Meyer Lansky

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Lore & Background

Lansky's rise began in the Lower East Side of Manhattan after his family emigrated from Grodno, Russian Empire (now Belarus) in 1911. He met Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel as children, forming a lifelong partnership that managed the violent Bugs and Meyer Mob during Prohibition. His relationship with Charles "Lucky" Luciano began when Luciano, attempting to extort Lansky for protection money on his walk home from school, was met with such defiance that they formed a lasting alliance. In May 1929, Lansky joined Luciano, Johnny Torrio, and Frank Costello at an Atlantic City conference to found a national crime syndicate pooling Italian, Jewish, and Irish resources. By 1936, he had established gambling operations in Florida and Cuba, relying on his mathematical knowledge of wagering odds and bribed law enforcement for security. His "carpet joints" maintained an absolute rule of integrity; games were never rigged, ensuring staff administered wagers with high honesty.

In Their Own Story

In April 1938, Lansky stepped outside criminal norms at the request of Judge Nathan Perlman to disrupt a pro-Nazi German-American Bund rally in Yorkville. With only fifteen associates, they stormed the stage decorated with a swastika and a picture of Adolf Hitler. "We threw some of them out the windows," Lansky recalled, noting that most Nazis panicked and ran while his group chased and beat them up. When offered payment, he declined, stating, "I am a Jew, and I feel for the Jews in Europe who are suffering. They are my brothers." Later, during World War II, he aided the Office of Naval Intelligence's Operation Underworld by connecting ONI with Luciano to secure the New York waterfront against German sabotage. This deal secured Luciano's release from prison. Decades later, a Medal of Freedom possibly awarded for these services was found among his possessions after his death.

Reader's Guide

Lansky's financial strategies were groundbreaking; as early as 1932, he shifted illegal funds to Swiss offshore accounts protected by the 1934 Swiss Banking Act. He eventually purchased an offshore bank in Switzerland to launder money through shell companies. In 1946, he convinced the Mafia to put Siegel in charge of Las Vegas and invested heavily in the Flamingo Hotel. When the project ran behind schedule, Lansky begged bosses for a second chance for his friend. Despite later losses, he secured an extension with Luciano's support. However, when losses resumed, Lansky gave the final approval to eliminate Siegel on June 20, 1947. Twenty minutes after Siegel was shot in Beverly Hills, associates Gus Greenbaum and Moe Sedway took control of the Flamingo. Contrary to popular myth, estimates of his wealth varied widely, but no substantial hidden fortune was recovered; his estate at death was modest.

Did You Know?

• Lansky was born Maier Suchowljansky in Grodno, Russian Empire, but always responded "Poland" when asked his native country.
• He met Charles "Lucky" Luciano as a teenager when Luciano tried to extort him for protection money; Lansky's defiant response earned their lifelong partnership.
• During World War II, Lansky helped arrange a deal that secured Luciano's release from prison in exchange for Mafia protection of New York Harbor shipyards.
• After Bugsy Siegel was killed on June 20, 1947, Lansky told associates in later interviews, "if it had been up to him, Ben Siegel would be alive today."
• Despite decades of FBI investigation and claims of a hidden fortune, his estate at the time of his death in 1983 was modest.