The Notorious Purple Gang. Detroit's most vicious crew of K***ers. *Audio fixed

Подписаться 31 тыс.

Просмотров 122 тыс.

50% 1

This is the story of the infamous Purple gang. The Loose organization of gangster who ruled Detroit with a bloody fist during prohibition.
You tube membership is now available.
www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted...
/ afewbadmen
/ @afewbadmen.
Photos colorized with Pallette.fm
Newspaper clipping and photos ;
The Brooklyn Daily Eagle (Brooklyn, New York)
Times Union (Brooklyn, New York)
The Brooklyn Citizen (Brooklyn, New York)
The Standard Union (Brooklyn, New York)
The New York Times(New York)
L.A. Times (Los Angeles)
Philadelphia Inquire ( Philadelphia)

Опубликовано:

24 фев 2024

Ссылка:

Скачать:

Готовим ссылку...

Добавить в:

Мой плейлист

Посмотреть позже

Комментарии : 356

@darthcheney7447 4 месяца назад

My Great Grandfather was a Wayne County Sheriff during prohibition and worked with the Purples escorting booze coming across the Detroit River and escort it to a farmhouse in Farmington, Michigan. The farmhouse was a farm converted to an airfield, and the whiskey was stored in the barn. All the cops including my Great Grandfather bought surplus Curtiss Jenny's and they would fly them on Sundays while the women and children(including my Grandmother and Great Aunts and Uncle), were having a picnic watching the menfolk fly their toys. My Great Uncle actually soloed in a Curtiss Jenny on his 12th birthday. Shit was kinda crazy back in the '20s.

@susanmenegus5543 4 месяца назад

👍

@Gosdatwork 4 месяца назад

That is incredible . It seemed most people thought prohibition was a bad idea and had no problem making money from it.

@djquinn11 4 месяца назад

Yes I’m from Detroit and shit was crazy back then, it still is except now it’s dope.

@travismiles5885 4 месяца назад

My great-grandfather on my mom's side was a cop in St Clair County Michigan and was kidnapped by the purple gang. But they let him go unharmed. Brings too much heat when you kidnap a cop. Not all of them were on the take. My great-grandfather on my dad's side was Canadian and he was a bootlegger during that time.

@saquina185 4 месяца назад

😂😂😂😂 this Internet shit worse than the chain gang and military . U can be all u can be.. my uncle was the purple gang leader

@StrangerFive. 4 месяца назад

Wow. My grandfather is the inspector Garvin in the video. He died when my mom was just 10. I don't think I've ever seen a color photo of him, so thank you for that!

@diowil1 4 месяца назад

Now that is a treasure glad you found that.

@trixiem4959 4 месяца назад

i think i have 1

@ExposingReflections 4 месяца назад

Nice job of research and narration. I'm fairly tired of the AI fake narration, so its great to hear a real person. Keep it up

@beastmaster9433 Месяц назад

Killer doc, Bro. Detroit native here. I appreciate the hard work put into this very informative piece, thank you!

@miguel.ledesmaledesma1790 4 месяца назад

“SHOTS RANG OUT”😂. Great stuff👍🏾.

@acdcrocks67 4 месяца назад

🤣

@georgemusgrave8858 4 месяца назад

😂

@domenickparris7650 Месяц назад

AFBM is hands down the top RU-vid channel reporting on the Gangster genre. Attention to detail, and digging up information NO ONE else does. A lot of effort and research goes into these episodes, and it shows. Very glad I came across this channel, it's excellent.

@cassiusrichmond6336 4 месяца назад

I enjoy your videos. A slight correction: The Detroit based gangs ran liquor across the Detroit River, not Lake Michigan.

@afewbadmen. 4 месяца назад

Yes you are correct. Thanks 👊🏽

@user-ss8iy2to6t 4 месяца назад

@@afewbadmen. Paradise Valley, Black Bottom was torn down for i -75 freeway on HASTINGS STREET no JEFFERSON AVE

@elbeau78 4 месяца назад

Small nitpicking stuff. Hamtramck is pronounced ham tram mick and it's located inside the city limits of Detroit, similar to Highland Park, another city inside Detroit.

@user-ss8iy2to6t 4 месяца назад

@@elbeau78 Hamtramck use to be Norris Town

@christopher480 4 месяца назад

correct also the schoolehouse he showed was 3 floors not 2 and he said someone was shot with automatic handguns....lol they had uzis back then.........handguns were semi-automatic

@pauliedibbs9028 4 месяца назад

Like a fine wine, this channel just gets better and better. Way to go, Boss!

