Boardwalk Empire: The Birth, High Times, and Corruption of Atlantic City

Several political leaders whose efforts in the public arena throughout the 1980s and ’90s complimented the dynamism of people like Goldberg, Trump, and Wynn are James Usry, William Gormley, and James Whelan. Despite differences in politics and styles, each, in their own way, worked to keep Atlantic City moving forward.

James Usry was part of the last wave of Blacks drawn from the South to Atlantic City’s hotel industry. Born in Athens, Georgia, in 1922, Usry’s family came north shortly after his birth. He was a soldier in World War II, serving in a famous segregated unit, the “Black Buffaloes.” An outstanding athlete, he played for a short time with the “Harlem Globetrotters.” A graduate of Atlantic City High School and Lincoln University, Jim Usry devoted most of his career to education. As a teacher and school administrator, he touched the lives of thousands of local children.

Usry had been a community leader for years prior to making his first run for political office in 1982. He lost to Michael Matthews in a bitterly contested election. Following Matthews’ indictment, Usry was elected Atlantic City’s first African-American mayor in the recall election of 1984. Re-elected to a full term in 1986, Jim Usry’s agenda was Atlantic City’s residents. As stated by the Press of Atlantic City at the time of his death:His legacy is found in the daycare facilities, the youth centers, and the new housing complexes that dot the city—even though many of those improvements were built after he left office. He was the one who sent the message: Atlantic City’s residents cannot be passed by.

Jim Usry’s tenure as mayor was scarred by bribery charges arising out of the “COMSERV” investigation in 1989. COMSERV was a seriously flawed state “sting operation,” long on press releases and short on hard evidence. Usry eventually pled guilty to a minor campaign finance violation and was defeated in his re-election bid in 1990 by James Whelan.

Jim Whelan, a genuine Democrat (not an Atlantic City “Republicrat”), came to city politics by a different route. A native of Philadelphia, he vacationed in Atlantic City during the summer and as a teen became a lifeguard on resort beaches. After completing college at Temple University, where he was an All-American swimmer, Whelan relocated to Atlantic City and was hired as a teacher and swimming instructor in the local school system. Through his involvement with both students and parents, he built a strong network of supporters. In the ’80s he was elected twice to City Council, where he was often a lone voice of reason. During his several terms as mayor beginning in 1990, Jim Whelan displayed uncommon political courage in leading a city divided by race and petty factions. He is the first post-Farley era mayor to govern effectively. During Whelan’s three terms in office, whole portions of the city were transformed. His integrity and maturity place him in a class apart from political types. Atlantic City’s debt to Jim Whelan is a large one.

The third player who has had a key role in beginning the rebuilding of Atlantic City over the past 20 years is State Senator William Gormley. Bill Gormley is steeped in city and county Republican politics. He is the son of the late Atlantic County Sheriff Gerald Gormley, a loyal lieutenant in the Republican organization under both Nucky Johnson and Hap Farley. Gormley is a graduate of Notre Dame and Villanova Law School. Despite the makings of an attorney, politics and government are his profession. As a legislator, con-ciously or not, he emulates Hap Farley. Regardless of his aspirations for higher office, he’s been successful at exploiting his relationships in the state capitol to Atlantic City’s benefit. In the 20 years he has been in Trenton, Bill Gormley has earned the respect of every key player in the State House. In the time he has served as Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, he has grown into one of the most powerful public officials in New Jersey. He should continue to be a force in both Trenton and Atlantic City.

Working together throughout the ’90s, Gormley and Whelan provided not only the leadership but the vision and political will to get things done. Whelan was the mayor Gormley needed as an ally and the city needed as a leader in order to begin rebuilding the resort. And the rebuilding has begun.

The numbers speak for themselves—casino gambling is a success. The annual gross win by Atlantic City’s 12 casinos compares well with that of the more than 50 casinos in Las Vegas, with the Atlantic City take exceeding $4.3 billion annually. Since the coming of casinos, nearly 50,000 new jobs have been created in a county with a total workforce of just over 80,000 in 1977. The casinos have spurred nearly $7 billion in new construction, increasing the property tax base from $295 million in 1976 to nearly $8 billion in 2002. More than 11,000 new first-class hotel rooms have been constructed. The property taxes paid by the casinos to Atlantic City’s government now total approximately $165 million per year, representing nearly 80 percent of local tax revenues. Additionally, the casinos provide funding of approximately $340 million annually for seniors and, to date, more than $700 million has been paid into a fund for public improvement loans administered by the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority. Finally, more than 30 million people will visit Atlantic City this year. Not even Sanford Weiner would have dared to predict those kinds of numbers.

What does the future hold? In one critical way, today mirrors the past. Atlantic City remains a town with a singular purpose for its existence—to provide leisure time activities for tourists. As ever, the economy is totally dependent on money spent by out-of-towners. Visitors must leave happy. If they don’t, they won’t return. And getting them to return frequently requires a lot of effort and imagination.

The attractions available to lure leisure-time dollars generally, and gambling in particular, have increased dramatically during the past 25 years. From Native American Reservations (Foxwoods Resort Casino in Connecticut is now the largest casino in the world) to riverboat operations, casino gambling has swept across the country. When state-run lotteries are thrown into the mix, competition for the gambling dollar is everywhere. But, the public is fickle, and the history of gambling reveals an ebb and flow in its popularity. There’s good reason to believe that Atlantic City and Las Vegas will have the greatest staying power as gambling resorts. Nevertheless, if Atlantic City’s growth is to continue and the local economy remain vital, it must become more than a gambling resort.

Atlantic City must transform itself into a destination for more than day-trippers by bus and car. And that is a large task. Surveys show that few people consider Atlantic City as a place to “vacation” but, rather, merely a place to gamble, have dinner, see a show, and return home. If they stay overnight, it’s usually a single evening. Major changes are needed to shatter that image. The new Convention Center is an important building block in broadening the resort’s economic base, but many more hotel rooms are needed to attract the large national conventions and trade shows. Equally important to the convention trade and new hotel rooms is air transportation.

The resort will never be more than Philadelphia’s Playground, dependent on the northeast region, until it is able to support an airline providing regularly scheduled national air service. To date, the most striking failure of Atlantic City’s casino operators has been their inability to cooperate with one another in either attracting a major airline or sewing the seed money and financial guarantees for a start-up to provide service to the major metropolitan regions of the country. The casino operators seem more intent on competing with one another for day-trippers and bus patrons than joining together to expand their base nationally. It’s difficult to understand why, after 20-plus years of success, the major casino players have been unable to work together to establish air transportation service. If they continue to wait for a solution to come from government, the resort will never have dependable airline service and this town’s horizons will remain limited.

Admittedly, the airline industry is no place for amateurs, especially since the events of September 11, 2001. The costs and perils are enormous, but they aren’t insurmountable. Their success on other issues demonstrates that if Atlantic City’s 12 casinos join together and make a concerted effort, the resort would, in short order, have an airline providing service nationwide. Whether by means of the formation of a financial consortium to underwrite an air carrier’s initial losses or pledges to purchase a given number of seats, filled or not, regularly scheduled air service is within the resort’s grasp. The only ingredient missing is the collective will of the gaming industry to make it happen.

The political will needed to propel Atlantic City forward can only come by means of a consensus among casino executives, political leaders, and the community, generally. But achieving a broad consensus to provide continuing direction and an enlightened plan for the future is difficult in this town because of its past.

Atlantic City has yet to adjust fully to life without political corruption. Hap Farley’s defeat was more than the collapse of a political machine—it was the end of an era. Under Farley and his predecessors, the political ward system was Atlantic City’s dominant institution. For nearly a century, it was the prime means for distributing constituent services and political power and operated more by consensus than bossism. Ward politics was akin to a social compact, and its actions were respected by the entire community. It was the thread that united the city. The passing of the political ward system marked the end of effective government in Atlantic City. The Republican machine was corrupt, ruthless, and greedy, but it got the job done. At its worst, it extorted money from anyone who came into contact with city hall and obstructed needed reforms. At its best, the Kuehnle-Johnson-Farley regimes were responsive to individual needs of their constituents and, surprisingly, more often than not, provided able leadership on issues important to the city.

If constructed properly, Atlantic City would be served well by a new partnership comparable to the one forged at the beginning of the 20th century by Louis Kuehnle with the hoteliers and the local vice industry. This time around, it could be a structured dialogue between city, county, and state officials with representatives of the gaming industry. If it is to work, the initiative must come from the casinos. The reality is that the casino industry is the dominant institution in the new Atlantic City. It is obliged to assume a greater leadership role and must make the affairs of government, and the community generally, a priority. There are many bright, informed, and energetic people employed by the casinos. Because upward of three-fourths of them reside outside of Atlantic City, they believe they have no real say in the city’s affairs. But that doesn’t mean they can’t or shouldn’t.

The casinos must work together not only to further their own agendas but that of the greater Atlantic City community as well. They must make their voices heard in Atlantic City’s neighborhoods and the region’s schools, as well as city hall and the State House. Each casino could select representatives who would educate themselves on city, county, and state government and, correspondingly, begin educating public officials on the peculiarities and needs of their business. These delegates can’t be upper echelon executives—they change too often—rather, they should be chosen from among mid-level managers and ordinary employees whose positions aren’t subject to corporate takeovers and palace coups.

These casino delegates could meet regularly among themselves and designate agencies of government and local organizations to whom they would serve as liaisons. By becoming informed on the full range of government and community issues and meeting regularly with local decision makers, the casino delegates could, with much effort, but in a short time, begin the dialogue and create the partnership that Atlantic City needs if it is to flourish.

