H2: Jewish Gangsters

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Jack Zelig

One of the most notorious criminals on the
lower East side was William Alberts, better
known as Big Jack Zelig. Zelig was born in 1882 to middle
class Jewish parents, but he began his criminal career at the age of only fourteen, when he ran away from home to join a gang of juvenile pick pockets. Zelig never turned down any job of violence and by the age of twenty, he was one of Monk Eastman's prize gunmen. Zelig became the Eastman gang's leader, expanding operations and offering clients a fixed rate for services performed. A Zelig associate gave the police Big Jack's price list:

Slash on cheek with knife $1 - 10, shot in leg $1 - 25, shot in arm $5 - 25, throwing a bomb $5 -$25, Murder $10 -$100.

But Zelig's life was cut short on April 13, 1914. After the killing of Herman "Beansie "Rosenthal, Zelig was hauled in by the District Attorney Charles Whitman and, terrified by the electric chair or a life prison sentence, talked of the illegal activities of his partners. On his release on bail, Zelig was gunned down stepping off a tram car by other members of his gang.

Bugsy Siegel

Bugsy Siegel was a handsome man and a sharp dresser who also pursued a high class life. He rode around in a bullet proof chauffeur driven limousine and was accompanied by two body guards wherever he went. He dined in the finest restaurants and spent his evenings frolicking in night clubs and speakeasies.

Siegel made his money in the gambling rackets. When he visited Las Vegas in 1941 he was struck by its potential as a gambling centre. Few shared his enthusiasm, but Bugsy had a dream. He wanted to own the grandest, most magnificent gambling casino in the world. It would not be just a casino, but a luxurious hotel with a night club, bars, swimming pools, fountains, landscape gardens and the finest service available.

He communicated his enthusiasm to his partners back east and they finally agreed to finance his dream. Siegel opened the Flamingo Hotel in 1946 and from that date Las Vegas grew into the largest gambling city in the entire world. Things did not go so well for Bugsy though. The Flamingo ran into trouble and his partners were frustrated with the profits. They began to suspect that Bugsy may have been cheating on them and when they learnt that Siegal's lover, Virginia Hill, was making regular trips to Switzerland, buying fancy clothes and depositing money in a bank account, the dye was cast. On the night of June 20 1947 Segal was murdered by hit men hired by his "partners". Only five mourners attended his funeral.

Abner "Longy" Zwillman

As a youngster, Abner "Longy" Zwillman earned the gratitude of local Jewish peddlers because he and his gang, "The Happy Ramblers", defended them from assault by Irish thugs. Whenever the Irish came into the Jewish district to create trouble, a cry went up to "Ruff der Langer" (Yiddish for "Call the Tall One") and quick as a flash Zwillman and his pals would stop whatever they were doing and rush to help. As a result Longy had a reputation for helping Jews that stayed with him all his life. Over six feet two inches tall Zwillman got the name "Longy" because he was the tallest kid in his school. Together with his Italian allies, Longy ran Newark from the prohibition era until the 1950s. His influence was so great that he was referred to as the "Al Capone of New Jersey". Zwillman ran one of the biggest and most profitable bootlegging operations in the United States, importing nearly forty per cent of all the illegal alcohol consumed in the United States during prohibition. A customer wanting to but liquor came to Longy's office in Newark, deposited his money, and got a receipt entitling him to a specific amount of whisky. As Zwillman's wealth increased so did his political influence. He developed the pay off into an art, starting with the cop on the beat up to and including prosecutors and judges. The police did not just look the other way when illegal whisky was involved. They often convoyed trucks from the docks to the warehouses to prevent highjackings, and guarded the warehouses where the liquor was stored.

Despite Longy's reputation as a mobster, he always remained sensitive to his Jewish upbringing. When Heimi Kugel, a good friend of Longy's died, Zwillman would not go into the chapel where the casket lay. Heimi's son Jerry could not understand it. He felt hurt, because they knew his father loved Zwillman. After the service, he went over to Longy who was standing outside, and asked him why he did not go into the funeral parlour to pay his respects. "I can't, Jerry," long said. "I'm a Cohen".

Jerry looked confused, until someone standing nearby explained that as a Cohen, a descendant of the ancient hebrew priestly class, Longy was not allowed to be in the same room with the dead body. But Longy's luck ran out. Just as the FBI were compiling information to send Longy to prison for the rest of his life he was mysteriously found hanging from elastic cord in his home in Newark. The investigation into his death was inconclusive, but there were many bruises on Zwillman's body that remained unexplained. Underworld gossip had it that partners of Zwillman were worried that he may "sing" to the police in protection against a life sentence. Gangsters never "wait and see".

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