Bugs Moran
This article needs additional citations for verification. (October 2010) |
George "Bugs" Moran | |
---|---|
USP Leavenworth, Leavenworth, Kansas, U.S. | |
Resting place | Leavenworth Federal Penitentiary Cemetery, U.S. |
Other names | George Gage, George Morrissey, George Miller |
Occupation(s) | Gangster, bootlegger |
Predecessor | Vincent Drucci |
Spouse(s) | Evelyn Herrell (first wife) Lucille Logan Bilezikdijan
(m. 1922) |
Children | 1 |
Allegiance | North Side Gang |
Criminal charge | Robbery and conspiracy to counterfeit checks and cash in $62,000 worth of American Express checks |
Penalty | 10–20 years at Ohio Penitentiary; 5 years at Leavenworth Prison |
George Clarence "Bugs" Moran (/məˈrɑːn/; Adelard Leo Cunin; August 21, 1893 – February 25, 1957) was an American Chicago Prohibition-era gangster. He was incarcerated three times before his 21st birthday. Seven members of his gang were gunned down and killed in a warehouse in the Saint Valentine's Day Massacre of February 14, 1929, supposedly on the orders of his rival Al Capone.
Early life and career
Moran was born Adelard Cunin to a French immigrant father, Jules Adelard Cunin, and a mother of Canadian descent, Marie Diana Gobeil, in
Prohibition
Battling Al Capone
The bootlegging operation of
According to Paul Maccabee, a historian of
Responding to Weiss's death, Moran tried to kill a member of Capone's gang, resulting in an attack, allegedly by Capone, known as the
The St. Valentine's Day Massacre
On February 14, 1929, seven members of Moran's gang died in what came to be called the
Two gunmen—dressed as
Police response was delayed when witnesses saw the two "police officers" exit the scene. There were six corpses and another man near death when police arrived on the scene. The survivor, Frank Gusenberg, following the gangsters' code of silence, refused to identify the killers before dying. When Moran learned of the carnage, he broke the gangster code, accusing Capone of the murders. No one was convicted. Capone was in Florida on the day of the massacre.[5] He denied involvement in the massacre, though he was twice summoned to court, which he avoided by claimed illness.[6]
There is some evidence implicating Chicago police officers in the killings. Prior to the massacre, some officers were stealing bootleg liquor from the gang's trucks and were allegedly disciplined by the chief of police, but no substantiation is available.
After Prohibition
Moran managed to keep control of his territory and what remained of his gang through the early 1930s, but the North Side gang never fully recovered its power or former place in Chicago's underworld as the chief rival to Capone's Italian mob. Moran eventually left the area, quitting the gang entirely—though not the criminal lifestyle. He reverted to committing petty crimes, such as
On April 30, 1939, Moran was convicted of conspiracy to cash $62,000 worth of American Express checks. He was freed on appeal when he posted a bond; he fled but was captured and not released until December 21, 1944.
Death in prison
Moran died of lung cancer a few months into his 10-year sentence at Leavenworth Federal Prison in Kansas on February 25, 1957, at the age of 63.[10]
Personal life
Moran married Lucille Logan Bilezikdian, with whom he had a son, John George Moran. She left him because of his criminal lifestyle.[citation needed] In 1922, he married Evelyn Herrell.
In popular culture
Date | Title | Country | Notes | IMDb |
---|---|---|---|---|
1958 | Playhouse 90 Seven Against the Wall | US | Portrayed by Dennis Patrick | [1] |
1959 | Al Capone
|
US | Portrayed by Murvyn Vye | [2] |
1959 | The Untouchables – The George "Bugs" Moran Story, Arsenal, The Eddie O'Gara Story, and Doublecross | US | Portrayed by Lloyd Nolan, Robert J. Wilke, and Harry Morgan | [3] |
1967 | The St. Valentine's Day Massacre | US | Portrayed by Ralph Meeker | [4] |
1975 | Capone | US | Portrayed by Robert Phillips | [5] |
1987 | The Verne Miller Story | US | Portrayed by Sean Moran | [6] |
1993 | The Untouchables – Pilot (Parts 1 and 2), Chinatown | US | Portrayed by Jack Thibeau | [7] |
2000 | Early Edition – Everybody Goes to Rick's | US | Portrayed by Kevin Fry | [8] |
2017 | Gangster Land | US | Portrayed by Peter Facinelli | [9] |
References
- ^ ODMP Bulfin 1917, odmp.org. Accessed January 12, 2023.
- ^ a b Feb 14 1929: The St Valentine's Day Massacre in Chicago. History Today 59, no. 2 (February 2009), p. 10.
- ^ a b c Salem, Press, p. 388
- ^ Paul Maccabee (1993), John Dillinger Slept Here, Minnesota Historical Society Press, pp. 17–18.
- ^ Reppetto, Thomas (2004). The "Get Capone" Drive: Print the Legend. New York: H. Holt.
- ^ Boyle, William. "Valentine's Day Massacre." Salem Press Encyclopedia (January 2015).
- ^ "U. S. AGENTS NAB 'BUGS' MORAN IN $10,000 HOLDUP (July 7, 1946)". 15 July 2023.
- ISBN 1581824432.
- ^ Keilman, John "'Old man' Moran dies in obscurity", Dayton Daily News. Retrieved December 5, 2019.
- ^ n.d. "Moran, George." Britannica Online Britannica Online
Boyle, William. Valentine's Day Massacre. Salem Press EncyclopediaResearch Starters.
Sources
- Bugs Moran at Encyclopædia Britannica
- George "Bugs" Moran, head-and-shoulders portrait, facing left. 1957. New York World-Telegram and the Sun Newspaper Photograph Collection, whereabouts unknown. Accessed 22 Mar. 2015. https://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/95511458/
- George "Bugs" Moran, head-and-shoulders portrait, facing front. 1930. Library of Congress, whereabouts unknown. Accessed 22 Mar. 2015. https://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/93511625/
- "FEB 14 1929: The St Valentine's Day Massacre in Chicago". History Today 59, no. 2 (February 2009): 10. Corporate ResourceNet, Accessed March 23, 2015. EBSCOhost.
Salem Press. American Villains. Pasadena, Calif: Salem Press, 2008. 386–389. Accessed March 22, 2015. EBSCOhost.
External links
- George Clarence Moran at My Al Capone Museum