American Mafia
Subtitle: A History of Its Rise to Power (John MacRae Books)
Edition: 1st edition
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.; H. Holt
Published: January 6, 2004
Language: eng
Format: Hardcover
Number of pages: 336
ISBN-13: 9780805072105
Subjects: Sociology; United States - 19th Century; Organized Crime; Criminology (Specific Aspects); U.S. History - 20th Century (General); Social Science; History - General History; United States; True Crime / Organized Crime; History; United States - 20th Century; Criminology; Italian American criminals; Mafia
First sentence: One drizzly night in October of 1890, New Orleans police chief David Hennessy was walking home late with his friend William O'Connor.
Description: Thomas Reppetto's vivid narrative describes how crime families from a variety of ethnic backgrounds were shaped by conditions in big cities in the late nineteenth century. Spurred by Prohibition, which exploded opportunities for organized crime, men like Chicago's John Torrio and New York's Lucky Luciano built their organizations along corporate lines, parceling out territories and adopting rules for the arbitration of disputes. Good management and a tight organizational structure enabled Italian gangs to continue operations even when leaders were jailed or rubbed out. American Mafia is a fascinating look at America's most compelling criminal subculture from an author who is intimately acquainted with both sides of the street. - Back cover.

A history of the mafia's rise from the 1880s to the post-World War II era features the stories of Lucky Luciano and Al Capone, noting the role that Prohibition had in the establishment of the mafia's defining characteristics.