It retains its relevance today, particularly in Las Vegas, where The Mob Museum occupies the building in which the committee met during its sole trip to Las Vegas. Chairman: C. Estes Kefauver 1950-1951; Herbert O'Conor 1951 Committee members: Lester Hunt (D-WY) Herbert O'Conor (D-MD) Charles Tobey (R-NH) Alexander Wiley (R-WI) Chapter 1: Origins Chapter 2: Process Chapter 3: Public Relations Chapter 4: Investigation Chapter 5: Outcome Origins The bars and taverns in St. Louis did more business than they did when the World Series was broadcast three months earlier. E. D. Fulton - Member of the House of Commons in Canada, Mr. Samuel Black - Vice President Atlantic Coast Independent Distributors Association. It retains its relevance today, particularly in Las Vegas, where The Mob Museum occupies the building in which the committee met during its sole trip to Las Vegas. [1] Legislative proposals and state ballot referendums legalizing gambling went down to defeat over the next few years due to revelations of organized crime's involvement in the gambling industry, and more than 70 "crime commissions" were established at the state and local level to build on the Kefauver Committee's work. He and his brother also had shares in the Barbara Worth Hotel and an unconnected cocktail lounge in San Diego. United States. [4], The committee's work led to several significant outcomes. Other states considering legalized gambling (including California) demurred, and states with some tolerance of various legal gambling schemes closed those loopholes. Education and Public Welfare Division. Oh, and there are NO tie in sales. Halley queried him about how much he paid for each interest and the ownership structure of the Thunderbird. Some of the more substantially covered subjects include the TVA (see Power as well as Tennessee Valley Authority), Civil Rights, Labor and Monopoly.Series II: Estes Kefauver Bills (1939-1963) consists of information about, and drafts and copies of, bills introduced or co-sponsored Senator Kefauver or of interest to him. Mr. William Friedman - Small comic book publisher with some horror books. [4][5] More than 600 witnesses testified. Many constituents wrote to Kefauver to express their opinions or to request aid, and the Senator and his staff responded to these in increasingly programmatic ways. That led to the days final witness, builder and automobile parts store owner Robert J. Kaltenborn, who had pled no contest to tax evasion and served four months in federal prison. Congress. In Kansas City, the committee confronted, in Kefauver's words, a "place that was struggling out from under the rule of the law of the jungle." In the casinos six and half months of operation, Clark had not yet been paid. The Kefauver collection is currently divided into fourteen series available for research. Series XIII: Clippings (1930-1967) contains clipped news stories about or of interest to Kefauver and is arranged chronologically.Series XIV: Photographs (1946-1963) contains photographs arranged into five subseries: Awards, Family, Political, Portraits, Tennessee, Visits and Trips, Miscellaneous, and Oversized Group Photographs.Several series related to this collection are undergoing processing and may not be available to the public. Mr. Alex Segal - President, Stravon Publications. He calls them trash and wants a law to In 1950, freshman U.S. Superman, Tarzan, Crime and Horror books, etc.. The Kefauver Committee held hearings in 14 cities across the country, including one in the courtroom of this building. Prices of patented antibiotics held constant for nearly a decade prior to the Kefauver hearings. In 1950, he introduced a Senate resolution to establish a committee to investigate labor racketeering in interstate commerce. Outcome On November 14, the senators making the Western jaunt Kefauver, Charles Tobey of New Hampshire and Alexander Wiley of Wisconsin joined their investigators in Los Angeles. I did try to go into business, he remarked, but there is nobody to do business with. He refused to admit that he accepted lay-off bets from out-of-state bookies. Herbert O'Conor (D-MD) He doesn't like the Crime and Horror Comics, but he also doesn't want a law banning them. Jones claimed to have never met him, nor had Lansky spent time at the Thunderbird. When asked by the Committee to name one thing hed done for his country, Costello snapped, Paid my tax! The Los Angeles Times said it was the greatest TV show television has ever aired, and Variety estimated that ratings were among the highest ever achieved to that time. Greeson admitted he had passed on to investigator Robinson when they met at a police chiefs convention in Colorado Springs the rumor that Stacher was willing to spend $250,000 to elect a group in Reno that would permit him to buy a one-third share in the Bank Club. Not according to the official transcripts of the hearings held by the panel, best known as the Kefauver Committee. Origins readers content. Juvenile delinquency, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Organized crime, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Legislative hearings, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Gambling, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Television, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Children--Institutional care, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Motion