Club Continental, St. V-Day Massacre, Society Circus Program

Eduardo: TONIGHT ON A SPECIAL EPISODE OF HISTORY DETECTIVES, THREE STORIES OF PROHIBITION-ERA AMERICA.

WHAT SECRETS CAN THIS BUSINESS CARD REVEAL ABOUT GLAMOUR AND VICE IN 1930s LOS ANGELES?

HOLLYWOOD WAS LAS VEGAS BEFORE LAS VEGAS WAS LAS VEGAS.

Elyse: WHAT ROLE DID THIS WEAPON PLAY IN ONE OF CHICAGO'S MOST RUTHLESS MOB MASSACRES?

Gwendolyn: AND WHY ARE SOME OF NEW YORK'S WEALTHIEST FAMILIES PLANNING A HIGH-SOCIETY CIRCUS AT THE VERY DEPTH OF THE GREAT DEPRESSION?

Elvis Costello: ♪ WATCHIN' THE DETECTIVES ♪ ♪ I GET SO ANGRY WHEN THE TEARDROPS START ♪ ♪ BUT HE CAN'T BE WOUNDED 'CAUSE HE'S GOT NO HEART ♪ ♪ WATCHIN' THE DETECTIVES ♪ ♪ IT'S JUST LIKE WATCHIN' THE DETECTIVES ♪ ♪ WATCHIN' THE DETECTIVES ♪ Eduardo: OUR FIRST CASE EXAMINES THIS BUSINESS CARD TO UNMASK THE SECRET LIFE OF ITS OWNER.

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA IN THE '20s AND EARLY '30s HAD A THIRST FOR ILLICIT LIQUOR.

GANGSTERS AND BOOTLEGGERS FLOCKED TO QUENCH IT.

BUSINESS BOOMED FOR THE UNDERWORLD.

THEN, IN 1933, THE REPEAL OF PROHIBITION CUT OFF THAT ILLEGAL REVENUE STREAM.

WHAT DID THE MOBSTERS DO NEXT TO KEEP THE CASH FLOWING?

TODAY, A RETIRED DOCTOR HAS A BUSINESS CARD HE THINKS COULD LINK HIS FATHER TO A VICE LORD AND AN ILLICIT CHAPTER IN LOS ANGELES HISTORY.

I'VE ALWAYS WONDERED ABOUT THE CLUB CONTINENTAL AND WHAT MY DAD DID THERE.

I'M EDUARDO PAGAN, AND I'M ON MY WAY TO GUEMES ISLAND IN THE PUGET SOUND, WHERE I HAVE A FEW QUESTIONS FOR RICHARD NICOLLS.

I'VE GOT THIS CARD FROM MY DAD, FRED NICOLLS, SHOWING THAT HE WORKED AT THE CLUB CONTINENTAL.

RICHARD SAYS HIS FATHER PASSED AWAY IN 1957 AND DIDN'T SPEAK OF HIS SOMEWHAT CHECKERED PAST.

WE WEREN'T TOO CLOSE.

I LEARNED AS A YOUNG MAN THAT HE WAS A RUMRUNNER ACROSS THE MEXICAN BORDER.

SO HE WAS A BOOTLEGGER.

AND HE GOT CAUGHT AND WENT TO PRISON.

AFTER WORLD WAR II, THE GOVERNOR OF CALIFORNIA GAVE HIM A FULL PARDON.

WHAT CAN YOU TELL ME ABOUT THE CLUB CONTINENTAL?

RICHARD BELIEVES THE CLUB CONTINENTAL WAS A NIGHTCLUB NEAR LOS ANGELES IN THE 1930s.

ALTHOUGH HE NEVER SAW HIS FATHER MUCH AS A YOUNG BOY, HE DOES RECALL A RARE VISIT TO THE CLUB THAT LEFT A LASTING IMPRESSION.

ONE TIME HE TOOK ME DOWNSTAIRS, AND THERE WAS THIS SUMPTUOUS CASINO: ROULETTE WHEELS AND BACCARAT TABLES AND CARD TABLES AND, YOU KNOW, THE WHOLE WORKS.

AND WHAT DID YOUR FATHER DO THERE?

I DON'T KNOW, IT A LITTLE BIT RUNS TOGETHER IN MY MIND BECAUSE I WAS SO YOUNG.

BUT ONE SHADOWY FIGURE STILL LOOMS LARGE IN HIS IMAGINATION, A MAN HE BELIEVES WAS NAMED NOLA HAHN.

NOLA HAHN?

SORT OF AN ODD NAME FOR A MAN, I THOUGHT.

WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE ME TO FIND OUT FOR YOU?

WHAT WAS MY DAD'S INVOLVEMENT IN THE CLUB CONTINENTAL, AND THEN WHO WAS NOLA HAHN?

OKAY.

[ seagulls cawing ] I WROTE A BOOK ON THE LOS ANGELES RACE RIOT IN THE 1940s, SO I'M FAMILIAR WITH THIS ERA.

AS I LOOK OVER THIS CARD, THERE'S NOT A LOT OF INFORMATION TO GO ON.

IT'S JUST A SIMPLE BUSINESS CARD.

THE FONT THAT'S USED ON THIS CARD IS AN ART DECO STYLE, AND THAT'S ENTIRELY CONSISTENT WITH THE PERIOD.

YOU KNOW, IT'S KIND OF CURIOUS AS I LOOK AT THIS CARD, TOO, THAT THERE'S NOTHING TO INDICATE WHAT FRED NICOLLS DOES.

THERE'S JUST HIS NAME AND NOTHING ELSE.

HERE'S A PIECE OF INFORMATION, THOUGH, THAT I THINK I CAN REALLY START WITH; IT'S THE PHONE NUMBER.

IT SAYS OMAHA 34876.

AT THE LOS ANGELES CENTRAL LIBRARY, REFERENCE LIBRARIAN MARY McCOY HELPS ME LOCATE CLUB CONTINENTAL IN A LOS ANGELES PHONE BOOK FROM 1935.

C...L...U -- THERE IT IS.

THERE'S CLUB CONTINENTAL, SONORA AVENUE, GLN, - GLENDALE, RIGHT?

- MM-HMM.

THERE'S A KENWOOD EXCHANGE RATHER THAN OMAHA.

THAT'S NOT WHAT WE HAVE HERE.

WHY THE DISCREPANCY?

MARY DOESN'T KNOW.

MAYBE THE NUMBER ON THE CARD WAS FOR FRED'S HOME LINE.

THE PHONE BOOK DOESN'T HAVE A LISTING FOR FRED NICOLLS, BUT A CHECK OF THE MAP IN THE DIRECTORY CONFIRMS THAT OMAHA WAS THE EXCHANGE FOR A NEIGHBORHOOD NEAR GLENDALE.

DID THE CLUB CONTINENTAL HAVE MORE THAN ONE LOCATION?

IN A NEWSPAPER DATABASE, I FIND A REFERENCE TO THE CLUB FROM 1935.

IT READS IN PART, "AMID A BRILLIANT ASSEMBLAGE, "THE CLUB CONTINENTAL HELD ITS FORMAL OPENING LAST NIGHT "IN AN ATMOSPHERE OF SPLENDOR.

"STARS OF SCREEN AND STAGE WERE ON HAND TO MAKE THE OCCASION A GALA AFFAIR."

AND THIS IS A YEAR AND A HALF AFTER THE END OF PROHIBITION.

IT LOOKS LIKE THE CLUB'S ONE AND ONLY LOCATION WAS NEAR A GLENDALE AIRPORT.

DURING THE WAR, THE CLUB BECAME AN OFFICERS' BARRACKS.

THE BUILDING WAS DEMOLISHED IN 1966.

THERE'S NO MENTION OF NOLA HAHN OR GAMBLING ACTIVITY, SO WHAT WAS IT THAT RICHARD REMEMBERED SEEING IN THAT BASEMENT?

THERE'S NOTHING ON RICHARD'S FATHER, FRED NICOLLS, AT THE CLUB CONTINENTAL EITHER.

WHAT ABOUT HIS EARLIER RUM-RUNNING DAYS?

NOW, RICHARD REMEMBERED THAT HIS FATHER WAS ARRESTED IN ARIZONA.

AFTER THE PASSAGE OF THE VOLSTEAD ACT AND THE 1920 PROHIBITION OF ALCOHOL, BOOTLEGGING BECAME AN IMMENSELY PROFITABLE LINE OF WORK FOR THOSE WILLING TO RISK ARREST AND PRISON.

A SEARCH FOR FRED NICOLLS CONFIRMS RICHARD'S RECOLLECTION THAT LONG AGO HIS FATHER HAD RUN THIS RISK AND LOST.

"CUSTOMS MEN SAID THEY FOUND COPPER CONTAINERS "FITTED BETWEEN THE SEATS AND IN THE FLOOR OF THE CAR, "CONTAINING 250 GALLONS OF BOTTLED WHISKY, LABELLED 'EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND.'"

IN 1931, NICOLLS WAS SENTENCED TO TWO AND A HALF YEARS IN PRISON.

SO FRED NICOLLS HAD A CRIMINAL PAST, BUT DID HE REFORM HIS WAYS AFTER HIS RELEASE?

WHAT EXACTLY WAS GOING ON AT THE CLUB CONTINENTAL, AND WHO WAS NOLA HAHN?

[ swing music plays ] I'M MEETING AUTHOR JIM HEIMANN IN THE HOLLYWOOD HILLS.

HE'S WRITTEN SEVERAL BOOKS ABOUT L.A. NIGHTLIFE IN THE '30s.

I AM EAGER TO KNOW WHAT YOU CAN TELL ME ABOUT THIS CARD.

CAN YOU TELL ME ANYTHING ABOUT THAT INFORMATION THERE?

HMM, I KNOW THE NAME CLUB CONTINENTAL.

PHONE NUMBER I'M NOT FAMILIAR WITH, AND FRED NICOLLS, NO.

WELL, I DID DISCOVER, AS A MATTER OF FACT, THAT HE DID DO SOME TIME FOR BEING A BOOTLEGGER.

