These are the 1954 Senate Subcommittee Hearings into Juvenile Delinquency, with the special focus In 1949 the American Municipal Association, representing more than 10,000 cities nationwide, petitioned the federal government to combat the growing influence of organized crime. Virginia Hill appears before Kefauver Committee / Committee Counsel Rudolph Halley questions Hill about money spent during Sun Valley vacation; photographer takes pictures during hearing / WS men and women taking notes / Hill explains she only uses cash / Sen. Estes Kefauver looks on as Halley asks question / VO Kefauver finishes question about gambling on horses; laughter from gallery as SOT . Public Relations These dramatic hearings also made certain that television would play a large role in future Senate investigations. [4][5] More than 600 witnesses testified. Kefauver Hearings 1950-51 Organized Crime in Interstate Commerce was the focus of the U.S. Senate's "Kefauver Committee" in 1950-51. In addition to his duties at the Last Frontier, Moore served as a member of the Nevada Tax Commission, the administrative body that oversaw the collection of taxes from Nevada businesses, including casinos. She defends her own reputation and DC Comics. Jones replied that as long as the individuals conducted themselves properly, probably no harm comes of it. But what constituted proper conduct, Halley wanted to know. By then the C.C.M.A. He was aware, though, that Siegel had had an interest in the Golden Nuggets race book. 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. He is the associate vice provost for faculty affairs at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. 435-755) Part 3 (pp. 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. Estes Kefauver (1903-1963) | American Experience | PBS and against comic books, Comic Book Ratings, Are you a Red Dupe? [3] Kefauver relinquished the committee chair on April 30, 1951, and Senator O'Conor assumed the chairmanship until the committee folded on September 1, 1951.[3]. He gives a very negative almost panel by panel review of Panic #1. His book Devil in the Grove: Thurgood Marshall, the Groveland Boys, and the Dawn of a New America won the Pulitzer Prize in 2013. "Never before had the attention of the nation been riveted so completely on a single matter," explained Life magazine. [9], Many of the Kefauver Committee's hearings were aimed at proving that a Sicilian-Italian organization based on strong family ties centrally controlled a vast organized crime conspiracy in the United States, but the committee never came close to justifying such a claim. Committee on Juvenile Crime, (Library of Congress Name Authority File), Halley, Rudolph, 1913-1956, (Library of Congress Name Authority File), Hudson Guild (New York, NY), (Library of Congress Name Authority File), Kefauver, Estes, 1903-1963, (Library of Congress Name Authority File), United States Committee on Fair Employment Practice, (Library of Congress Name Authority File), United States. 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. They remained qualified, Moore insisted, because of a granddaddy clause that allowed those who were operating before the more stringent regulatory regime was adopted to continue to do so. Milton Caniff was a very influential artist. Though not the first congressional committee to televise its proceedings, the Kefauver Committee hearings became the most widely viewed congressional investigation to date. Warren accused Kefauver of being an "ambition-crazed Caesar who is trying desperately and futilely" to be a presidential candidate. Congressional Hearings: Locating Recent Transcripts: Home Series I: Subject Matter File (1933 - 1964) contains correspondence, memoranda, reports, reference materials and other documents gathered or created during Kefauvers legislative work. 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 Kefauver collection is currently divided into fourteen series available for research. Inquire with Special Collections about contents and access. The Commerce and Judiciary Committees battled to control the investigation, and following a protracted debate, Vice President Alben Barkley cast the tie-breaking vote to establish a special committee. The Kefauver hearings confirmed the existence of a national crime syndicate and revealed lax enforcement. 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. One reporter, Clark Mollenhoff, reminded RFK that probing organized crime made a name for Senator Kefauver, who had just defeated Jack in the vice presidential race. He doesn't like the Crime and Horror Comics, but he also doesn't want a law banning them. It wasnt surprising, then, that on November 9 the committee announced it would visit Las Vegas as part of a West Coast tour to learn about legalized gambling and its impact on neighboring states. 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. Congress. PDF Kefauver Committee Final Report Aug. 31, 1951 - Stop Predatory Gambling Blowing the whistle on Mob-connected sports betting. for DC and Fawcett. 