In the years leading up to 1933, Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb, two rich Chicago kids, murdered another boy for fun; the U.S. was mired in the Great Depression; Charles Lindbergh’s baby was kidnapped and murdered; Hitler was elected chancellor of Germany; and Al Capone, who had used Prohibition as a way to expand his criminal empire, was the de facto mayor of Chicago, even though he was, technically, a prison inmate. Amid all this turmoil, the Chicago political powers that be thought it would be a great idea to throw a World’s Fair. But how do you fund a $20 million extravaganza when the city is broke? How do you keep the gangsters from running rampant? The fair’s planner promised the people of the city that gangsters 'will be gone' by the time of the fair, but how could he possibly follow through? Enter the Secret Six, a group of businessmen who joined forces for a most dangerous mission: to eradicate organized crime in Chicago by the time the fair opened. This is a thrilling and frequently surprising story about larger-than-life people and their larger-than-life ambitions.

Booklist

This book is intense and exciting and brings to life a piece of history that’s thrilling and fascinating.

Kenosha News

[Hazelgrove] argues that Chicago had to break the hold of organized crime in order to stage the 1933 World’s Fair. Hazelgrove supports his argument by revealing how a group of Chicago businessmen, dubbed the ‘Secret Six,’ worked to end the gangster era . . . this is a slim but satisfying study, one that general readers will find enlightening and scholars of the presidency and humor will find most valuable.

Journal Of Illinois History

Hazelgrove. . . makes a compelling argument that “scapegoating” Capone for the fiscal ills of both Chicago and the United States (following the Great Depression) was nothing more than a distraction from the greater economic calamities that had undermined American capitalism. . . . Hazelgrove, intentionally I suspect, provides a thoughtful comparison between the xenophobia of yesterday with what is consuming American society today. Citing the president’s name several times, it is quite apparent that Hazelgrove recognizes history’s recurring theme: no matter how the names may change, the game remains the same — namely, blame outsiders for what are clearly systemic flaws in our system of justice.

Criminal Law and Criminal Justice Books

Love it. He keeps supplying my bookshelf with things that I love. William Hazelgrove is prolific and he becomes, with each book, a better writer. Al Capone and the 1933 World’s Fair is a fascinating and fabulous book that tells the story of a sadly relatively unknown but successful World’s Fair. This was obviously an enjoyable project for Hazelgrove; he brings it to life.

Rick Kogan, Chicago Tribune, WGN Radio

A great thrill ride through Al Capone’s Chicago, filled with sizzling action and unforgettable characters.

Jonathan Eig, author of Get Capone/ ALI