There’s no reason Atlantic City can’t flourish as a community as well as a tourist destination. The two aren’t incompatible. While there were those who predicted Atlantic City would become an adult theme park with no room for families, the past decade has proven otherwise. Through the cooperation of the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority, city hall, and the casinos, many blighted areas of the city have been demolished and thousands of affordable units have been built to house local residents and casino employees. Despite the many high-paying jobs in the casino industry, the average worker earns barely $30,000 per year. If affordable housing and public transportation are available, many of those workers would choose to live in Atlantic City and their quality of life and, with them, that of the entire community and the region would be improved. Small but important steps in the right direction have already occurred. While Atlantic City as a community is a long way from being restored to the vitality it once had, tangible progress is being made. The pace may not be to everyone’s liking, but given the fact that Atlantic City had been deteriorating for nearly 40 years prior to casino gambling, it’s unrealistic to think redevelopment should be occurring more quickly.

In the past 25 years casino gambling has transformed a squalid little city on the verge of oblivion into one of the largest tourist attractions in the world. The profits, jobs, total investment, and tax revenues generated from gambling to date far exceed the early estimates of even the most optimistic proponents in 1976. While there are some original supporters who are disappointed, they should know—given the resort’s past—that nothing but the legalization of gambling would have revived this town’s fortunes. Had the ’76 Referendum been defeated, Atlantic City would have continued to deteriorate and sink further into despair. Critics of the casino industry can drive up the Garden State Parkway to Asbury Park to see what would have become of Atlantic City without gambling. It would have been a grim existence for anyone left behind. Absecon Island would have become desolate in a way its early developers could never have envisioned.

Jonathan Pitney’s beach village remains an experiment in social planning grounded in tourism. The new Atlantic City is in partnership with corporate America’s hotel and recreation investors, a fact that the residents have yet to grasp fully. Once the community and the casino industry appreciate their relationship and understand their respective roles, Atlantic City will be positioned to reach full bloom. Working together, the experiment will succeed.

AFTERWORD

Wesley Hanna had been anticipating the implosion of the Sands Casino Hotel for weeks. Eccentric but brilliant in a mix that is disarming, Wes is the type of guy to get excited contemplating the demolition of a 21-story, 500-room hotel. A recent graduate of Rutgers Law School, Wes was spending most of his waking hours serving as a law clerk to a Superior Court Judge. That brought him to Atlantic City daily, and he became mesmerized by the town’s quirkiness. Wes was taken by the contrast of the competing realities and quickly sized things up. “The city has a culture of naked reality, while the casinos are a place where reality exists under many layers of lipstick and rouge.” His instincts told him that watching the destruction of a casino hotel would be much fun. Upon learning the date for the Sands’ implosion—October 18, 2007—Wes calendared it as if he and his fiancée Patty were going to a party.

When Wes arrived at the Boardwalk that Thursday night, he was tickled by the festive atmosphere. Throngs of local residents, hotel workers, peddlers, and escapists (in other words vacationers) crowded onto the Boardwalk, all hoping to be part of a history-making event. Wes took it all in. “It was an escapist crowd but VIPs were being ushered around and street performers were out in force. A guy impersonating Frank Sinatra won the contest for eyes and tips. You could tell people were there solely for the spectacle of seeing the building come down.” It was a hodgepodge of humanity: young, old, black, white, brown, yellow, executive, and blue collar. People were dressed in everything from formal business attire to cut-off jeans. Some spectators wore face masks hawked by vendors to counter the expected dust. Everyone was enjoying themselves except Sands’ employees and loyal gamblers, who were sad to see the building go.

Pre-demolition fireworks paid for by Pinnacle Entertainment, which was to build a new mega-casino, washed the area in bright flashes of light, while a public address system blared Sinatra crooning “Bye Bye, Baby.” Shortly after 9:30 PM, Governor Jon Corzine and Pinnacle chairman Daniel Lee—who was celebrating his 51st birthday—pushed a wooden-handled plunger attached to a wire leading to the building, igniting strategically placed explosives. Seventeen deafening booms, seconds apart, followed the first explosion. Less than ten seconds after the final detonation, the massive structure groaned and began collapsing on itself. The falling concrete, steel, and glass emitted a roar, with dust floating out in all directions.

Wes’ trip to Atlantic City met his expectations in ways he hadn’t figured on. “The event had the vibe of any other casino spectacle—until it happened. When it did, there was no denying it was real. The explosions were real. The building really went down. The skyline really was different. The Sands really was no more. And a crowd accustomed to phony spectacles was genuinely stunned. Then, the people and the dust scattered—and Atlantic City went back to business.”

Business, for Pinnacle’s people, meant carting away the debris and clearing several adjoining properties. When they were done, Dan Lee and company had a total of 19 acres of oceanfront property between Indiana and Kentucky Avenues. A huge open expanse in the heart of the Boardwalk was ready for new construction. The plan was to erect a $1.5 billion Las Vegas-style, world-class hotel resort to compete with the new Borgata Hotel Casino and Spa, which had opened in Atlantic City’s marina section in 2003. Joe Weinert of the trade publication Gaming Industry Observer termed Pinnacle’s venture the “talk of the town.” He predicted that within four years the site would be transformed into “a master-planned masterpiece stretching from the Boardwalk to Pacific Avenue.” With gaming analysts pronouncing the arrival of a “building renaissance,” Atlantic City was on the march—or so everyone wanted to believe.

Not accounted for were two obstacles capable of causing the town to stumble on its grand march into the future: one looming, the second ever-present.

Within months following the Sands implosion, “Wall Street laid an egg”—so said economic historian Niall Ferguson. Much has been written, and more will be, by scholars such as Ferguson, Paul Krugman, Robert Reich, and Michael Lewis. Nothing said here can add to their insights. Suffice it to say that Atlantic City’s gaming industry—along with many others—didn’t see the burst of the credit bubble coming. The turmoil in the financial markets will hinder growth locally and may push several casino properties into bankruptcy. Many observers believe that the over-leveraging of our nation’s economy, which was many years in the making, will take as long to resolve. Welcome to the new normal. Farewell to the Pinnacle.

Ever-present, but often ignored, is the “naked reality” of just how much work remains to be done to rebuild Atlantic City. Thirty-four years after the 1976 gambling referendum much of the town looks as drab and dismal as it did before the casinos came in. For portions of the population and segments of the city, it’s as if gambling never happened.

While the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority has funded important housing and commercial projects re-invigorating sections of the city, only one development—The Walk/Atlantic City Outlets—has been a game changer. In many parts of town the deterioration that started in the 1960s continues undeterred. There has yet to materialize a sustained effort to rebuild the entire city into a clean, safe, first-rate resort. For the past thirty-plus years, it’s been a hit-or-miss, piecemeal effort.

Numerous buildings that had fallen into disuse pre-casino gambling still haven’t found a purpose, and no one seems to know whether to permit them to continue standing or demolish them and create yet another empty lot. A threshold question to begin valuing any city’s real estate is to ask, “If the building occupying a site were to burn down, would the owner rebuild?” By that standard, large portions of Atlantic City have a meager value. A recent editorial in The Press of Atlantic City, commenting on real estate eyesores, suggested to local readers, “Drive through the city with a fresh set of eyes, see it for the first time as visitors do, and these buildings cast a bleak and ugly pall over the city trying to market itself as a glitzy, vibrant, always turned on resort.”

Two knowledgeable observers whose profession is to investigate and report on events in Atlantic City cast their cold eye in this direction to help assess where the resort stands today. If newspapers are the “first draft of history,” then investigative reporters Donald Wittkowski and Michael Clark are first-rate historians of the casino and political worlds that dominate today’s Atlantic City. Wittkowski spends his days scrutinizing every aspect of the casino industry. Clark’s beat is City Hall, and he probes for answers to the puzzle of local government.

Wittkowski finds no virtue in subtlety. “Atlantic City blew it. It enjoyed a monopoly as the only casino city east of the Mississippi for 14 years, yet squandered that time by failing to develop the jaw-dropping, Vegas-like attractions that would ensure gambling customers would keep coming back for more. Only one new casino was built from 1990 to 2003, an astonishingly long lull. Profits rolled in like waves from the ocean, so casino operators felt no pressure or need then to invest in rebuilding the city.”

With profits down, Wittkowski fears that more properties may go the way of the Sands. “Atlantic City gaming revenue has plummeted 25 percent, from a peak of $5.2 billion in 2006 to $3.9 billion in 2009. No one knows when it will finally hit bottom. Inevitably, there will be a shake-up. Vanishing profits, competition, and a still-fragile economy will force weak casinos to close.” Wittkowski believes a turnaround is possible but it will take many years and require committed leadership from both the casino-hotel industry and City Hall.

Clark’s take on City Hall is every bit as unsettling. “City Hall has been a place where potential goes to die. Whether newly elected officials with promises of change or a project to revitalize a neighborhood, the promises broken here reverberate throughout the city. And in all the discussions about combating the city’s challenges from growing gambling competition, local government’s problems are no longer part of the conversation. They’re accepted as an unavoidable fact, the That’s-City-Hall-for-you excuse.”

As Clark notes, “City Hall’s failings have a major affect on Atlantic City’s hopes to be a premier resort. The city has one of the highest ratios of employees to population in the country—a direct product of the endless cronyism that has dominated City Hall since the early 20th century. The mantra continues like a drum beat, ‘How do I get my piece?’ With so much money tied up in salaries, there’s little left for infrastructure, which continues to slip into disrepair.”

