Scarface is the nickname which was given to one of the most famous and infamous members of organized crime. Scholars and crime-buffs throughout the United States know all about Alphonse "Scarface" Capone and how he grew to head the mafia in Chicago, Illinois in the 1920s. Capone was able to achieve his success in the underworld by being smarter and perhaps luckier than his enemies. He was a strategist, as focused on the destruction of his opposition as any general of any army. Although his actions were nefarious and his endeavors only intended to his financial betterment, it cannot be denied that the likes of Capone served an important role in the formation of American history. The original film Scarface is based on the life of Al Capone, gangster films being very popular in the 1930s and early 1940s while the 1980s remake of Scarface tells a similarly themed story of criminal success and ultimate failure but changes the setting, the ethnicity, and the story arc while at the same time removing all historical context from the story. During the time of the Great Depression, organized crime became a big business. After the passage of the 19th Amendment, Prohibition went into effect. Consequently, there was higher demand for illegal substances, particularly liquor. Criminal enterprises had been around for a while, providing prostitution and gambling to the major cities, but Prohibition would lead to the rise of the famous American gangster. Bugs Moran, John Dillinger, Lucky Luciano, and of course Al Capone, along with their corporations, like Murder,...

became household names during the period. Many of these early gangsters were first or second generation immigrants, primarily from Italy (Shanty 12). When the immigrants, came to the U.S., many were unable to speak English. So, they formed themselves into tight groups of people with similar backgrounds. In Brooklyn, New York, a group of Italian immigrants met in what would become Little Italy (Al 1). Being unfamiliar with the language, most immigrants could only get low-paying, menial jobs. The fastest way to get out of the rut of slum life in these ethnic neighborhoods was to join gangs and commit crimes, which though decidedly illegal were also highly profitable. Like many of his countrymen, Capone joined a street gang in Brooklyn at a very early age. He quickly built up a reputation among the ranks as being both highly intelligent and aggressively vicious when slighted. After proving himself somewhat in New York, Capone moved to Chicago to work for the Italian crime syndicate (Raab 42). His assertiveness and ruthlessness moved him quickly up the ladder until he was running the crime family. Chicago, Illinois was the home of many hardcore gangsters. Gangs within the city were constantly doing battle for territory. Things came to a head between Capone and his main rival, Bugs Moran who was the head of the Irish gang in Chicago. This culminated in the famed 1929 St. Valentines' Day Massacre, where members of the Capone gang arrived at a car garage dressed as police officers and executed their gangland enemies who were inside playing cards…