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Sam Maceo
Salvatore V. "Sam" Maceo (; March 1, 1894 – April 16, 1951) was an American business entrepreneur, power broker and racketeer in Galveston, Texas, who controlled both the government and organized crime in the city for almost 30 years. During the 1920s and 1930s, Galveston emerged as a nationally known resort city, because of the gambling, prostitution and free flowing liquor, vices that were offered at the backrooms of restaurants and nightclubs, a period known as Galveston's ''Open Era''. His organization, often called the Maceo Syndicate or the Maceo Organisation, was involved in illegal gambling, prostitution, the numbers racket and bootlegging, and he received substantial income from these activities. At the height of his power, he was able to control both the government and organized crime in the city. Sometimes known as the "Velvet Glove," Sam held considerable criminal and political influence in Southeast Texas and soon expanded his empire throughout the state. D ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Palermo, Sicily
Palermo ( ; ; , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan province. The city is noted for its history, culture, architecture and gastronomy, playing an important role throughout much of its existence; it is over 2,700 years old. Palermo is in the northwest of the island of Sicily, by the Gulf of Palermo in the Tyrrhenian Sea. The city was founded in Isla Palermo 734 BC by the Phoenicians as ("flower"). Palermo then became a possession of Ancient Carthage, Carthage. Two ancient Greeks, Greek ancient Greek colonization, colonies were established, known collectively as ; the Carthaginians used this name on their coins after the 5th centuryBC. As , the town became part of the Roman Republic and Roman Empire, Empire for over a thousand years. From 831 to 1072 the city was under History of Islam in south ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Racketeer
Racketeering is a type of organized crime in which the perpetrators set up a coercive, fraudulent, extortionary, or otherwise illegal coordinated scheme or operation (a "racket") to repeatedly or consistently collect a profit. The term "racketeering" was coined by the Employers' Association of Chicago in June 1927 in a statement about the influence of organized crime in the Teamsters Union.David Witwer, "'The Most Racketeer-Ridden Union in America': The Problem of Corruption in the Teamsters Union During the 1930s", in ''Corrupt Histories'', Emmanuel Kreike and William Chester Jordan, eds., University of Rochester Press, 2004. Specifically, a racket was defined by this coinage as being a service that calls forth its own demand, and would not have been needed otherwise. Narrowly, it means coercive or fraudulent business practices; broadly, it can mean any criminal scheme or operation with ongoing or reoccurring profit, as defined in the 1970 U.S. RICO Act, which aimed to cur ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Casino
A casino is a facility for gambling. Casinos are often built near or combined with hotels, resorts, restaurants, retail shops, cruise ships, and other tourist attractions. Some casinos also host live entertainment, such as stand-up comedy, concerts, and sports. Etymology and usage ''Casino'' is of Italian language, Italian origin; the root means a house. The term ''casino'' may mean a small country villa, Summerhouse (building), summerhouse, or social club. During the 19th century, ''casino'' came to include other public buildings where pleasurable activities took place; such edifices were usually built on the grounds of a larger Italian villa or palazzo, and were used to host civic town functions, including dancing, gambling, music listening, and sports. Examples in Italy include Villa Farnese and Villa Giulia, and in the US the Newport Casino in Newport, Rhode Island. In modern-day Italian, a is a brothel (also called , literally "closed house"), a mess (confusing situation), ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Speakeasy
A speakeasy, also called a beer flat or blind pig or blind tiger, was an illicit establishment that sold alcoholic beverages. The term may also refer to a retro style bar that replicates aspects of historical speakeasies. In the United States, speakeasy bars date back to at least the 1880s, but came into prominence in the United States during the Prohibition era (1920–1933, longer in some states). During that time, the sale, manufacture, and transportation ( bootlegging) of alcoholic beverages was illegal throughout the United States, due to the Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. Speakeasies largely disappeared after Prohibition ended in 1933. The speakeasy-style trend began in 2000 with the opening of the bar Milk & Honey. Etymology The phrase "speak softly shop", meaning a "smuggler's house", appeared in a British slang dictionary published in 1823. The similar phrase "speak easy shop", denoting a place where unlicensed liquor sales were made, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Leesville, Louisiana
Leesville is a city in, and the parish seat of, Vernon Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 5,649 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Fort Johnson South, Louisiana, Fort Johnson South micropolitan area and is additionally served by the Leesville Airport. The city is home to the Fort Johnson (formerly known as Fort Polk) U.S. Army installation. Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and (0.55%) is water. Climate This climate, climatic region is typified by hot, humid summers and mild winters. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Leesville has a humid subtropical climate, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps. Demographics 2020 census As of the 2020 United States census, there were 5,649 people, 2,415 households, and 1,266 families residing in the city. 2000 census As of the census of 2000, there were 6,753 people, 2,841 households, and 1,650 families residing in the city. T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Palermo, Italy