WELL, YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT THE '30s, AND SO IT'S RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF THE DEPRESSION.

SO NOW WE'RE TALKING ABOUT -- A LOT OF STUFF WAS GOING ON.

LOS ANGELES WAS RIFE WITH A LOT OF CRIMINAL ACTIVITY.

CALIFORNIA HAD BEEN ONE OF THE WETTEST STATES DURING THE 13 YEARS OF PROHIBITION, WITH MOBSTERS SMUGGLING IN AN ESTIMATED $50 MILLION OF LIQUOR IN JUST ONE YEAR ALONE.

JIM SAYS THE CLUB CONTINENTAL HAD FIRST BEEN A SPEAKEASY CALLED AIRPORT GARDENS, A LOCATION WITH A KNACK FOR EVADING THE 18th AMENDMENT.

THE CLUB AIRPORT GARDENS HAD A REALLY LONG DRIVEWAY, SO IF THEY SAW THE COPS COMING, ALL OF A SUDDEN, YOU KNOW, PHONY WALLS CAME, THE DINNER TABLES CAME OUT, AND THEN NOW WE JUST HAVE A NICE PLACE TO GO DANCING.

JIM SAYS THE CLUB CONTINENTAL OPENED IN 1934, RIGHT AFTER THE REPEAL OF PROHIBITION.

IT WAS DELUXE: IT WAS ORNATE, IT WAS A GRAND PLACE TO GO DANCING, RIGHT DEAD CENTER OF KIND OF THE GOLDEN AGE OF HOLLYWOOD AND CERTAINLY THE GOLDEN AGE OF NIGHTLIFE IN HOLLYWOOD AND LOS ANGELES.

YOU MIGHT SEE HOWARD HUGHES OR PAULETTE GODDARD, WILLIAM POWELL, CAROLE LOMBARD.

I MEAN, ALL OF THESE STARS WERE REALLY OUT IN FORCE ALMOST EVERY NIGHT.

YOU KNOW, OUR CONTRIBUTOR REMEMBERS AS A CHILD SEEING IN THE BASEMENT THIS GAMBLING ESTABLISHMENT THAT VERY MUCH LOOKED LIKE A CASINO.

YEAH, THIS WAS ALWAYS PART OF THE UNDERWORLD INCOME, BUT CERTAINLY IT ACCELERATES RIGHT AFTER PROHIBITION.

JIM EXPLAINS HOW, AFTER REPEAL, GANGSTERS FOUND A NEW REVENUE STREAM, AND THE CLUB CONTINENTAL WAS PART OF THE ACTION.

GAMBLING HAD BEEN ILLEGAL.

NOW IT WAS THE MOST PROFITABLE VICE GAME IN TOWN AND AN OPEN SECRET.

THERE WERE RAIDS, BUT MOST OF IT WAS JUST FOR SHOW.

YOU'D READ NEWSPAPER ACCOUNTS ABOUT THIS, BECAUSE THIS WAS PART OF THE WHOLE OPERATION IN L.A.

IN THE '30s WITH THE GRAFT SITUATION.

FIRST, ILLEGAL BOOZE, THEN GAMBLING.

THE RIVERS OF ILLICIT CASH FLOWED TO DIFFERENT CORNERS OF CITY GOVERNMENT.

BY THE TIME THE CLUB CONTINENTAL OPENED IN 1934, CONTROL OF LOS ANGELES RESTED WITH A POWERFUL COALITION OF CORRUPT POLITICIANS, POLICE, AND GANGSTERS KNOWN AS "THE COMBINATION."

THE COMBINATION'S POLITICAL LEADER WAS MAYOR FRANK L. SHAW, WHO OVERSAW AN ELABORATE OPERATION OF KICKBACKS AND BRIBES WHILE TURNING A BLIND EYE TO MOB VIOLENCE.

THE CONTRIBUTOR REMEMBERS THE NAME NOLA HAHN.

DOES THAT MEAN ANYTHING TO YOU?

YEAH, WHEN THE TRANSFER OF CLUB AIRPORT GARDENS TO CLUB CONTINENTAL IN 1934 HAPPENED, NOLA HAHN WAS ASSOCIATED WITH IT.

NOLA HAHN IS DEFINITELY ONE OF THE CRIME LORDS IN LOS ANGELES.

HIS NAME APPEARS INFREQUENTLY; HE'S A LITTLE BIT OF AN ENIGMA.

JIM EXPLAINS HAHN IS LITTLE KNOWN TODAY BECAUSE HE OPERATED BEHIND A VEIL OF SECRECY AND AVOIDED ANY REAL TROUBLE WITH THE LAW.

BUT JIM HAS A SUGGESTION FOR HOW WE MIGHT LEARN THE TRUTH ABOUT NOLA HAHN.

THE GUY WHO OWNED THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER, BILLY WILKERSON, WAS ASSOCIATED WITH NOLA HAHN.

HIS SON, WILLIE WILKERSON, WROTE A VERY IN-DEPTH BOOK ABOUT HIS FATHER, AND THAT WOULD BE THE FIRST GUY THAT I'D GO TO SEE.

IF AN ALLEGED GANGSTER LIKE NOLA HAHN WAS HELPING RUN THE CLUB CONTINENTAL, WHAT WAS FRED NICOLLS DOING THERE?

DID HE RETURN TO A LIFE OF CRIME AFTER HIS RELEASE FROM PRISON?

OUR CONTRIBUTOR'S FATHER -- HIS NAME IS RIGHT THERE ON THE CARD -- USED TO WORK FOR NOLA HAHN.

WHAT CAN YOU TELL ME ABOUT HIM?

WELL, I KNOW NOLA HAHN, AND NOLA HAHN DEFINITELY RAN THE CLUB CONTINENTAL, AT LEAST THE GAMBLING, AND HE DEFINITELY RAN THE GAMBLING FOR MY FATHER'S ESTABLISHMENTS.

WHY DID YOUR FATHER HIRE SOMEONE LIKE NOLA HAHN?

WHAT DID HE BRING TO YOUR FATHER?

HOLLYWOOD WAS LAS VEGAS BEFORE LAS VEGAS WAS LAS VEGAS.

I MEAN, IT WAS DOTTED WITH CASINOS DOWN SUNSET BOULEVARD.

SOME OF THESE CLUBS IN TODAY'S MONEY MADE HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS.

NOLA HAHN WAS KIND OF LIKE A MAGICIAN, A WIZARD IN CASINO GAMBLING.

THIS GUY KNEW HOW TO MAKE A CASINO JUST DISAPPEAR IF THERE WAS SOME KIND OF A POLICE RAID.

WILLIE EXPLAINS HAHN'S INNOVATIONS INCLUDED CONSOLIDATING GAMBLING TABLES AROUND A SINGLE OVERSEER TO AVOID CHEATING AND POSITIONING SURVEILLANCE TEAMS TO MONITOR THE GAMBLERS.

WE KNOW THIS PERSON TO BE THE PIT BOSS TODAY.

YEAH, YEAH.

WAS ALL OF THE KIND OF STUFF YOU'RE DESCRIBING GOING ON AT THE CLUB CONTINENTAL?

ABSOLUTELY.

I MEAN, THIS CLUB WAS AN IMMENSE SUCCESS DURING ITS TIME, AND THAT CAN BE DIRECTLY ATTRIBUTED TO NOLA HAHN.

HOW LONG WAS HAHN ASSOCIATED WITH THE CLUB CONTINENTAL?

WELL, THAT I DON'T KNOW EXACTLY, BUT HE BOUGHT THE TROCADERO FROM MY DAD IN 1938, AND IT WAS EXTRAORDINARILY BAD LUCK FOR HIM.

IN 1938, THERE WERE A WHOLE LOT OF REFORMERS WHO CAME INTO PUBLIC OFFICE, AND ON THE PLATFORM OF CLEANING UP LOS ANGELES.

IN 1938, FLETCHER BOWRON WAS ELECTED MAYOR FOLLOWING THE RECALL OF FRANK SHAW.

HIS NEW REGIME TARGETED VICE, AND ONCE AGAIN, THE MAFIA'S RIVER OF CRIMINAL CASH WAS DIVERTED OR DRIED UP ENTIRELY.

THE REFORMERS MOVED IN AND SHUT DOWN GAMBLING AND PROSTITUTION.

THAT CLEAN-UP CAMPAIGN WAS PRETTY DEFINITIVE.

IT PUT A LOT OF THESE GUYS OUT OF BUSINESS.

WILLIE SAYS AFTER 1938, MOBSTERS LOOKED FOR A NEW PLACE TO SET UP SHOP.

SOME, LIKE HAHN, SAW POTENTIAL IN AN ISOLATED, LOW-RENT DESERT TOWN: LAS VEGAS.

IN 1942, YEARS BEFORE BUGSY SIEGEL AND THE FLAMINGO, HAHN OPENED THE LAVISH COLONY RESTAURANT.

HIS GAMBLING INNOVATIONS WENT WITH HIM, AND THIS TIME IT WAS ALL LEGAL.

HE CREATED THE TEMPLATE OF MODERN GAMBLING THAT WE KNOW TODAY.

WELL, WHAT KIND OF GUYS WORKED FOR HAHN?

WELL, THESE GUYS WEREN'T PLUCKED FROM THE STREET; THEY HAD TO HAVE SOME KIND OF RESUME.

AS YOU NOTICE, ON MR. NICOLLS' CARD, IT DOESN'T IDENTIFY WHAT HE DOES.

RIGHT!

DO YOU THINK FRED NICOLLS WENT ALONG WITH NOLA HAHN TO VEGAS?

MY GUESS IS MR. NICOLLS WENT ALONG FOR THE RIDE AS LONG AS NOLA HAHN WAS DOING ANY KIND OF BUSINESS.

DID FRED NICOLLS FOLLOW NOLA HAHN TO THE PROMISED LAND OF LAS VEGAS?

IN THE SHADY WORLD THESE MEN WERE LIVING IN, IT'S HARD TO FIND RECORDS.

