AllMovie

This three-part series examines the period leading up to the Prohibition era, the wild years of illegal bootlegging that began once the 18th Amendment was passed, before America's dawning awareness that this law had to be repealed to diminish organized crime. This volume looks at the period after the ban on alcohol was instituted in 1920 and the wild parties and speakeasies where numerous people gathered to drink illegal liquor and dance the night away. The program profiles many infamous bootleggers, including attorney George Remus, who became rich selling illegal liquor after buying a number of distilleries. The program also looks at Bill McCoy, one of Remus' many competitors, who smuggled in liquor from all over Europe.