pictures, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Pornography, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Adoption, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Comic books, strips, etc., (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Drug abuse, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), International organization, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Juvenile courts, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Political corruption, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Sports betting, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Witnesses, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), College sports, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Comic books, strips, etc, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Correctional institutions, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Criminals--Rehabilitation, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Deportation, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Gangster films, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Housing, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Interstate commerce, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Korean War, 1950-1953, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Mental health, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Narcotic laws, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Organized crime--Prevention, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Police, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Prostitution, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Schools, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Slot machines, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Swindlers and swindling, (Library of Congress Subject Headings), Big Brothers/Big Sisters of America, (Library of Congress Name Authority File), District of Columbia. Viewers watched incredulously as a cadre of individuals representing the underworld of interstate bookmaking and gambling interests offered details of their sordid business arrangements. Wiener confirmed that he was attorney for the Siegel estates executor, and that Siegels interest in the Golden Nugget race book had a value of zero. Clark started building the Desert Inn in 1947 but ran out of funds. KEFAUVER INVESTIGATION AND KNAPP COMMISSIONThe pervasive reach of organized crime in the United States has made it a target of investigations and legal action since the nineteenth century. A series of hearings held by a special U.S. Senate committee in 1950 and 1951 changed that perception. He narrowly lost and was the vice presidential candidate alongside Adlai Stevenson. Kefauvers Las Vegas hearings, then, helped provide a cocoon of monopoly for the Nevada casino industry to grow unchallenged for the next 25 years, which likely benefited the state as a whole. Congress. Marijuana is often Mr. Harold Chamberlain - Circulation Director of Independent News Co. I owe Popularly known as the Kefauver Committee after its telegenic chairman, the committee captivated the nation in 1950-1951 with its televised hearings. Watch Dell create a new slogan for themselves. Hearing locations vary. One of the more significant subseries may be that of the Judiciary Committee, where Kefauver did a lot of his work concerning antitrust, civil rights, and crime issues (it must be noted however that Kefauvers famous crime committee is not one of the special committees represented in this series). In a defiant tone and her nasal voice, Hauser regaled the Committee with remarkable stories of friendships with fellas who gave her gifts and money. It is the user's responsibility to obtain permission to publish texts and facsimiles from the owners of the copyright. newspaper strip. 1 0 obj
Called to testify, Wertham continued his attack on comic books, concluding "I think Hitler was a beginner compared to the comic book industry." While running for U.S. Senate in 1948, Estes Kefauvers opponent accused him of being a raccoon-like Communist puppet. Kefauver adopted this cap and embraced it as his signature look. The committee became popularly known as the Kefauver Committee because of its chairman, Senator Estes Kefauver. Kefauver sought the Democratic Party presidential nomination in 1952 and 1956. Costello Defies Senators, Walks Out of Hearing Here; Faces Arrest on Contempt, by James A. Hagerty, New York Times, March 16, 1951. American News is one of, if not the biggest National Distributor of comic books at this time. tie in sales. Morning Session: Committee on Juvenile Crime (Creator), District of Columbia. Business and political leaders demanded action. continue on intimidating the comic book publishers by bringing in politicians that either have or tried to News releases do not always include a release location. They lost to Dwight Eisenhower and Richard Nixon. He was afraid of retaliation for testifying, but Kefauver cut him off with a bland reassurance that they probably wouldnt leave him twisting in the wind (we will do our best anyway) before adjourning the committee and convening the final press conference of the day. Hearings before a Special Committee to Investigate Organized Crime in Interstate Commerce, United States Senate, Eighty-first Congress, second