Storied and Scandalous Kansas City: A History of Corruption, Mischief and a Whole Lot of Booze

Welcome to Kansas City—the best town this side of Hell. The Paris of the Plains. Home to the Wettest Block in the World. This collection celebrates a storied history of one notorious city. Meet the mobsters and victims, bootleggers, madams, political bosses and raucous entertainers who truly brought the party to the plains even during Prohibition. Witness the best parades, the wackiest costumes and the wildest scams. Kansas City's sordid underbelly is full of surprises sure to delight and entice—the odd, macabre and delightful. "This collection celebrates a storied history of one notorious city. Meet the mobsters and victims, bootleggers, madams, political bosses and raucous entertainers who brought the party to the plains. Witness the best parades, the wackiest costumes and the wildest scams. Kansas City's sordid underbelly is full of surprises sure to delight and entice"-- Provided by publisher Foreword -- Introduction -- Welcome to dry land -- A history of civilized roughness & refine -- Burlesque houses, brothels, red light districts -- Sicilians in Kansas City -- Gambling dens, liquor and vice -- 1970s organized crime -- The odd, macabre & delightful -- Index -- Acknowledgments