@joshuapafford6130 3 месяца назад

Listening from Jefferson Ave right now. Excellent video. Good job on the history.

@scotcarberry172 4 месяца назад

The most comprehensive video and commentary on the Purple Gang I have ever seen. All I knew before was the Bernstines from Detroit and their relationship with the Chicago Outfit. This was an excellent and informative look all the way into the Purples and organized crime in the 1920s and 30s Detroit. Keep up the great work.

@djquinn11 4 месяца назад

Not to be a dick but it’s spelled Bernstein.

@bradmeeds1226 4 месяца назад

Not to be a dick but if this documentary was in English and can understand the commentary it’ll be a lot better

@user-ss8iy2to6t 4 месяца назад

@@djquinn11 Call SAM BERSTEIN ha

@user-wv7qo8sz2i 4 месяца назад

Do you think it's the same Bernstein family as the lawyers?

@GIjoe614 2 месяца назад

"He wuz wit his homeboy's who's in jail nows wife but that's none of my bizzness" great line & research..lol

@harrybaker9117 4 месяца назад

Great video. I have had a curiosity about the Purples for some time. Best video on the gang. All of your videos are well done. This is the best so far.

@charlesstockford6003 4 месяца назад

I have a friend that has the remnants of a car that was stolen from the purple gang in Mio Michigan hidden in the woods on her property. Only the body was left. The rest was used to power a huge saw out in the woods.

@charlesstockford6003 4 месяца назад

The Bernstein's you see on TV ads for their lawyer services are the grandkids of these Purple Gang bosses.

@warrenpuckett4203 4 месяца назад

Purple mostly Jewish. Capone mostly Italian. Moroun and the importers mostly Irish. My mom's 1st husband a Italian Jew, Purple. 2nd a Sicilian, Capone. 3rd husband a hospital supervision with a bachelor degree.. Her sisters picked up coal in the rail yard to heat the house. Because it was not advisable to beat up the girls. Capito?

@travismiles5885 4 месяца назад

If you ever watched the HBO series Boardwalk Empire where Al Capone mentions the Jews from Detroit. He was talking about the Purple Gang

@user-ss8iy2to6t 4 месяца назад

3 of Al capones men were shot at a hotel at the ocrner of John R and Grand Blvd.

@keithdior1657 3 месяца назад

Purple gang was the shooters in the valentine day massacre

@Tarquin21723 3 месяца назад

@@keithdior1657 Allegedly. There's no way to prove it. It's rumored that the Purples loaned shooters to Al Capone's gang as part of a deal to keep Capone out of Detroit. What's more likely is that Capone called in Zips from New York, or Italy to do the job as the Italians didn't trust outsiders to do their dirty work. Obviously, no records were kept. So, it's impossible to prove either way.

@user-xp6cg2tg1p 4 месяца назад

My Grandfather ran a blind pig with his brother in Detroit which was raided in 1929. They ended up doing 2 years in Leavenworth. When they got out they went straight never got in trouble again !

@soilhalo27 Месяц назад

Mine too. Except he didn't get busted. But that's where he met my grandmother. He also helped get the union at Chrysler.

@cmob357 5 месяцев назад

The best story teller…Awesome 👏🏾

@ahnraemenkhera7451 4 месяца назад

I have to concur!! I’ve read several other Purple Gang accounts some time ago. Except for the Licavoli saga, nearly all of them have been fairly incoherent & difficult to care about. The Boss makes some of these strange & unusual people come to life. Others, you want to follow-up reading about because of connections made by the research on AFBM’s channel!! Good stories about some sad & some bad people. I don’t like the idea of “throwaways”- from any society. Nobody ever wants to own-up to how they got that way while “respectable” people did their sorriest least to lend a hand. Very often, it turns out they could have! But they’re just “sorry” it turned out the way it did. ANYONE surviving prison in those days was TOUGH in my book! Ten times twice as tough!! Good narratives! I hope the characters get some individual time. ♥️🌸🪷🎯

@user-ce1zr1mp6e 4 месяца назад

I've watched about everything over the years about the MOB my fascination with the topic has wained ,I came across this wonderful piece of work. Forgetaboutit shots rang out is an authentic touch ..

