What will I learn about: how the Great Depression transformed violent bank robbers like Bonnie and Clyde into glamorous symbols of rebellion against corrupt financial institutions?

Discover how the Great Depression transformed violent bank robbers like Bonnie and Clyde into glamorous symbols of rebellion against corrupt financial institutions.

What will I learn about: Learn why J. Edgar Hoover created the 'Public Enemy Number One' label to focus national attention on capturing elusive masterminds like John Dillinger?

Learn why J. Edgar Hoover created the 'Public Enemy Number One' label to focus national attention on capturing elusive masterminds like John Dillinger.

What will I learn about: the fatal flaws of the early FBI, where a strategy to prevent corruption led to untrained accountants and lawyers botching raids against heavily armed gangsters?

Understand the fatal flaws of the early FBI, where a strategy to prevent corruption led to untrained accountants and lawyers botching raids against heavily armed gangsters.

What will I learn about: Explore the desperate tactics notorious criminals used to evade capture, including John Dillinger's use of underground plastic surgery to alter his facial features?

Explore the desperate tactics notorious criminals used to evade capture, including John Dillinger's use of underground plastic surgery to alter his facial features.

What will I learn about: why the US government formed an unprecedented World War II alliance with the Mafia to protect New York's harbors from Nazi sabotage and aid the invasion of Sicily?

Find out why the US government formed an unprecedented World War II alliance with the Mafia to protect New York's harbors from Nazi sabotage and aid the invasion of Sicily.

Killing the Mob

The Fight Against Organized Crime in America

Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard

★ 4.5 / 5(332 ratings)

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Categories:

History

If You're Curious About These Questions...

You should listen to this audiobook

💡Did you know that the Mafia’s secret reach extended far beyond the streets, even influencing the results of some of America’s most high-stakes presidential elections?
💡Have you ever wondered how a small group of notorious gangsters managed to transform disorganized street crime into a multi-billion dollar corporate empire that rivaled the US government?
💡Are you curious about the shocking reasons why the FBI’s J. Edgar Hoover denied the existence of the Mafia for decades while they were seizing control of the American economy?

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Key Takeaways from Killing the Mob

✓Discover how the Great Depression transformed violent bank robbers like Bonnie and Clyde into glamorous symbols of rebellion against corrupt financial institutions.
✓Learn why J. Edgar Hoover created the 'Public Enemy Number One' label to focus national attention on capturing elusive masterminds like John Dillinger.
✓Understand the fatal flaws of the early FBI, where a strategy to prevent corruption led to untrained accountants and lawyers botching raids against heavily armed gangsters.
✓Explore the desperate tactics notorious criminals used to evade capture, including John Dillinger's use of underground plastic surgery to alter his facial features.
✓Find out why the US government formed an unprecedented World War II alliance with the Mafia to protect New York's harbors from Nazi sabotage and aid the invasion of Sicily.

Learning Tools

Reinforce what you learned from Killing the Mob

Mind Map

Killing the Mob

Rise of the Outlaw Hero+

J. Edgar Hoover and the FBI+

World War II Alliance+

Post-War Shift to Drugs+

Public Exposure of the Mob+

Mafia Control of Hollywood+

Quiz — Test Your Understanding

Question 1 of 7

Why did J. Edgar Hoover's federal agents initially fail to capture public enemy number one, John Dillinger, at a Wisconsin lodge?

A. They were white-collar workers like accountants and lawyers with no actual police training.
B. Dillinger had bribed the local police chief to alert him before the raid happened.
C. The agents were ambushed by a heavily armed rival Mafia family.
D. Hoover had ordered them not to fire their weapons under any circumstances.

Question 2 of 7

During World War II, why did the US government and the FBI strike a deal with imprisoned mob boss Lucky Luciano?

A. To assassinate Benito Mussolini using Sicilian hitmen.
B. To secure the New York harbor from Nazi sabotage and gain intelligence for the invasion of Sicily.
C. To stop the flow of illegal firearms being smuggled to the Axis powers.
D. To convince the Mafia to invest their bootlegging profits into war bonds.

