WEBVTT - Night Life 0:00:02.560 --> 0:00:05.760 You're listening to American Shadows, a production of I Heart 0:00:05.880 --> 0:00:22.840 Radio and Grimm and Mild from Aaronmankey. When we think 0:00:23.000 --> 0:00:26.400 of famous gangsters of the nineteen twenties and thirties, we 0:00:26.480 --> 0:00:30.400 think of New York's Lucky Luciano or Chicago's Al Capone. 0:00:31.320 --> 0:00:34.880 Of course, mobsters laid claim to other cities as well. 0:00:35.720 --> 0:00:41.000 In Boston, Charles King Solomon ran the city's underworld. He 0:00:41.120 --> 0:00:44.800 was born in eighty four to Jewish parents living in Russia, 0:00:45.000 --> 0:00:47.519 but the family fled to the United States and settled 0:00:47.560 --> 0:00:51.400 in Massachusetts. It's not clear whether they lived in Salem 0:00:51.560 --> 0:00:54.880 or Boston's West End, but Solomon fell in with a 0:00:54.920 --> 0:00:57.760 bad crowd in the area at some point during his youth. 0:00:58.360 --> 0:01:01.520 His first trip through the justice stom happened in nineteen 0:01:01.520 --> 0:01:05.600 eleven for running a brothel. It would hardly be his last. 0:01:06.080 --> 0:01:10.720 Arrests for breaking and entering, burglary, gambling, perjury, and even 0:01:10.800 --> 0:01:14.800 being idle and disorderly soon followed. All told, he was 0:01:14.920 --> 0:01:18.480 arrested twenty one times over the course of twenty one years. 0:01:19.319 --> 0:01:21.880 The only time he spent in prison came after he 0:01:21.920 --> 0:01:26.200 committed perjury during a narcotics trial. Though he was sentenced 0:01:26.200 --> 0:01:30.039 to five years. He spent a mere thirteen months behind bars. 0:01:30.720 --> 0:01:33.559 His drive to make the most of gang life catapulted 0:01:33.640 --> 0:01:38.760 him through the ranks. He established himself in fencing, bonding, gambling, drugs, 0:01:38.800 --> 0:01:43.240 and brothels, all typical fair for mobsters. A police captain 0:01:43.280 --> 0:01:45.920 once asked him why he didn't give up the business. 0:01:46.240 --> 0:01:49.720 He had already made a fortune after all. Solomon laughed 0:01:49.880 --> 0:01:52.800 and said he enjoyed the nightlife far too much to retire. 0:01:53.520 --> 0:01:57.720 Like most underworld criminals of his time, Solomon's true wealth 0:01:57.960 --> 0:02:02.040 came during the Prohibition era. While he could make thousands 0:02:02.040 --> 0:02:04.840 in racketeering, there were millions to be made in a 0:02:04.920 --> 0:02:08.440 legal liquor, and Solomon understood that the old rule of 0:02:08.520 --> 0:02:13.639 real estate applied to speakeasies and clubs. Location, location, location. 0:02:14.040 --> 0:02:17.160 He purchased a large amount of property around Boston, from 0:02:17.160 --> 0:02:20.720 hotels and theaters to a beauty parlor and several restaurants, 0:02:21.320 --> 0:02:25.480 But his shining stars were the nightclubs. He purchased the 0:02:25.480 --> 0:02:28.760 Cotton Club, and in nineteen thirty one he bought his 0:02:28.840 --> 0:02:31.960 personal favorite, the Coconut Grove, where he hung out with 0:02:32.000 --> 0:02:35.720 celebrities and beautiful women. Solomon owned a fleet of boats 0:02:35.800 --> 0:02:39.640 that brought in liquor from Central America. His liquor empire 0:02:39.720 --> 0:02:42.799 earned him the nickname rum Lord with the local authorities. 