Image: Al Capone on the 1930 cover (here)
The given 3WW words:
docile inflict whimper
His merry-men mainly in green
Known to be on the side of the downtrodden
Robbing the rich and helping the poor
In the late Medieval times
Popular with the ordinary folks
Who were at the mercy of tax collectors
who inflicted untold sufferings
Often times accepted without a whimper
Epitomized by the obese Sheriff
With his band of soldiers
Robin Hood of Sherwood Forest
Told amidst folklore of romances
Meeting Little John on the bridge
Friar Tuck who got him into a soaking
While docile Maid Marion provided the colors
He was not alone giving to charity though
An unlikely modern day philanthropist
Known to contribute to charity too
From ill-gotten wealth in bootlegging
But protected by the Mayor from the law
He was Scarface Al Capone
Involved in bumping off the North Side Gang
Robin Hood of Chicago
Or more appropriately
Robin the Hood of Chicago
docile inflict whimper
His merry-men mainly in green
Known to be on the side of the downtrodden
Robbing the rich and helping the poor
In the late Medieval times
Popular with the ordinary folks
Who were at the mercy of tax collectors
who inflicted untold sufferings
Often times accepted without a whimper
Epitomized by the obese Sheriff
With his band of soldiers
Robin Hood of Sherwood Forest
Told amidst folklore of romances
Meeting Little John on the bridge
Friar Tuck who got him into a soaking
While docile Maid Marion provided the colors
He was not alone giving to charity though
An unlikely modern day philanthropist
Known to contribute to charity too
From ill-gotten wealth in bootlegging
But protected by the Mayor from the law
He was Scarface Al Capone
Involved in bumping off the North Side Gang
Robin Hood of Chicago
Or more appropriately
Robin the Hood of Chicago
For Thomg's hosting at 3WW #416
Ah, Al Capone: He and other unsavoury characters often came to the small Indiana city I live in to relax. The tales these city streets could tell...
ReplyDeleteinteresting, things that you never really know about people for the stories that they tell...i bet he could have been as well, its in the best interest when in the industry....
ReplyDeleteNot everything is black and white - 'bad' people can do good things and vice versa
ReplyDeleteThere is always a few sides to the story and the people themselves.
ReplyDeleteIsn't that wild that he gave to charity?
ReplyDeleteEven bad people do good things I guess
ReplyDeletewow! a story in the form of peotry - brilliant. I just read about your character in wiki. interesting!
ReplyDeleteI suppose there is a little good in all not so nice people,
ReplyDeleteGreat poem Hank.
yes he did good but he did a lot of bad too. his giving was not altruistic but self serving it kept people on his side
ReplyDeleteyou are well versed in many topics Hank, I enjoyed learning some
ReplyDeleteHank,
ReplyDeleteA most interesting character, just as in his films.. I'm not sure that I would have felt too secure, being anywhere near him!! But, no doubt charity is close to the minds of both good and bad, minds!
Thought of Al Caponne, when in Chicago in October..Surrounded by all kinds of tacky memorabilia!
Eileen
That was really interesting, I never knew Al gave to charity, see you learn something every day. Enjoyed reading this.
ReplyDeleteWell, I never knew that! And judging by the comments not many people did either! Thanks for that.
ReplyDeleteohhh !
ReplyDeleteAmazing!! Al Capone was one of those people that you just hated to love and loved to hate! He actually did a lot of good things actually! He supported local business which also helped the local economy and also attracting tourists. He poured money into helping local business owners establish their shops and business and yes he gave to charity. How much of his generosity was pure and well intentioned? It's hard to say because so much of what he did, served as an investment which would only benefit himself in the long run and not to mention, it was all about taxes.. Taxes taxes taxes! The prohibition was about banning alcohol altogether, partly because the government couldn't impose their tax on it.. If the government couldn't benefit from the distribution and sell of alcohol, they just banned it altogether, made it illegal. But Al Capone knew that the sell of alcohol could increase revenue and help boost the economy so he pretty much benefitted greatly from the prohibition era but in order to remain alloof and avoid getting caught, he had to invest in other businesses and charitable organizations.. The last thing he needed was for the government and the IRS to be sticking their noses in his personal affairs or else he was looking at serious time. He got caught up in that life however which ultimately became his downfall as he was eventually arrested and charged with money laundering, and even murder but I think more or less it was about survival so he had to do what he had to do despite the consequences. Again, you loved to hate him but you also hated to love him. I can totally understand the comparison between him and Robin Hood. A modern Robin Hood, he was! What an exciting piece Hank!!!
ReplyDelete