BUT I HAVE A THOUGHT.

FRED NICOLLS SPENT TIME IN PRISON, AND RICHARD MENTIONED HIS FATHER WAS EVENTUALLY PARDONED YEARS LATER BY THE GOVERNOR OF CALIFORNIA.

LEGAL EXPERT P.S.

RUCKMAN HAS HELPED THE HISTORY DETECTIVES IN THE PAST.

I FORWARDED FRED NICOLLS' INFORMATION, AND HE SUGGESTS WE MEET IN SEATTLE AT ITS NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND RECORDS ADMINISTRATION FACILITY.

THIS IS FRED NICOLLS, AND WE BELIEVE HE WORKED FOR THE CLUB CONTINENTAL.

NOW, I'VE BEEN ABLE TO FIND ONLY TWO ARTICLES THAT MENTION AN ARREST AND THEN A CONVICTION IN 1931 FOR BOOTLEGGING.

THE FAMILY REMEMBERS OR BELIEVES THAT HE WAS PARDONED BY A GOVERNOR FOR BOOTLEGGING.

THEY WOULD BE MISTAKEN WITH RESPECT TO THAT.

HE VIOLATED THE VOLSTEAD ACT, ALSO KNOWN AS THE NATIONAL PROHIBITION ACT, SO HIS OFFENSE WAS FEDERAL.

AND SO MR. NICOLLS ACTUALLY SPENT TIME IN FEDERAL PRISON.

FRED NICOLLS WAS INCARCERATED IN THE McNEIL ISLAND FEDERAL PENITENTIARY IN WASHINGTON STATE.

THIS IS THE INMATE INTAKE REGISTRY, ALSO KNOWN AS THE GUEST BOOK.

FOR THE McNEIL PRISON?

YES, IT IS.

AND THERE HE IS, FRED NICOLLS.

THERE'S HIS RECEIVED AND DATE OF SENTENCE, MARCH OF 1931 IN ARIZONA, AND HERE IT INDICATES THAT HE WAS PAROLED IN 1932.

P.S.

HAS ALSO FOUND NICOLLS' PARDON APPLICATION FILE.

HERE IS A COPY OF HIS ACTUAL PRESIDENTIAL PARDON.

PRES-- WAIT A MINUTE, PRESIDENTIAL PARDON?

THAT'S RIGHT, HARRY TRUMAN GRANTED THIS PARDON TO MR. NICOLLS.

OH, THIS IS FANTASTIC.

AND THERE HIS SIGNATURE IS, HARRY S. TRUMAN.

P.S.

EXPLAINS THAT ONLY A PRESIDENT COULD GRANT A PARDON FOR A FEDERAL OFFENSE.

PRESIDENT TRUMAN WAS VERY GENEROUS WITH PARDONS.

HE GRANTED 2,000 OF THEM OR SO.

AND ONLY TWO PRESIDENTS HAVE EVER GRANTED MORE, FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT AND WOODROW WILSON.

NICOLLS APPLIED FOR THE PARDON IN 1944, STATING THAT HE WANTED TO PARTICIPATE IN THE WAR EFFORT.

AFTER THE APPLICATION IS RECEIVED, THEN THERE'S AN EXTENSIVE BACKGROUND RESEARCH, AGAIN, CONDUCTED BY THE FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION.

AND THEY INTERVIEWED SEVERAL PEOPLE THROUGHOUT THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA, AND HERE WE SEE SOME AFFIDAVITS WHICH NAME SOME OF THOSE INDIVIDUALS AND TELL YOU ABOUT THEIR RELATIONSHIP TO FRED NICOLLS.

WHAT P.S.

SHOWS ME NEXT WILL BE OF GREAT INTEREST TO RICHARD NICOLLS.

WELL, RICHARD, THIS HAS BEEN A VERY FASCINATING INVESTIGATION.

I EXPLAIN HOW THE CLUB CONTINENTAL OF HIS CHILDHOOD HAD BEEN ONE OF THE MAJOR EMPORIUMS OF ILLEGAL GAMBLING IN LOS ANGELES, AND NOLA HAHN WAS AN ENGINEER OF MODERN GAMBLING AND A FOUNDING FATHER OF LAS VEGAS.

A GAMBLING ENGINEER.

HE WAS, HE WAS A GAMBLING GENIUS.

[ laughs ] NOW, WHAT'S RATHER INTERESTING IS THAT NOLA HAHN BECOMES THE KEY TO MY ANSWERING THE LAST QUESTION, WHICH WAS BASICALLY WHAT WAS YOUR FATHER'S ASSOCIATION WITH THE CLUB CONTINENTAL AND ALL OF THIS UNDERWORLD THAT EXISTED IN LOS ANGELES DURING THIS TIME?

I SHOW RICHARD THE FBI'S RECORD OF HIS FATHER'S EMPLOYERS.

I WANT YOU TO TAKE A LOOK AT 1934.

WE SEE LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, IN 1934.

THERE'S NOLA HAHN RIGHT THERE, CLUB CONTINENTAL.

I CAN'T BELIEVE THAT.

SO NOLA HAHN, A KNOWN FIGURE IN THE L.A. UNDERWORLD, WAS SERVING AS A CHARACTER REFERENCE FOR FRED NICOLLS.

THE BACKGROUND CHECK SAYS NICOLLS WORKED AT THE CLUB CONTINENTAL FOR THREE MONTHS, AND IT LISTS HIS JOB DESCRIPTION.

I DO FIND IT VERY INTERESTING THAT HE'S LISTED HERE AS A PURCHASING AGENT; THAT IS HIGHLY SUGGESTIVE.

AND ALSO THE MORE AMORPHOUS TITLE "STEWARD."

WHAT DO YOU THINK THAT MEANT?

UNFORTUNATELY, ALL I CAN DO IS ADD TO THE LEVEL OF MYSTERY.

FURTHER DOWN THE AFFIDAVIT TOWARD THE END, IT SAYS THE RECORDS HAVE "EVIDENTLY BEEN DESTROYED."

BUT THE APPLICATION DOES ANSWER ONE QUESTION.

IN 1938, WHEN HAHN LEFT FOR VEGAS, FRED NICOLLS STARTED A FIVE-YEAR JOB AT A LOS ANGELES FURNITURE COMPANY.

NICOLLS APPARENTLY DIDN'T FOLLOW THE MOBSTERS TO LAS VEGAS, AND THE CLUB CONTINENTAL MAY HAVE BEEN THE LAST TIME HE WORKED FOR NOLA HAHN.

NOLA HAHN.

(laughs) THAT IS FANTASTIC.

AND THERE IT IS, CONTINENTAL CLUB.

PURCHASING AGENT AND STEWARD.

IT REALLY WAS BECAUSE OF THIS FBI INVESTIGATION THEN THAT YOUR FATHER WAS ABLE TO THEN PETITION THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES FOR A PARDON.

AND HE WROTE THAT, "I DO HEREBY GRANT UNTO THE SAID FRED NICOLLS A FULL AND UNCONDITIONAL PARDON."

AND THERE'S HIS SIGNATURE RIGHT THERE, HARRY S. TRUMAN.

THANK YOU.

WELL, YOU'RE VERY WELCOME.

I'LL REALLY TREASURE THESE.

HMM.

WELL, THAT WAS WORTHWHILE.

IT'S BEEN A PLEASURE.

THANK YOU.

HAPPY TO DO IT.

AFTER HIS PARDON, FRED NICOLLS CONTINUED TO LIVE AND WORK IN CALIFORNIA AND DIED IN LOS ANGELES IN 1957 AT THE AGE OF 64.

THAT WAS THE SAME YEAR NOLA HAHN COMMITTED SUICIDE IN BEVERLY HILLS AT AGE 60, LEAVING BEHIND A MYSTERIOUS NOTE: "NOBODY TO BLAME."

TO VIEW FRED NICOLLS' FBI REPORT, VISIT HISTORY DETECTIVES ON THE WEB AT pbs.org.

Gwendolyn: L.A. HAD ITS HAPPENING HOT SPOTS, BUT BEGINNING IN THE 1920s, HARLEM'S COTTON CLUB WAS THE PLACE TO BE DURING AND AFTER PROHIBITION.

THE COTTON CLUB LAUNCHED THE CAREERS OF DUKE ELLINGTON, CAB CALLOWAY, ETHEL WATERS, AND LENA HORNE.

A SHOWCASE OF ELEGANCE, CREATIVITY, AND HIGH LIVING, THE COTTON CLUB WAS OWNED BY NOTORIOUS BOOTLEGGER OWNEY "THE KILLER" MADDEN.

THE YORKSHIRE-BORN GANGSTER INSISTED ON RIGID COLOR LINES AT HIS CLUB.

THE PERFORMERS WERE ALL AFRICAN AMERICAN, THE CHORUS GIRLS LIGHT BROWN-SKINNED, AND THE CLIENTELE STRICTLY WHITE.

AROUND MIDNIGHT, CELEBRITIES FROM THE WORLDS OF POLITICS, THEATER, SPORTS, AND CRIME HEADED UPTOWN FOR THE ELABORATE MUSICAL REVUES, MINGLING AND DANCING UNTIL DAWN.

FROM 1927 TO 1931, DUKE ELLINGTON LED THE HOUSE BAND, WHERE ARTISTIC FREEDOM SAW HIM CREATE AND PREMIERE SUCH LEGENDARY COMPOSITIONS AS "MOOD INDIGO" AND "IT DON'T MEAN A THING (IF IT AIN'T GOT THAT SWING)."

COTTON CLUB PERFORMANCES WERE BROADCAST ON CBS RADIO, EARNING ELLINGTON A NATIONAL AUDIENCE.

AFTER THE RACE RIOTS OF 1935, MOST WHITES CONSIDERED IT UNSAFE TO TRAVEL TO HARLEM, SO THE COTTON CLUB MOVED DOWNTOWN.

FOUR YEARS LATER, IT CLOSED, ALTHOUGH A NEW CLUB BY THE SAME NAME OPENED IN HARLEM IN 1978.

