Al Capone

15 Pages 3628 Words

t was a form of hypocrisy that was second nature to Johnny Torrio and that he taught Capone to honor.”(cited in Bardsley,1998). Torrio moved to Chicago in 1909, which Schoenberg(1998) quotes a prohibition official as calling “the wettest city in the United States” but leaving Capone listless and without a mentor(p.67). Al joined several street gangs after the departure of Torrio including the South Brooklyn Rippers, the Forty Thieves Juniors, and the Five Point Juniors but all were informal adolescent groups that were capable of little more than mischief. His family saw continued success with the barbershop with the only sign of discord being the departure of the families’ oldest son for the frontier of the West. Al lived at home with his family for six more years working in a munitions factory and then at a paper factory but saw his life take a turn towards the criminal again.
Johnny Torrio, Al’s well intending mentor recommended him to Frankie Yale; a man who had gained his reputation based on aggression and violence. Yale was...