0:02:43.360 --> 0:02:46.960 While he didn't exactly flaunt his empire, he didn't do 0:02:47.120 --> 0:02:49.960 much to conceal it either. His money afforded him enough 0:02:49.960 --> 0:02:54.000 connections to keep him in power, though his lifestyle eventually 0:02:54.080 --> 0:02:57.600 caught up with him. Federal indictments named Solomon is the 0:02:57.680 --> 0:03:01.560 Brains and a multimillion dollar liquors smuggling ring on January 0:03:01.639 --> 0:03:06.840 eighth nine. He wasn't worried, though, he told one reporter 0:03:07.040 --> 0:03:09.640 his friends in high places would ensure that he would 0:03:09.680 --> 0:03:11.840 beat the rap just as he had all the others. 0:03:12.400 --> 0:03:15.240 Solomon spent the evening of January twenty three at the 0:03:15.280 --> 0:03:18.560 Coconut Grove while his wife stayed home. As the knight 0:03:18.639 --> 0:03:21.359 turned into the early hours, he took the party and 0:03:21.520 --> 0:03:24.639 two dancers he fancied to the Cotton Club. At three 0:03:24.680 --> 0:03:27.720 thirty in the morning, clubgoers heard him arguing with someone 0:03:27.760 --> 0:03:31.240 in the men's room. They reported hearing someone tell Solomon 0:03:31.360 --> 0:03:35.160 he had it coming. Then the shots rang out. His 0:03:35.200 --> 0:03:38.960 attackers fled the club. Solomon staggered out of the bathroom 0:03:39.120 --> 0:03:43.360 was rushed to the hospital and died upon arrival. While 0:03:43.400 --> 0:03:46.800 the attack looked like a robbery, fellow mobsters were worried 0:03:46.880 --> 0:03:51.520 he might turn state's evidence against them. Soon afterwards, Solomon's lawyer, 0:03:51.720 --> 0:03:55.600 one Barney Willanski, took control of the coconut grove and 0:03:55.840 --> 0:04:01.720 began to make plans. I'm Lauren Vogelbaum. Welcome to American Shadows. 0:04:12.120 --> 0:04:15.840 In Boston, history is part of the culture. The city 0:04:15.880 --> 0:04:18.919 has kept key pieces of itself through centuries of growth 0:04:18.920 --> 0:04:22.520 and expansion, a few fires, and a molasses flood. It's 0:04:22.560 --> 0:04:26.040 home to several renowned music, art, and dance venues and 0:04:26.240 --> 0:04:30.479 to die hard sports fans. Red Sox fans are passionate 0:04:30.520 --> 0:04:35.240 about Fenway Park, America's oldest Major League baseball stadium, and 0:04:35.440 --> 0:04:38.479 though the park is famous for baseball, Fenway has hosted 0:04:38.520 --> 0:04:43.600 everything from soccer to snowboarding to concerts. During World War Two, 0:04:43.880 --> 0:04:46.960 baseball teams took a hit when many players were either 0:04:47.080 --> 0:04:50.640 drafted or joined the military on their own, be they 0:04:50.760 --> 0:04:55.839 Major League players, coaches, or referees. Men aged eighteen thirty five, 0:04:56.080 --> 0:04:59.040 we're heading off to war. The attack on Pearl Harbor 0:04:59.160 --> 0:05:03.360 brought the war close to home. Memories and realities from 0:05:03.360 --> 0:05:07.960 the First World War still haunted America every day. Headlines 0:05:08.040 --> 0:05:10.880 across the country told of the horrors that were happening. 0:05:11.360 --> 0:05:14.920 Having a distraction and keeping a sense of normalcy felt 0:05:15.120 --> 0:05:18.799 less terrifying. A few hours to cheer on a favorite 0:05:18.800 --> 0:05:21.960 team made the war seem farther away, even for a 0:05:22.040 --> 0:05:26.200 little while. Sports gave Americans away to escape the war. 0:05:26.800 --> 0:05:30.320 It took their minds off of rationing and tough economic times. 0:05:31.000 --> 0:05:33.880 Family and friends gathered to cheer on a favorite team 0:05:34.040 --> 0:05:37.840 or discuss stats and players. But with so many players 0:05:37.880 --> 0:05:41.640 having swapped a sports uniform for a military one, fans 0:05:41.640 --> 0:05:44.039 wondered if there were enough to keep a season going. 