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. Other accumulations of mail have been sorted by function (e.g., condolences) or by location of correspondent (eg., Tennessee county, international, et cetera. United States Senate Special Committee to Investigate Crime in 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. At the end is a slew of newspaper articles by Irving M. Kravsow, they show you how the media responded to Crime 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. Colorful criminals, sweating and tapping their fingers nervously, seemed to step off the set of Hollywood gangster movies, speaking in broken English, under oath, about their activities. testified. The Kefauver Hearings - The NCS - National Crime Syndicate Estes Kefauver Papers, MPA-0144. Mr. Samuel Black - Vice President Atlantic Coast Independent Distributors Association. How to pronounce Kefauver? (RECOMMENDED) - PronounceNames.com Senate. The Library does not hold the copyright to most items in its collections. The committee's summary, which implicated the governor in illicit gambling activities, proved to be Warren's political downfall. 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. Short and sweet testimony. Kefauver Committee Hearing: Committee Hears Hoover and McGrath - Senate 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. He gives them the 1948 Comic Book Code from the A.C.M.P. The hearings made it clear to a lot of people that there was a national Mob, and that it had a lot of power. He would leave comics but have huge success in advertising. When his legal counsel objected to the television cameras, cameramen instead directed their devices at Costello's hands. Housewives were glued to their sets day after day, while in barrooms and cafeterias, men gathered on their lunch breaks to witness the proceedings. Weve had several witnesses who seemed much less timid and experienced I refuse to permit the arrangements for this hearing to be dictated by a witness.. United States. Congress. Senate. "Stenographic transcript of hearings The Kefauver hearings confirmed the existence of a national crime syndicate and revealed lax enforcement. Halley then asked if Jones could ask Weiner to testify, to which Jones agreed. Congress. Mr. Charles Appel - Owner, Angus Drug Store. was already established and toned down comics were coming out with the CCA stamp on them. Dybwad shows us the DC Comics internal Comic Code they used during this period. During the course of the 15-month investigation, the committee met in 14 major U.S. cities and interviewed hundreds of witnesses in open and executive session. Crime & The Committee - The Kefauver Hearings (1958) - YouTube 2023 Smithsonian Magazine He was also president of the National Cartoonist Society, a group of popular comic strip creators. In 1951, Frank Costello was subpoenaed to appear before the Kefauver Committee. The Chicago investigation connected top officialsmost of whom were members of the Democratic Partywith corrupt practices. Senator Kefauver gives short remarks on Chinese Nationalists in the Korean War, modifying the draft to include men as young as 18, and the end of his own crime investigation., Senator Estes Kefauver's weekly reports were "made available to Tennessee . Committee on Juvenile Crime (Creator), District of Columbia. The American Mafia - Kefauver Report #2 - Feb. 28, 1951 159 Linear Feet (318.5 (boxes 1 through folder 5 318)), Part of the Betsey B. Creekmore Special Collections and University Archives, University of Tennessee, Knoxville Repository. E. D. Fulton - Member of the House of Commons in Canada. As far as I know, Jones contended, he has never been in the city of Las Vegas. When confronted by Halley with rumors that Lansky was reputed to live at the Thunderbird Hotel a great deal of the time, Jones admitted that a man named Jack Lansky had been a guest at the hotel. [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. stream Historic Congressional Committee Hearings and Reports HTML menu inserted here for WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility compliance. Halley questioned Jones on his partner Louis Wieners role as attorney for Dr. Maurice Siegel, executor of his brother Ben Siegels estate. Information provided by the Senate Historical Office. Samuel Roth - Publisher. In 1950, freshman U.S. Clark started building the Desert Inn in 1947 but ran out of funds. The release of the book was followed by hearingscommonly referred to as the Kefauver Hearings after presiding senator Estes Kefauverbefore the Senate subcommittee on delinquency. Feedback or questions? Hon. 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.. Lansky was washed out in this transaction. Series XVI: Audiovisual I refer, of course, to the 1954 Senate Subcommittee hearing on Juvenile Delinquency, where Senator Estes Kefauver (D-TN), used the spectacle of televised hearings to lambast the entire industry. Special Committee to Investigate Organized Crime in Interstate Commerce (Creator), United States. 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. An architect by trade, he came to Las Vegas in 1941 to design the Hotel Last Frontier for his uncle, R.E.