Elyse: OUR NEXT CASE INVESTIGATES A WEAPON THAT MAY HAVE BEEN FIRED IN ONE OF THE NATION'S MOST INFAMOUS CRIMES.

FEBRUARY 14, 1929, ST. VALENTINE'S DAY: GANGSTERS TURN A DAY OF LOVE AND REFLECTION INTO A BLOODBATH, EXECUTING SEVEN MEN IN A CHICAGO GARAGE.

[ machine gun firing ] AUTHORITIES SUSPECT THE HAND OF POWERFUL GANGSTER AL CAPONE, WHO WAS FIGHTING TO CONTROL THE CITY'S ILLEGAL LIQUOR TRADE.

THE DAYLIGHT KILLING OUTRAGES THE NATION AND BECOMES A SYMBOL OF THE FAILURE OF PROHIBITION.

HOWEVER, NO ONE IS EVER CONVICTED OF THE KILLING, AND THE CRIME REMAINS UNSOLVED.

NOW MIKE LUX OF LAKE GENEVA, WISCONSIN, BELIEVES HE HAS THE MISSING WEAPON FROM THIS LEGENDARY GANGLAND MASSACRE.

THIS GUN MAY HAVE TAKEN THE LIVES OF TWO MEN.

I'M ON MY WAY TO MEET MIKE AND LOOK INTO HIS STORY.

VERY NICE TO MEET YOU.

OH, WOW!

12-GAUGE SHOTGUN.

LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT IT.

AND WHAT'S THE STORY BEHIND IT?

IT WAS SUPPOSEDLY USED IN THE ST. VALENTINE'S DAY MASSACRE.

THAT WAS IN CHICAGO IN 1929.

YES.

YOU KNOW, JUST BY LOOKING AT THE GUN, TO ME IT KIND OF LOOKS LIKE THE BARREL IS NOT PERIOD TO THE PIECE.

CORRECT.

I HAD THIS BARREL PUT ON TO MAKE IT LEGAL.

ORIGINALLY THE BARREL WAS CUT OFF PROBABLY ABOUT RIGHT HERE.

AND I ACTUALLY HAVE A COUPLE PICTURES OF IT.

OH, AND I CAN SEE THE BARREL WAS MUCH SHORTER.

MIKE TELLS ME THAT SHORT-BARREL SHOTGUNS ARE FEDERALLY REGULATED AND THAT HE PUT A LONGER BARREL ON THE GUN TO COMPLY WITH THESE RULES.

HOW'D YOU GET THE GUN?

I HAD INHERITED IT FROM MY FATHER WHEN HE PASSED AWAY.

MIKE SAYS HIS FATHER GOT THE GUN FROM A FORMER CHICAGO FIRE COMMISSIONER, ROBERT QUINN.

MIKE BELIEVES THAT QUINN, WHO IS NOW DECEASED, MAY HAVE USED HIS INFLUENCE TO SECRETLY ACQUIRE THE GUN.

I THINK WHEN QUINN ACQUIRED IT, IT HAD TO HAVE BEEN IN THE MID-'70s.

MIKE'S FATHER WAS KILLED IN AN AIR CRASH IN 1979.

TWO DAYS LATER, ONE OF HIS FRIENDS TALKED TO ME, AND HE WAS VERY UPSET ABOUT THE PLANE CRASH, BUT HE WAS ALSO VERY WORRIED THAT NOW I OWN THIS PIECE, AND HE DIDN'T WANT ME TO BE SHOWING IT OFF OR TELLING ANYBODY ABOUT IT, AND I HAVEN'T.

THAT'S WHY I'VE HAD IT FOR 30 YEARS HIDDEN AWAY.

WHAT'D YOU THINK WHEN YOUR DAD TOLD YOU THAT THIS WAS USED IN THE ST. VALENTINE'S DAY MASSACRE?

I THOUGHT, "COME ON, YOU'RE PULLING MY LEG."

AND HE WAS DEAD SERIOUS.

AND HE WAS A SERIOUS KIND OF GUY.

WHEN IT CAME TO WEAPONS LIKE THIS IN HIS COLLECTION, HE WAS NOT FOOLING.

MIKE, WHAT EXACTLY DO YOU WANT TO KNOW?

IF IT TRULY IS THE SHOTGUN THAT WAS USED AT THE ST. VALENTINE'S DAY MASSACRE.

I WILL SEE WHAT I CAN FIND OUT.

DO YOU MIND IF I SIT HERE FOR A WHILE AND EVALUATE IT?

ABSOLUTELY NOT.

I USED TO WORK IN THE GUN DEPARTMENT AT CHRISTIE'S, SO I KNOW A LITTLE BIT ABOUT GUNS.

AND THE FIRST THING I NEED TO DETERMINE WAS IF THIS GUN WAS EVEN AROUND IN 1929.

WAS IT PERIOD TO THE TIME OF THE MASSACRE?

IT CERTAINLY APPEARS TO BE.

THE WOODEN FORESTOCK IS FOR A REPEATING, OR PUMP-ACTION, SHOTGUN.

THAT MEANS IT CAN FIRE MULTIPLE SHOTS WITHOUT RELOADING.

I KNOW THAT THERE IS A SERIAL NUMBER HERE.

AH, HERE IT IS: 18514 B.

THAT MAY HELP US MORE PRECISELY DATE THE GUN, ALTHOUGH BACK THEN I'M PRETTY CERTAIN A PURCHASER WAS NOT REQUIRED TO REGISTER THEIR WEAPON.

I SEE THAT IT SAYS "WESTERN FIELD" ON THE PLATE.

YOU KNOW, I DID NOTICE SOMETHING UNUSUAL OVER HERE ON THE STOCK.

THERE ARE TWO NOTCHES.

MAYBE WE COULD GET SOME INFORMATION FROM THAT AS WELL.

IF THIS GUN REALLY WAS USED IN THE ST. VALENTINE'S DAY MASSACRE, THEN IT'S AN EXCEPTIONAL PIECE OF HISTORY, AND ITS COLLECTION VALUE WOULD BE VERY HIGH.

ON THE MORNING OF FEBRUARY 14, 1929, SEVEN IMMACULATELY DRESSED MEN GATHERED IN A GARAGE ON CHICAGO'S NORTH SIDE.

SOME WERE MEMBERS OF A GANG LED BY THE NOTORIOUS BOOTLEGGER BUGS MORAN.

WITHOUT WARNING, GUNMEN STORMED IN AND UNLEASHED A HAIL OF BULLETS THAT LEFT ALL SEVEN DEAD.

WITNESSES REPORTED SEEING WHAT LOOKED LIKE TWO POLICE OFFICERS LEAVE THE GARAGE.

THE MID-MORNING SLAUGHTER TURNED THE MEDIA SPOTLIGHT ON THE CITY OF CHICAGO AND THE VIOLENT STRUGGLE BEING WAGED OVER CONTROL OF THE ILLEGAL LIQUOR TRADE.

I'M IN CHICAGO TO MEET THE AUTHOR OF THIS BOOK, ART BILEK.

HI, ART.

HERE IS THE GUN.

TELL ME YOUR OPINION ON THAT.

WHAT DO I HAVE HERE?

IT'S A 12-GAUGE SHOTGUN... ART IS ALSO A FORMER POLICE OFFICER AND FAMILIAR WITH THE WEAPONS OF CHOICE OF CRIMINALS.

MOST IMPORTANTLY, IT HAS A SAWED-OFF STOCK.

GANGSTERS IN THE 1920s HAD THESE STOCKS MODIFIED SO THAT THEY COULD CARRY THESE UNDER THEIR OVERCOATS LIKE THIS.

SO IT'S A GANGSTER GUN?

OH, YES.

IN FACT, THAT'S THE WAY I WOULD REFER TO IT, AS A GANGSTER GUN.

ART SAYS EXACTLY HOW THE VICTIMS WERE LURED TO THEIR DEATH WAS NEVER ESTABLISHED.

INVESTIGATORS SUSPECTED THE PHONY POLICEMEN WERE AL CAPONE GANG MEMBERS.

WHEN THEY ORDERED THE RIVAL GANGSTERS TO LINE UP AND TURN AROUND, MORE CAPONE MEN ENTERED, CARRYING WEAPONS.

WE DON'T KNOW EXACTLY WHAT WENT ON EXCEPT TWO OF THE MEN PULLED OUT THOMPSON SUBMACHINE GUNS AND BEGAN RIDDLING THE BACK OF THESE SEVEN MEN WITH MACHINE-GUN BULLETS.

GETTING INFORMATION ABOUT THE CRIME WAS ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE.

THE CHICAGO UNDERWORLD WAS RULED BY FEAR.

BEFORE DYING, ONE OF THE VICTIMS, FRANK GUSENBERG, TOLD INCREDULOUS POLICE, "NOBODY SHOT ME."

INVESTIGATORS TURNED TO EVIDENCE FROM THE BLOOD-DRENCHED GARAGE.

SERGEANT JAMES LOFTUS, WHO WAS THE FIRST OFFICER ON THE SCENE, WAS ABLE TO COLLECT FROM THE SCENE SEVERAL ITEMS.

HERE IS A COPY OF THE INVENTORY REPORT THAT HE FILED THAT VERY DAY.

THERE WERE SEVERAL .45-CALIBER SHELLS AND BULLETS, THE SIZE OF AMMUNITION USED IN THE TOMMY GUN.

ART POINTS OUT SOMETHING OF PARTICULAR INTEREST.

AND THERE IS THE ITEM RIGHT THERE: TWO SHOTGUN SHELLS, 12-GAUGE.

THAT'S THE SAME GAUGE AS MIKE'S GUN.

I TELL ART THAT MIKE BELIEVES HIS WEAPON ONCE BELONGED TO ROBERT QUINN, A FORMER CHICAGO FIRE COMMISSIONER IN THE 1950s THROUGH THE 1970s.

HE WAS ONE OF THE MORE NOTABLE FIRE COMMISSIONERS IN THE HISTORY OF CHICAGO.

