Mafia's Greatest Hits

Narrator: BEFORE AL CAPONE,

BEFORE BUGSY SIEGEL...

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...BEFORE LUCKY LUCIANO,

BEFORE THERE WAS EVEN A MOB, THERE WAS JUST ONE MAN.

Pietrusza: ARNOLD ROTHSTEIN IS ESSENTIALLY

THE FOUNDER OF ORGANIZED CRIME, INC.

Narrator: TO UNDERSTAND THE RISE OF THE AMERICAN MAFIA,

THIS IS THE MAN YOU NEED TO KNOW.

Whalen: FROM BOOTLEGGING TO LOAN SHARKING TO GAMBLING

TO LABOR RACKETEERING TO THE MODERN DRUG TRAFFIC,

HE'S AT THE CENTER OF IT ALL IN THE ROARING '20s.

Narrator: HE IS THE MAN WHO FIXED THE BASEBALL WORLD SERIES,

THE GREATEST SCANDAL IN SPORTING HISTORY.

HE IS THE ABSOLUTE GENIUS OF ORGANIZED CRIME.

Narrator: HE WAS SVENGALI TO THE MEN WHO WOULD CREATE THE AMERICAN MAFIA.

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HE TAUGHT THEM HOW TO BEHAVE LIKE BUSINESSMEN.

THEY TAUGHT HIM HOW TO DIE LIKE A GANGSTER.

THIS IS THE INCREDIBLE STORY OF ARNOLD ROTHSTEIN.

CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS

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1919, NEW YORK CITY.

ALTHOUGH GAMBLING IS ILLEGAL,

IN A FOURTH-FLOOR MANHATTAN APARTMENT,

A GAME OF DICE IS IN FULL SWING.

AS USUAL, ONE MAN IS CLEANING UP.

ARNOLD ROTHSTEIN IS NO GANGSTER, BUT HE HAS BECOME A MILLIONAIRE

BY KEEPING ONE STEP AHEAD OF THE HERD.

Pietrusza: ARNOLD ROTHSTEIN LOVES MONEY,

HE LOVES GAMBLING,

HE LOVES THE THRILL OF GAMBLING,

AND HE LOVES BEING JUST A LITTLE OR A LOT SMARTER

THAN EVERYONE ELSE.

Whalen: THESE GUYS LIVE FOR THOSE GAMES.

THEY LOVE IT. THAT'S THEIR HIGH.

Narrator: ROTHSTEIN DOESN'T DRINK AND HE DOESN'T SMOKE,

BUT HE'S ADDICTED TO GAMBLING

AND THE WEALTH THAT COMES WITH IT.

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BUT TONIGHT, SOMEONE IS GOING TO KILL HIS WINNING STREAK.

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WITH A SMALL FORTUNE NOW ON THE TABLE,

ROTHSTEIN IS DETERMINED

NO SMALL-TIME HOODS ARE GOING TO STEAL FROM HIM.

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Whalen: THAT WAS REALLY THE ONLY TIME THAT I'M AWARE OF

THAT ROTHSTEIN ACTUALLY ASSAULTED SOMEBODY

IN THAT FASHION WITH A FIREARM.

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Narrator: BUT IT WAS THE WRONG TIME TO TURN TO VIOLENCE.

THE INTRUDERS ARE NO THIEVES.

THEY ARE NEW YORK'S FINEST.

THOUGH THEIR WOUNDS AREN'T FATAL,

NO ONE GETS AWAY WITH SHOOTING COPS,

MILLIONAIRE OR NOT.

Pietrusza: YOU ARE NOT SUPPOSED TO SHOOT COPS.

IT IS FROWNED ON!

Narrator: NOW ROTHSTEIN COULD FACE A LIFE BEHIND BARS.

HIS LUCK MIGHT FINALLY HAVE RUN OUT.

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BUT ROTHSTEIN RARELY RELIES ON LUCK ALONE.

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MIRACULOUSLY, WITHIN HOURS, HE WALKS FREE.

ONLY SOMEONE SPECIAL GETS AWAY WITH SHOOTING COPS.