0:05:44.600 --> 0:05:48.680 The Rose Bowl, typically held in Pasadena, California, had nearly 0:05:48.720 --> 0:05:53.080 been canceled after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. Officials felt 0:05:53.080 --> 0:05:56.880 the large crowds typically in attendance were too risky, and 0:05:56.920 --> 0:05:58.880 no one knew whether the West Coast would be the 0:05:58.920 --> 0:06:02.680 next target. Officials had already suspended auto racing due to 0:06:02.760 --> 0:06:06.000 the rationing of tires and gas for the military. Several 0:06:06.040 --> 0:06:10.520 colleges had canceled their football season. This beloved championship game 0:06:10.680 --> 0:06:15.560 seemed doomed as well. Fortunately, Duke University offered its stadium 0:06:15.960 --> 0:06:19.800 the tournament of Rosa's committee scrambled, adding additional bleachers from 0:06:19.839 --> 0:06:24.000 other nearby universities. Tickets sold out in just three days. 0:06:24.720 --> 0:06:28.719 For baseball, President Roosevelt suggested that the country not canceled 0:06:28.720 --> 0:06:31.279 the season due to drafts, and through the first pitch 0:06:31.360 --> 0:06:35.560 himself on opening day. The papers often called Roosevelt baseball's 0:06:35.640 --> 0:06:39.760 number one fan, and women not only took to production plants, 0:06:39.960 --> 0:06:42.360 they also took to the ball field. They played in 0:06:42.400 --> 0:06:45.600 the All American Girls Professional Baseball League, meant as a 0:06:45.640 --> 0:06:49.080 temporary fix until the men returned from war. The Red 0:06:49.120 --> 0:06:53.120 Sox finished the ninety two season second in the American League, 0:06:53.440 --> 0:06:55.600 winning their last game of the season against the New 0:06:55.680 --> 0:06:59.240 York Yankees seven to six. Aside from the women's and 0:06:59.400 --> 0:07:04.000 remaining pro leagues, college games became another favorite, and on 0:07:04.000 --> 0:07:08.279 one cold November Saturday, a college football game brought Hilda 0:07:08.360 --> 0:07:12.160 and Houston Gray, along with Hilda's sister Josephine and her 0:07:12.240 --> 0:07:17.440 husband Francis Driscoll, to Fenway. The stands were packed. The 0:07:17.480 --> 0:07:20.600 wind and temperature had done little to dissuade fans from 0:07:20.600 --> 0:07:25.320 attending this highly anticipated game between Boston College and holy Cross. 0:07:25.880 --> 0:07:29.160 The undefeated Boston College Eagles were favored six to one 0:07:29.280 --> 0:07:33.800 over holy Cross. Fans speculated about the expected outcome. It 0:07:33.840 --> 0:07:36.520 wasn't a matter of if Boston would win, they told 0:07:36.560 --> 0:07:40.840 each other, it was by how much. Boston College fans 0:07:40.880 --> 0:07:45.200 never anticipated the stunning upset. Not only did holy Cross win, 0:07:45.720 --> 0:07:50.440 they annihilated Boston College fifty to twelve. Players had been 0:07:50.480 --> 0:07:53.040 so confident they'd win that they had already made plans 0:07:53.040 --> 0:07:56.600 to celebrate their victory at the trendy Coconut Grove nightclub, 0:07:57.160 --> 0:08:00.560 but the defeat had been too humiliating and they canceled. 0:08:00.960 --> 0:08:04.600 Many fans likewise left Fenway to head back home, but 0:08:04.680 --> 0:08:07.120 the Grays and the drift Golls had planned an evening 0:08:07.120 --> 0:08:10.480 of fun. Instead of calling it quits, they decided to continue. 