@everybodyhatinbro 4 месяца назад

Thank you been waiting on a story from these guys

@ChandoisGainesjr-fn9vr 4 месяца назад

The best video on the purple 🟣 gang. Shout out detroit

@user-qo5kk5fx2h 3 месяца назад

I agree,great voice and story telling.Thank You and keep it pushing !😊

@KCCardCo 4 месяца назад

I worked at a metro Detroit establishment and one of the supervisors told me how his wife's great aunt was almost kidnapped by the purple gang while they were living in Indian Village. The gang put a ladder up against the house climbed to the second floor window and got in. I believe they were part of the Grobbel meat family. I'm not sure if it's still there but there was an old brick Warehouse across from Belle Isle and my grandfather told us that it was used to store liquor during prohibition. He was 29 years old in 1927. It seems like quite a few long-term Detroiters have known or knew somebody that was connected to the purple gang. I can recall a truck driver who used to come to a business I worked at was doing genealogy and he found out that one of his relatives was in the purple gang. It was something that the family knew but they kept it quiet even when he was a young adult. I myself was able to know one of the Hoffa era Teamsters business agents and he used to tell me some interesting stories. He had lunch with Hoffa two or three days prior to his disappearance at the same restaurant the Red Fox where Hoffa met with the Detroit partnership for the last time.

@trixiem4959 4 месяца назад

i have pictures

@kideos3236 3 месяца назад

Again can't keep saying this enough - fantastic photos and film just love it! I've heard alot of the purple gang now I actually know what the were all about. I will be joining $ your channel later this month I want the extras as well! And shots rang out!!

@gruntsffs1 4 месяца назад

1:28 my grandfather (1920, Detroit), told me the were called the “Purple Gang” because they weren’t from any specific ethnicity. Detroit, like many other cities of the era, had numerous ethnically exclusive neighborhoods, but the PG supposedly crossed those barriers. Super stoked to finish the story!!! You don’t see many shows about my hometown in the “Murder Mitten”. 👊🏼😎

@jameswoods9028 3 месяца назад

You are really good at the way you tell these stories, I must admit I'm paying full attention as I'm listening, especially when you say, SHOTS RANG OUT!! 😯😲

@andrewdyer2032 4 месяца назад

Loving your work from over here in Australia 👍👍

@raycarlisle6424 4 месяца назад

Great channel…shots rang out with the background music and attention to detail.

@christorpher84 3 месяца назад

that is the most detailed account of gangsters i've ever heard

@chuckabbate5924 4 месяца назад

You narration is excellent. Keep up the good work. Grew up in Western Massachusetts,had an older neighbor who ran rum out of Joliet Illinois in the 20s. When depression hit, he like a lot of young men of his generation would hop freights out to Kansas as hoboes and work the harvests....

@user-je5do6jn2f 4 месяца назад

Thank you for making this. Detroit was always rusted to the core before crappy economics and local politics did their damage.

@aidankirby8412 4 месяца назад

Americas wealthiest city in the 1950s. The Paris of America. An illegal Black bar was cited for no license and fire hazard violations, shut down and then closed. And blacks burned down 1/4 of the city. The rest is history....

@idiotwind2248 4 месяца назад

Thanks! This is only the 2nd channel I've ponyed up to. The graphics and research are awesome with the narrative. Incredible research Boss. Now that i kicked upstairs & made my bones i know you got my back if "shots ring out" Until next time Jack

@afewbadmen. 4 месяца назад

Thanks so much pal I really appreciate that. My bad I’m just reading this comment.👊🏽

@idiotwind2248 4 месяца назад

@afewbadmen. No worries. Know you're putting together the next vid. Maybe separating the fact & fiction in Carlito Briganto,s story. As a Spanish NYer ,it would be interesting to see if Hollywood was even close with 'Carlito,s way' & Benny from DaBronx..

@shutupshelley1793 3 месяца назад

Excellent video! Super interesting and informative. As other posters noted, I also loudly applaud the fact that this is not just another "AI narrated" YT video but one that's voiced by an actual man with an actual great voice. BRAVO!

@afewbadmen. 3 месяца назад

Thanks so much 🙏🏽🙏🏽 I’m glad you enjoyed. I only know how to be me. AI can’t capture that.❤

@nicolethompson8613 3 месяца назад

Yes, I am so reluctant to click on RU-vid suggested videos unless I am already subscribed to the channel, so much click bait and horrible narration. This was indeed a pleasant surprise!

@shutupshelley1793 3 месяца назад

@@afewbadmen. And are you married/attached...wtf ?🤔😉😎🤡🤣(Seriously?)