Wittkowski’s and Clark’s assessments may be grim but they aren’t surprising.

From this observer’s perspective, the challenges facing the resort are just history playing out. Atlantic City remains an experiment in social planning. Today, as was true when Jonathan Pitney founded his resort more than 160 years ago, the only reason for the town’s existence is to provide leisure-time activities for visitors. Today as then, repeat business by vacationers and conventioneers is critical, but the heady days of the 1990s when the casino industry was like a money factory are gone. One needs look no further than the empty Pinnacle site—19 acres sitting idle—to see that things have changed.

Also true today, as it was in the era of Nucky Johnson, is that this city has yet to embrace the customs and practices of most local governments for the exercise and transfer of power. Nucky’s legacy of machine politics has been replaced by an endless free-for-all among politicians hoping to be the next boss, who use the city’s payroll to swell the ranks of their supporters. Despite its corruption, the “Boardwalk Empire” of the Kuehnle/Johnson/Farley machine delivered essential municipal services in a competent manner. That can’t be said today.

Complacency is fatal for a town like Atlantic City. Keeping the experiment prospering and re-imagining an empire (this time a partnership of community leaders and casino-hotel interests) requires each generation of leaders to develop a vision for accomplishing the town’s singular mission.

All the pieces for a “renaissance” are here: the mighty Atlantic Ocean, beautiful beaches, the world famous Boardwalk, easy access by more than one-fourth of the nation’s population, a modern convention center, a first-rate entertainment venue in Boardwalk Hall (part of Nucky’s complex legacy), institutions of higher learning eager to share their knowledge, the building trades required to finish reconstructing the town, and most important, a skilled hotel workforce capable of making a hotel-resort economy operate with grace and efficiency. The only pieces missing from a formula for success is enlightened leadership and a sense of urgency, the likes of which propelled the adoption of the 1976 gambling referendum. When those two pieces emerge, Atlantic City will be on its way to once again becoming a premier resort destination.

SOURCE NOTES

To avoid cumbersome footnotes interspersed throughout the text and still provide the reader with my sources, I have utilized the practice of reference to particular passages by page number, here at the end, rather than with breaks in my narrative. Hopefully, it will be easier on the reader’s eye. These Source Notes list the personal interviews, newspapers, magazines, books, public records, studies, journal articles, and treatises that were the most influential in shaping my perspective on Atlantic City’s history.

Due to personal and professional commitments, my research spanned two decades. Within a short time of beginning my interviews I quickly realized that I was in a race against death. So many of the key players were along in years that I feared I might never get to the most knowledgeable persons. I was fortunate to speak with as many as I did. More often than not, repeat visits were necessary. Sometimes these additional visits were to confirm what other persons had said, other times to test the accuracy of my perspectives as they evolved. Interestingly, some key people opened up to me only after several visits. The more some people knew of what I had learned, the more willing they were to talk to me. A few, like Dick Jackson and Murray Fredericks, initially spent most of the time asking questions and didn’t answer many of mine. They were testing me. As Dick Jackson said at the beginning of our third meeting, “Now that I know you’ve done your homework and are serious about this, we can talk.”

Prologue

The vignette of the housewife/summer laundress and her visit with Nucky in his suite at the Ritz is based upon an interview with Mary Ill, long-time Atlantic City resident, active in local politics and charity groups, before the Great Depression and the social welfare programs that it spawned. Mrs. Ill’s story was confirmed and recounted by several other persons with tales of similar incidents.

Chapter 1: Jonathan Pitney’s Beach Village

The “early” history of Atlantic City was fun to research. There are surprisingly good sources available at the Heston Room of the Atlantic City Library and at the Atlantic County Historical Museum in Somers Point.

1 enjoy civil and religious liberty … taken from a biographical sketch written by Allen Brown entitled, Jonathan Pitney, M.D.: Fifty Years of Progress on the Coast of New Jersey (Daily Advertiser Printing Company, 1848).

2 The description of “Further Island” found at pp. 2–3 relies, in large part, on the work of Sarah W.R. Ewing and Robert McMullin, Along Absecon Creek: A History of Early Absecon, New Jersey (C.O.W.A.N. Printing, 1965) and William McMahon’s work in So Young … So Gay!, (South Jersey Publishing Company, 1970).

5 “Railroad to Nowhere” was a term used many times contemporaneously with Pitney’s efforts and by several historians. See S.W.R. Ewing and R. McMullin, Ibid., and Arthur D. Pierce’s work on the Richards Family, which was a powerhouse in South Jersey for several generations, Family Empire in Jersey Iron: The Richards’ Enterprises in the Pine Barrens (Rutgers University Press, 1964). The chapter entitled “Railroad to Nowhere” pp. 225–240 is an excellent recount of Samuel Richards’s efforts in making Jonathan Pitney’s dream a reality.

7 … looked like a bank president … A.D. Pierce, Family Empire, p. 226.

8 The initial investors in the Camden and Atlantic Railroad are discussed by A.D. Pierce, Ibid., p. 228.

9 … a weird, wild look, a veritable desert … These first-hand observations are of Richard Osborne, the civil engineer who laid out the Camden and Atlantic Railroad, speaking at its 25th anniversary dinner in June 1879. S.W.R. Ewing and R. McMullin, Ibid., p. 135.

10 The profits made on early land sales are detailed by John F. Hall in The Daily Union History of Atlantic City and County, New Jersey (Daily Union Printing Company, 1900) p. 187.

11 A terrible Northeast storm … S.W.R. Ewing and R. McMullin, Ibid., p. 142.

11 manifest destiny … W. McMahon, Ibid., p. 38.

11 … Finally, a bit after 9 A.M. … A.D. Pierce, Ibid., p. 230.

12 desolate succession of pine trees … S.W.R. Ewing and R. McMullin, Ibid., p. 145.

13 When I wanted to stop the train … S.W.R. Ewing and R. McMullin, Ibid., p. 145.

13 greenhead flies … A.L. English, History of Atlantic City, New Jersey, (Dickson & Gilling, 1884) pp. 70–72.

14 Prior to 1864 … A.L. English, Ibid., p.75.

15 Unpropitious times… S.W.R. Ewing and R. McMullin, Ibid., p. 179.

16 … brought in by ships from Baltimore … A.D. Pierce, Ibid., p. 236.

Chapter 2: The Grand Illusion

20 The fare was … A.L. English, Ibid., p. 154.

22 … swiftness in constructing new hotels … W. McMahon, Ibid., Chapter V, “Hotels of the Boardwalk” pp. 117–152.

23 … many establishments used the term “cottage” … An analysis of boardinghouses versus hotels is found in the work of Charles E. Funnell, By the Beautiful Sea, The Rise and High Times of That Great American Resort, Atlantic City (Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. 1975) pp. 34–35. Despite its limited focus, Funnell’s book is an excellent work. I recommend it to anyone interested in early Atlantic City. Notwithstanding the fact that it was originally a doctoral dissertation, it is more accessible to the reader (and more accurate) than some of the earlier histories. Funnell’s work is one of the first serious histories of the resort, written without rose-colored glasses. Mr. Funnell died while still a young man. It would have been interesting to learn his thoughts on Atlantic City today.

24 … Perfect health … W. McMahon, Ibid., p. 57.

25 … endless panorama … Alfred M. Heston was Atlantic City’s all-time cheerleader. He wrote a series of “hand-books” spanning 1887 to past the beginning of the 20th century and beyond. The handbooks were entitled, Illustrated Hand-Book of Atlantic City, New Jersey, published by A.M. Heston and Company. Heston’s handbooks were widely circulated by the railroads throughout the entire country.

25 … absence of art! Quote from letter written by Walt Whitman in 1879.

25 … No snow on the Boardwalk … W. McMahon, Ibid., p. 80.

26 Boardman opened the meeting … W. McMahon, Ibid., pp. 70–74.

28 … something colossal about its vulgarity. The New Baedeker: “Casual Notes of an Irresponsible Traveler,” September 1909.

30 … envy of his customers … The career of Captain John Lake Young is discussed at length by W. McMahon, Ibid., pp. 159–166.

31 President Ulysses S. Grant. Grant’s visit to the resort was recalled by Mary Ill in an interview conducted by the author. She quoted her father’s friend, Al.

Chapter 3: A Plantation by the Sea

Pulling together the pieces for a coherent history of Atlantic City’s African-American community was a challenge. In my opinion, it was a story that cried out for proper treatment. I hope I succeeded. I realize that there may be some who will be offended by the title of this chapter. I consider it an apt description of the way things were.

Understanding the African-American experience in Atlantic City is critical if one is to have a true picture of the resort. Without the Black community, Atlantic City, as we know it, would never have come to be. The resort was founded at a point in time when Philadelphia was emerging as a major industrial power. For a decade and more before the American Civil War, and for two to three generations thereafter, Philadelphia boomed as an industrial employment center. It may be hard to grasp today, but at the time, Philadelphia’s factories gobbled up nearly every available able-bodied White worker who wasn’t a farmer in the region.

Late 19th-century hoteliers within the orbit of Philadelphia’s economy had no choice but to recruit Black workers from the South. Without newly freed slaves from the Upper South, there would have been no one to service hotel patrons. Remove the affordable labor of African-Americans from early Atlantic City and it would have remained a beach village.

I have high regard for the excellent work and thorough research of Professor Herbert James Foster and relied heavily on his work. I believe the African-American experience in Atlantic City warrants a book unto itself. Hopefully, that will occur.