0:08:10.880 --> 0:08:13.880 The couples chose to Club hob through Boston's Back Bay 0:08:13.920 --> 0:08:16.200 and the South End. From there they'd go to the 0:08:16.200 --> 0:08:19.840 Coconut Grove. They had already made obligations with two more couples, 0:08:19.880 --> 0:08:22.880 and canceling would be difficult. They took the approach that 0:08:23.080 --> 0:08:25.600 even though their team had lost, they wouldn't let it 0:08:25.680 --> 0:08:29.080 ruin a perfectly good evening with a reframed attitude. The 0:08:29.120 --> 0:08:32.040 couples left Fenway and looked forward to a great time 0:08:32.120 --> 0:08:35.120 dining and taking in a show with friends. It would 0:08:35.120 --> 0:08:37.880 turn out to be the worst evening of their lives. 0:08:46.800 --> 0:08:50.800 The Coconut Grove was built in during the height of 0:08:50.800 --> 0:08:55.440 the Prohibition era. Boston law, still under Puritan constraints, didn't 0:08:55.440 --> 0:09:00.120 permit nightclubs. However, supper clubs clubs that offered didn't are 0:09:00.160 --> 0:09:04.000 in a show were all the rage. Originally owned and 0:09:04.040 --> 0:09:08.280 operated by orchestra leaders Mickey Albert and Jacques Renard, the 0:09:08.320 --> 0:09:12.400 Grove opened on Piedmont Street in Bay Village. The area 0:09:12.559 --> 0:09:16.280 was prime real estate, located between trendy Back Bay and 0:09:16.400 --> 0:09:19.920 the fashionable Theater District, the future home to the Boston Opera. 0:09:20.640 --> 0:09:25.600 The club's tropical paradise ambiance catered to patrons seeking good food, 0:09:25.800 --> 0:09:30.840 exceptional service, and plenty of entertainment. Musicians and movie stars 0:09:30.880 --> 0:09:34.160 occasionally dined at the club, making it even more popular. 0:09:34.600 --> 0:09:38.200 Nightclubs made it easy to move Bootleg liquor, and the 0:09:38.240 --> 0:09:41.920 Coconut Grove changed hands from Albert and Renard to mobster 0:09:42.200 --> 0:09:46.560 Charles King Solomon. After Solomon's death, Barney Will Landscape took 0:09:46.559 --> 0:09:50.800 over the club. When the nineteen twenties lifestyle of excess 0:09:50.880 --> 0:09:55.040 and dirty money turned to destitution and depression for many, 0:09:55.200 --> 0:09:59.040 the Coconut Grove continued to profit. Blansky gave people what 0:09:59.120 --> 0:10:03.000 they wanted, a luxury, booze and an escape from their 0:10:03.080 --> 0:10:07.960 daily lives. Patrons entered through a revolving door on Piedmont. 0:10:08.760 --> 0:10:11.600 Those wanting to spend time in the recently added and 0:10:11.679 --> 0:10:15.199 aptly named New Lounge had a separate entrance on Broadway. 0:10:15.480 --> 0:10:18.439 A narrow corridor connected the main room and the lounge. 0:10:19.080 --> 0:10:21.600 Stairs off the main entrance and dining room led to 0:10:21.600 --> 0:10:26.360 the basement and the more intimate Melody Lounge. Luxurious fabric 0:10:26.400 --> 0:10:30.280 wallpaper covered the walls, blue satin draped from the ceilings, 0:10:30.440 --> 0:10:33.680 and paper and tinsel palm trees treated patrons to a 0:10:33.720 --> 0:10:37.640 tropical esque setting. The Boston College players may have decided 0:10:37.679 --> 0:10:40.600 to cancel their plans, but the club had little trouble 0:10:40.679 --> 0:10:45.080 attracting customers. Aside from the game. It was Thanksgiving weekend, 0:10:45.559 --> 0:10:48.320 the servicemen from the first Naval District were on leave, 0:10:48.760 --> 0:10:51.320 many of whom had converged on the club with their dates. 0:10:52.200 --> 0:10:54.640 The club was packed when the Grays and their party 0:10:54.720 --> 0:10:58.120 arrived at nine o'clock. They checked their hats and coats 0:10:58.120 --> 0:11:00.920 of the cloak room and made their way into the lobby. 