@afewbadmen. 3 месяца назад

@@shutupshelley1793 I am divorced and single sweetie ❤

@shutupshelley1793 3 месяца назад

@@afewbadmen. Hit me up, Mr. Man!! I'm in North/central Michigan, divorced, 60-year-old (nobody guesses!) news writer, dog/nature lover, big-breasted gal, fine blend of (mostly) Italian, some Polish, plus a little "Kentuckian" thrown in for fun and flavor🤣...oh, the list goes on! 😉😉

@potheadmike8510 4 месяца назад

"Leave town or leave a will" Classic Capone

@elroybutler6981 2 месяца назад

I'm 66 years old. My aunt told me the poor people loved Al Capone.

@potheadmike8510 2 месяца назад

@@elroybutler6981 - Al set up a lot of food lines for the homeless. He really did give the people what they wanted... And then some

@stevenmotta7754 3 месяца назад

You did a very very good job braking this gangster story down

@user-nz6pl8gz1c 4 месяца назад

Very interesting episode about these Detroit gangsters. They built their own legacy during the Roaring 20s. I would like to suggest you, to make the next episode (or one of the nexts), about Ciro "the Artichoke King" Terranova and his infamous crew. He was one of Joe the Boss's more powerful caporegimes. I'm seeing Ciro every time in your images, and I believe, it's his time!!!

@trixiem4959 4 месяца назад

Hey Bad Man! Guess what? My name is Millman! 4th gen. I hope this is going to make your day. I looked you up To leave a comment And when I saw what others have wrote, I get to open my throat. My Great Uncle was known as the last leader of the PG. He was Burnstein's boy until he wasn't. Murder Inc was a separate entity from all gangs. No hit unless the boss agreed. Next, it's not about pride or anonymity now. I choose to preserve this era accurately. Since every author was "Profiting" sensensitalizing our last names, I decided it's my story to tell. 2 of my Uncles are actually on book covers. H. Ford was a Nazi , OOPs, Jews and blacks were made to live in the ghetto. Italians east, irish corktown, polish Ham town. Since we gained total control of the river 2 years b-4 Chicago, Capone wanted Old Log Cabin from Montreal. Bugs Moran hi-jacked a truckload and that led to St. Valentines. Murder inc used out of state hit men. So we went to Chi, New York came to kill Millman. There were no Sicilians or Chaldeans here YET! Det. was divided b-4 5 family/territory conference. By then Bernstein was promised a comfy retirement for last gambling/boxing/brothel houses and Harry's Murder. Any PG still around worked w/for Italians. As to Lake Mich., We ran The Charlevoix Club and Mackinaw Grand. Along w/other spots in South Haven, Kalamazoo, and hideouts throughout the state. Hey Darth!!! I have the actual map of these landing strips and I know of 2 in Farmington!!! Want to talk?

@user-ss8iy2to6t 4 месяца назад

Call Sam. Bernstien ha

@ktj349 4 месяца назад

Would love to sit a just listen to the history you lived.

@dequanalexander6373 4 месяца назад

Yea Al profit is the guy your looking for

@singood7790 4 месяца назад

No mention of "Paw Paw"....or "Dog Patch"

@josephstewart16 4 месяца назад

first class work ...kudos

@Dulcimertunes 4 месяца назад

This old footage is amazing!

@idiotwind2248 4 месяца назад

I see live chat comments can't be seen here. So i must have comments in 2 spots. I watched this again, and it was even better. Maybe i paid more attention and didnt miss anything 😔 Either way ..a great job Boss. You put an impressive amount of research into these & it shows. Your efforts dont go unnoticed. It's appreciated. Until next time, be careful of those 'shots ringing out'. Respect Jack

@brianjauch9958 4 месяца назад

I like how when you say shots it's like, SHOTS!!

@Stanley-xc4yc 4 месяца назад

Amazing video 😊🎉. Thank u for taking the time to create 😊🍾🦜🌈💯

@eugeneewings9522 3 месяца назад

Great story telling two thumps up 👍👍

@KCCardCo 4 месяца назад

The cleaning situation with the dry cleaners, that was still going on even into the early 1960s. I knew a retired cop whose father owned a cleaners and the mafia bombed it, sending the guy's father flying across the room. He survived. There is an operating bathhouse on Oakland Avenue in Detroit. It's known as the Schvitz and that was one of the Purple Gangs hangouts. You can still go there to this day and it's the last old school bath House in the City of Detroit. There are still many descendants of the purple gang in the Metro Detroit area. They have since transitioned into professional occupations such as medicine, law, engineering etc. If anyone ever has the opportunity, look into the Detroit Free Press archives and it's loaded with these stories.

