It's remembered as a glamorous era of bootleggers, bathtub gin, illicit speakeasies and Al Capone's whiskey-fueled empire. This extraordinary program journeys from the mining towns of Kansas to the rum-running island of St. Pierre to tell the real, unvarnished story of Prohibition. Take a fascinating look at the saloon-smashing Carrie Nation, the teetotaling tycoon Henry Ford, and lawyer-turned-bootlegger George Remus. Discover how Prohibition's first President, Warren Harding, served cocktails in the White House, and meet Al Capone's older brother-a successful enforcement agent in Nebraska. The Prohibition Era is a stirring trip through one of American history's most uninhibited times. It would be useful for classes on American History, Women's History, Economic History and American Culture. It is appropriate for middle school and high school.

The Road To Repeal

In Al Capone's Chicago, the twenties roared like nowhere else. Brought to power by the passage of Prohibition, Capone was an ironic symbol of the temperance era. He was considered by many to be the glamorous emperor of an exciting underworld, a Robin Hood for a thirsty public. At its peak, his illegal liquor empire brought in an astonishing $105 million per year. But Al Capone's bloody consolidation of power did not go unnoticed by authorities. When the Chicago turf wars culminated in the St. Valentine's Day Massacre, Capone's luck began to run out.

• advocate
• arrogance
• benevolent
• collusion
• coup
• crystallized
• epidemic
• facade
• hypocrisy
• impeccable
• indignant
• jurisprudence
• liaisons
• massacre
• philanthropist
• rescind
• sobriety
• subpoena
• synonymous
• valid

1. The Federal authorities formed an elite crew of crime busters called the "Untouchables."Why were they given this name?

2. Organized crime skyrocketed in the 1920s. How did Prohibition encourage and contribute to the rise of organized crime's power?

3. On St. Valentine's Day, 1929, Al Capone's henchmen murdered seven of their rivals in a bloody massacre. How did the St. Valentine's Day Massacre contribute to the repeal of Prohibition?

4. Al Capone was a thief, a con man, and a murderer. How could a man like Al Capone rise to power in the United States? Why did the government have to get him on income tax evasion, and not for any of his other crimes?

5. Why were the people of Chicago so enamored of Al Capone?

6. What were the Constitutional and political difficulties faced by those who wished to repeal Prohibition?

7. What were the economic incentives to continue Prohibition?

8. Women helped to create Prohibition, and helped to repeal it. How were women instrumental in these two areas? Why did many women have a change of heart about Prohibition?

9. How did the Great Depression finally kill Prohibition?

1. Create a poster or front page newspaper article that announces the repeal of the 18th Amendment.

2. Divide the class into two sections and moderate a discussion about the pros and cons of Prohibition. Compare Prohibition with the attempts to legalize drugs.

3. Make a poster that aims to garner support for the repeal of the 18th Amendment.

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Air Dates

• August 04, 2000