0:11:01.440 --> 0:11:04.640 People had to turn sideways, shuffle, and wiggle their way 0:11:04.679 --> 0:11:07.160 past others to get to the dining room. The Grays 0:11:07.280 --> 0:11:11.000 learned that the club had overbooked, though that had reservations, 0:11:11.040 --> 0:11:13.680 their table had been given to another party. The only 0:11:13.720 --> 0:11:16.319 table available was across the dining room at the far 0:11:16.440 --> 0:11:20.000 end of the stage. The seating wasn't optimal, but the 0:11:20.040 --> 0:11:23.560 party of eight accepted the spot and settled in. Music 0:11:23.600 --> 0:11:26.439 played and people took to the dance floor. The Grays 0:11:26.440 --> 0:11:29.360 and their party watched the dancers and the crowd. The 0:11:29.400 --> 0:11:32.840 grove was the place to see and be seen. Among 0:11:32.840 --> 0:11:36.120 the crowd was Buck Jones, a famous Hollywood actor who 0:11:36.200 --> 0:11:39.760 starred in cowboy movies. Jones had also attended the football game. 0:11:40.160 --> 0:11:43.040 He was tired from traveling, had been part of a 0:11:43.080 --> 0:11:47.200 war bond campaign, and he wasn't feeling well, but Jones's 0:11:47.280 --> 0:11:49.640 agent convinced him to have dinner at the club before 0:11:49.679 --> 0:11:53.360 returning to his hotel. Around ten that night, Hilda, who 0:11:53.440 --> 0:11:56.160 had been sitting with her back to the wall, complained 0:11:56.240 --> 0:11:58.800 that the room was too hot. She even noted that 0:11:58.840 --> 0:12:01.440 the wall was hot to the touch. At first, she 0:12:01.480 --> 0:12:03.800 wondered if she had imagined the heat with all the 0:12:03.840 --> 0:12:08.520 people and hot food around. Curious, Houston touched the wall too, 0:12:08.760 --> 0:12:11.600 and upon agreeing with his wife, the others got up 0:12:11.640 --> 0:12:14.719 to investigate. They didn't know the series of events that 0:12:14.760 --> 0:12:18.480 had unfolded. Seconds earlier, a bus boy had found a 0:12:18.520 --> 0:12:21.360 ball about near the Melody Lounge and lit a match. 0:12:22.160 --> 0:12:26.200 A nearby paper palm tree instantly ignited, bursting into flames. 0:12:26.720 --> 0:12:29.440 A staff used water in seltzer in an attempt to 0:12:29.520 --> 0:12:32.800 douse the fire. People rushed for the four foot wide 0:12:32.840 --> 0:12:36.120 stairs towards the emergency exit as the flames jumped to 0:12:36.160 --> 0:12:39.520 the fabric, wallpaper and the draped ceiling, but the exit 0:12:39.600 --> 0:12:41.720 had been blocked. A few people made it to the 0:12:41.720 --> 0:12:45.760 main dining room, shouting fire, fire. The dancing stopped and 0:12:45.800 --> 0:12:48.600 everyone bolted for the exits. At the same time, the 0:12:48.679 --> 0:12:51.240 fire raced up the walls and into the dining room, 0:12:51.400 --> 0:13:03.319 plunging the coconut grove into chaos. Fire Commissioner William author 0:13:03.480 --> 0:13:06.600 Riley said the fire took less than five minutes to 0:13:06.679 --> 0:13:09.920 spread forty feet across the Melody lounge and up the 0:13:10.000 --> 0:13:15.000 only stairwell, trapping people inside. Seconds later, it tore through 0:13:15.000 --> 0:13:17.920 the lobby and into the club's main dining room, but 0:13:18.040 --> 0:13:20.920 when the first people arrived from the basement, Houston thought 0:13:20.960 --> 0:13:25.000 that someone had yelled fight. Reality sunk in. Seconds later, 0:13:25.280 --> 0:13:28.240 as people scrambled for the door, a well passed a 0:13:28.280 --> 0:13:32.280 safe occupancy. The thousand plus people inside the club rushed 0:13:32.360 --> 0:13:35.240 for the few exits. Those in the Melody Club had 0:13:35.280 --> 0:13:38.480 no way to escape. Once the blaze overtook the narrow staircase. 