In case you are unfamiliar with the origin of today’s title, it is said by Captain Jack Sparrow to Will Turner in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, when Will is trying to accpet that his father, “Bootstrap Bill,” was a scallywag and a pirate, and also a good man.
I don’t mean to trivialize anything. Last I attended a program at a local library called “Mob Wives : The REAL Mob Wives of Las Vegas” My friend, Dani Porter-Lansky, was on the panel, and so I attended to support her. You see, Dani is now married to Meyer Lansky II, who is the grandson of THAT Meyer Lansky. (A fine and charming man he is, also, and a regular patron at my library. That is, Meyer II.) The other three women featured were Wendy Hanly Mazaros, author of Vegas Rag Doll, her daughter, Amy Hanley, and Dierdre Capone, grand-niece of Al Capone, and author of Uncle Al Capone. Ms. Capone’s grandfater was Al’s older brother, Ralph Capone. The LVCCLD is holding a series of programs this month in relation to the Mob Museum, which will open in Feb. 2012.
The room was packed and the panel was varied. Ms. Mazaros and Ms. Hanley recounted real horror stories about their fear of their husband/biological father, Tom Hanley, as well as stories about the Binions, and Gramby Hanley, who is Ms. Hanley’s half-brother. Dani and Meyer are working on a book that compiles and explains letters from Meyer Lansky, and so her portion, I felt, was a bit more removed and less emotional than the other three panelists.
My true fascination came from hearing Ms. Capone defend her family eloquently and steadily, without becoming defensive. Her stance is that she seeks to present a complete picture of her infamous family, complete with the love and comfort she felt from her grandfather and great-uncle. She also sought to relate how her life was affected, not always positively, by having the last name Capone. She also claims that after Al and Ralph served their respective times in prison for tax-evasion, they sought to separate themselves from mob activity, though Al remained “as a figurehead.”
Eventually, questions came from the audience, questions that were respecfully presented, yet pointed. One really light moment came when the moderator asked Ms. Capone, “OK, did Robert DeNiro really smash someone with a baseball bat?” – alluding to a famous and bloodcurdling scene in “The Untouchables.” She said it did happen, but that it was with pool cues, instead. It came to a head when one woman asked Ms. Capone, “Are you really saying that your grand-uncle never participated in bloodshed or committed crimes?”
I have to hand it to Ms. Capone. She handled the question gracefully and without becoming emotional or defensive. She even acknowledge that it was a good question. I’m sure she’s heard it before. She asserted that the thought of their actions like the Wild West, where people might get involved in a gunfight over stolen livestock. She didn’t deny anything, but reasserted that she wanted to present a complete picture. She also stated that had not Ralph and Al’s father died when they and their siblings were all very young, they would not have had a need for quick money in the first place.
I don’t know. I don’t want to whitewash (Ms. Capone’s word) my conception of Al Capone as gangster. Even Amy and Wendy Hanley stated that nothing would really justify killing someone over lack of payment of a $10,000 loan. And yet, what would we expect of Ms. Capone? Perhaps her grandfather and great-uncles were gangsters, and good men, in her eyes. I certainly don’t know anything about the antics of my grandfathers and great-uncles. I suspect they were farmers and mill workers, and probably more than a little racist. I have no idea what I might feel the need to apologize for now, if I knew more.
I suppose I’ve come away with a clearer picture of Al Capone. His great-niece doesn’t remember him as a monster, which means either that she wasn’t around (I’m sure of that), or that the family took care to shield her from their crimes. The Hanleys didn’t have that experience, unfortunately. Much more than that, I have a sense of a woman who has accepted some of her relatives as being gangsters, and good men. While I can’t quite get there, I guess I don’t have to. My last name isn’t Capone. But Dierdre Capone has, which is more important for her own peace of mind.
Not sure what we’re talking about tomorrow…probably a much lighter note, where we sleep with the fishes, also known as a review of my favorite restaurant, “I Love Sushi.” See what I did there?
Today we’ll be talking about a culinary adventure of a different ilk: how do you eat an elephant? The answer is in the title, my friends.