@geraldrichards3570 26 дней назад

Thanks for the knowledge and information 😊

@kingdingaling9510 4 месяца назад

Another banger of a video! Salute

@robertwhitey6621 4 месяца назад

I had an uncle who disappeared in the 1920’s from the area around the produce terminal by Fort and Springwells my grandmother said the people in the Purple gang got him and made him disappear. Grosse Isle was another hot spot with the rum runners crossing the river to Michigan we would hear as kids about the tunnels under the river to Gibraltar and Trenton for the bootleggers.

@tsmartin32 4 месяца назад

Great video you have earned a new subscriber

@keith-marvk-harrisii8666 4 месяца назад

Great storytelling! "And shots rang out!" Lol put that on a t-shirt!

@davidhlnda 4 месяца назад

I dig yr style, kinda like a 40s jazz assassin numbers king vibe. Very cool.

@reddeaddylan1606 3 месяца назад

Dude, thank you so much about the history lesson. I am from Windsor Ontario. The mob history here from Walkers brewery is nuts. There was a local bar around here, now completely removed but the property is private. I will keep nameless but everyone in Windsors knows it. That bar had tunnels that went from Windsor to Detroit under the river. It’s crazy the history of only 100 years ago. Great job my man!

@afewbadmen. 3 месяца назад

Thanks so much. I really appreciate that 💥💥💥

@johnatkinson808 4 месяца назад

Thank you for your fine research..

@carlbernas1220 4 месяца назад

My 2 Uncle's off loaded liquor at the boat docks in Delray when they were kids

@user-je5do6jn2f 4 месяца назад

Talk about a lost treasure trove of local Detroit history.

@seoulkidd1 4 месяца назад

You narrated this story well 👍

@user-mq6qz3xw6e 4 месяца назад

Great vid,I live in Detroit,and know alot bout them and the partnership

@PeterCombs 3 месяца назад

facinating stuff, very good presentation...I never knew the story.

@latoshiaguffin6594 4 месяца назад

My friend found a letter in his granny’s basement wrote by a member of the gang! We were born and raised on the eastside of Detroit. His granny’s house was one of their spots!! Crazy!

@hemibeep 4 месяца назад

Lake Claire? ;) Detroit is actually directly across from Windsor Ontario. Windsor had the export docks at the foot of Ouellette Avenue & Riverside Drive where liquor was shipped to the Detroit dock & downriver to Wyandotte.

@jimmyschiel3863 4 месяца назад

Yes, I remember my Grandpa telling stories for hours about Bootleggers and Blind Pigs. The Taylor/Wyandotte area was a farming community back then. My Great Grandpa made wine and was a small time Bootlegger. Nobody ever messed with him. He was too small for the Mob or the Cops.

@Dropdead313 4 месяца назад

Live in Wyandotte now, cool history here, old blind pigs and bars, churches😂

@ajh6354 4 месяца назад

Maybe he meant Lake St. Clair, north of the Detroit River. It also separates Michigan from Canada.😢

@jimmyschiel3863 4 месяца назад

@@ajh6354 I'm sure he did, he's just not familiar with the area.

@ajh6354 4 месяца назад

@@jimmyschiel3863 I am in Warren as we speak. On my way home to Imlay City.

@randallpetroelje3913 4 месяца назад

God bless Detroit they need a lot of help. This is a really good flick and depiction of gangsters before the mafia really showed up and took over.❤

@KCCardCo 4 месяца назад

Automotive heir Horace Dodge Jr. could cross the Detroit River in one of his custom-made boats and get liquor in Canada. He had special hidden compartments made in his personal boats to hide his stash. His 10,000 sq ft Mansion was right on Lake St. Clair in Grosse Pointe City. I remember one of his boats was at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Beverly Hills on display in the parking garage. A few years after that one of his personal boats was at a boat show Newport Beach and one of his surviving daughters was there looking at it. If You were a Rich Man back then the world was your oyster.

@MidMo4020 4 месяца назад

Wasn’t Elvis’ whole rythym section a Purple Gang??

@RoaroftheTiger 4 месяца назад

@A Few Bad Men - I'm compelled to congratulate You. Your Research, & overall knowledge of the topic are First Class. Your Narration is in Class by Itself. I trust You will continue Your Good Work. As there is nothing better.

@Arthurian. 4 месяца назад

People from the area all said Purples were from Ecorse, 2 cities South of Detroit, next to Wyandotte, where the Detroit Partnership started (Detroit mob). I have family from that era

@user-xp6cg2tg1p 4 месяца назад

Good video! Thanks

@user-mx7hg9sx4p 4 месяца назад

Awesome❗ episode 🔥⚡💯👍

@Bub-20 4 месяца назад

This is my first time hearing about Sugar houses in Detroit...