0:13:38.880 --> 0:13:42.480 All the paper, fabric, asbestos, and wooden furniture in the 0:13:42.520 --> 0:13:46.240 dining room fueled the fire. The black smoke filled the air, 0:13:46.600 --> 0:13:51.720 making breathing difficult and seeing nearly impossible. People fell over 0:13:51.840 --> 0:13:54.960 chairs in each other. In their frantic search for an escape, 0:13:55.400 --> 0:13:58.880 They piled into the revolving door, jamming it shut. Others 0:13:58.920 --> 0:14:01.120 still trying to push their way into the door were 0:14:01.200 --> 0:14:04.600 crushed against it. A wall of people pushed against another exit, 0:14:04.920 --> 0:14:08.439 not realizing it only opened inward. Those who figured out 0:14:08.440 --> 0:14:10.840 the doors couldn't open them due to the panic and 0:14:10.920 --> 0:14:14.320 the sheer amount of people pushing against them, crushing some 0:14:14.520 --> 0:14:17.199 against the door to death. A waiter near the grazed 0:14:17.240 --> 0:14:20.440 table rushed past, pulling drapes away from the wall to 0:14:20.520 --> 0:14:23.240 reveal a hidden door. As the group followed him to 0:14:23.280 --> 0:14:26.680 the exit, the lights went out. Hilda and Houston clung 0:14:26.720 --> 0:14:29.680 to each other in the dark. Screams and smoke filled 0:14:29.720 --> 0:14:32.440 the air. They stumbled through a tunnel, careful not to 0:14:32.480 --> 0:14:36.080 lose their footing for fear of being trampled. Finally, they 0:14:36.120 --> 0:14:39.520 reached the door and found it locked. Not far from 0:14:39.520 --> 0:14:43.280 the club, fire bells rang, not for the club, though 0:14:43.800 --> 0:14:46.240 someone had pulled the lever at a nearby firebox at 0:14:46.240 --> 0:14:49.240 ten fifteen due to a car fire three streets from 0:14:49.240 --> 0:14:53.040 the grove. Firefighters had no sooner dousted the flames. When 0:14:53.080 --> 0:14:55.200 people ran up to them, alerting them to the fire 0:14:55.240 --> 0:14:58.840 at the club, The responders were bent with heavy, dark 0:14:58.880 --> 0:15:02.440 smoke pouring from the building. A passer by watched people 0:15:02.520 --> 0:15:06.040 jammed themselves into the revolving doors. No amount of effort 0:15:06.040 --> 0:15:10.400 budged them. Meanwhile, inside, Houston and the other men desperately 0:15:10.440 --> 0:15:13.320 attempted to bust down the locked door as more people 0:15:13.360 --> 0:15:16.440 piled in behind them, coughing and choking on the smoke. 0:15:17.280 --> 0:15:20.960 The heat from the encroaching flames was growing unbearable. Like 0:15:21.120 --> 0:15:23.840 the people trapped at the other exits, the group found 0:15:23.880 --> 0:15:27.120 that no amount of effort budged the door. Before the 0:15:27.160 --> 0:15:30.680 flames reached the wall of people, there was a loud crash, 0:15:30.960 --> 0:15:35.360 then a sudden woosh of cold air. Firefighters with axes 0:15:35.400 --> 0:15:39.040 began to pull everyone out of the building. One firefighter 0:15:39.080 --> 0:15:41.960 noted that the fire burned so hot that those victims 0:15:41.960 --> 0:15:44.960 who managed to escape fell like stones once they took 0:15:44.960 --> 0:15:47.720 a breath of cold air. The fire chief called for 0:15:47.720 --> 0:15:50.560 the nearby naval yards help, along with the Army, the 0:15:50.680 --> 0:15:54.680 Coast Guard, anyone capable of lending a hand. The taxi 0:15:54.760 --> 0:15:58.120 drivers responded, taking victims to the hospital. There were so 0:15:58.200 --> 0:16:02.280 many victims with injuries and imaged lungs that newspaper delivery 0:16:02.280 --> 0:16:07.280 tracks soon joined is makeshift ambulances. The nearby hospitals received 0:16:07.280 --> 0:16:10.760 a hundred and fourteen victims in just two hours. A 0:16:10.800 --> 0:16:14.200 film distribution company's garage near the club served as a 0:16:14.240 --> 0:16:18.520 temporary more. The garage filled up quickly, though the worst 0:16:18.720 --> 0:16:22.640 was still inside the club. Once the firefighters extinguished the blaze, 0:16:22.880 --> 0:16:25.920 what they found there was nothing short of slaughter. The 0:16:26.000 --> 0:16:29.240 fire had spread so fast that anyone who didn't escape 0:16:29.280 --> 0:16:33.040 within the first few minutes, died from smoken hallation or burns. 0:16:33.600 --> 0:16:37.360 Only four hundred and nine two people survived. That number 0:16:37.520 --> 0:16:41.000 exceeded the club's occupation limit. Over a thousand people had 0:16:41.000 --> 0:16:44.520 been inside. The number of fatalities made it the deadliest 0:16:44.640 --> 0:16:49.520 nightclub fire in history. Twenty employees perished. A movie star 0:16:49.640 --> 0:16:54.160 Buck Jones also died. One employee who survived told reporters 0:16:54.240 --> 0:16:56.560 that his brother had waited on the Star while he 0:16:56.640 --> 0:16:59.760 had waited on a family of ten. Only one of 0:16:59.760 --> 0:17:04.439 those family members survived, Hilda Houston, the Discals, and the 0:17:04.440 --> 0:17:07.720 two other couples they were with escaped. They credited the 0:17:07.760 --> 0:17:10.800 move to the new table closer to an exit as 0:17:10.840 --> 0:17:22.520 what saved their lives. Investigators learned that the Coconut Grove 0:17:22.800 --> 0:17:26.680 hadn't had an operational license for years. The club didn't 0:17:26.760 --> 0:17:30.199 have a liquor license, food license, or food handling permit. 0:17:30.480 --> 0:17:34.119 A further digging revealed that owner Barney Wilansky had hired 0:17:34.200 --> 0:17:38.520 underage bussers, neglected to apply for permits during remodeling, and 0:17:38.560 --> 0:17:44.080 had used unlicensed contractors or worse, Boston's fire captain had 0:17:44.119 --> 0:17:47.600 inspected the nightclub ten days before the fire and determined 0:17:47.680 --> 0:17:50.399 that the club was safe. In a strange twist, in 0:17:50.440 --> 0:17:53.359 the night, the Coconut Grove caught fire. Wilansky was in 0:17:53.400 --> 0:17:56.720 a private room at Massachusetts General Hospital recovering from a 0:17:56.720 --> 0:18:00.639 heart attack. Investigators asked Lansky how the fire could have 0:18:00.640 --> 0:18:03.760 happened and why so many exits had been blocked off. 0:18:04.400 --> 0:18:07.800 Wolanski boldly responded that his connection to the mob and 0:18:07.920 --> 0:18:11.520 favors from the mayor meant that licenses and permits didn't 0:18:11.560 --> 0:18:16.280 concern him. Mayor Vincent Tobin repeatedly denied any such affiliation 0:18:16.400 --> 0:18:20.600 with Blansky. On top of the violations and corruption, no 0:18:20.640 --> 0:18:23.880 one could agree on the body count. Investigators had their 0:18:23.880 --> 0:18:27.679 work cut out for them. The hospitals and morgues faced 0:18:27.720 --> 0:18:31.800 their own challenges. Recovered bodies had been so severely burned 0:18:31.880 --> 0:18:36.920 that identification was nearly impossible. The fire had destroyed wallets 0:18:36.920 --> 0:18:41.159 and purses, further complicating the process. For several days, the 0:18:41.240 --> 0:18:45.360 fire dominated the headlines in Boston, shifting attention away from 0:18:45.359 --> 0:18:48.480 war stories. The fire made the front page of the 0:18:48.480 --> 0:18:51.600 New York Times and the Washington Post, and movie star 0:18:51.720 --> 0:18:55.200 Buck Jones's death made news and papers across the country 0:18:55.440 --> 0:18:58.880 over the days following the tragedy, the stories moved from 0:18:58.920 --> 0:19:03.320 what caused the blade is to the victims, witnesses, and survivors. 