Synopses & Reviews
A colorful biography that brings to life the seedy underworld denizens of Jazz Age New York City and its unrivaled kingpin, the model for Damon Runyon's Nathan Detroit.
History remembers Arnold Rothstein as the man who fixed the 1919 World Series, an underworld genius, who, as F. Scott Fitzgerald observed, played "with the faith of fifty million people with the single-mindedness of a burglar blowing a safe." The real-life model for The Great Gatsby's Meyer Wolfsheim and Nathan Detroit from Guys and Dolls, Rothstein was much more and less than a fixer of baseball games. He was everything that made 1920s Manhattan roar. Featuring Jazz Age Broadway with its thugs, speakeasies, showgirls, political movers and shakers, and stars of the Golden Age of Sports, this is a biography of the man who dominated an age when the fast buck ruled and violence stalked the streets of Gotham. Arnold Rothstein was a loan shark, pool shark, bookmaker, thief, fence of stolen property, political fixer, Wall Street swindler, labor racketeer, rumrunner, and mastermind of the modern drug trade. Among his monikers were "The Big Bankroll," "The Brain," and "The Man Uptown."
This vivid account of Rothstein's life is also the story of con artists Nicky Arnstein and Wilson Mizner; crooked cops Big Bill Devery and Charles Becker; baseball's John McGraw and the Black Sox; boxers Jack Dempsey and Gene Tunney; politicians Jimmy Walker, "Big Tim" Sullivan, and Fiorello LaGuardia; gang lords Lucky Luciano, Legs Diamond, and Lepke Buchalter; newsmen Damon Runyon and Herbert Bayard Swope; show business's Fanny Brice, George M. Cohan, and Fats Waller; speakeasy owners Larry Fay and Texas Guinan; and gambler "Nick the Greek" Dandalos. Finally unraveling the mystery of Rothstein's November 1928 murder in a Times Square hotel room, David Pietrusza has cemented The Big Bankroll's place among the most influential and fascinating legendary American criminals.
Review
"While many of these side stories prove worthwhile entertainment, the vast amounts of information needed to explain them allows the reader only glimpses of Rothstein's true personality." Publishers Weekly
Review
"True crime, evil doings, and monumental double-crossing by the Irish, the Italians, the Jews, and the Machine in a savory account of the legendary bad old days." Kirkus Reviews
Synopsis
This biography brings to life the seedy underworld denizens of Jazz Age New York City and its unrivaled kingpin, Arnold Rothstein, the criminal genius who fixed the 1919 World Series.
Synopsis
Includes bibliographical references (p. 450-463) and index.
Synopsis
History remembers Arnold Rothstein as the man who fixed the 1919 World Series, an underworld genius. The real-life model for The Great Gatsby's Meyer Wolfsheim and Nathan Detroit from Guys and Dolls, Rothstein was much more—and less—than a fixer of baseball games. He was everything that made 1920s Manhattan roar. Featuring Jazz Age Broadway with its thugs, speakeasies, showgirls, political movers and shakers, and stars of the Golden Age of Sports, this is a biography of the man who dominated an age. Arnold Rothstein was a loan shark, pool shark, bookmaker, thief, fence of stolen property, political fixer, Wall Street swindler, labor racketeer, rumrunner, and mastermind of the modern drug trade. Among his monikers were "The Big Bankroll," "The Brain," and "The Man Uptown." This vivid account of Rothstein's life is also the story of con artists, crooked cops, politicians, gang lords, newsmen, speakeasy owners, gamblers and the like. Finally unraveling the mystery of Rothstein's November 1928 murder in a Times Square hotel room, David Pietrusza has cemented The Big Bankroll's place among the most influential and fascinating legendary American criminals. 16 pages of black-and-white photographs are featured.
About the Author
David Pietrusza has edited over three dozen books. His Judge and Jury: The Life and Times of Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis captured the 1998 CASEY Award. He was an editor of Total Baseball, the Official Encyclopedia of Major League Baseball. Pietruszas most recent book, Ted Williams: My Life in Pictures, was written with Ted Williams. He lives in upstate New York.