35 … cooly told them … Herbert James Foster, The Urban Experience of Blacks in Atlantic City, New Jersey: 1850–1915. (Written in partial fulfillment of the requirements for doctor of philosophy, graduate program in History, Rutgers University, 1981). See p. 38, citing U.S. Department of Commerce and Labor, Federal Writers Project.

36 Negroes are servants … W. E. B. Du Bois, Dark Water (Schocken Books, New York, 1920); reprint ed., 169, p. 115.

37 … artisans dwindled to only a handful. E. Franklin Frazier, The Negro in the United States (Macmillan, 1957), p. 165.

37 … 4 percent of that city’s population. E. Franklin Frazier, Ibid., p. 596.

37 By 1915, 50 years after the Civil War … H. J. Foster, Ibid., p. 60.

39 … highest paid at the time … H. J. Foster, Ibid., p. 101.

40 … “by the dump,” or “back of the hill” …The Negro in New Jersey, report of a survey by the Interracial Committee of the New Jersey Conference of Social Work in Cooperation with the NJ State Department of Institutions and Agencies, December 1932.

41 Unlike many other cities … H. J. Foster, Ibid., p. 141, note 12.

41 Time, time is the great cure-all … Samuel Lubbell, White and Black, Test of a Nation, (Harper & Row, 1964) p. 15.

43 “Down by the Sea Shore – Atlantic City,” Philadelphia Inquirer, July 23, 1900, p. 1.

45 The Negro Church … survived slavery. W. E. B. Du Bois, Some Efforts of American Negroes for Their Own Betterment (Schocken Books, 1898) p. 4.

45 … Du Bois argued … resentment of the stolen people. W. E. B. Du Bois, The Negro Church (Schocken Books, 1898) p. 5.

45 invisible institution … George F. Bragg, History of the Afro-American Group of the Episcopal Church (Schocken Books, 1922).

47 … shouting … E. Franklin Frazier, Ibid., p. 355.

48 A cornerstone of their church doctrine … H. J. Foster, Ibid., p. 198.

49 Among them were the Northside Board of Trade … H. J. Foster, Ibid., p. 202, citing U.S. Department of Commerce and Labor, Federal Writers Project.

50 Engine Company #9 … held the city record for efficiency six years in a row. Interview with Richard Jackson.

51 This young man is right. H. J. Foster, Ibid., p. 219.

52 … separate play yards … H. J. Foster, Ibid., p. 221.

52 The employment of colored teachers … Annual Report of the N. J. Board of Education, 1903, p. 93.

53 The few local Black physicians there were … H. J. Foster, Ibid., p. 201.

Chapter 4: Philadelphia’s Playground

Despite Atlantic City’s promotion of itself as the “World’s Playground,” Atlantic City was and is a creature of Philadelphia. Throughout its history, the Philadelphia Metropolitan Region has looked to Atlantic City as a place to go for a no-holds-barred good time. And in turn, Atlantic City has looked to Philadelphia not only as a prime source of patrons, but as the “big city,” where one would go to handle important matters, whether they be medical, financial, legal, or educational.

In some ways, Atlantic City was to Philadelphia what Coney Island was to New York. However, the relationship was and is more complex, and unlike Coney Island, Atlantic City was more remote geographically and had a very strong identity of its own. Coney Island was a resort within a city. Despite its dependence on Philadelphia, Atlantic City was a bustling little city all to itself.

55 What community would hail …Philadelphia Bulletin, August 2, 1890.

56 Do you gentlemen realize …Philadelphia Bulletin, August 10, 1890. Atlantic City was a favorite target of the Philadelphia Bulletin. The newspaper frequently published scolding editorials that began each summer season and trailed off with the coming of fall.

56 Excellent material on 19th-century Philadelphia and its emergence as a major industrial power and urban center is found in Philadelphia: A 300 Year History edited by Russell F. Weigley, (W.W. Norton & Company, 1981).

59 If the people who came to town had wanted Bible readings… Interview with Murray Fredericks, Esquire. Murray Fredericks’s family moved to the resort from New York City in 1905. As long-time associate in the practice of law (they were not “partners”) and adviser to Hap Farley, Murray knew where “the bones are buried.” It was a privilege to know him. I’m honored that he was so candid with me.

60 As to gambling houses …Philadelphia Bulletin, August 7, 1890.

61 “Newspaper is what you wrap fish in.” Interview with Richard Jackson.

61 It has been impossible to get indictments …Philadelphia Bulletin, August 13, 1908, pp. 1, 4.

61 Governor Fort’s “Proclamation” was published by the Philadelphia Bulletin on page 1, August 27, 1908.

62 The “Atlantic City Manifesto,” in reply to Governor Fort’s proclamation was printed by the Bulletin on September 8, 1908, p. 11.

65 The source of Kuehnle’s power … See “The Rise and Fall of Kuehnle,” Literary Digest, December 27, 1913, pp. 1285–93.

68 “the rawest ever known in the country” See Literary Digest, Ibid.

70 “The domination of politics by corporation-machine alliances had reached its full flower.” David W. Hirst, Woodrow Wilson, Reform Governor, (D. Van Nostrand Company, 1965) p. 33.

71 Harvey took it upon himself … D.W. Hirst, Ibid. p. 5.

72 The report of the Macksey Committee is discussed in the Literary Digest, Ibid.

75 entrapment by “Mr. Franklin.” See Literary Digest, June 29, 1912.

77 The Commodore served his time without complaint. Interview with Mary Ill.

Chapter 5: The Golden Age of Nucky

79 There I am driving along … Interview with Joseph Hamilton, bus driver and backup chauffeur. I owe my chance opportunity of meeting him to my dear friend, Lou Testa, who provided physical therapy treatments to Mr. Hamilton prior to his death.

80 The personal sketches of Smith and Virginia Johnson are based on interviews with Mary Ill and Richard Jackson. By all accounts, Smith and Virginia were quite a force in early Atlantic City.

81 “Mabel Jeffries … Nucky just adored her.” Interview with Mary Ill.

82 “My father said … he was a changed man.” Interview with Mary Ill. Mary was the only person who possessed any reliable knowledge of Nucky’s relationship with Mabel. She claims Mabel was his one true love and that he would likely have been a very different man had she lived.

82 “Running for election was beneath a real boss.” Interview with Richard Jackson.

83 Nucky Johnson “owned” the Black vote … Interviews with Richard Jackson and Murray Fredericks.

83 “With Nucky … You paid or he shut you down.” Interview with Murray Fredericks, Esquire.

84 “Edge was a stuffed shirt, but he knew where to go … Nucky Johnson.” Interview with Joseph Messick, Professor of South Jersey History at Atlantic Community College. Joe was a wealth of information on the history of southern New Jersey. I had the privilege of serving with him on the Atlantic County Board of Chosen Freeholders.

85 “Can you imagine that …” Interview with Richard Jackson.

86 “I make my money by supplying a public demand.” John Kobler, The Life and World of Al Capone, (G. P. Putnam’s Sons 1971). See p. 157.

86 “Prohibition didn’t happen in Atlantic City.” Interview with Murray Fredericks, Esquire.

87 “Everybody helped out. If you worked for the city …” Interview with Richard Jackson.

87 “You gotta understand, nobody did it the way we did here.” Interview with Murray Fredericks, Esquire.

89 “There never really was a second political party in Atlantic City … everyone was on the same team.” Interview with Richard Jackson, confirmed by many, including Patrick McGahn Esq., Lori Mooney, Mildred Fox, and Harold Finkle Esq.

93 “I went to my first World Series with Nucky … He sure knew how to have a good time.” Interview with Murray Fredericks, Esquire.

94 The quote by the retired detective was made to me by a friend of Richard Jackson who requested anonymity.

96 “Remember, there aren’t any cemeteries in Atlantic City—it’s an island.” Interview with Richard Jackson.

97 The futile efforts of the Committee of One Hundred were reported on by Jack Alexander in “Boss on the Spot” in The Saturday Evening Post, August 26, 1939.

99 The “Seven Group” and Nucky Johnson’s involvement with Lucky Luciano is discussed in “Boss on the Spot,” Ibid.

100 A hurried call to Nucky Johnson … Martin A. Gosch and Richard Hammer, The Last Testament of Lucky Luciano, (Little, Brown and Company, 1974).

101 1 told them there was business enough … Kobler, Ibid., p.265.

102 The story of Nucky’s kidnapping by Tony “the Stinger” Cugino was reported on seven years later by Alexander Kendrick in the Philadelphia Inquirer on May 19, 1939. Despite the span of time between the incident and Kendrick’s news article, it is a credible story, especially given the company that Nucky kept.

Chapter 6: Hard Times for Nucky and His Town

The story of the investigation into Nucky Johnson’s empire, his indictment, and conviction are an epic. This chapter attempts to capture that story and relies on the formal report prepared by William E. Frank, the Special Agent assigned to lead the investigation. The report is entitled, “The Case of Enoch L. Johnson, a Complete Report of the Atlantic City Investigation.” Prepared by William E. Frank, Special Agent, Intelligence Unit, Treasury Department, and Joseph W. Burns, Special Assistant to the U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey. Notwithstanding the title, and the fact that it was written by FBI Agents, it’s an entertaining read.

Securing hard evidence on Nucky was a difficult task for the FBI. The agents faced many obstacles. The resistance was broad-based and represented most of the community. They received virtually no cooperation from anyone with knowledge of how Nucky’s empire was organized. As you read the report, you can feel the growing anxiety and near paranoia as they move closer to Nucky and are frustrated by rampant perjury and jury tampering. But for Joseph Corio’s carelessness it’s likely the FBI would never have had the evidence needed to obtain a conviction. The report is exciting stuff. I recommend Agent Frank’s report to anyone interested in the “nuts and bolts” of what it took to convict Nucky Johnson. The Report was completed in 1943. It is referred to hereinafter as Report of W. E. Frank.

