In 1940 and 1941 a group of ruthless gangsters from Brooklyn's Brownsville neighborhood became the focus of media frenzy when they-dubbed "Murder Inc.," by New York World-Telegram reporter Harry Feeney-were tried for murder. It is estimated that collectively they killed hundreds of people during a reign of terror that lasted from 1931 to 1940. As the trial played out to a packed courtroom, shocked spectators gasped at the outrageous revelations made by gang leader Abe "Kid Twist" Reles and his pack of criminal accomplices.
News of the trial proliferated throughout the country; at times it received more newspaper coverage than the unabated war being waged overseas. The heinous crimes attributed to Murder, Inc., included not only murder and torture but also auto theft, burglary, assaults, robberies, fencing stolen goods, distribution of illegal drugs,
and just about any "illegal activity from which a revenue could be derived." When the trial finally came to a stunning unresolved conclusion in November 1941, newspapers generated record headlines.
Once the trial was over, tales of the Murder, Inc., gang became legendary, spawning countless books and memoirs and providing inspiration for the Hollywood gangster-movie genre. These men were fearsome brutes with an astonishing ability to wield power. People were fascinated by the "gangster" figure, which had become a symbol for moral evil and contempt and whose popularity showed no signs of abating. As both a study in criminal behavior and a cultural fascination that continues to permeate modern society, the reverberations of "Murder, Inc." are profound, including references in contemporary mass media.
The Murder, Inc., story is as much a tale of morality as it is a gangster history, and Murder, Inc., and the Moral Life by Robert Whalen meshes both topics clearly and meticulously, relating the gangster phenomenon to modern moral theory. Each chapter covers an aspect of the Murder, Inc., case and reflects on its ethical elements and consequences. Whalen delves into the background of the criminals involved, their motives, and the violent death that surrounded them; New York City's immigrant gang culture and its role as "Gangster City"; fiery politicians Fiorello La Guardia and Thomas E. Dewey and the choices they made to clean up the city; and
the role of the gangster in popular culture and how it relates to "real life." Whalen puts a fresh spin on the two topics, providing a vivid narrative with both historical and moral perspective.

Murder, Inc. and the Moral Life: Gangsters and Gangbusters in La Guardia's New York tells the story of the notorious 1930s Brooklyn gang nicknamed "Murder, Inc" and offers an extended moral reflection on the phenomenon of gangsters.

About the Author
Robert Weldon Whalen is Professor Emeritus of History at Queens University of Charlotte. His publications include Murder, Inc., and the Moral Life: Gangsters and Gangbusters in La Guardia's New York (Fordham); Sacred Spring: God and Modernism in Fin-de-Siecle Vienna; "Like Fire in Broomstraw": Southern Journalism and the Textile Strikes of 1929-1931; Assassinating Hitler: Ethics and Resistance in Nazi Germany; and Bitter Wounds: German Victims of the Great War.

Reviews
"Murder, Inc., and the Moral Life: Gangsters and Gangbusters in La Guardia's New York is a keen account of organized crime during the first half of the twentieth century. Most significant is the book's integral, cogent analysis of the unfortunate marriage of criminality, in all of its diversity, and the general population's fascination with it. A must-read for anyone interested in the complex story of gangsterism in the United States!" -- -Anthony Julian Tamburri Dean, John D. Calandra Italian American Institute "In Murder, Inc. and the Moral Life, Robert Weldon Whalen connects the real gangsters to the 'reel' gangsters and the forces that shaped and fought them. He explores our fascination with the gangster figure through the moral and ethical questions that helped to shape American culture for the past one hundred years. With sound research, good clear writing, and a critical sense of history, Whalen adds new dimensions to the study of this truly unique American archetype of crime and masculinity." -- -Fred Gardaphe Distinguished Professor of English and Italian American Studies, Queens College/CUNY and author of From Wiseguys to Wise Men



Book Information
ISBN 9780823271559
Author Robert Weldon Whalen
Format Hardback
Page Count 288
Imprint Fordham University Press
Publisher Fordham University Press