The Purple Gang’s Legendary History

American popular culture has memorialized the Purple Gang in books, movies and even Elvis Presley's hit "Jail House Rock" mentions the notorious Detroit gang. The Purple Gang sat on top of the underworld of Michigan in the 1920s and 1930's until the Mafia took over in Detroit, Michigan. They did deals with Al Capone, the notorious mobster from Chicago. The Purple Gang played in northern Michigan and hid out in places like Lupton, Clare and Roscommon, Michigan. Our guest is Gregory Fournier, author of The Elusive Purple Gang: Detroit's Kosher Nostra is a concise history of one of America's most notorious Prohibition gangs. The Burnstein brothers and their associates were the only Jewish gang in the United States to dominate the rackets of a major American city. From their meteoric rise to the top of Detroit's underworld to their ultimate demise, this is an episodic account of the Purple Gang's corrosive pursuit of power and wealth and their inevitable plunge towards self-destruction. Find author Gregory Fournier's book on the Purple Gang as well as other true crime works of his a his website: thttps://gregoryafournier.com/ #purplegang #jailhouserock #alcapone