@fritzpollard266 4 месяца назад

Incredibly interesting topic flawlessly presented.

@afewbadmen. 4 месяца назад

Thanks so much. Fritz Pollard was football player. Are you related?

@fritzpollard266 4 месяца назад

@@afewbadmen.Not related, I love history and in particular sports history and I’m from Milwaukee and this led me to research both the NFL Milwaukee Badgers and the Negro League Milwaukee Bears which introduced me to Fritz Pollard and I’ve admired him from the moment I learned his name. Me using the name is a small a very small way to honor his memory.

@afewbadmen. 4 месяца назад

Cool yea I’m a football guy too that’s how I knew. Thanks for supporting 👊🏽

@leonardcollings7389 4 месяца назад

My father was a conductor and later a motorman on the Detroit Street Cars (DSR). My father said they were really a bunch of teenagers who mostly ran numbers and gambeling. At some point, they burned a bunch of rival mobsters on brush piles somewhere near Walled Lake.

@TheWhiteTrashPanda 2 месяца назад

35:37 "but that's none of my business" 😂

@Banzai51 3 месяца назад

Love the narration. When I was a kid in the 70s, I was on a t-ball team that the coach named, The Purple Gang. We kids thought it was cool and didn't think anything of it. When I was in high school in the 80s, I found out about the gangsters called The Purple Gang. I always wondered if that coach knew what he was naming our team after.

@mojojojo548 3 месяца назад

Did you know that tee-ball originated in Albion Michigan?…it’s also where the purple gang had a hideout…and also my hometown…when I was a kid their hideout was a ice cream parlor called the frog pond…

@Jammo1978 4 месяца назад

Brilliant video

@johnnynoirman 3 месяца назад

Tremendous Video!. Steven Cochran played Eddie Fletcher in the episode from the series The Untouchables called "The Purple Gang".

@gummo3873 4 месяца назад

If one was too play a drinking game in the spirit of this video by taking a shot every time the narrator says "And Shots Rang out" one would surely die of alcohol poisoning half way through the video!!! 🥃 🍻 🥴🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 (Side note-My great Grandparents owned several Butcher shops on the lower West side of Detroit during the 1920-30s and as a boy riding on my Great Grandfather's lap on his tractor while he cut his lawn he used to tell me story's about "runnin' Liquor from the toe of the Detroit Riva ta help keep the Butcher Shops afloat during tha Great Depression." Sadly the areas that my family grew up in and around in the Metro Detroit area aren't exactly what they used too be too put it lightly. )

@TheBFN 4 месяца назад

Good video despite the fact that you like saying shots rang out every 2 or 3 minutes I dig the old footage it was neat to see were there any notorious female gangs of this error or female killers

@muffassa6739 4 месяца назад

My Grandfather was born in England in 1888 and he had still the gang told him to quit making Whisky so he dug a hole and put it in. My brother had I always wanted to see if it was still there.

@johnberger2851 4 месяца назад

I like the narrator's style -- "Shots rang out!"

@TheWhiteTrashPanda 2 месяца назад

Born and raised in Metro Detroit, I've been hearing about the Purple Gang forever but never really knew much about them. This was fascinating.

@johngratton2301 4 месяца назад

My great uncle Fred was out of Philly and a mobster he had stories about all these people

@JasonRobinsonjr-xx7uv 4 месяца назад

Right on.

@Dropdead313 4 месяца назад

Live in Wyandotte, still alot of blind pigs, huge prohibition town, right on the Detroit river, bars and churches

@dougkennedy4906 4 месяца назад

Their vacation/ hideout home is in clare mi. It is now a venue for weddings and such.

@rickwisnieswki9584 4 месяца назад

A very accurate video Michael's knew a lot of that was going on when he was growing up in Toledo they were all around

@kajem575 4 месяца назад

The Purple Gang owned and operated a scrapyard on the Kalamazoo river in ALBION,MI. Their "hideout" building is currently a private club, THE LEISURE HOUR CLUB and is part of a pamphlet tour in the late summer FESTIVAL OF THE FORKS (Forks=confluence of two branches of the river) My father and some friends as children, were paid (in pennies,nickles) once (or more) to be "look-outs" for certain cars or people and how frequently they appeared.