HE SAYS QUINN WAS PART OF AN INNER CIRCLE AROUND THE MAYOR IN A PERIOD WHEN CONTROL OF EVIDENCE, ESPECIALLY FOR A CELEBRATED COLD CASE, WAS NOT NEARLY AS TIGHTLY HELD AS TODAY.

DO YOU THINK THAT HE COULD HAVE OWNED THIS GUN?

HE KNEW ALL OF THE TOP OFFICIALS.

HE WOULD HAVE KNOWN THE CORONER VERY WELL.

AND HE WOULD HAVE KNOWN OTHER PEOPLE IN THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.

IT'S ENTIRELY POSSIBLE THAT ONE WAY OR ANOTHER HE MIGHT HAVE MET A MAN THAT HAD POSSESSION OF THIS GUN.

ART SAYS THE DESCRIPTION OF TWO OF THE KILLERS DRESSED IN POLICE UNIFORMS TURNED UP THE HEAT ON INVESTIGATORS, BUT IT WASN'T UNTIL TEN MONTHS LATER THAT THEY CAUGHT A BREAK: AN AL CAPONE ASSOCIATE NAMED FRED "KILLER" BURKE WAS INVOLVED IN A FENDER BENDER ACROSS STATE LINES IN MICHIGAN.

WELL, THERE WAS A POLICE OFFICER ON THE NEXT CORNER, AND HE BEGAN WALKING DOWN.

WITH THAT, KILLER BURKE DRIVES OFF, THE POLICEMAN JUMPS ON THE RUNNING BOARD, BURKE TAKES OUT HIS GUN AND SHOOTS HIM.

THE OFFICER TUMBLES TO THE GROUND DEAD.

A HUGE MANHUNT FOLLOWS, AND THAT'S HOW THEY FOUND BURKE'S CAR OVERTURNED WHERE HE TRIED TO MAKE A TURN IN THE ROAD AND FAILED.

ART EXPLAINS THAT BURKE WAS A CAREER GANGSTER AND HIT MAN.

A WORLD WAR I VET, HE WAS SUSPECTED OF INTRODUCING THE THOMPSON SUBMACHINE GUN TO THE DETROIT MOB, HELPING MURDER THREE MEN IN 1927.

IN THE AFTERMATH OF THE ST. VALENTINE'S DAY KILLINGS, BURKE WAS HOLED UP IN A SMALL MICHIGAN TOWN.

AFTER KILLING THE OFFICER, POLICE RAIDED HIS HIDEOUT.

AND UPSTAIRS ON THE SECOND FLOOR, THEY OPENED A CLOSET, AND THERE WERE THE TWO MACHINE GUNS, A SHOTGUN, AND SOME OTHER ARMORY-TYPE DEVICES.

FORENSIC ANALYSIS WOULD LATER CONNECT SOME OF FRED BURKE'S WEAPONS TO THE MASSACRE.

WHERE ARE THOSE GUNS NOW?

THE GUNS AT THE CURRENT TIME ARE BEING HELD BY THE BERRIEN COUNTY, MICHIGAN, SHERIFF'S OFFICE, WHERE THEY WERE RECOVERED IN THE FIRST PLACE.

I'M IN BERRIEN COUNTY TO MEET WITH LIEUTENANT KEITH HAFER, THE WEAPONS EXPERT IN CHARGE OF THE MASSACRE GUNS.

WOW.

THESE ARE THE TWO THOMPSON SUBMACHINE GUNS USED IN THE ST. VALENTINE'S DAY MASSACRE.

LIEUTENANT HAFER EXPLAINS THAT FOR YEARS, THE GUNS WERE HELD BY THE FBI AT THEIR BALLISTICS CRIME LAB IN QUANTICO, VIRGINIA.

IN THE LATE 1970s, A MICHIGAN DETECTIVE TRAINING WITH THE FBI SPOTTED THE GUNS AND ASKED FOR THEIR RETURN.

ARE THESE THE ONLY GUNS THAT YOU HAVE?

THERE WERE OTHER GUNS SEIZED FROM FRED BURKE'S HOME, BUT THOSE GUNS ARE LONG GONE, AND I HAVE NO RECORD OF THEM.

WELL, I'M INVESTIGATING THIS SHOTGUN THAT I BELIEVE MAY HAVE BEEN USED AT THE MASSACRE.

IT'S CERTAINLY THE RIGHT AGE, AND IT LOOKS LIKE A GANGSTER GUN.

WHAT I NOTICE IMMEDIATELY ARE THESE TWO NOTCHES CUT INTO THE PISTOL GRIP OF THIS SHOTGUN.

LIEUTENANT HAFER SAYS CRIMINALS SOMETIMES CARVED NOTCHES ON THEIR WEAPONS WHEN THEY KILLED A MAN.

AND THE THOMPSONS THAT WE HAVE HAVE NOTCHES CARVED INTO THE TRIGGER GUARDS.

HE'S NOT SURE IF THE MARKINGS CAN CONNECT OUR GUN TO THE MASSACRE BUT OFFERS TO TAKE ME TO THE FIRING RANGE TO SHOW EXACTLY WHY OUR GUN AND THE TOMMY GUN WOULD HAVE BEEN FAVORITE GANGSTER WEAPONS.

FIRE!

HIT HIM RIGHT IN THE CHEST, KEEP GOING.

THE TOMMY GUN CAN FIRE CONTINUOUSLY.

LIEUTENANT HAFER HAS TOLD ME TO FIRE JUST THREE SHOTS AT A TIME BECAUSE THE WEAPON IS DIFFICULT TO CONTROL.

IT'S PRETTY POWERFUL.

LIEUTENANT HAFER SAYS THIS MODEL TOMMY GUN COULD UNLOAD A DEVASTATING 700 ROUNDS A MINUTE.

I CAN UNDERSTAND WHY A GANGSTER LIKES THAT GUN.

IT WAS THE HIGH-TECH WEAPON OF ITS DAY.

HE TELLS ME THAT BEFORE THE INTRODUCTION OF THE TOMMY GUN TO THE CHICAGO CRIME WORLD IN 1924, THE REPEATING SHOTGUN WAS THE GANGSTER GUN OF CHOICE.

WHAT YOU HAVE HERE IS A PUMP-ACTION REPEATING SHOTGUN, WHICH WAS A VERY COMMON AND DEVASTATING WEAPON OF THE TIME.

OUR GUN IS CAPABLE OF FIRING SIX SHOTS BEFORE RELOADING, UNLEASHING A DEVASTATING SPRAY OF SHOTGUN PELLETS.

WOULD YOU LIKE TO SHOOT IT?

YEAH, DEFINITELY.

PULL IT IN TIGHT, YEP.

AIM AT YOUR TARGET AND SHOOT WHEN READY.

[ gunshots and reloading ] WOW, THAT'S GOT QUITE A KICK TO IT.

WHY DON'T YOU OPEN THE BOLT AND LET'S MAKE SURE IT'S EMPTY.

OKAY.

NOW, DO YOU THINK THIS GUN WAS USED IN THE ST. VALENTINE MASSACRE?

IT'S CERTAINLY A POSSIBILITY.

LIEUTENANT HAFER SUGGESTS I PICK UP THE SHELL CASINGS.

IF OUR GUN WAS USED IN THE MASSACRE, THE SHELLS MAY BEAR USEFUL FORENSIC INFORMATION.

HE'S NOT SURE WHAT REMAINS IN THE OLD POLICE FILES BUT SUGGESTS I SPEAK WITH POLICE HISTORIAN CHRISS LYON AT THE HERITAGE MUSEUM AND CULTURAL CENTER IN ST. JOSEPH.

- HI, CHRISS.

- HI, ELYSE.

GREAT TO MEET YOU, WELCOME TO ST. JOSEPH, MICHIGAN.

THANK YOU.

CHRISS SAYS THE POLICE FOUND A TROVE OF INCRIMINATING EVIDENCE WHEN THEY RAIDED FRED BURKE'S HIDEOUT.

THIS ONE IS ONE OF THE ORIGINAL PHOTOS OF SOME OF THE WEAPONRY THAT WAS FOUND IN FRED BURKE'S HOUSE.

OKAY, SO I SEE HERE THE TWO TOMMY GUNS THAT WERE FOUND IN HIS HOUSE.

AND THIS IS ALL THE ARSENAL.

AND THIS MUST BE THE SHOTGUN.

CHRISS EXPLAINS HOW THE CHICAGO AUTHORITIES HAD TURNED TO A FORENSICS EXPERT NAMED CALVIN GODDARD TO EXAMINE THE BURKE WEAPONS.

WHEN GODDARD TOOK THESE GUNS TO BE TESTED BALLISTICALLY, HE TOOK THE TOMMY GUNS AND HE TOOK THIS GUN, WHICH IS A 20-GAUGE.

NOW, WE KNOW THAT THERE WAS A 12-GAUGE USED IN THE ST. VALENTINE'S DAY MASSACRE BY THE SHELLS THAT WERE FOUND.

SO IF THIS GUN WASN'T USED IN THE MASSACRE, THEN IT'S STILL POSSIBLE THAT OUR GUN WAS.

I'M CURIOUS, HAD GODDARD ALSO EXAMINED THE 12-GAUGE SHELLS FOUND AT THE CRIME SCENE AFTER THE MASSACRE?

CHRISS SUGGESTS I SPEAK WITH FORMER CRIME LAB DIRECTOR PAUL DOUGHERTY, WHO HAS STUDIED THE MASSACRE AND THE SUBSEQUENT POLICE DETECTIVE WORK.

OKAY, SO HERE'S THE GUN I TALKED TO YOU ABOUT.

- YES.

- WHAT DO YOU THINK?

THIS IS A WESTERN FIELD, WHICH IS MADE BY STEVENS.

IT HAS A FAIRLY LOW SERIAL NUMBER, WHICH INDICATES IT'S FAIRLY OLD.

PAUL SAYS THE MODEL WAS IN PRODUCTION FROM 1905 TO 1932 AND PERIOD TO THE MASSACRE.