Question 3 of 7

At the 1946 Havana conference, why was Lucky Luciano personally opposed to the Mafia entering the heroin trade?

A. He believed that drug trafficking violated the traditional moral codes of the Sicilian Cosa Nostra.
B. He had already secured a highly profitable monopoly on illegal casino gambling in Cuba.
C. He feared he would be blamed by US law enforcement, jeopardizing his chances of returning to America.
D. He knew the Cuban government would revoke his asylum if drugs were smuggled through Havana.

Question 4 of 7

According to rumors among federal agents, why did J. Edgar Hoover stubbornly deny the existence of the Mafia for years?

A. He was receiving massive monthly bribes from the heads of the five New York crime families.
B. He believed that focusing on the Mafia would distract the FBI from the greater threat of Soviet spies.
C. The Mafia had infiltrated the highest levels of the Justice Department and threatened to fire him.
D. The Mafia was allegedly blackmaling him with photographic evidence of a secret homosexual relationship.

Question 5 of 7

What event finally forced J. Edgar Hoover to acknowledge the existence of a highly organized national Mafia?

A. A local police sergeant discovered and raided a massive gathering of top mob bosses in Apalachin, New York.
B. The Kefauver Committee subpoenaed Hoover to testify about his connections to organized crime.
C. Lucky Luciano publicly boasted about the Cosa Nostra during a televised interview from Italy.
D. A delivery boy provided the FBI with a ledger detailing the financial operations of the five families.

Question 6 of 7

How did the Mafia initially gain such significant influence and power within the Hollywood film industry?

A. They purchased several major film studios using profits made from the post-Prohibition heroin trade.
B. They provided funding to early Jewish producers who were denied bank loans due to racial prejudice.
C. They threatened to assassinate top actors unless the studios agreed to cast mob-affiliated extras.
D. They blackmailed government censors to allow films with excessive violence to be released in theaters.

Question 7 of 7

Why did the Mafia intimidate TV producer Desi Arnaz regarding his show 'The Untouchables'?

A. They wanted a larger percentage of the show's syndication profits.
B. They discovered he was secretly working with the FBI to expose union corruption.
C. They wanted the show to feature real-life mobsters instead of professional actors.
D. They were angry that Italian Americans were constantly being portrayed as bad guys and buffoons.

Killing the Mob — Full Chapter Overview

1Recommendation
21 — Bonnie and Clyde were America’s first outlaw sweethearts.
32 — John Dillinger was both a gangster and a master escape artist.
43 — The Mafia and the Allies joined forces to fight Fascism.
54 — The Mafia’s drug racket ruined Lucky Luciano’s career.
65 — In the 1950s, mystery surrounded the Mafia and J. Edgar Hoover.
76 — An everyday police officer exposed America’s top mob bosses.
87 — In the 1960s, the Mafia and Hollywood worked closely together.
98 — Final summary

Killing the Mob Summary & Overview

Killing the Mob (2021) explores America’s uneasy relationship with organized crime. It exposes the shocking influence of the Mafia on twentieth-century history and culture and reveals the outrageous exploits of America’s most notorious gangsters.

Who Should Listen to Killing the Mob?

True crime lovers
gangster movie aficionados
History buffs looking for a different angle

About the Author: Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard

Bill O’Reilly is an author, journalist, and television host. His show The O’Reilly Factor was one of America’s most popular cable shows, and his Killing book series is the best-selling nonfiction series of all time. Martin Dugard is a New York Times best-selling author; his books include Into Africa and The Explorers.

Killing the Mob

If You're Curious About These Questions...

Listen to Killing the Mob — Free Audiobook

Key Takeaways from Killing the Mob

Learning Tools

Mind Map

Quiz — Test Your Understanding

Killing the Mob — Full Chapter Overview

Killing the Mob Summary & Overview

Who Should Listen to Killing the Mob?

About the Author: Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard

Books Similar to Killing the Mob