68 “the rawest ever known in the country” See
70 “The domination of politics by corporation-machine alliances had reached its full flower.” David W. Hirst,
71 Harvey took it upon himself … D.W. Hirst, Ibid. p. 5.
72 The report of the Macksey Committee is discussed in the
75 entrapment by “Mr. Franklin.” See
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,
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
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,
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
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