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EVEN AS A BOY, ROTHSTEIN HAD A BRILLIANT HEAD FOR NUMBERS

AND COULD'VE TAKEN UP A CAREER IN FINANCE.

Pietrusza: ARNOLD ROTHSTEIN WAS OFFERED A POSITION ON WALL STREET

WHEN HE WAS STILL A RELATIVELY YOUNG MAN,

VERY EARLY IN THE GAME,

AND HE TURNED IT DOWN BECAUSE IT JUST WASN'T FOR HIM.

IT WASN'T QUITE AS THRILLING, IT WASN'T QUITE AS LUCRATIVE,

AND HE LIKED THE NIGHTLIFE, I THINK.

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Narrator: INSTEAD OF A STRAIGHT LIFE IN FINANCE,

ROTHSTEIN MAKES HIS EARLY FORTUNE GAMBLING

ON ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING --

CARDS, HORSES, EVEN ELECTION RESULTS.

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HE BELIEVED HIMSELF TO BE A TERRIFIC GAMBLER,

AND HE HAD NO REASON NOT TO

BECAUSE HE MADE A FORTUNE DOING IT.

Narrator: THIS IS A MAN WHO KNOWS HOW TO MAKE HIS OWN LUCK.

ROTHSTEIN IS SMART ENOUGH TO KNOW

YOU CAN'T ALWAYS BEAT THE ODDS,

SO HE ENSURES THE ODDS ARE ALWAYS STACKED IN HIS FAVOR.

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HE CHEATS.

HE ONLY BETS WHEN HE HAS FIXED A GAME

OR HAS INSIDE INFORMATION.

IT'S A QUESTION OF EGOTISM WITH ARNOLD ROTHSTEIN.

HE'S GOING TO BE SMARTER THAN EVERYONE ELSE AROUND HIM.

HE IS GOING TO PULL THE FAST ONE,

EITHER AT THE RACETRACK OR AT THE GAMBLING HOUSE,

TO GET THE EXTRA ODDS, THE EDGE

SO THAT HE WILL BE THE GAMBLER WHO GAMBLES WITHOUT GAMBLING.

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Narrator: IT'S A LUCRATIVE PHILOSOPHY.

BY 1912, BEFORE HIS 30th BIRTHDAY,

HE RACKS UP HIS FIRST MILLION.

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IN NEW YORK CITY, THEY CALL HIM "THE BRAIN,"

THE MAN WHO COULD NEVER LOSE AT THE CARD TABLE

OR THE BUSINESS TABLE.

AND THAT'S WHY, BY 1919,

IT SEEMS HE CAN BUY HIS WAY OUT OF ANYTHING...

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...EVEN SHOOTING NEW YORK COPS.

ARNOLD ROTHSTEIN, EVEN THEN, IS SO POWERFUL.

HE BEATS THE RAP OF SHOOTING THE COPS.

HOW DOES HE DO IT?

Narrator: IN COURT, ROTHSTEIN USES HIS INFLUENCE

TO RIG THE ODDS IN HIS FAVOR.

HE HAS FRIENDS IN THE COURT SYSTEM.

SOME MONEY IS PLACED WITH THE POLICE,

WITH THE JUDGES.

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Narrator: AND HE USES BRIBES TO DEAL WITH THE WITNESSES.

Pietrusza: ALL THE GAMBLERS ON THE OTHER SIDE, HOWEVER,

GO BLIND.

Whalen: MONEY WAS PAID.

IF THEY DIDN'T AGREE TO NOT TALK,

THERE WAS OTHER WAYS TO SILENCE THEM.

AT THAT TIME, ROTHSTEIN WAS A VERY POWERFUL MAN,

AND FEW PEOPLE WANTED TO GO AGAINST HIM.

Narrator: THIS BRILLIANT MILLIONAIRE GAMBLER

NEVER INTENDED TO INSPIRE THE UNDERWORLD.

BUT HE SETS OUT A BLUEPRINT THAT WILL INFLUENCE

FUTURE GENERATIONS OF GANGSTERS.

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FIXING DICE GAMES AND CORRUPTING THE JUSTICE SYSTEM

ARE ONLY THE PRELUDE TO THE STING

THAT WILL MAKE HIM THE MOST TALKED ABOUT MAN IN AMERICA.