session, pursuant to S. Res. Clark testified that he was aware of but did not have knowledge of his partners various scrapes with the law, which included bootlegging convictions and illegal gambling indictments. The Kefauver Commission Hearings In May of 1950, the U.S. Senate established a five-member Special Committee to Investigate Organized Crime in Interstate Commerce. Kefauver then made a bid for a Senate seat in 1948, running against E. H. Crump, the mayor of Memphis and boss of Tennessees Democratic Party. Among the most notable was an admission by J. Edgar Hoover, Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, that a national organized crime syndicate did exist and that the FBI had done little about it. Dell Comics are Good Comics. Under terms of the agreement, the Cleveland group would fund the project to completion and provide its bankroll, receiving 74 percent of the casinos stock. Americans were fascinated by the spectacle of a mob boss under duress. Informs public on accelerated schedule for New York-New Jersey area hearings on organized crime. See more. )Series V: Campaign (1936-1963) contains materials from Kefauvers many campaigns for his House and Senate seat and his unsuccessful bids for President (1952) and Vice President (1956). 435-755) Part 3 (pp. To be perfectly frank, he said, you are all running around the country investigating the race horse book and the wire and closed down all those offices.. Estes Kefauver Papers, 1925 - 1967 (MPA.0144) Personal and political files of the senator, who was well-known in the 1950s for his popular televised hearings on organized crime as well as his presidential and vice-presidential campaigns in 1952 and 1956, respectively.Newspaper clippings, eulogies and condolences after Senator Kefauver's death make up the portion of the collection dated . Marvel Comics, DC Comics, Dell, EC Comics and others all The committee had already been conducting hearings for five months, and they were tired. These dramatic hearings also made certain that television would play a large role in future Senate investigations. Senate. Staff Interface Short and sweet testimony. When pressed, Jones assumed that this was Meyers brother, and that Jack had stayed at the hotel a couple of weeks on at least two occasions. Source for information on Kefauver Investigation and Knapp Commission: West's . Mr. William A. Eichhorn - Vice President of American News Co. Mr. J. Jerome Kaplon - Chairman Juvenile Delinquency Committee, Union County Bar Association, Ads by Project Wonderful! In Chicago, the committee heard testimony from gangsters who confessed to using legitimate business interests to curry favor with local law enforcement. Slain Bugsy Siegels Girl Friend Steals Senate Crime Inquiry Show, by Emanuel Perlmutter, New York Times, March 16, 1951. Crime Attracts 1,000,000 TV Fans, by John Crosby, Daily Boston Globe, March 4, 1951. Mr. George B. Davis - President Kable News Co. Senate. United States Senate. Chapter 5: Outcome. By bringing public opinion to bear on the problems of interstate crime, the investigation helped local and state law enforcement and elected officials to aggressively pursue criminal syndicates. Besides, it was an eye opening experience for me to Despite the potential political cost to his party, Kefauver pledged to lead a "no stones unturned, no holds barred, right down the middle of the road, let the chips fall where they may" inquiry. [12] The tremendous success of the broadcast led to the production of a cycle of "expos" crime films dealing with the dismantling of complex criminal organizations by law enforcement. After seeing Hausers appearance at the hearings, the columnist Walter Winchell contemplated the seemingly timeless paradox of reality television when he wrote, When the chic Virginia Hill unfolded her amazing life story, many a young girl must have wondered: who really knows best? "Stenographic transcript of hearings before the Special Committee to Investigate Organized Crime in Interstate Commerce. First-term senator Estes Kefauver of Tennessee drafted a resolution to create a special committee to investigate the issue. Investigation Three years before the Army-McCarthy hearings and 22 years before Watergate, the Kefauver Committee hearings in the winter of 1951 brought a parade of gamblers, hoodlums, crooked sheriffs and organized-crime figures out from the shadows to sit and testify before the white-hot lights and television cameras. Privacy Policy | Two of the most noteworthy attacks were the Kefauver investigation in the 1950s and the Knapp Commission hearings in the 1970s. James A. Fitzpatrick, Chairman, New York State Joint Legislative Committee To Study The Publication Of Comics. Antagonized by the press, Hill kicked and slapped aggressive journalists on her way out of the hearing room, actions caught on live television. Series XII: Speeches and News Releases (1939-1963) This series is arranged chronologically and described according to subject of speech or news releases and location given. [16], United States Senate Special Committee to Investigate Crime in Interstate Commerce, Senate Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce, Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, "Records of Senate Select and Special Committees, 1789-1988," In, "Special Committee on Organized Crime in Interstate Commerce (The Kefauver Committee)", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=United_States_Senate_Special_Committee_to_Investigate_Crime_in_Interstate_Commerce&oldid=1116422779, This page was last edited on 16 October 2022, at 13:54. Some of it This is Estes Kefauvers briefcase from his days as a congressman and senator representing Tennessee. [11], Senator Kefauver served as the committee's first chair. www.senate.gov. Dr. Fredric Wertham - Author of Seduction of the Innocent. As Jones tried to answer, Kefauver interrupted him mid-sentence. Mr. Benjamin Freedman - Chairman of the Board, Newsdealers Association of Greater New York and America. An estimated 30 million Americans tuned in to watch the live proceedings in March 1951. Yo*3ivo}+>3-=
