Product Description

If American crime had a golden age, it was between 1920 and 1940—the roller-coaster years when a rural nation became urbanized and the nineteenth century finally gave away to the twentieth. The same forces that reshaped society also changed the face of crime, and soon the Progressive movement that battled urban decay led to the unintended consequences of increased police and political corruption, drunkenness transformed from a working-class vice to middle-class rebellion, and organized crime was established nationally.
The Complete Public Enemy Almanac is the ultimate reference book for the gangster era, with many unique features:
• A highly original and revisionist history of the period, covering the entire nation
• A unique, unmatched collection of gangster and outlaw biographies
• Hundreds of illustrations and period photographs
• A full, first-ever crime chronology of the period
• Dozens of short features on everything from the shift from local to federalized law enforcement to the history of body armor and goofy schemes to deal with "motorized bandits"
• The origins and meanings of such terms as the "one-way ride," "X marks the spot," "the real McCoy," "G-Man," "Public Enemy," and many more
• Innovative lists, including the Chicago Crime Commission's "body count" of gang-style murders during the period
• New light on the St. Valentine's Day Massacre, the Kansas City Massacre, the deliberate killing of Pretty Boy Floyd, the mysterious death of Baby Face Nelson, and other events
• An exhaustive bibliography (including numerous short reviews) of every true-crime book published about gangsters and outlaws of the twenties and thirties
Meticulously documented, lavishly detailed, exhaustively researched, and written with an eye for the turths that have remained largely hidden, The Complete Public Enemy Almanac provides a reliable source of information about the violent and lawless era of the twenties and thirties.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #785537 in Books
• Published on: 2007-07-02
• Released on: 2007-07-02
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 669 pages

About the Author
William Helmer, a former senior editor at Playboy, is the author of The Gun That Made the Twenties Roar and is the coauthor of Dillinger: The Untold Story, Baby Face Nelson, and The St. Valentine's Day Massacre. He lives in Boerne, Texas.
Rick Mattix, an expert on the criminal gangs of the twenties and thirties, is a prominent researcher and consultant to authors and television documentaries. The coauthor of Thompson: The American Legend and Dillinger: The Untold Story (expanded edition), and author of numerous magazine and journal articles, he lives in Bussey, Iowa.

Customer Reviews

An essential reference work
Authors William J. Helmer and Rick Mattix have produced an extensive and truly essential reference work on the Gangster Era (1920-1940). The book breaks down criminal and law enforcement history into its various component parts, dealing with characters and events through the use of individual biographical essays and sprawling, detailed chronologies. Every serious outlaw of the period - from Accardo, through Capone, Dillinger and McGurn, to Abner "Longie" Zwillman - is represented.

At the same time, the work ties elements together and probes more deeply into causes and effects through an impressive collection of articles on topics such as the St. Valentine's Day Massacre, the Castellammarese War, criminal use of the Tommygun, the evolution of investigative techniques, early efforts toward bulletproofing...

The Almanac is amply illustrated with photos and other images, many of which have not been available before. And a treasure of information awaits those who dig to the back of the book. There will be found a collection of gangster quotes, including the last words of Dutch Schultz; gang membership lists; and a comprehensive, annotated bibliography of Gangster Era books, which itself is worth the price of admission.

Casual presentation and a laid-back writing style provide comfortable cover for this work of genuine scholarship but may be misinterpreted on a quick glance as a lack of professionalism. Design elements surely would have benefited from closer attention. However, the few superficial negatives do not detract in any substantial way from the authors' achievement.

The Complete Public Enemy Almanac is a must-have for crime historians and a useful and informative guide for the True Crime reader.

A Classic..
Long held by researchers as the Holy Grail of 1920-30s criminal history, this classic work is now new and improved by the inclusion of a mix of never before seen photographs, stark in nature, a horde of new information, and entertaining stories. A must for both the serious researcher and amateur crime buff.---R. D. Morgan author of "The Bad Boys of the Cookson Hills" and the "Tri-State Terror."

Gangbusters!
The Complete Public Enemy Almanac is, bar none, the best overall resource for the particularly juicy slice of American history, known as the "Public Enemy Era". Bill Helmer and Rick Mattix have done a wonderful, in-depth job of detailing the lives and crimes of the men and women who made the Twenties roar. From the famous, such as Capone, Dillinger, Floyd, or Creepy Karpis, to the not-so-famous, such as bank robbers Matt Kimes and Ray Terrill, they're all here. The book itself is wonderfully organized and anything the reader may be looking for is easily accessible, whether it's the low-down on the St. Valentine's Day Massacre, how John Dillinger busted out of jail with a wooden gun, or when the Detroit Police Department first started using radios in their squad cars. Profusely illustrated, the almanac also details special weaponry used by criminals, period slang, and of course, the cops who chased the bad guys. Helmer and Mattix also do a masterful job of exploding the numerous myths that hang over the events of the Public Enemy era. Able to satisfy both the expert and the layman, the Complete Public Enemy Almanac will be a definitive reference for early 20th century crime for years to come. I cannot recommened it enough!