1920's Gangsters: Dressed To Kill

Beautiful suits, bad men and dangerous women - Gangsters in Film, Music, and Fashion

The Look of Success

Here's a cool page about 1920's celebrities and gangsters (opens in a new window).

There are few styles as instantly recognizable as the pinstriped suit and fedora hat. . . add a beautiful car and a gorgeous woman to the mix and guess what you've got?

If you said "a recipe for success" you'd be right. . .

From the red carpets of movie award shows, to your local costume party - few figures have had the social or fashion impact of American gangsters. They have defined an entire fashion culture around their distinctive "look" and attitude.

It all started in the 1920's. . .

From Al Capone and Lucky Luciano to John Gotti and Sammy "The Bull" Gravano, organized crime characters have built their reputations as rebellious, dangerous, and "well-dressed" criminal business men.

"Mobster suits" have reached legendary status from award shows to televised courtrooms.

What is it so many people find so appealing about the "mobster look"? And how do you put together the best Al Capone style costume?

Let's find out. . .

The 1920's set the stage for criminals to become stars.

Stylish Criminal Businessmen

With the passage of Alcohol Prohibition (Volstead Act) in 1919, America became a powder keg of organized crime.

Those men and women with the guts and means to break the law became the bootlegging superstars of film and novels.

Characters like F. Scott Fitzgerald's Jay Gatsby in The Great Gatsby, or James Cagney's Tom Powers in the great gangster movie The Public Enemy became the well-dressed icons of 1920's mobster culture.

As black markets popped up around the country, speakeasies became popular destinations for those who wished to drink, listen to jazz, dance and have fun - most notably the other lasting icon of the 1920's - the beautiful flapper girl.

With these social changes and the rise of mass media - famous mobsters became more and more visible in the public eye - much to the chagrin of those in charge.

Bootleggers and criminals strong-armed America into redefining success.

Criminal millionaires were popping up all over the country, showing Americans the romance and financial reward of the criminal lifestyle and bucking the system.

Entire police forces were stuck in the deep pockets of men like Capone and Owney Madden, and all the while this was being played out right under the nose of the American government.

It's no wonder gangsters have become the symbol for defiance and success for "the regular guy". And, as you know, "the gangster" remains a symbol of hard-won success and the criminal's "code of ethics" in movies and in music.

Success of the Underdog

Look at jazz.

The greatest jazz musician of the 1920's, perhaps all time, Duke Ellington was the bandleader at the Cotton Club, owned by Owney Madden, one of the biggest and most powerful bootleggers in New York City during the Roaring Twenties. This entire dynamic is played out in the movie The Cotton Club starring Richard Gere.

The mobster movie genre is filled with well-heeled and handsome stars who always get the girls, always make the money, and always go out with a bang.

Today, figures from the 1920's remain historical icons for urban success stories.

Al Capone is the most referenced dead white guy in music history, from Raekwon's Purple Tape to The Notorious B.I.G.'s Ready to Die and many other high profile rap albums.

70 years after his death Capone still commands elite status as a figure of urban success and the romance of the criminal lifestyle.

This remains a big reason the mobster's costume is so popular at Halloween parties world-wide - name another figure who has had such a lasting impact on fashion and society as gangsters. . .

Read much more about the 1920's on our Homepage