8G>EjN@aXMD_ tcn/9PmcPVP\rn}\d:q@88q ,B&. Explains why the first Comic Book Code didn't stick. Betsey B. Creekmore Special Collections and University Archives, University of Tennessee, Knoxville. The committee's second chairman, Herbert O'Conor (who took over after an exhausted Kefauver stepped down as chairman), sponsored legislation aimed at controlling illegal drugs by expanding appropriations for the Narcotics Bureau, the committees sole legislative accomplishment. a close reading of the transcripts of both events reveals several strikingly similar exchanges about comics and their place in American society . Then the betting commissioner, James J. Carroll, refused to testify on television, stating that it was an invasion of privacy. Chief counsel Halley probed Moores knowledge of the race wire situation. "Never before had the attention of the nation been riveted so completely on a single matter," explained Life magazine. Dr. Harris Peck - Director of the Bureau of Mental Health Services, Children's Court, New York, N. Y. Henry Edward Schultz - General Counsel, Association of Comic Magazine Publishers, Inc., New York, N. Y. Dr. Fredric Wertham - Author of Seduction of the Innocent, Mr. William Gaines - Publisher of EC Comics, Testimony of Walt Kelly, Milton Caniff and Joseph Musial - The National Cartoonist Society, Gunner Dybwad - Executive Director of the Child Study Association of America, Mr. William Friedman - Small comic book publisher with some horror books, Dr. Laura Bender - Psychiatrist working for DC Comics, Mr. Monroe Froehlich Jr. - Business Manager of Magazine Management Co. (Marvel Comics), Mr. William Richter - News Dealers Association of Greater New York, Mr. Alex Segal - President, Stravon Publications, Testimony of Mrs. Helen Meyer and Mr. Matthew Murphy - Vice President and Editor of Dell Publications, Hon. Clark started by sharing that he was a member of the corporation that owned Wilbur Clarks Desert Inn and an employee of the casino. But the Kefauver hearings were only beginning to capture the publics attention. Sedway had attended but not graduated from high school and, after a few years in the garment industry, had become a full-time gambler, dabbled in trucking, and owned a Chinese restaurant in New York. The Kefauver hearings were televised, bringing organized crime into the living rooms of many Americans for the first time. The televised hearings became, in the words of Senator Kefauver, "a national crusade, a great debating forum, an arouser of public opinion on the state of the nation's morals." 1955 hearings transcripts: U.S. Congress, Senate, Subcommittee on Juvenile Delinquency, Juvenile Delinquency (Obscene and Pornographic Materials): hearings before the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary, Subcommittee To Investigate Juvenile Delinquency Pursuant to Senate Resolution 62, Investigation of Juvenile Delinquency in the After doing all the things called wrong, there she was on top of the world, with a beautiful home in Miami Beach and a handsome husband and baby!. He was aware, though, that Siegel had had an interest in the Golden Nuggets race book. Though he was unsuccessful in his bid for the presidency, in 1956 Democrats selected Kefauver as their vice presidential candidate. Testimony of Mrs. Helen Meyer and Mr. Matthew Murphy - Vice President and Editor of Dell Publications. . Particularly dramatic was testimony by Frank Costello. Blood banks ran low on donations, prompting one Brooklyn Center to install a television and tune in to the hearings, and donations shot up 100 percent. Senator Kefauver would write the Senate Interim Reportin 1955 that summarizes the hearings and offers some conclusions. Phillips was excused and Jones returned with details about the Thunderbirds race wire service. When the committee reconvened, Henry Phillips, proprietor of the Last Frontier commission room, was sworn in. Afternoon Session: President's Committee on Juvenile Delinquency and Youth Crime, (Library of Congress Name Authority File), Committee of Americans (Copyright holder), District of Columbia. Mr. 1-434) Part 2 (pp. Gilbert King is a contributing writer in history for Smithsonian.com. Kefauver had a plane to catch. "Mr. Carroll, I order you to testify!" "This whole proceeding outrages my sense of propriety," Carroll shouted. Senator Estes Kefauver took the stage against organized crime, at the head of a special committee. We present the text of the three interim reports, the fourth and final committee report and the Virgil Peterson testimony - dealing with organized crime history - to the committee. These were