Bugs Moran

Bugs Moran (real name George Clarence Moran) was an American mobster, bootlegger, and part of the Chicago Outfit during the Prohibition era. He was born on August 21, 1893, in St. Paul, Minnesota, and died on February 25, 1957, in Leavenworth Federal Penitentiary, Kansas. Moran is best known for his role in the events that led to the infamous Saint Valentine's Day Massacre in 1929.

Early Life

Moran was born to Jules and Marie Diana Gobeil Moran. His criminal career began in his teenage years when he was part of a group of young criminals known as the Market Street Gang. This gang specialized in theft and robbery.

Criminal Career

In the early 1920s, Moran moved to Chicago, where he became involved with the North Side Gang, a predominantly Irish-American criminal organization. He quickly rose through the ranks and, by 1925, had assumed leadership of the gang.

Moran's main rival was the Italian-American South Side gangster Al Capone. The two gangs were involved in a violent power struggle for control of the lucrative illegal alcohol trade during the Prohibition era. This rivalry culminated in the Saint Valentine's Day Massacre on February 14, 1929, when seven members of Moran's gang were murdered. Moran himself narrowly escaped the massacre.

Later Life and Death

After the massacre, Moran's power and influence began to wane. He was arrested multiple times in the 1930s and 1940s on charges ranging from vagrancy to conspiracy to commit robbery. In 1946, he was convicted of robbing a bank in Dayton, Ohio, and was sentenced to ten years in prison.

Moran died of lung cancer in Leavenworth Federal Penitentiary in 1957.

Legacy

Despite his criminal activities, Moran is often remembered for his role in the colorful and violent history of organized crime in Chicago during the Prohibition era. His rivalry with Al Capone and the events of the Saint Valentine's Day Massacre have been the subject of numerous books, films, and television shows.