and of how efficient a way it was to launder illegal earnings – it fell to Al Capone to ‘persuade’ Tennes and O’Bannion to ‘retire’ (the latter via means involving a revolver and a fatal gunshot), so leaving the way clear for ‘Scarface’ to clear up.