HOWEVER, HE CAN'T PRECISELY DATE THE GUN BECAUSE THE MANUFACTURER'S SERIAL RECORDS HAVE BEEN DESTROYED.

SO TELL ME A LITTLE BIT ABOUT GODDARD.

WELL, CALVIN GODDARD WAS A FIRST-CLASS SCIENTIST, AND HE APPROACHED EVERYTHING THAT HE DID AS A SCIENTIST.

PAUL SAYS GODDARD TRAINED AS A PHYSICIAN, BUT IN 1926, ENTERED THE EMERGING FIELD OF BALLISTIC SCIENCE.

HIS FORENSIC WORK, WHICH HELPED CONVICT ANARCHIST NICOLA SACCO IN THE CELEBRATED SACCO AND VANZETTI MURDER CASE, CAUGHT THE ATTENTION OF THE CHICAGO CORONER.

IT WAS THE ENORMITY OF THE ST. VALENTINE'S DAY MASSACRE THAT BROUGHT THE NEED FOR SCIENTIFIC CRIME DETECTION TO THE PUBLIC ATTENTION AND TO THE ATTENTION OF AUTHORITIES OF CHICAGO.

GODDARD TEST-FIRED THE BURKE RAID TOMMY GUNS AND COMPARED THE SHELLS TO THOSE FROM THE SCENE OF THE CRIME.

HE EXPLAINED TO THE CHICAGO INVESTIGATORS HOW SPENT SHELLS HAD THEIR OWN IDENTIFYING MARKS.

HE WOULD PUT THE CARTRIDGE CASES UNDER THE COMPARISON MICROSCOPE, ONE ON EITHER SIDE.

THEN HE COMPARED THEM THROUGH THE EYEPIECE, WHICH IS HERE.

SO, PAUL, TELL ME WHAT I'M LOOKING AT.

USING A REPLICA OF GODDARD'S MICROSCOPE, PAUL TELLS ME TO COMPARE THE IMPRESSIONS ON TWO SHELLS FROM GODDARD'S PERSONAL COLLECTION.

SO THE FIRING PIN IMPRESSIONS ARE THE SAME.

BY MATCHING FIRING PIN IMPRESSIONS, GODDARD DETERMINED THAT FRED BURKE'S TOMMY GUNS WERE USED IN THE MASSACRE.

SO THESE CAME FROM THE SAME GUN.

WELL, I HAVE THESE SHELLS, AND I SHOT THESE SHELLS FROM MIKE'S GUN.

PAUL OFFERS TO TAKE A CLOSER LOOK.

ALTHOUGH THE CARTRIDGE SHELLS FROM THE CRIME SCENE ARE LONG GONE, HE SAYS GODDARD DID EXAMINE THEM AND TESTIFIED IN FRONT OF THE CORONER'S GRAND JURY.

THE CHARACTERISTICS THAT GODDARD EMPHASIZED IN HIS TESTIMONY, THOUGH, WERE THE EXTRACTOR AND EJECTOR MARKS.

EXTRACTOR MARKS ARE THE MARKINGS THAT OCCUR WHEN A SHELL IS IN THE CHAMBER OF A GUN AND IS EXTRACTED FROM THE CHAMBER, AND AN EJECTOR MARKING OCCURS WHEN THE SHELL IS KICKED OUT OF THE GUN.

WE TAKE A CLOSE LOOK AT OUR SHELLS.

OH, THOSE TWO LITTLE SCRATCHES?

- THAT IS CORRECT.

- I SEE THEM.

WHAT PAUL TELLS ME NEXT IS CERTAINLY GOING TO BE OF INTEREST TO MIKE.

INVESTIGATORS FOUND BULLETS AND SHELLS AT THE SCENE OF THE CRIME, AND TWO OF THOSE SHELLS WERE FROM A 12-GAUGE SHOTGUN, THE SAME GAUGE AS YOUR SHOTGUN.

THAT GETS US VERY CLOSE.

I TELL MIKE THAT THE STRANGE CARVED NOTCHES ON HIS WEAPON COULD HAVE BEEN A GANGSTER SIGNATURE, INDICATING THE WEAPON HAD BEEN USED IN A MURDER.

SIMILAR MARKINGS HAD ALSO BEEN SEEN ON THE THOMPSON SUBMACHINE GUNS USED IN THE MASSACRE.

ALTHOUGH MISSING EVIDENCE MADE A DIRECT COMPARISON WITH HIS SHELLS IMPOSSIBLE TODAY, AT THE TIME OF THE MASSACRE, THE EXPERT BROUGHT IN BY THE AUTHORITIES HAD CONDUCTED A THOROUGH FORENSIC INVESTIGATION.

GODDARD DID CLOSELY EXAMINE THE SHELLS THAT WERE FOUND AT THE SCENE OF THE CRIME, AND HE MADE A PRETTY INTERESTING DISCOVERY.

THESE ARE THE TYPES OF MARKINGS THAT GODDARD FOUND ON THE SHELLS FROM THE SCENE OF THE CRIME.

GODDARD HAD DETERMINED THAT THE SHOTGUN USED IN THE MURDER OF SEVEN MEN ON ST. VALENTINE'S DAY, 1929, WAS A PUMP-ACTION GUN, TOO, THE SAME AS MIKE'S.

SO IN YOUR OPINION, COULD THIS GUN HAVE BEEN USED IN THE MASSACRE?

YES.

IT IS THE RIGHT VINTAGE.

IT HAS BOTH THE EXTRACTOR AND EJECTOR MARKINGS WHICH GODDARD IDENTIFIED.

WE CAN PROVE THAT THE GUN THAT WAS SHOT THAT DAY WAS A 12-GAUGE REPEATING SHOTGUN.

YOUR GUN IS A 12-GAUGE REPEATING SHOTGUN.

RIGHT, RIGHT.

THAT'S GREAT.

SO IF THE ORIGINAL SHELLS SURFACE, THEN WE WOULD BE ABLE TO FINISH GODDARD'S WORK AND DETERMINE IF YOUR GUN FIRED THEM.

HOW DO YOU THINK YOUR FATHER WOULD FEEL, THE FACT THAT WE'VE COME THIS FAR?

HE WOULD BE ECSTATIC.

HE WOULD SAY, "I TOLD YOU SO."

THANK YOU, THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

FRED BURKE WAS NEVER CONVICTED FOR THE MASSACRE.

INSTEAD, HE WAS PUT AWAY FOR KILLING POLICE OFFICER CHARLES SKELLY.

CAPONE WAS EVENTUALLY BROUGHT DOWN ON CHARGES OF TAX EVASION.

BUT GODDARD'S WORK BROUGHT CREDIBILITY TO THE YOUNG FIELD OF BALLISTICS.

HE WAS GIVEN RESOURCES TO OPEN ONE OF THE NATION'S FIRST INDEPENDENT CRIME LABS AND CONTINUED TO PIONEER TECHNIQUES THAT ARE STILL USED TODAY.

THE GUN THAT MADE THE '20s ROAR WAS INSPIRED BY WORLD WAR I TRENCH WARFARE.

THE THOMPSON SUBMACHINE GUN WAS DESIGNED BY RETIRED GENERAL JOHN THOMPSON.

EARLY MACHINE GUNS WERE EXTREMELY HEAVY AND TOOK SEVERAL MEN TO OPERATE.

THOMPSON'S SOLUTION WAS A RAPID-FIRING WEAPON OPERATED BY A SINGLE SOLDIER.

THE "TRENCH BROOM" WAS DESIGNED TO SWEEP THE ENEMY OUT OF FOXHOLES.

BUT THE GUN WASN'T READY UNTIL AFTER THE WAR ENDED, SO THE GENERAL TRIED SELLING IT TO THE AMERICAN PUBLIC.

ONE NOTORIOUS AD FEATURED A COWBOY DEFENDING HIS RANCH FROM BANDITS.

DEEMED SIMPLE, SAFE, STURDY, AND SURE IN ACTION, AN ORIGINAL TOMMY COULD FIRE 1,500 ROUNDS PER MINUTE.

GANGSTERS SAW THE POTENTIAL.

THE GUN WAS SUCH A FAVORITE OF THE CHICAGO MOB THAT IT WAS ALSO KNOWN AS THE CHICAGO TYPEWRITER, THE CHICAGO PIANO, AND THE CHICAGO ORGAN GRINDER.

FOR CONCEALMENT, THE COMPACT GUN COULD BE TOTED AROUND IN A REFITTED MUSICAL INSTRUMENT CASE.

THE THOMPSON DID MAKE IT TO THE BATTLEFIELD IN WORLD WAR II.

HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS WERE ORDERED AT A COST OF NEARLY $130 MILLION TOTAL.

BY THE END OF THE WAR, LIGHTER AND CHEAPER COMPETITORS ENDED THE TOMMY'S REIGN.

Gwendolyn: OUR NEXT CASE INVESTIGATES A SOUVENIR FROM WHAT SEEMS TO BE AN EXTRAVAGANT PARTY DURING THE LAST DAYS OF PROHIBITION.

APRIL 1933: THE WORLD IS IN THE THROES OF A DEVASTATING ECONOMIC DEPRESSION.

IN THE UNITED STATES, FROM WALL STREET TO MAIN STREET, ALL SOCIAL CLASSES ARE REELING.

THE SPOTLIGHT IS ON PRESIDENT FRANKLIN DELANO ROOSEVELT, WHO'S ONLY IN HIS SECOND MONTH OF OFFICE.

When there is no vision, the people perish!

WITH THE NATION LOOKING TO HIM TO HELP PULL IT BACK FROM THE BRINK, PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT DECIDES TO... JOIN THE CIRCUS?

THIRTEEN-YEAR-OLD CLAIRE AUBIN FROM PORTLAND, OREGON, HAS UNCOVERED AN UNUSUAL DOCUMENT.

IT'S AN ANNOUNCEMENT OF A CIRCUS BALL WITH A CAST OF CELEBRITY AND SOCIETY ACTS AND A MENTION OF FDR HIMSELF.