Palermo ( ; ; , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan province. The city is noted for its history, culture, architecture and gastronomy, playing an important role throughout much of its existence; it is over 2,700 years old. Palermo is in the northwest of the island of Sicily, by the Gulf of Palermo in the Tyrrhenian Sea. The city was founded in Isla Palermo 734 BC by the Phoenicians as ("flower"). Palermo then became a possession of Ancient Carthage, Carthage. Two ancient Greeks, Greek ancient Greek colonization, colonies were established, known collectively as ; the Carthaginians used this name on their coins after the 5th centuryBC. As , the town became part of the Roman Republic and Roman Empire, Empire for over a thousand years. From 831 to 1072 the city was under History of Islam in south ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Southeast Texas
Southeast Texas is a cultural and geographic region in the U.S. state of Texas, bordering Southwest Louisiana and its greater Acadiana region to the east. Being a part of East Texas, the region is geographically centered on the Greater Houston and Beaumont–Port Arthur metropolitan area, Beaumont–Port Arthur metropolitan statistical areas with a combined population of 7,662,325 according to the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census. Geography Southeast Texas includes part of the coast of the Gulf of Mexico and most of the Texas portion of the Intracoastal Waterway. The area is also crossed by numerous rivers and streams, the largest three being the Sabine River (Texas-Louisiana), Sabine River, the Neches River, and the Trinity River (Texas), Trinity River. In Southeast Texas and the rest of the Southern United States, small rivers and creeks collect into swamps called "''Bayou, bayous''" and merge with the surrounding forest. The only large bodies of water in Southeas ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rum-running
Rum-running, or bootlegging, is the illegal business of smuggling alcoholic beverages where such transportation is forbidden by law. The term ''rum-running'' is more commonly applied to smuggling over water; ''bootlegging'' is applied to smuggling over land. Smuggling circumvents alcohol taxes and outright prohibition of alcohol sales. Alcohol smuggling today In the United States, the smuggling of alcohol did not end with the repeal of prohibition. In the Appalachian United States, for example, the demand for moonshine was at an all-time high in the 1920s, but an era of rampant bootlegging in dry areas continued into the 1970s. Although the well-known bootleggers of the day may no longer be in business, bootlegging still exists, even if on a smaller scale. The state of Virginia has reported that it loses up to $20 million a year from illegal whiskey smuggling. The Government of the United Kingdom fails to collect an estimated £900 million in taxes due to alcohol smuggling ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Numbers Game
The numbers game, also known as the numbers racket, the Italian lottery, Mafia lottery, or the daily number, is a form of illegal gambling or illegal lottery played mostly in poor and working-class neighborhoods in the United States, wherein a bettor attempts to pick three digits to match those that will be randomly drawn the following day. For many years the "number" has been the last three digits of "the handle", the amount race track bettors placed on race day at a major racetrack, published in racing journals and major newspapers in New York. In the loosest sense of the word “ racket”, the numbers game is a common racket or ongoing criminal scheme among organized crime groups, especially in the United States. Gamblers place bets with a bookmaker ("bookie") at a tavern, bar, barber shop, social club, or any other semi-private place that acts as an illegal betting parlor. Runners carry the money and betting slips between the betting parlors and the headquarters, ca ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gaming Law
Gambling law is the set of rules and regulations that apply to the gaming or gambling industry. Gaming law is not a branch of law in the traditional sense but rather is a collection of several areas of law that include criminal law, regulatory law, constitutional law, administrative law, company law, contract law, and in some jurisdictions, competition law. At common law, gambling requires consideration, chance and prize, legal terms that must be analyzed by gaming lawyers within the context of any gaming operation. Gaming law is enormously complex. In the United States, it involves federal and state law considerations.For federal law, see, e.g., In Canada, it involves federal and provincial law considerations, in a variety of legal disciplines. United States In the United States, each state has its own laws regarding the regulation or prohibition of gambling. States that permit such gaming usually have a gaming control board established to oversee the regulation of the indus ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Maceo Organisation
The Maceo Organization, also known as the Maceo Syndicate, was a criminal organization, that ran Galveston, Texas politically and criminally throughout most of Galveston's open era. The organization's bosses, Sam and Rosario Maceo, operated illegal gambling, prostitution, bootlegging and racketeering activities. Early years The Maceo brothers got their start by being associated with the Beach Gang, which was under the control of Irish American Ollie Quinn and German American Dutch Voight. They mostly controlled the Beach area of Galveston during the 1910s and 1920s. Their gang was a rival of Johnny Jack Nounes and George Musey's Downtown Gang. However, Dutch and most notably Quinn remained very powerful figures on the island due to the many political connections that reached the Texas State Senate. New Regime Soon, Quinn began mentoring Sam and Rosario Maceo. By the late 1920s, as they climbed up the ranks, the two brothers took control and transitioned the Beach Gang in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
