The violent, vicious and vindictive mafia bosses in old gangster films have always fascinated movie-goers. The brutal stories and illegal escapades are fantastical tales that never cease to astound. They're ridiculous. Over the top. But one visit to The Mob Museum will show you that the real world of organized crime is even more astonishing than the works of fiction based on them.
The Mob Museum is a Las Vegas staple with the mission to help people understand organized crime's history and the impact it has on modern American society. This is done through exhibits on some of the most infamous gangsters in our country's history, detailing lives filled with power and violence. It may sound macabre, but with 365,000 annual visitors, it's clear that mobsters and the mafia are quite fascinating to the public.
“They're fascinated with how some groups can become so powerful within American society,” said the museum's Content Development Specialist, Jeff Burbank. “They had so much authority with the police, judges, politicians... In the 1920s, one of Al Capone's major monthly expenses was paying off the police so they'd turn their backs on what he was doing.”
His operations consisted of breweries and illegal distribution of alcohol, among many other questionable practices, like murder. At just 24 years old, Capone had taken over the major organized crime groups in Chicago.
“He was ruthless,” said Burbank. “He ordered dozens, if not 100s of slayings, including the St. Valentine's Day Massacre. Someone with that much intelligence, but that much of a criminal mind, is honestly pretty fascinating.”
Al Capone made over $100 million a year, which translates to about $1 billion in today's economy. He was smart, but quite likely a sociopath, said Burbank. To Al Capone, and many other mafia bosses, shooting someone was all about business, nothing more.
Another character at The Mob Museum that stands out to Burbank is Charles “Lucky” Luciano. In 1931, the man started a national organized crime network, which gave him the ability to bring mob bosses from all over the area together. Even when he was convicted for his involvement in brothels in 1936, the united mob bosses stayed loyal to him. All the way up until his death in 1962.
“I was surprised to learn about this,” said Burbank. “It operated like a regular corporation. Before his arrest, Luciano wanted to put together a nationwide chain of brothels. If he hadn't been convicted I don't know how big it wouldn't have gotten.”
A portion of the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre of 1929 exhibit inside the Las Vegas Mob Museum. [Photo/The Vox Agency]
The Game
Some gangsters may have formed a united front, but not everything was peachy in the 1920s mafia world. A major rivalry in the 20s, Al Capone and Bugs Moran both had gangs clashing in The Beer Wars in Chicago. It was a struggle to control the beer breweries and their distribution, and the pressure continued to foam over with conflicts and double-crossing.
“Al Capone had a lot of pressure to keep the operation going,” explained Burbank. “He needed a lot of money coming in to continue paying off his people, the police, mayors, judges... He decided he wanted to eliminate Moran and his higher-up people to take over the operation.”
Al Capone's posse caught wind that Moran would be with some people at a particular location with the plans to highjack a truck filled with illegal liquor. Crazily enough, Capone's people came in dressed as police officers. Moran's men figured it was a typical shake-down, which was no big deal since they knew they could pay off the judges. They cooperated, standing up against the wall. Lucky for him, Moran was late to the meet-up, and was spared from the mass shooting.
Capone's men had opened fire and killed seven people, for what is known as the infamous St. Valentine's Day Massacre.
After newspapers shared the story, complete with men bleeding and their brains all over the wall, the event sent a massive shockwave throughout the country, outraging the public. President Hoover, who was sworn in the next month, immediately took it upon himself to start the Get Capone Campaign.
The Mob Museum proudly displays a good portion of this wall. They also have many of the original bullets, a collection that came from Calvin Goddard, the man who traced the bullets.
“It was used in a pioneering way that Goddard almost single-handled started: The science of ballistics, tracing bullets to guns, like fingerprinting,” explained Burbank.
The Present
“I find this topic fascinating,” said Burbank about his four years at The Mob Museum. “There are always new research projects. Always new things to learn about. Things being debunked or proven.”
While the 1920s speakeasies and gangsters seem a world away, many people would be surprised to learn that organized crime is still very much alive today. In fact, it's bringing in billions of dollars. There's counterfeiting. Human trafficking. Sex trafficking. Many of these topics are also brought up at The Mob Museum.
The museum also has a crime lab where visitors can look into a microscope to study ballistics of their own. There's an autopsy exhibit where you can guess what caused the death. There are exhibits on DNA and fingerprinting. They also have an attraction of sorts where visitors are put in scenarios as a law enforcement officer, and they must decide when to shoot and when not to shoot.
New to The Mob Museum, a converted basement is now a 1920s speakeasy, complete with authentic mixed drinks from the time period. There's also a distillery down there, where people can try the museum's own moonshine and beer.
The Mob Museum is inside a restored 1933 former courthouse and post office building, now serving the community in an entirely different way. The building has continued to evolve, just as organized crime has to this day. The interactive exhibits and displays are always changing, too. But the message is always the same: The world of crime is dangerous. It's scary. But it's too fascinating to look away.