televised hearings, consisting of a number of US Senators calling up and questioning We have put the press off here for a long while, and Mr. Jones is going to bring his partner back. With that the committee adjourned, Kefauver held a press conference and went to lunch before returning. Then the senators bring up his mail order business. Kefauver Committee Final Report Aug. 31, 1951 Kefauver Committee Final Report Aug. 31, 1951 U.S. Senate Special Committee to Investigate Organized Crime in Interstate Commerce 82ND CONGRESS SENATE REPORT 1st Session No. | Send Feedback or Report a Problem, Betsey B. Creekmore Special Collections and University Archives, University of Tennessee, Knoxville. These are the 1954 Senate Subcommittee Hearings into Juvenile Delinquency, with the special focus made. horror comics were being sold. The committee traced one bookmaking syndicates political connections all the way to Florida governor Fuller Warren, a Democrat. Since then I've On live television, the cameras zoomed in on the mobsters meaty hands as he nervously fingered the eyeglasses resting on the table, or moved to dab a handkerchief to his off-screen face as he dodged question after question, making him appear all the more sinister to daytime viewers. They said they wouldn't be selling them, but the distribution companies wouldn't give them the better selling magazines like TV Guide unless they took and sold the crime and horror comics. [3] In particular, many cities and states were concerned with the way organized crime had infiltrated interstate commerce, and how it threatened to hold the American economy hostage through labor racketeering. Carroll, I order you to testify!, This whole proceeding outrages my sense of propriety, Carroll shouted back. With his new cap (which he was later depicted wearing in a portrait on the cover of Time), Kefauver was elected to the U.S. Senate and assumed office at a time when newspapers were beginning to report on extensive political corruption and government ties to organized crime. [6][10] Rather, the committee uncovered extensive evidence that people of all nationalities, ethnicities, and religions operated locally controlled, loosely organized crime syndicates at the local level. Photo: Mafia Wiki. [4][6] Many of the committee's hearings were televised live on national television to large audiences, providing many Americans with their first glimpse of organized crime's influence in the U.S.[1][5][7] Among the more notorious figures who appeared before the committee were Tony "Joe Batters" Accardo, Louis "Little New York" Campagna, Mickey Cohen, Willie Moretti, Frank Costello, Jake "Greasy Thumb" Guzik, Meyer Lansky, Paul "The Waiter" Ricca,[6][8] Virginia Hill (former Joe Adonis-Chicago Outfit messenger and mobster Benjamin Siegel's girlfriend), and four of Irish mob boss Enoch "Nucky" Johnson's former policemen in Atlantic City were also called forth. [3] Many cities and states called for federal help in dealing with organized crime, yet federal law provided few tools for the U.S. government to do so. gone through it four times with a fine tooth comb to try and weed out all the mistakes the OCR program During his final months in office, a bitter Lucas tried unsuccessfully to prematurely end the committee's investigation. Senator from Tennessee". Kefauver Hearings 1950-51 Organized Crime in Interstate Commerce was the focus of the U.S. Senate's "Kefauver Committee" in 1950-51. Although the titles of the subseries may not indicate it, most of these are arranged in chronological order by campaign, although some materials are arranged by type (e.g., Scrapbooks).Series VI: Contacts (undated) consists of address books and card files, each arranged alphabetically by state, district, or county.Series VII: Published hearings, reports, and Congressional Records (1945-1963) contains hearings from Judiciary Committee, Joint Committee on Atomic Energy,House Committee on Veterans Affairs, amongst other government and Congressional publications.Series VIII: Travel (1948-1963) This series contains correspondence, invitations, itineraries, event programs, and like items relating to Kefauver's travels both nationally and abroad. C,+VU) <>
Hearings Part 1 (or Part 1) (pp. Independent News is owned the same people that own DC Comics. It also includes a summary of bills Kefauver introduced or co-sponsored during his term in the House (1939-1949), information about proposed changes to the two-thirds rule, and voting records and indexes to bills.The series is arranged chronologically.Series III: Committee Files (1949-1964) contains 25 subseries. The second subseries is a variety of financial records kept by Kefauver. Moore revealed that since the Tax Commission had begun issuing licenses, it had refused hundreds of applications and revoked as many as 100 for reasons of character. Halley asked why William Graham and James McKay, notorious Reno racketeers, had been granted licenses despite their convictions for altering government bonds in the southern district of New York. 2 0 obj
Samuel Roth - Publisher. The hearings on the West Coast drew the largest audiences recorded in daytime television. In January of the next year, the Kefauver Committee took to the road, crisscrossing the country to ferret out likely targets who could be exposed.
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