@mojojojo548 4 месяца назад

Albion is my hometown…when I was younger the leisure hour club was an ice cream parlor called the frog pond…

@kajem575 4 месяца назад

@@mojojojo548 I used to be a member. I can see the building from where I live. The son of the (then owners) is a local self employed electrician,he is younger than me and we attended high school together. I know him well. His name came up in conversation two days ago with the owner of CHARLIE'S TAVERN,(where he has performed his trade) a friend of mine. ✌️

@mojojojo548 3 месяца назад

@@kajem575 that’s very cool…my grandma used to talk about the purple gang…we lived with her on superior street right across from the water tower…the house sadly burnt down bout 20 years ago lil after my grandma passed…I grew up in Albion…but grew up in Babcock first…born at the Albion hospital…did you know that tee-ball originated in Albion?…

@kajem575 3 месяца назад

@@mojojojo548 yes I know about tee ball. JEROME SACHARSKI was my teacher in jr. High. I lived on Chestnut St. (Big gray house 3rd from corner,upstairs apt.) when that house burned. I was one of the ppl who called fire dept. I woke up and saw the smoke and at first thought it was fog but knew something made that wrong,then I opened the window. Check this out: Kevin Markovich,who is a decent guy and all his family I am friends with,was the public works director was there standing on Chestnut st. And I asked him what the fuck the "firefighters" were doing and why isn't there a hose flowing yet? He said they didn't have the wrench to open the hydrant,FUCKING IDIOTS! They didn't have one long enough for the leverage needed. I asked "Well where the fuck is it"? He said it was in a city pick-up truck and on the way. Meanwhile two guys were on the hydrant with a two foot long wrench and couldn't open the valve so they quit trying. I SCREAMED at them "DON'T FUCKING STOP" "KEEP TRYING" "SOMEBODY'S HOUSE IS FUCKING BURNING DOWN" I yelled at Kevin.."MAKE THEM KEEP TRYING" He said,"the wrench is on the way" I said ,"I DON'T GIVE A FUCK,THAT'S THEIR FUCKING JOB" " IT'S YOUR JOB,GET OVER THERE AND HELP" About 3-4 min.later the truck showed up with the wrench,IT WAS 6 FEET LONG! No problem opening valve now. I called them all stupid incompetent assholes. "Does this town only have ONE FUCKING HYDRANT WRENCH?" One of the "firefighters" then tried to talk back to me,I told him to shut up,I'm a tax paying,voting citizen with first amendment rights,now go put the fire out you imcompetent jerk. Kevin told him, "Yeah,get to work you don't wamna argue with this guy." We're still friends mind you. I told him ,"You BETTER set those fuckers straight" "You all dropped the ball here and I WILL tell everyone." Seems I still am. Sorry your family lost their house. I don't think it was their fault,it was already too far along,it doesn't change their gross negligence and incompetence,but what about the next fire victim(s)? Yeah,I was FUMING MAD. Edit: Mind you,these "firefighters" are "PUBLIC SAFETY" officers meaning.they are also city cops. Scary indeed. ✌️❤️ Sorry about the curse words if that bothers you,but that's a true portrayal of events. It was an emergency as you well know. I just lost it on those clowns.🤷🙆‍♂️

@kajem575 3 месяца назад

@@mojojojo548 I know a bunch of ppl from Babcock. The Eagens,Hamiltons,Grangers,Spears,Wilsons (saw Tony yesterday when I was walking on Superior he drove by and waved),Spencers. Went to school with all of them. I knew a couple younger (than me) boys I went to school with at Dalrymple school from Babcock.(can't recall their names anymore🥲) Sadly when I went to Jr. High they were both killed crossing the road. Wasn't drivers fault. It was an older gentleman. It saddened him greatly,I met him at the funeral home on my lunch break from school. That accident is the reason they lowered the speed limit to 45 mph through there.

@richardtrudeau7363 4 месяца назад

Wonder if Sam Bernstein is Family.

@kideos3236 3 месяца назад

How about doing one about Frank Costello? Have you done an episode about him?

@afewbadmen. 3 месяца назад

Not yet but I will. Thanks for tuning in 💥💥💥

@J3MOdh3NOWX3S 4 месяца назад

02:15 brought booze from Canada across lake Michigan? Huh ? Got your lakes mixed up.

@jerryodell1168 3 месяца назад

The Purple gang was active in a lot more cities other than Detroit. There was a get away car complete with guns, money, and more found in a garage in Albion, Michigan. The gang paid all expenses for an elderly lady that lived there as a cover. She was told to stay away from and never open the garage. When she died the garage was opened and the truth was known. The story and pictures are online. The find was a great sensation in Albion.