103 The confrontation between Nucky Johnson and Ralph Weloff was recounted to the author by Richard Jackson’s friend, a retired Atlantic City detective. He also told me that it was in the lobby of the Ritz that Nucky first made acquaintance with James Boyd. Boyd was Nucky’s protégé on administering the operations of the Republican organization. He got his start as a bellhop at the Ritz. This fact was confirmed by several persons.

104 “Losin’ Prohibition really hurt …” Interview with Patrick McGahn, Esquire, relating events told to him by his father.

104 “A bartender I knew … all that trouble over a broad.” Interview with Richard Jackson, confirmed by Patrick McGahn, Esquire. Rumors, and the myth that grew out of them, that “Two Gun Tommy Taggart” was somehow behind the charges against Nucky are without basis. Taggart was a loyal player in the Republican organization and despite his ambition, he would not have done anything to undermine Nucky’s power.

105 “Hearst was tight with FDR …” Interview with Richard Jackson, confirmed by Patrick McGahn, Esquire. Hearst’s newspapers had been critical of Nucky for years. And it’s true that they had more than one confrontation during the times Hearst was in town. With Nucky’s and Hearst’s fondness for the ladies what it was, the story of Hearst’s involvement is credible.

105 The wide-open nature of Atlantic City’s gambling operations is discussed in the Report of W. E. Frank, pp. 24–30.

105 The discussion of the details of the investigation into Nucky’s organization is derived from the Report of W. E. Frank.

110 “Joe Corio surprised everybody …” Interview with Murray Fredericks, Esquire.

111 The discussion of the details of the investigation into Nucky’s organization is derived from the Report of W. E. Frank.

113 The whores hung in there—they were tough old girls.” Interview with Richard Jackson.

113 Nucky was Boss because he delivered … Interview with Murray Fredericks, Esquire.

114 Only the very best people went to Babette’s … Interview with Mary Ill.

115 “If you went to the corner store … a business wrote numbers.” Interview with Richard Jackson.

116 The quote from Special Agent Frank at Report of W. E. Frank, p. 60.

121 “We admit that we received money … we did not report for taxes.” Walter Winne as quoted in Report of W. E. Frank, p. 136.

122 “Nucky sure knew how to throw a party.” Interview with Mary Ill.

Chapter 7: Hap

When I began my research, I perceived Hap Farley as a corrupt political boss who had contributed to the fall of Atlantic City. I quickly learned that my uninformed assessment of Farley’s career was naïve and that he could not be dismissed so easily. Frank Farley was a complicated person. There is no doubt he was deeply involved in the workings of a corrupt organization. He couldn’t have become and remained the boss any other way. But Hap was also a skillful legislator, tireless public servant always looking to improve his community, and a loyal friend. In many ways, he was a role model for an aspiring politician. Any attempt to measure him outside of the system in which he worked yields an incomplete portrait.

The transfer of power from Nucky Johnson to Frank Farley is a complex story involving many players. It required many interviews and follow-up discussions, after learning another piece to the puzzle, in order to confirm important details and pull together the entire story. In writing this portion of Chapter 7, I relied on the differing perspectives of both players and observers as told to me by Richard Jackson, Murray Fredericks, Frank Ferry, Robert Gasko, Bill Ross, Skinny D’Amato, Mary Ill, Florence Miller, Lori Mooney, Harold Finkle, and Patrick McGahn. I believe I’ve told the complete story.

126 “What can I say? He liked boys, young boys.” Interview with Paul “Skinny” D’Amato. Skinny D’Amato was an Atlantic City original. He was proud to have been a protégé of Nucky’s and had fond recollections of him. My interview of Skinny took place in his bedroom, in late afternoon, with him still in pajamas. He was in poor health at the time, and I have his nephew Paul D’Amato to thank for arranging the meeting.

126 “What you had was a solid organization man.” Interview with Murray Fredericks, Esquire.

127 “If your uncle got locked up for being drunk … the ward leader would make sure he wasn’t convicted.” Interview with Richard Jackson.

127 “Here, take care of these.” Interview with Richard Jackson.

127 Taggart thought “everything was up for grabs …” Interview with Paul “Skinny” D’Amato.

130 “… Despite his politics, Hap thought that Nixon crowd were fools.” Interview with the Honorable John Sirica. During my research, I learned that Farley and Judge Sirica had graduated from Georgetown Law School the same year. I wrote to him and asked if he recalled Hap. Much to my pleasant surprise I learned they had maintained their relationship over the years via telephone.I interviewed Judge Sirica by phone. He loved talking about Farley and recalled what a great athlete Hap was. The judge laughed frequently, reminiscing about their many conversations over the years. Judge Sirica was the classic raconteur. He had an idiosyncratic figure of speech that he used frequently and which you wouldn’t expect to hear from such a learned person, “don’t cha see?” that was both disarming and endearing. Talking to him over the telephone was a treat. I can only imagine what it would have been like to have him over for dinner.

130 “Whatever you do, do it thoroughly or don’t touch it.” This quote is from “A Conversation with a Politician,” an interview of Hap Farley by Robert Hughey and Chick Yaeger. The interview was conducted several years before Farley’s death and is an excellent piece of oral history. It’s on videotape and is on file at the Library of Stockton State College. Anyone interested in Farley’s career should view it.

130 “Hap was one of those kind, when you’re gonna do something, you’re gonna do that and nothing else.” Interview with Murray Fredericks, Esquire. Dick Jackson and many others confirmed that from the moment you encountered Hap there was no mistaking his seriousness of purpose when it came to Atlantic City politics. There was nothing casual about a political alliance with Hap Farley. He wasn’t forgiving. If you betrayed him ever, or disappointed him one time too many, the alliance was over permanently.

131 “Hap’s people were poor, and the Feyls always thought their daughter was too good for him.” Interview with Mary Ill. I have Bill Ross to thank for introducing me to Mrs. Ill. She was a delightful person and a wealth of information, not just about Farley but about Johnson and Kuehnle as well. Mary grew up with Hap and taught him how to dance. She met him in Philadelphia on weekends while he was a student at the University of Pennsylvania. They went to dance halls that charged a “dime a dance” to be on the floor. When they were teenagers, at his prompting, she passed love letters between Hap and Honey during their early courtship.

131 “Honey was an alcoholic for as long as I knew her … It was like that most nights.” Interview with Joseph Hamilton, confirmed by Mary Ill and others.

133 “He was as smooth a glad-hander as ever lived …” Interview with Richard Jackson.

135 “Ripper Resolutions.”Atlantic City Press, May 22, 1942.

135 Farley’s representation of George Goodman was a skillful move in his efforts to succeed Nucky. I learned about it from Patrick McGahn, Esquire, and it was confirmed by Murray Fredericks, Esquire.

136 The discussion of Farley’s career as a legislator in Trenton is in substantial part the product of an interview with his colleague, Senator Wayne Dumont of Phillipsburg, Warren County. Senator Dumont was a gentleman from the old school. His bond with Farley was strong one, forged over many years of working together as legislators. He credited Farley with arranging to have Richard Nixon appear in New Jersey when the Senator ran, unsuccessfully, for governor. I met with Senator Dumont in his law office, and we had lunch together. He took his dog with him everywhere, including lunch. At one point in the interview he became tearful when reminiscing about his personal fondness for Hap Farley.

140 “Hap’s agenda was always first.” Interview with Senator Wayne Dumont.

145 Kefauver’s Committee produced … Final Report of the Special Committee to Investigate Organized Crime in Interstate Commerce, pursuant to S. Res. 202 (81st Congress) August 31, 1951.

147 “Farley could never cultivate the Blacks the way Johnson had.” Interview with Richard Jackson.

148 The several quotes concerning Jimmy Boyd’s role in Farley’s organization are based on an interview with Richard Jackson, confirmed by Bill Ross and Murray Fredericks, Esquire.

151 “It was a strict system … you’d have to wait until there was.” Interview with Richard Jackson.

151 The system guaranteed that “if you were going to move up …” Interview with Richard Jackson.

151 The story of Richard Jackson’s career is based on interviews with him. In hindsight, I now realize he should have been interviewed on videotape, as Hughey and Yaeger did with Farley. It would have been a valuable piece of oral history. I consider it a privilege and an honor to have known him.

Chapter 8: The Painful Ride Down

155 The incident regarding the photo of the dog—without Farley—was told to me by Frank Ferry, Esquire. Hap and Ferry were very close, comparable to father and son. He smiled sardonically as he told the story. There was no mistaking that Frank Ferry felt Hap had been treated badly in his final years.

157 Today, aside from the conventioneers …Time magazine. August 31, 1964.

160 Hotel services broke down … Theodore H. White, The Making of the President, 1964, (Antheneum Publishers, 1965) at p. 290. As noted by White, more than 5,000 newspersons descended on Atlantic City in August 1964 for the Democratic National Convention. Instead of a marker on the road back, the Convention was a public relations disaster. The reports published and broadcast throughout the nation destroyed what was left of Atlantic City’s aura and revealed it for the beat town it was.

160 Never had a town … T. H. White, Ibid., p. 291.

161 Of Atlantic City it may be written: Better it shouldn’t have happened … T. H. White, Ibid., p. 289.

163 Baker vs. Carr, 369 U.S. 186, (1962) was followed by a second U.S. Supreme decision, Reynolds vs. Sims, 377 U.S. 533, (1964). These two decisions dictated the ruling that Haneman and his colleagues on the New Jersey Supreme Court had to make on legislative districting in New Jersey.