I'M GWENDOLYN WRIGHT, AND I'M MEETING WITH CLAIRE TO TAKE A LOOK AT HER CIRCUS FLYER... NICE TO MEET YOU.

WHICH SHE FOUND PRESSED BETWEEN TWO BOOKS IN HER SCHOOL LIBRARY.

- COME ON THIS WAY.

- OKAY.

IT SAYS "SOCIETY CIRCUS" AT THE TOP, AND I DIDN'T KNOW WHAT THAT WAS.

"COBINA WRIGHT'S SOCIETY CIRCUS."

YOU DON'T THINK OF THOSE TWO WORDS BEING TOGETHER.

"WILD ANIMALS AND WILD WOMEN."

[ laughs ] "BUFFOONS RECRUITED FROM THE BLUEST BLOODS."

"SEMI-NUDE OYSTERS," THINGS THAT ARE JUST COMPLETELY RIDICULOUS, BUT THEY'RE PRETTY FUNNY, TOO.

THE PROGRAM SEEMS TO PROMOTE SOME KIND OF HIGH-SOCIETY THEME PARTY.

IT'S A BENEFIT FOR THE BOY SCOUTS, AT THE OPULENT WALDORF-ASTORIA HOTEL IN NEW YORK CITY.

IT'S A WHO'S WHO OF THE MOST WEALTHY AND POWERFUL PEOPLE OF THE TIME: HARRIMAN, HEARST, AND MANY OTHERS.

THE BALL WAS SCHEDULED FOR APRIL 25, 1933.

IT MENTIONS ALCOHOL, ALTHOUGH IT'S STILL PROHIBITION.

IT LOOKS MORE LIKE SOMETHING FROM THE '20s, NOT THE DEPTHS OF THE DEPRESSION.

"HONORABLE FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT, PRESIDENT."

SO TELL ME, CLAIRE, EXACTLY WHAT YOU'D LIKE FOR ME TO FIND OUT.

THERE'S A LOT ON HERE.

I'D LIKE TO KNOW WHAT A SOCIETY CIRCUS IS.

IT TALKS ABOUT COBINA WRIGHT, AND I'M NOT QUITE SURE WHO SHE IS.

AND I KIND OF WANT TO KNOW WHAT PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT'S AFFILIATION WITH IT IS, LIKE WHY HE WOULD BE GOING.

I CAN'T WAIT TO GET TO WORK ON THIS.

IT'S GOING TO BE A LOT OF FUN.

IT DOES SEEM CLEAR THAT ALMOST EVERYBODY IS A MEMBER OF NEW YORK SOCIETY.

THEY'RE SHOW BUSINESS AND FINANCIAL BUSINESS BROUGHT TOGETHER HERE AT THE WALDORF.

AND HERE'S A REFERENCE TO THE DEPRESSION: "GIVE THESE BOYS A HANDOUT" -- INSTEAD OF "GIVE THEM A HAND."

IT'S ACKNOWLEDGING THAT ALMOST EVERYBODY NEEDED SOME HELP AT THAT TIME.

GEORGE GERSHWIN IS LISTED AS A PEANUT VENDOR.

THEY SEEM TO BE PLAYING ON THE IDEA OF A CIRCUS.

NOEL COWARD IS "ALCOHOLIC STUMBLING HIGH ALOFT."

SO THEY'RE PLAYING ON THEMSELVES BEING DRINKERS, BEING SOMEWHAT PROMISCUOUS.

[ ♪♪♪ ] WHO WAS THE WOMAN WHO PLANNED THIS EXTRAORDINARY EVENT?

AND OF ALL THE ORGANIZATIONS TO BE RAISING MONEY FOR, WHY THE BOY SCOUTS?

COBINA WRIGHT STARTED OFF IN NEW YORK SOCIETY AS A CONCERT SINGER AND LATER BECAME A RENOWNED HOSTESS.

FROM FARM GIRL TO FABULOUS, COBINA MARRIED INTO NEW YORK'S WEALTHIEST INNER CIRCLE.

"HER HUSBAND WAS MILLIONAIRE BILL WRIGHT OF THE NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGE."

SO SHE'S DIRECTLY CONNECTED TO WALL STREET.

AND SHE WROTE AN AUTOBIOGRAPHY.

I FOUND HER AUTOBIOGRAPHY.

IN THE ROARING '20s, COBINA WRIGHT LIVED A GILDED LIFE.

FLUSH WITH WALL STREET WEALTH, SHE OFTEN HOSTED GRAND PARTIES WITH BOOTLEG LIQUOR FOR NEW YORK'S BLUE BLOOD ROYALTY.

OH, THIS WASN'T THE FIRST OF HER CIRCUS BALLS.

IN 1933, SHE'S DESCRIBING, "IN JANUARY '29, WE GAVE OUR ANNUAL CIRCUS BALL."

SO THIS HAD BEEN A TRADITION OF HER LIFE AS A SOCIETY HOSTESS.

BUT ON FRIDAY, OCTOBER 25, 1929, COBINA RECEIVED A FATEFUL PHONE CALL.

A FALLING STOCK MARKET ON BLACK THURSDAY HAD TRIGGERED A SELLING FRENZY.

BY FRIDAY, LOSSES TOTALED NEARLY $5 BILLION.

SO SHE AND HER HUSBAND WERE GIVING A WHITE-TIE BALL THAT NIGHT, AND HER HUSBAND CALLS ON THE TELEPHONE LATE IN THE MORNING AND SAYS TO HER, "DARLING, WE HAVE LOST EVERYTHING -- EVERYTHING WE HAVE IN THE WORLD."

COBINA'S AUTOBIOGRAPHY EXPLAINS THAT AFTER LOSING HER FORTUNE -- AND HER HUSBAND -- THE WALDORF HIRED HER AS A PARTY PLANNER.

SO THIS IS AN EXTRAORDINARY CHANGE IN HER LIFE AND HER HUSBAND'S LIFE.

I WANT TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT THIS PARTY HOSTED BY A WOMAN WHO SEEMS TO HAVE FALLEN FROM THE VERY TOP OF THE SOCIAL LADDER.

[ ♪♪♪ ] MICHAEL BATTERBERRY, THE FOUNDER OF FOOD ARTS MAGAZINE, IS AN EXPERT ON THE HISTORY OF NEW YORK'S HIGH SOCIETY.

VERY NICE TO MEET YOU.

THIS IS GOING TO BE AN INTERESTING TIME TRAVEL.

WELL, WE'LL GO BACK TO THE '30s.

- SHALL WE BEGIN?

- YES.

WELL, MICHAEL, HERE'S THIS SOCIETY CIRCUS PROGRAM I TOLD YOU ABOUT, COBINA WRIGHT AT THE WALDORF.

TAKE A LOOK.

THIS IS REALLY EXTRAORDINARY.

SHE SEEMS TO HAVE GIVEN EARLIER CIRCUS BALLS DURING THE 1920s.

WHAT WAS THE BIG DIFFERENCE WITH THIS ONE AT THE WALDORF?

WELL, SIZE TO BEGIN WITH.

I MEAN, THE ORIGINAL ONES SURELY HAD NO MORE THAN 400 PEOPLE IN ATTENDANCE, WHEREAS THIS WAS LIKE A PRIVATE PARTY ON STEROIDS.

MICHAEL EXPLAINS THAT COBINA WASN'T THE ONLY ONE PUTTING ON APPEARANCES THAT NIGHT.

SHE WAS NOT ALONE IN BEING HIRED BY THE WALDORF.

ALL THE GUESTS AT THE PARTY WERE DRESSED IN FINERY, BUT MANY WERE ACTORS BROUGHT IN TO MAKE THE EVENT SEEM MORE CHEERY AND CAREFREE.

HENRY SELL HAD A CASTING AGENCY, AND HE WOULD SEND 40 YOUNG PEOPLE, AS LONG AS THEY OWNED GOOD EVENING CLOTHES, YOU KNOW, AS LONG AS YOU HAD THAT AND YOU LOOKED ATTRACTIVE, YOU WERE SENT OFF TO THE WALDORF AND YOU SORT OF POSED, YOU SORT OF ARTIFICIALLY FURNISHED THE PLACE.

THEY WERE ACTORS; THEY WERE HIRED.

SO THEY HAD THIS RANGE OF PEOPLE, MIXING ACTORS AND SOCIETY AND FINANCE.

DOES IT SURPRISE YOU TO SEE THIS IN THE '30s?

IT WAS KIND OF A BANDING TOGETHER TO NOT ONLY KEEP UP APPEARANCES BUT TO CHEER EACH OTHER UP.

IT'S LIKE WARTIME.

YOU DON'T STAY INSIDE AND BE GLUM, YOU TRY TO KEEP EVERYBODY'S MORALE UP.

HERE'S SOMETHING THAT'S FROM THE ARCHIVES OF THE NEW YORK TIMES.

ASTOUNDING: "3,000 ATTEND BALL IN CIRCUS SETTING."

IT WAS A GREAT SUCCESS.

TOTAL SUCCESS.

THAT RAISES ANOTHER QUESTION.

DID SHE CHARGE PEOPLE MONEY?

IT'S NO DIFFERENT FROM A BENEFIT TODAY.

IT WAS FOR A CAUSE.

SHE CHARGED $500 FOR THE BOXES.

AT THAT PRICE, THE 20 BOX SEATS ALONE BROUGHT IN WELL OVER $10,000.

THAT'S EQUIVALENT TO MORE THAN $150,000 TODAY.

BUT I'M STILL A LITTLE PUZZLED.

WHY WOULD THE BOY SCOUTS NEED SO MUCH MONEY AND GARNER SUCH ENTHUSIASM FROM THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES NO LESS?

I'M HEADING TO THE ALPINE SCOUT CAMP LEADERS LODGE ABOUT 90 MILES FROM NEW YORK CITY TO MEET CEDRIC BODLEY OF THE GREATER NEW YORK COUNCILS BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA.

CEDRIC, I'M INVESTIGATING A SOCIETY BALL THAT WAS GIVEN IN NEW YORK CITY AT THE WALDORF-ASTORIA IN 1933 AS A FUNDRAISER FOR THE BOY SCOUTS.