@mojojojo548 3 месяца назад

Albion is my hometown…did you know that tee-ball originated there?

@jerryodell1168 3 месяца назад

@@mojojojo548 Yes to tee-ball and Rev. George Bennard wrote the "The Old Rugged Cross" song there in his kitchen. My Dad owned a taxi business there in those early years and Dad would drive him when he left and arrived on his speaking trips. Also, " Albion greatest hunter", Charles Billinghurst was born in Sheridan Twp. When He returned He married and they lived on a farm and then in a big white house a couple of blocks up from the river. There are other claims to fame that are covered online. Note: Charles' trips were with Dudley Nathan Hale and two others. Dudley was either Nathan Hale's grandson or great-grandson. There is a wonderful picture online showing the four of them.

@mojojojo548 3 месяца назад

@@jerryodell1168 I was born at Albion hospital but was raised in Babcock…that band war and treaty are kinda from Albion…wrote some songs there I think at least…they are doing great things nowadays…I have A LOT of family in Albion and surrounding areas…

@jerryodell1168 3 месяца назад

@@mojojojo548 We are probably related, we lived just South of Babcock just inside Homer School district.

@mojojojo548 3 месяца назад

@@jerryodell1168 im a mulkey if you know any of those

@KCCardCo 4 месяца назад

The Boesky familiy mentioned towards the end of this video owned a nightclub in Detroit called The Brass Rail. This is the same family as Ivan Boesky the Wall Street trader who was banned from trading securities for Life due to insider trading in the 1980s.

@OGGalleryCrew92 3 месяца назад

You have spelt "Vicious" wrong or depending on what language it's spoken in ?

@mikescholz6429 4 месяца назад

Wait… were they the same Bernstein’s that we all know of in Detroit?

@user-wv7qo8sz2i 4 месяца назад

" shots rang out" i love it! There rumors that my grandfather did "work" for the Purples. Is there anyway to confirm this?

@afewbadmen. 4 месяца назад

What’s was his name?

@trixiem4959 3 месяца назад

possibly, contact me

@Arthurian. 4 месяца назад

Your channel is incredible though the purples operated largely out of a city south of Detroit called Ecorse.

@Dropdead313 4 месяца назад

And Wyandotte

@Arthurian. 4 месяца назад

@@Dropdead313 Wyandotte was run by the Italians between two warning families: The Tocco's & Adamo's, with the Tocco's coming out on top forming the Detroit Partnership. The Mafia wars were in Wyandotte, of which the People Game could've partook in on behalf of either Italian family. The Sam Bernstein lawyer family today are the very same lineage of the murderous Bernstein Bros that formed the Purples. The one with the Glasses looks just like his Great uncle.

@DaveSCameron 4 месяца назад

Scott Deitch *s book on this is worth reading.📚

@TheWhiteTrashPanda 2 месяца назад

And now Bernstein is the most famous name in lawyers in Metro Detroit... 🤔🤔🤔

@dwayneglover914 4 месяца назад

HAY BOSS IM HERE

@janibeg3247 4 месяца назад

Old Joe Kennedy had warehouses full of booze in Windsor and he sold the booze to the bootleggers.

@ordinaryextraordinarybrotha Месяц назад

And shots rang out . All caps explanation points

@Steven-em5if 4 месяца назад

I know some people who bought a cabin on a lake called Driggs. It has the reputation of where the Purple Gang would go and relax. This is in the center of the upper peninsula.

@belindatrousdale4876 4 месяца назад

My great grandfather owned a small sporting goods store in Jackson and sold guns to the Purple Gang after hours. I remember him telling me this story but I never asked him how he met them.

@MichelleDishaw 4 месяца назад

My great Uncle Sam Drapkin was a junior member whose claim to fame was when he survived a shooting and was questioned by police, he said Santa Claus shot me!

@MoneyMayle1 4 месяца назад

I met a guy named Jasper parking cars for a vallet service to an upscale restaurant on the Detroit River. Jasper was almost 90 and could recount all of the glory days where him and his Jewish brothers ran the city and ruled by any means necessary. I'm only one min in and had to type this comment. He would be well over 100 today, but I'll never forget him holding court about the old days with us 20 somethings in awe of his stories🤝🫡

@onemat2000 4 месяца назад

Jeeze, shots rang out!

@jodycarter7308 4 месяца назад

First stuff I saw of yours - nice! Just a little out of your wheelhouse, but maybe the black Donnellys would make a vid. After all "every sherriff that the town could find met the black Donnellys, and then resigned."