163 “There comes a time in the career of practically every judge … Justice Vincent Haneman in his separate opinion in the decision of Jackman vs. Bodine, 43 N.J. 453, 205, A. 2d. 713 (1964). Justice Haneman’s opinion is a lesson in the history of New Jersey’s bicameral legislature. Haneman eloquently traced New Jersey’s history from colonial days when the province was divided into East and West Jersey. He explains that New Jersey had always had an upper and lower house in its legislature with representation in the senate being “based upon territory as distinguished from population.” Each time the State Constitution was revised, this practice was preserved. Justice Haneman’s concurring opinion is really an “unanswerable dissent.” Despite the persuasiveness of Haneman’s opinion, my hunch is his real audience wasn’t his brethren on the Court or the legal community but rather his old friend, Hap Farley. The opinion is a tribute from one old warrior to another.

165 “Farley was scared to death of Marvin.” Interview with Patrick McGahn, Esquire.

167 “If they want to pay …Atlantic City Press, August 9, 1968.

170 “… in need of more enlightened leadership …”Atlantic City Press, November 13, 1970.

171 Hap Farley was “very pleasant” … Interview with Patrick McGahn, Esquire.

172 The story of Farley’s defeat in the ’71 election is based upon interviews and conversations with Richard Jackson, William Ross, Robert Gasko, Murray Fredericks, Esquire, Frank Ferry, Esquire, Patrick McGahn, Esquire, Lori Mooney, Harold Finkle, Esquire, and others.

Chapter 9: Turn Out the Lights

175 The vignette of the prostitute is based upon an interview with Paul “Skinny” D’Amato.

177 “How could you get anyone … to share a bathroom?” Interview with Richard Jackson.

178 “It was our only hope … becoming a ghost town.” Interview with Mildred Fox.

180 “Governor Brendan Byrne has said he is receptive to a referendum … Public approval is regarded as certain.”Atlantic City Press, January 6, 1974.

181 “The state can expect to profit very little …”Atlantic City Press, December 19, 1973.

182 The governor suggested that gambling should be limited to Atlantic City. Interview with Steven Perskie.

183 “I am concerned that the very same interest …”Atlantic City Press, October 17, 1974.

184 “I am concerned with the future of Atlantic City …”Atlantic City Press, October 16, 1974.

184 The quote of the Vineland Times Journal is from “Another Public Conning” by Ben Leuchter, reprinted by the Atlantic City Press on May 23, 1974.

Chapter 10: A Second Bite at the Apple

187 I was personally acquainted with Lea Finkler. This was one of many incidents she related to him in her inimitable anger and disgust.

191 The challenge, when Weiner took it on … Jeffrey Douglas, “The Selling of Casino Gambling,” New Jersey Monthly, June, 1977.

193 “She said she’s made her last speech …”Atlantic City Press, July 13, 1976.

197 … real power in the corporation … Gigi Mahon, The Company That Bought the Boardwalk (Random House, 1980) p. 57.

198 Mary Carter Paint was in the gambling business. Gigi Mahon, Ibid., pp. 65–83.

204 The CBS-TV news editorial was broadcast on February 28, 1979.

Chapter 11: It’s a New Ballgame

207 “The little jerk is finally going to get what he deserves.” Patrick McGahn, Esquire. Pat McGahn nearly chortled whenever he spoke of “Mayor Mike” and his troubles with the law.

209 “Mike Matthews was a creep …” Interview with Ralph Palmieri.

209 “Michael loved the glitter …” Interview with Harold Finkle, Esquire.

211 The comments concerning Jerome Zarowitz and Alvin Malnik are taken from the Opening Statement of the Division of Gaming Enforcement (DGE) made at Caesar’s Licensing Hearing on September 9, 1980.

211 The statements regarding Clifford and Stuart Perlman were contained in the DGE’s Opening Statement of September 9, 1980, and were reported in a page 1 news article in the Atlantic City Press, September 19, 1980.

213 The findings of the Casino Control Commission were memorialized in its formal opinion denying licensure, NJCCC Docket #80-CL-1 In the Matter of the Application of Boardwalk Regency Corp. and the Jemm Company for Casino Licenses, opinion, p. 35, (“Accordingly, Clifford Perlman is not qualified.”).

214 The discussion of Bally’s licensure is contained in the DGE’s report to the CCC entitled, “Report to the Casino Control Commission with regard to the Application of Bally’s Park Place, Inc., a New Jersey corporation, for a Casino License and the Application of Bally Manufacturing Corporation, a Delaware corporation, for a Casino Service Industry License,” dated 8/4/80.

214 The comments regarding Gerardo Catena were taken from the DGE’s report of 8/4/80.

220 I must note … reporting to the chairman. Walter “Bud” Reed, Chairman of the CCC, quoted by the Press of Atlantic City, September 20, 1986.

Chapter 12: The Donald Comes to Town

225 Fred Trump was a master builder and genuine real estate mogul. While he had his critics, he was a critical player and positive force in meeting the housing needs of a growing New York City. Without Fred’s fortune, the Donald would have played in a different league. There’s been much written on both Trumps. My thumbnail sketch of Fred’s career is based on news accounts and Gwenda Blair’s book, The Trumps: Three Generations That Built an Empire (Simon and Schuster, New York, 2000), pp. 118–122,154.

226 Trump’s arrival in Atlantic City and his early moves as a local player were carefully observed and reported on by Daniel Heneghan, while a staff reporter with the Press of Atlantic City, prior to assuming his position of director of information for the Casino Control Commission. Dan is a wealth of information. I relied heavily on his knowledge and expertise.

235 The profile of Arthur Goldberg is based on my personal knowledge and a feature article, “King of Craps” in Barron’s, August 1999.

239 The statistics on Atlantic City’s success to date were confirmed by Daniel Heneghan relying on numbers compiled by the Casino Control Commission.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Nelson Johnson, whose family’s presence in Atlantic County predates the founding of Atlantic City, is a lifelong resident of Hammonton, New Jersey. He practiced law for 30 years and was active in Atlantic City and Atlantic County politics through much of that period.

As attorney for the Atlantic City Planning Board at the time of the approvals for many of the casinos, Johnson was inspired first to make sense of Atlantic City and later to write an objective political history. The interviews, research, and writing involved in preparing Boardwalk Empire span nearly two decades. Johnson is currently a Judge of the New Jersey Superior Court, sitting in the Civil Division of Atlantic County.

Johnson’s follow-up to Boardwalk Empire is The Northside: African Americans and the Creation of Atlantic City, coming in November 2010 from Plexus Publishing, Inc.

INDEX

A

Abbott, Bud

Absecon Boulevard

Absecon Island

early land purchases

Leeds settlement

original landscape

Pitney’s vision for

revival of

rising land values

Absecon Lighthouse

“Absegami”

Academy of the Sacred Heart

Ackerman, Harold

Adam and Eve group

Adonis, Joe

African-American community

artisans

Atlantic City wages

change in voting attitude

churches

domestic work and

Nucky Johnson and

home ownership

hospitality industry jobs

housing

infant mortality

Jackson’s popularity

“Jim Crow” laws and

migration

percentage of population

Republican Party and

secret societies

social structures

tuberculosis rates

Usry’s election as mayor

airlines

airports

alcohol

Brooks Law

in casinos

Prohibition

Allen, Franklin

Allen, Levi

Altman, Joe

Anti-Saloon League

A. P. Miller, Inc.

Apollo Theatre

Applegate, John

Applegate’s pier

aquarium

Arctic Avenue

Arkansas Avenue

Atlantic Avenue

cows herded on

decline

economy

Northside boundary

strolling along

Atlantic City and Shore Company

Atlantic City Brewery

Atlantic City Hilton

Atlantic City Police Department

Atlantic City Press

Atlantic City Race Track

Atlantic City Review

Atlantic City School

Atlantic City Seven

Atlantic City Yacht Club

Atlantic County, origin of

Atlantic Plaza Hotel Casino

automobiles, impact of

B

Babette’s

Bacharach, Harry

Bader, Charles

Bader, Edward

Bahamas

Baird, David Jr.

Baker v. Carr

Baldwin Locomotive Works

ballrooms

Bally Entertainment, Inc.

Bally Manufacturing Corporation

Bally’s Park Place Casino Hotel

Baltic Avenue

Baptist churches

Barron’s

Bath and Turf Club

bathhouses

Berkely Hotel

Berle, Milton

Bernhardt, Sarah

Bernstein, Abe

Berry, Dorothy

Bethel African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church

Biggs, Judge

Bishops’ Law

Black Horse Pike

Blacks. See African-American community

Blaine, Buck

Blenheim Hotel

Blue Laws

Blue Pig, The

Board of Trade

boardinghouses

Black employment

decline

growth

tourist economy and

volume of business

Boardman, Alexander

Boardwalk. See also specific hotels; specific people

decline

early commercialization

first

rebuilding of

Boardwalk Convention Center

Born, Ray

Bowman, Thomas

Boy Scout Troops

Boyd, James (Jimmy) “Boydie”

Breakers Hotel

Bremer, Frederika

bribes

Briggs, Frankland

Brooks Law

Brown, Benjamin

Brown, G. Michael

Brown, Raymond

Bryan, William Jennings

Budd, Thomas

Burdick, Lester

Burns, William J.