FRANKLIN DELANO ROOSEVELT WAS A VERY LARGE PART OF BOY SCOUT HISTORY.

HE WAS VERY INFLUENTIAL IN GETTING BUSINESSMEN AND CIVIC LEADERS INVOLVED.

BEGUN IN THE UNITED KINGDOM IN 1907 BY BRITISH ARMY OFFICER ROBERT BADEN-POWELL, BY 1910, SCOUTING HAD SPREAD TO MANY COUNTRIES OF THE FORMER BRITISH EMPIRE, INCLUDING THE UNITED STATES.

IT WAS DEFINITELY A MORE CLOSED CLUB WHEN IT FIRST STARTED.

MOST OF THE YOUNG MEN WHO WERE INVOLVED IN THE SCOUTS WERE PROBABLY WHITE YOUNG MALES WHO CAME FROM VERY ELITE FAMILIES, WHICH KIND OF FITS IN, BECAUSE ROOSEVELT WAS A VERY PROMINENT NEW YORKER, AND MOST OF HIS CONTACTS WERE WITH THE UPPER ELITE.

WHEN DID HIS INVOLVEMENT BEGIN?

1921.

HE WAS VERY INVOLVED.

WE EVEN HAVE PICTURES OF HIM.

SO THAT'S HIM.

AND THAT'S WHEN HE'S STILL WELL; HE'S STANDING.

YES, THAT'S PROBABLY ONE OF THE LAST PICTURES THAT WAS TAKEN BEFORE HE CONTRACTED POLIO, ACTUALLY, TWO WEEKS AFTER THAT PICTURE WAS TAKEN.

CEDRIC EXPLAINS THAT WITH THE DEPRESSION CAME A SERIOUS THREAT TO THE FUTURE OF SCOUTING.

THIS VERY CAMP WAS FEELING THE PINCH JUST LIKE EVERYBODY ELSE.

RIGHT HERE IT SAYS HERE THAT THE BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA, THEY HAD MORTGAGES DUE IN 1932, AND THE FUNDS WERE UNAVAILABLE.

SO IN 1933, THIS VERY CAMPGROUND THAT WAS VERY DEAR TO FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT COULD HAVE BEEN FORECLOSED UPON.

THAT WOULD BE A POSSIBLE REASON FOR HAVING A FUNDRAISER THAT VERY YEAR.

OH, MOST DEFINITELY.

CEDRIC TELLS ME THAT JUST PRIOR TO THE WALDORF BENEFIT, FDR SIGNED LEGISLATION TO CREATE THE CIVILIAN CONSERVATION CORPS.

MODELED IN PART AFTER THE SCOUTS, THE CCC WOULD BECOME FDR'S MOST POPULAR NEW DEAL PROGRAM, GIVING EMPLOYMENT TO HALF A MILLION MEN AND BOYS, MOSTLY ON RURAL CONSERVATION PROJECTS.

CEDRIC BELIEVES THAT IN APRIL 1933, THE NEW PRESIDENT FELT A SPECIAL URGENCY ABOUT SAVING THE SCOUTS.

I TRULY BELIEVE THAT IT WAS VERY IMPORTANT NOT ONLY TO THE BOY SCOUTS BUT ROOSEVELT.

THE PROPERTY WAS PART OF A TRAINING GROUND FOR HIS EARLY NEW DEAL EFFORTS.

I SEE WHY FDR SUPPORTED THE SCOUTS, BUT I STILL DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY COBINA WRIGHT WAS ABLE TO DRAW SUCH AN IMPRESSIVE CROWD OF CELEBRITIES THAT NIGHT.

WAS IT BECAUSE FDR WAS AT THE CIRCUS?

I'M MEETING BURTON PERETTI AT THE NEW YORK HISTORICAL SOCIETY.

HE'S MADE A CLOSE STUDY OF THE PRESIDENT'S FIRST 100 DAYS IN OFFICE.

SO I TOLD YOU I'M INVESTIGATING THIS SOCIETY CIRCUS HERE IN NEW YORK IN 1933, BUT IT ALSO STRUCK ME, LOOKING AT THIS, THAT THERE'S A KIND OF HOLDOVER FROM THE 1920s GOOD LIFE.

YES, THERE IS THAT TONE OF '20s WHIMSY, THERE ARE DAREDEVIL ACTS AND SO ON, VERY MUCH REFLECTING THAT GOOD-NATURED TIME.

BUT THERE ARE REFERENCES TO PROHIBITION, THERE ARE SORT OF SLY REFERENCES TO DRINKING AND BREW AND ALES AND OTHER SORTS OF THINGS LIKE THAT.

WHICH, OF COURSE, WAS STILL ILLEGAL.

YES, RIGHT.

PROHIBITION IS NOT OVER YET IN APRIL 1933.

BURTON SUGGESTS THAT MANY AT THE CIRCUS THAT NIGHT WERE PROBABLY LESS INTERESTED IN THE BOY SCOUTS THAN IN WHAT THE NEW DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENT WAS GOING TO DO TO PULL THE NATION OUT OF THE DEPRESSION.

THERE WERE MIXED FEELINGS ABOUT FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT AMONG THE WEALTHY WHO ATTENDED THE CIRCUS BALL.

HE WAS ONE OF THEM; HE WAS A PATRICIAN FROM A FARM ESTATE UPRIVER.

BUT HE WAS PUTTING IN PLACE A NEW POLICY IN WHICH THE GOVERNMENT WOULD ASSIST WORKERS AND FARMERS IN REGULATING THE ECONOMY AND MAKING DECISIONS ABOUT HOW THE ECONOMY WORKED.

IN THE PRESIDENT'S FIRST DAYS IN OFFICE, HE LAUNCHED A MULTITUDE OF NEW POLICIES, INCLUDING FARM SUBSIDIES AND MAJOR BANKING REFORM.

MANY OF THOSE PROGRAMS WERE BROADLY SYMPATHETIC TO BUSINESS AND SOUGHT TO PRESERVE THE FINANCIAL SYSTEM.

ALL THE SAME, INCREASED FEDERAL CONTROL OVER THE ECONOMY UPSET MANY BUSINESS LEADERS.

MANY OF THESE WEALTHY NEW YORKERS WERE USED TO THE POLICIES OF PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATIONS, REPUBLICANS LIKE CALVIN COOLIDGE, WHO ADVOCATED ALLOWING CAPITALISTS TO DO WHATEVER THEY WANTED IN TERMS OF HIRING, LAYING OFF PEOPLE, OPENING OR CLOSING FACTORIES, SO IT WAS A BIG CHANGE.

BY 1935 AND 1936, AS THE DEPRESSION WORSENED, ROOSEVELT'S INCREASED SOCIAL SPENDING AND NEGOTIATIONS WITH LABOR GROUPS DREW GROWING ENMITY FROM MANY ON WALL STREET.

NEVERTHELESS, SOME MINORITY IN THE UPPER ECHELONS OF SOCIETY REMAINED LOYAL TO FDR.

SOME OF THE INDIVIDUALS AT THE CIRCUS BALL BECAME PART OF THE ROOSEVELT ADMINISTRATION.

AVERELL HARRIMAN BECAME AN ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF STATE.

BOB SHERWOOD IS MENTIONED HERE; HE WAS A PLAYWRIGHT.

HE BECAME ONE OF ROOSEVELT'S SPEECHWRITERS.

SO CERTAINLY MANY PEOPLE OF MONEY BECAME CONVINCED THAT THIS KIND OF REFORM WAS NECESSARY SIMPLY TO KEEP THE SOCIAL FABRIC TOGETHER.

ON APRIL 25, 1933, ROOSEVELT AND THE SOCIETY CIRCUS BROUGHT THE WEALTHY AND POWERFUL TOGETHER TO SUPPORT AN UNLIKELY CAUSE.

BUT WAS THE PRESIDENT IN ATTENDANCE THAT NIGHT?

I'VE LOCATED AN ARTICLE FROM APRIL 26th, THE DAY AFTER THE CIRCUS BALL.

PERFECT.

IT'S TIME TO REPORT BACK TO CLAIRE.

WELL, CLAIRE, THIS PARTY HAPPENED, THE SOCIETY CIRCUS.

IT WAS ONE OF THE MOST LAVISH PARTIES IN NEW YORK AT THE WORST POINT OF THE DEPRESSION, AND ALL OF THESE FAMOUS PEOPLE CAME TOGETHER, AND THEY DIDN'T JUST WATCH A CIRCUS, THEY WERE THE CIRCUS.

IF YOU HAD GONE, YOU COULD HAVE JUST -- LIKE, YOU'D SEE OTHER PEOPLE DO IT, BUT THEN YOU WOULD BE ALSO IN THE SHOW, WHICH WOULD HAVE BEEN COOL.

WELL, YOU ALSO HAD WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT.

ON THAT DAY, THE DAY OF THE BALL, ROOSEVELT WAS CONCLUDING A CONFERENCE WITH THE BRITISH PRIME MINISTER, RAMSAY MacDONALD, A VERY IMPORTANT CONFERENCE ABOUT TRANSATLANTIC COOPERATION TO DEAL WITH THE WORLDWIDE DEPRESSION.

BUT THERE COULD BE NO DOUBT ABOUT THE PRIORITIES OR THE WHEREABOUTS OF THE NEW PRESIDENT.

FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT WAS IN WASHINGTON THE DAY OF THE CIRCUS BALL.

HE SAT UP TILL THE WEE HOURS PLANNING NEW DEAL COOPERATION WITH THE BRITISH PRIME MINISTER.

SO FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT WASN'T AT THIS PARTY EVEN THOUGH HIS NAME WAS ON HERE, BECAUSE HE WAS STAYING IN WASHINGTON WORKING TO TRY TO SAVE THE COUNTRY FROM THE WORST ECONOMIC DEPRESSION WE HAD EVER FACED.

THAT'S COOL.

THANKS A LOT FOR LETTING ME LEARN WITH YOU.

I REALLY ENJOYED WORKING ON THIS.

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