Join us for this captivating bonus episode where we delve into a lesser-known tale surrounding the infamous Al Capone, brought to us by Paul Moses. In 1925, Capone found himself back in Brooklyn seeking medical attention for his son’s hearing issues amidst a backdrop of gang rivalry and violence. At this time, the Brooklyn waterfront was a hotbed of conflict between Irish and Italian gangs, with Anna Lonergan, a key figure adept at navigating the underworld’s secrets.   The narrative unfolds with the tragic demise of Lonergan’s brother, Ritchie, triggering a chain of events leading to a fateful night at the Adonis Social Club. It was there that a confrontation erupted, culminating in a deadly shootout involving Capone, Frankie Yale, and other gunmen, leaving a scene of chaos and carnage. As details of the incident surfaced, Capone’s involvement drew police attention, yet he managed to evade severe repercussions due to lack of evidence.

Through Paul Moses’ vivid storytelling, we are transported back to a volatile era where alliances shifted and power struggles played out on the gritty streets of Brooklyn. The interactions between notable gangsters like Capone, Johnnie Torrio, Frankie Yale, and Ritchie Lonergan paint a picture of a ruthless yet intriguing underworld landscape. The account of how the Brooklyn waterfront eventually transitioned from Irish to Italian dominance adds another layer of complexity to this enthralling narrative.   As the episode concludes, we reflect on the legacy of figures like Paul Kelly, who straddled the line between criminality and legitimacy, leaving behind a complex and multifaceted legacy. Paul Moses’ expertise in unraveling these historical threads offers a glimpse into a bygone era of crime, passion, and intrigue, shedding light on the intricate dynamics that shaped the underworld of early 20th-century New York.

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Transcript

[0:00]

Bonus Episode Introduction

[0:00]Hey, guys, a little bonus episode here. Paul Moses is back with us, and he’s going to tell us a really interesting, hitherto unknown story about Al Capone. At least I didn’t know it, and I bet a lot of you guys in Chicago didn’t know it. So, Paul, start out telling us, read something out of your book and lead us into that story and then expand on it a little bit, if you will. Well, first of all, people in Chicago surely know that Al Capone came from Brooklyn. On this particular case in 1925, he went back to Brooklyn. It was at a point in his life where his son was dealing with hearing problems, and it was a doctor in New York who Capone felt could take care of it. He was not well-known in New York at all. The newspapers didn’t really catch on to who he was.

[0:45]So we begin with a woman named Anna Lonergan. Her brother is head of a gang called the White Hand, which terrorizes the Brooklyn waterfront. At that point, the Irish gangs had that control and the Italian gangs were moving in. Anna Lonergan knew plenty well what she was supposed to say to reporters or cops, and more importantly, what not to say. She was the newspaper’s queen of the mob, after all, having briefly been married to the leader of Brooklyn’s Irish white-hand gang before his untimely death. She was also sister of his successor, whose own premature death had drawn her and a newspaper reporter to the f...