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FREE FROM JAIL AND THE CHARGE OF VIOLENT ASSAULT,

ROTHSTEIN SETS HIS SIGHTS

ON FIXING THE GREATEST SPORTING EVENT IN THE COUNTRY.

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IN 1919, BASEBALL IS A RELIGION IN AMERICA,

AND THE WORLD SERIES IS THE MOST SACRED OF ALL ITS COMPETITIONS.

BUT FIXING AN ENTIRE SERIES OF BASEBALL GAMES

ISN'T LIKE LOADING THE DICE OR DOPING A HORSE.

IT'S A CHALLENGE ON ANOTHER SCALE.

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IF YOU'RE ABLE TO FIX A WORLD SERIES,

THAT WAS CONSIDERED VERY, VERY IMPRESSIVE.

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Narrator: ROTHSTEIN IS A MAN WHO CAN SPOT AN OPPORTUNITY,

AND WHEN HE HEARS A RUMOR

THE FAVORITES TO WIN THE WORLD SERIES,

THE CHICAGO WHITE SOX, ARE UNHAPPY WITH THEIR BOSS,

HE KNOWS NOW IS THE TIME TO MAKE HIS PLAY.

THE WHITE SOX PLAYERS WERE UNHAPPY

BECAUSE THEIR OWNER, CHARLES COMISKEY,

WAS A CHEAPSKATE AND DIDN'T WANT TO PAY THEM,

SO THEY WERE GETTING PEANUTS.

Narrator: IF THEY'RE SHORT OF CASH,

ROTHSTEIN REALIZES THEY'RE RIPE FOR CORRUPTING,

SO HE SETS OUT TO BRIBE THEM TO LOSE.

COVERTLY, HE APPROACHES THE BALLPLAYERS,

AND EIGHT AGREE TO THROW KEY GAMES.

SO, THIS WAS A WAY OF GETTING BACK AT COMISKEY,

BY DUMPING THE WORLD SERIES AND MAKING SOME MONEY.

Narrator: BECAUSE THE WHITE SOX ARE CLEAR FAVORITES,

THE ODDS ON THEIR RIVALS ARE HIGH.

SO ROTHSTEIN BETS BIG ON THE CINCINNATI REDS

TO WIN THE WORLD SERIES.

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HE GAMBLES EVERY DIME HE'S GOT

AND SPREADS THE BETS ACROSS THE COUNTRY

SO AS NOT TO RAISE SUSPICIONS.

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AND IT LOOKS LIKE HIS PLAN IS WORKING.

Announcer: WHITE SOX PITCHER EDDIE CICOTTE IS FIRST UP,

AND HERE'S THE PITCH.

CICOTTE MAKES THE DRIVE, AND -- OH!

Narrator: THE WHITE SOX LOSE THE EARLY GAMES

AND GIVE THE REDS A SERIES LEAD.

Announcer: WHITE SOX, 1. REDS, 9.

Narrator: BUT BY GAME 5, THE PLAYERS ARE ANGRY.

ROTHSTEIN'S DEAL WAS CASH ON DELIVERY.

THEY WANT PAID NOW.

EXCEPT ALL ROTHSTEIN'S MONEY IS TIED UP IN BETS.

Dezenhall: ARNOLD ROTHSTEIN IS ESSENTIALLY A PONZI SCHEME.

HE NEVER HAS ANY MONEY.

HE'S ALWAYS MAKING MONEY,

BUT IT'S ALWAYS GOING OUT THE BACK END OF THE DOOR

TO SOMETHING ELSE, ESPECIALLY GAMBLING.

Narrator: THE BALLPLAYERS THINK

ROTHSTEIN'S TAKING THEM FOR FOOLS

AND TURN AGAINST HIM.

Pietrusza: THE BALLPLAYERS ARE FEELING CHEATED

AND THINKING MAYBE THEY SHOULD WIN

AND COLLECT THE WINNER'S SHARE OF THE WORLD SERIES,

THAT THEY WILL FINALLY DOUBLE-CROSS

THE DOUBLE-CROSSING GAMBLERS.