From Prohibition rum-running on the Great Lakes to casino-style gambling in Cleveland, Cincinnati, and Northern Kentucky, and finally to shimmering Las Vegas, the Cleveland Syndicate evolved from an outright criminal organization into a "respectable" enterprise. In this first volume of his Syndicate books, Hank Messick details the origins and rise of organized crime in America, with particular emphasis on the Cleveland Four: Moe Dalitz, Morris Kleinman, Louis Rothkopf, and Samuel Tucker. Along the way he introduces readers to Meyer Lansky, Bugsy Siegel, "Trigger" Mike Coppola, and other notable gangsters, lawmen, financiers, and murderers.