Businessmen’s League

Byers, Lyman

Byrne, Brendan

C

Caesar’s Palace

Caesar’s World, Inc.

Cahill, William

Cain, C.M.

Camden-Amboy Railroad

Camden-Atlantic Land Company

Camden-Atlantic Railroad

Campbell, Luther

Cape May, New Jersey

competition from

evolution of

prior to 1820

Capone, Al

“Captain.” See Young, John Lake

Carmack, James

Carmany, George

carousels

carriages, horse-drawn

Case, Clifford

Casey, William

Casino Control Act

Casino Control Commission

Casino Reinvestment Development Authority

casinos. See also gambling; specific casinos; specific people

1974 Casino Gambling referendum

1976 Casino Gambling referendum

annual gross

application costs

Commodity Exchange Act

employment by

legislation

location

marketing

private ownership

Catbird, The

Catena, Gerardo

CBS News

Cellini, Dino

Central Passenger Railway Company

Chalfonte Alley

Chalfonte-Haddon Hall

Chalfonte Hotel

Chamber of Commerce

Charles L. Bader and Company

Chase, Rupert

Chasens, Melvin

Cherchesky, Scott

Cherry, William I.

Cherry and Lockwood

Chessler, Louis

Chicago Strike Force

churches, African-American

civil service jobs

Civil War

Clark, Austin

Clark, Leo

climate, marketing of

Cliquot Club

Club Harlem

coal

Coats, M. E.

Cohan, George M.

Cohen, Samuel

Coin-Op

Colgate, Austin

Collier, Willie

“colonizing” voters

Colored Excursion Days

Columbus Park

Comly, Samuel

Committee of One Hundred

Committee to Rebuild Atlantic City (C.R.A.C.)

Commodity Exchange Act

“Commodore.” See Kuehnle, Louis

Commodore Hotel

COMSERV

concrete, reinforced

Congregational churches

Congressional Government (Wilson)

Connecticut Avenue

Conover, Daniel

Conover, Warren

Convention Center

Convention Hall

Cooper, James

Cooper’s Ferry

Corio, Joseph A.

“Corner.” See Kuehnle’s Hotel

“Corridor”

Costello, Lou

country clubs

cows

Crosby, Jim

Cuba

Cugino, Tony “The Stinger”

Curcio, Michael “Doc Cootch”

Cuthbert, William

D

D’Amato, Paul “Skinny”

Davis, Irving “Jack”

Davis, Kate

Democratic Party

African-American community and

Farley and

growing organization

Hudson County

National Convention

Patrick McGahn and

Dennis Hotel

Dewey, Thomas E.

DiGiorgio Corporation

DiMaggio, Joe

Division of Gaming Enforcement

domestic work

Donahue, James

Donnelly, Louis

Doughty, Enoch

Dresler, Marie

Drew, John

Du Bois, W. E. B.

Dumont, Wayne

E

Easter Parade

Economic Research Associates

Edge, Walter

Edison, Thomas

education

discrimination in

tax reform and

Edwards, Clinton

Edwards, Edward I.

Elks

Elsinore Atlantis Casino Hotel

Emancipation Proclamation

Engine Company

Episcopal churches

Essex County Republicans

Excise Commission

excursion houses

F

Farley, Francis Sherman “Hap”

1943 election

background

on casino gambling

decline of

interest in politics

McGahn and

rise of

State Capitol power

Farley, Jean

FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation)

Chicago Strike Force

Corio and

gambling investigation

Matthews and

Palma Boys Social Club

Post Office Building

Seven Group and

Uniform Crime Report

Federal Model Cities Program

Feinberg, Ed

Ferry, Frank

Feyl, Marie “Honey”

Fiedler, James

Finkler, Lea

fire department

Dick Jackson and

Engine Company

Jim Farley and

Republican Party contributions

Truck Company

Fischer, David

Fitzgerald’s Auditorium

500 Club

Flamingo Casino

Fletcher, George

Flipping, Cora

Flipping, John

“floaters”

Forge restaurant

Fort, John

Foster, Herbert J.

Four Horsemen

Fourth Ward

Fourth Ward Republican Club

Fowler, Caroline

Fowler, Rebecca

Fox, Mildred

Fox Manor

Fox Realty

Foxwoods Resort Casino

Frank, William

Frank Farley Marina

Frazier, E. F.

Friedman, Zendel

Frontier Hotel

Furhman, Joseph

Further Island

G

Gaines, Harry

gambling. See also casinos; numbers game

1974 Casino Gambling referendum

1976 Casino Gambling referendum

Cape May

estimated revenue

FBI investigation

grass-roots social activism

legalization efforts

World War II and

Garden Hotel

Gardner, John

Garfield, James

Genovese crime family

Globe Theater

Gloucester County

Gold, Ralph

Goldberg, Arthur

Golden Inn

Golden Nugget

Goldenberg, Clarence

Goldstein, Jonathan

Goodman, George

Gordon, Waxy

Gormley, Gerald

Gormley, William

Graham, Edward

Grand United Order of True Reformers

Grant, Ulysses

Grant Avenue

grass-roots social activism

Great Building and Loan Association

Great Depression

Great Egg Harbor River

Green, Abe

Green, Irving

greenhead flies

Gribbin, Francis

Griffin, Merv

Groves, Wallace

Gulf Stream, marketing of

Guzik, Jake “Greasy Thumb”

H

Hague, Frank

Hamilton, Joe

Haneman, Howard “Fritz”

Haneman, Vincent

“Hap.” See Farley, Francis Sherman “Hap”

Harding, Warren G.

Harper’s Weekly

Harrah’s Marina Hotel Casino

Harris, Mel

Hartford, Huntington

Harvey, George

Hayday, William

Hayes, Helen

Hayes, Rutherford B.

Headly, Harry

health benefits, marketing of

healthcare, discrimination in

Hearst, William Randolph

Helfant, Eddie

Herbert, Victor

Heston, Alfred M.

Hilton, Barron

Hilton, Conrad

Hilton Hotels Corporation

Hoff, Max “Boo Boo”

Hoffman, Harold G.

Hog Island

Holiday Corporation

Holiness churches

Holte, Henry

home ownership

horse-drawn carriages

horse race betting rooms

horse rooms

hospitality/recreation industry. See also African-American community

Black employment

construction of hotels

decline of

labor needed for

types of hotels

wages

Hotel Men’s Association

Hotel Rudolph

Hottentot, The

housing shortage

Houston Complex, Inc.

Howard Johnson’s Regency Hotel

Howe, Elias

Hudson County

Hudson County Boulevard Commission

Hudson County Democrats

Hudson County Traffic Court

Hughes, Howard

Hyatt Hotel chain

Hyland, William F.

I

ice cream monopoly

Independent Order of Good Samaritans

Indiana Avenue

Indiana Avenue School

industrialization

infant mortality rates

insects

Intercity Beauty Contest

Intertel

Irish immigrants

iron manufacturing

iron rail supply

IRS

Italian immigrants

Izes, Bernard

J

Jackman, Christopher

Jackman decision

Jackson, Richard “Dick”

Jackson, Robert H.

Jeffers, Lindley

Jeffries, Mabel

Jeffries, Walt

Jethro Memorial Presbyterian Church

Jewish immigrants “Jim Crow” laws

Johnson, Enoch “Nucky”

acquittal

Bader and

birth

conviction

county treasurer’s office

daily schedule

death

generosity of

hard times for

IRS and

jury selection

Keuhnle and

organized crime and

reign of

Republican Party and

Ritz Carlton and

Seven Gang membership

William Hearst and

Johnson, Smith

Johnson, Virginia

jury tampering

K

Kalish, Samuel

Kanowitz, William “Wallpaper Willie”

Katz, John

Katzenbach, E. L.

Kaye, Irving

Kean, Hamilton

Kefauver, Estes

Kefauver Committee

Keim, Jacob

Kentucky Avenue

Kessel, Louis

Khashoggi, Adnan

Khoury, Lou “Kid Curry”

kickbacks

contracts and

extortion and

ice cream monopoly

jobs and

railway station

Kirby, Sam

Kisselman, Carl

Klein, Sam

K.O.S. Enterprises

Kuehnle, Louis

conviction

infrastructure improvements by

Keuhnle’s Hotel and

Macksey Committee and

political machine

Smith Johnson and “Sparkey” and

Woodrow Wilson and

Kuehnle’s Hotel

L

Lafferty, Charles

Lane, Vincent

Lansky, Meyer

Larson, Morgan

Las Vegas Hilton

Lazia, John

Leeds, Jeremiah

Leeds, Jerre

Leeds family

Lenni Lenape

Leonard, Leon

Levy, Leo

Lewis, Jerry

Lewis, John

Lewis, Vivian

Life Magazine

Lifton, Robert

Lincoln University Alumni Associates

Linwood Republican Club

Lion Manufacturing Corporation

Lion’s Club

Lion’s Social Club

liquor licenses

Literary Society

Little Belmont

“Little Sea Water”

Long Branch, New Jersey

Loomis, Guy

Lordi, Joseph

Luciano, Charles “Lucky”

Lum’s restaurant

Luray Hotel

Luxury Taxes

M

“macing”

Macksey, William P.

Macksey Committee

Maheu, Robert

Malnik, Alvin I.

