Prohibition and the American dream: an analysis of the entrepreneurial life and times of Al Capone.

Hipango Jr., Waata; Smith, Robert; Dana, L�o-Paul

Abstract

The iconic figure of Al Capone is arguably the most prominent figure of organised crime. Both biographers and scholars have analysed his life and behaviour. Hollywood has immortalised his character in film. Today, the name Capone remains synonymous with the word gangster. Although Capone owned businesses of a legitimate nature, illicit ventures and the spectre of the gangster-entrepreneur define his practice of entrepreneurship. In an attempt to understand Capone as an entrepreneur, this paper explores his entrepreneurial behaviour within an analysis of his resource profile, his Italian-American culture and the social context of the USA in the early 20th century.

Citation

HIPANGO, W., SMITH, R. and DANA, L.-P. 2014. Prohibition and the American dream: an analysis of the entrepreneurial life and times of Al Capone. International journal of entrepreneurship and small business [online], 21(1), pages 1-15. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1504/IJESB.2014.057912

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Nov 21, 2013
• Online Publication Date: May 31, 2014
• Publication Date: Mar 31, 2014
• Deposit Date: Sep 19, 2016
• Publicly Available Date: Sep 19, 2016
• Journal: International journal of entrepreneurship and small business
• Print ISSN: 1476-1297
• Electronic ISSN: 1741-8054
• Publisher: Inderscience
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 21
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 1-15
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1504/IJESB.2014.057912
• Keywords: Al Capone; Criminal entrepreneurship; Gangsters; Organised crime; Prohibition; American dream; Resource profile; Culture; Social context; USA; United States
• Public URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10059/1758
• Contract Date: Sep 19, 2016