Mann Act

Mansion House

Mantle, Mickey

Manufacturers Hanover Trust Corporation

Marino, Albert

Marion, Barney

marketing

casino gambling

climate and

health benefits and

of sand

well-known visitors

Marlborough-Blenheim

Marlborough House

Martin, Dean

Martindell, Anne

Mary Carter Paint Company

Mask and Wig Club

Masons

Massett Construction Company

Matthews, Michael

McCloskey, Paul

McGahn, Joseph L.

background

casino gambling referendum and

Steve Perskie and

McGahn, Patrick

casino referendum and

Crosby and

Democratic Party and

Leo Clark and

on Matthews

Trump and

McGlade, Charles

McShea, Stewart

Mediterranean Avenue

Merritt, Hattie

Methodist churches

Michael, Martin “Jack Southern”

Midland Resources

Miller, Tony

Mineola boardinghouse

Miss America Pageant

Mississippi Avenue

Missouri Avenue

Moretti, Willie

Morgenthau, Robert

mosquitoes

Municipal Improvement Taxes

Murphy, Charles

My Golden Girl

N

Nabila

Nappen, Ed

National Prohibition Party

Nationwide News Service

Native American Reservations

Nevada Gaming Commission

New Baedeker

New Deal

New Jersey Avenue School

New York Avenue

New York Hotel

New York Times

newspapers

Nixon, Richard

North Kentucky Avenue

North Michigan Avenue

North Ohio Avenue

Northside

African-American community

Kuehnle’s influence

voter fraud

Northside Board of Trade

Northside Business and Professional Woman’s Club

Northside YMCA

Northside YWCA

“Nucky.” See Johnson, Enoch “Nucky”

Nucky’s Nocturne

numbers game

nursing homes

O

Odd Fellows Hall

O’Donnell, William T.

Olcott, Chauncey

Old Folks Home and Sanitarium

Olsen, Richard

O’Reilly, Peter

Orman, Herman “Stumpy”

Osbeck, Florence “Flossie”

Osborne, Richard

ozone, marketing of

P

Pacific Avenue

Palma Boys Social Club

Panic of 1857

Paradise Café

Paradise Island

Paradise Island Casino

Park Place Casino Hotel

Park Place Entertainment

Parker, Joel

Paterson, New Jersey

Paxson, Mae

payroll padding

Peking Duck

Peloquin, Robert

Pendergast, Tom

Penn, William

Penn Central Railroad

Perlman, Clifford

Perlman, Stuart

Perskie, Marvin

Perskie, Steven

personal transportation, increase in

Philadelphia

Atlantic City and

economic importance of

origins

war on vice industry

Philadelphia-Atlantic City Railway Company

Philadelphia Bulletin

Philadelphia Inquirer

piers, growth of

Pitney, Jonathan

background

campaign for rail transportation

death

profits to

Playboy

Pocono Mountains

police officer selection

Polizzi, Charles

Pollard, W. M.

Ponzio, Arthur

Portock, Jack

Post Office Building

precinct captains

precincts, control of

Presbyterian churches

President Hotel

Press-Union

Price, Rodman

Price Memorial African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Zion Church

Price Memorial AME Zion Church Literary Society

Prince Hall Masons

Prohibition

prostitution

protection money

Public Utilities Commission (PUC)

Q

Quakers

R

race discrimination. See also African-American community

race relations

railroads

Atlantic City and Shore Company

Camden-Amboy Railroad

Camden-Atlantic Railroad

Central Passenger Railway Company

construction

early trains

excursion houses

fares

growth and

iron rail supply

kickbacks

marketing by

narrow gauge

Penn Central Railroad

Philadelphia-Atlantic City Railway Company

Pitney’s campaign for

Richards and

West Jersey and Atlantic Railroad

Raphel, Murray

real estate taxes

redistricting

reform movements

reinforced concrete

Repetto, Louis

Republican Party

African-American community and

Nucky Johnson and

firefighter contributions

Hap Farley and

kickbacks to

Kuehnle and

Nucky Johnson and

vice industry and

Resorts International

Reynolds, Charles

Richards, Emerson

Richards, Samuel

Richards’ family

Ridley, Maggie

Ridley Hotel

Ritz Carlton Hotel

Roaring ’20s

Robert, Edward

roller-skating rink

rolling chairs

Rosen, Harry “Nig”

Rothkopf, Lou

Runyon Sales

S

Sailor Boy Inn

Salerno, Anthony “Fat Tony”

sand

dunes

first Boardwalk

hotel problems with

marketing of

Sanders, Grady

Sandman, Charles

Sands, Stafford

Saturday Evening Post

Saunders, Harry

Schaefer Manufacturing Company

Schultz, Dutch

Scott, Louis

Seaview Excursion House

Second Ward

Second Ward Republican Club

secret societies

Senate Conference Committee

Seven Group

sewage treatment

Sewell, William J.

Shahadi, Al

Shaner, Emmanual

sharecropping

shelter care facilities

Shepperson, William

Shill, Harry

Shiloh Baptist Church

shoe fly

Shore Road

Shore Road Republicans

Siegel, Bugsy

Silver Slipper Saloon

Sinatra, Frank

Siracusa, Frank

Sirica, John

Sky Lake Country Club

Sky Lake North

Smathers, William

Smiley, Frank

Smith, James

Solomon, King

Somers, William

souveniers, early examples

“Sparkey”

Spiritualist churches

St. James (AME) Church

Stacher, Joseph “Doc”

Steffens, Lincoln

Sterns, Joel

Strand Motel

street plan

strikes

Student Prince, The

Sugarman, Barnet

Summa Corporation

Sunday Blue Laws

T

Taggart, Thomas “Two Gun Tommy” D. Jr.

Taj Mahal

tax reform

Teamsters Pension Fund

Teamsters Union

“Tent City”

Testa, Joseph

theaters

Theisman, Joe

Third Ward Republican Club

Thomas, Harvey

Thomas, Lavinia

Thomas, Parry

Thompson, Walter

Thurston the Magician

Tillie’s Nightmare

Tomlin, John

Tomlin, Morrell

Torcasio, Tony

tourism

Black employment and

blue-collar workers

class-lines

expendable income and

growth of

labor needed for

low-income

repeat business

Transco Group

Trenchard, Thomas

Triangle Industries

Truck Company

Trump, Donald

Trump, Elizabeth

Trump, Fredrick Christ

Trump, Ivana

Trump Castle

Trump Marina

Trump Plaza

Trump Princess

tuberculosis

21 Club

U

United Paving Company

United States Army

United States Hotel

Usry, James

V

vaudeville

Vineland Times Journal

Virginia Avenue

Voelme, Theodore

Volstead Act. See Prohibition

vote fraud

W

Wall, James

Wall Street Journal

Walls, George

Walt Whitman Hotel

Waltz Dream

ward system

Warfield, David

Warke, Paul

Warlich, Fred

Water Commission

water supply

Weekly, Sam

Weinberger, William

Weiner, Sanford

Weingrow, Howard

Weloff, Ralph

West Jersey and Atlantic Railroad

Whelan, Jim

White, Josiah III

White, Theodore

White Slavery Law

Whitman, Walt

Williams, C.

Wilson, Woodrow

Windsor Hotel

Winne, Walter

Witham, Arch

Wittpenn, Otto

Wolfe, Jack

Woman’s Home Missionary Society

Woods Theater

Woodstave Project

Wooten, Tom

World War II

Worth, Isadore

Wynn, Elaine

Wynn, Stephen

Y

Young, John Lake

Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA)

Young Men’s Progressive Club

Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA)

Younger, Irving

Young’s Million Dollar Pier

Young’s Pier Playhouse

Z

Zarowitz, Jerome

Ziegfeld Follies

Zwillman, Longie

Table of Contents

Title Page

Copyright

Foreword, by Terence Winter

Prologue

Chapter 1: Jonathan Pitney’s Beach Village

Chapter 2: The Grand Illusion

Chapter 3: A Plantation by the Sea

Chapter 4: Philadelphia’s Playground

Chapter 5: The Golden Age of Nucky

HBO Series Photo Insert

Chapter 6: Hard Times for Nucky and His Town

Chapter 7: Hap

Chapter 8: The Painful Ride Down

Chapter 9: Turn Out the Lights

Chapter 10: A Second Bite at the Apple

Historical Photo Insert

Chapter 11: It’s a New Ballgame

Chapter 12: The Donald Comes to Town

Afterword

Source Notes

About the Author

Index

Table of Contents

Title Page

Copyright

Foreword, by Terence Winter

Prologue

Chapter 1: Jonathan Pitney’s Beach Village

Chapter 2: The Grand Illusion

Chapter 3: A Plantation by the Sea

Chapter 4: Philadelphia’s Playground

Chapter 5: The Golden Age of Nucky

HBO Series Photo Insert

Chapter 6: Hard Times for Nucky and His Town

Chapter 7: Hap

Chapter 8: The Painful Ride Down

Chapter 9: Turn Out the Lights

Chapter 10: A Second Bite at the Apple

Historical Photo Insert

Chapter 11: It’s a New Ballgame

Chapter 12: The Donald Comes to Town

Afterword

Source Notes

About the Author

Index

Table of Contents

Title Page

Copyright

Foreword, by Terence Winter

Prologue

Chapter 1: Jonathan Pitney’s Beach Village

Chapter 2: The Grand Illusion

Chapter 3: A Plantation by the Sea

Chapter 4: Philadelphia’s Playground

Chapter 5: The Golden Age of Nucky

HBO Series Photo Insert

Chapter 6: Hard Times for Nucky and His Town

Chapter 7: Hap

Chapter 8: The Painful Ride Down

Chapter 9: Turn Out the Lights

Chapter 10: A Second Bite at the Apple

Historical Photo Insert

Chapter 11: It’s a New Ballgame

Chapter 12: The Donald Comes to Town

Afterword

Source Notes

About the Author

Index