0:19:04.600 --> 0:19:08.359 A sixteen year old buss boy, Stanley Thomaschewsky, was under 0:19:08.440 --> 0:19:12.040 intense scrutiny for starting the fire, though the public saw 0:19:12.080 --> 0:19:15.920 Wilansky as the real villain. The mob lawyer turned nightclub 0:19:15.920 --> 0:19:19.760 owner had locked some exits, hid others behind drapes, and 0:19:19.880 --> 0:19:23.400 bricked over another to prevent customers from dining and dashing. 0:19:24.240 --> 0:19:27.600 He had maximized his own profits while underpaying his staff 0:19:27.680 --> 0:19:31.639 and ignoring health and safety issues. During the trial, the 0:19:31.680 --> 0:19:35.679 fire commissioner testified that Stanley hadn't done anything wrong in 0:19:35.840 --> 0:19:39.119 lighting the match in the darkened hall way. In fact, 0:19:39.359 --> 0:19:42.120 the final report declared that the fire had started from 0:19:42.160 --> 0:19:46.720 an unknown origin. They found two contenders for what might 0:19:46.760 --> 0:19:50.919 have caused the flame to ignite, methyl chloride used instead 0:19:50.960 --> 0:19:55.119 of free on, or toxic fumes from the leatherette sofas. 0:19:55.320 --> 0:19:58.720 Without a clear cut cause, many people chose to continue 0:19:58.800 --> 0:20:02.040 blaming Stanley. For a while, he lived in a police 0:20:02.040 --> 0:20:05.199 guarded hotel room. Later, he told a reporter that he 0:20:05.280 --> 0:20:08.840 prayed for the lives lost every day. Eventually, he went 0:20:08.880 --> 0:20:12.720 to college married and had a family, though he continued 0:20:12.800 --> 0:20:17.719 visiting the victim's graves, Willansky's entitlement and negligence caught up 0:20:17.760 --> 0:20:21.720 with him. Neither his political ties nor mob connections could 0:20:21.760 --> 0:20:25.400 save him from a manslaughter charge. The court sentenced him 0:20:25.480 --> 0:20:29.680 to twelve to fifteen years. Mayor Tobin escaped the indictment 0:20:29.840 --> 0:20:32.479 and went on to become the governor. Once in office, 0:20:32.560 --> 0:20:36.160 he pardoned Wilansky and his freedom was short lived, though 0:20:36.960 --> 0:20:42.400 nine weeks later Wilansky died from cancer. Tragedies often spur changes. 0:20:43.240 --> 0:20:47.280 New laws emerged. Stationary doors had to be installed next 0:20:47.280 --> 0:20:51.840 to revolving doors, Inflammable materials were banned, and exits had 0:20:51.880 --> 0:20:55.080 to be well marked. Life went on for the survivors. 0:20:55.760 --> 0:20:58.520 The last left the hospital six weeks after the fire, 0:20:59.720 --> 0:21:02.960 and in time and seven couples who lived to tell 0:21:03.000 --> 0:21:09.240 the tale exchanged wedding vows. There's more to this story. 0:21:09.720 --> 0:21:12.280 Stick around after this brief sponsor break to hear all 0:21:12.320 --> 0:21:22.600 about it. Rodney Dangerfield used to say that he went 0:21:22.640 --> 0:21:24.680 to watch a fight and a hockey game broke out. 0:21:25.080 --> 0:21:28.600 There's no shortage of stories about professional sports players ending 0:21:28.680 --> 0:21:32.080 up in public fights, though few ever caught the attention 0:21:32.200 --> 0:21:35.600 that the Yankees did in the late nineteen fifties. In 0:21:35.800 --> 0:21:38.560 nineteen fifty six, the team celebrated the end of the 0:21:38.600 --> 0:21:42.080 season with the World Series win against their long time rivals, 0:21:42.200 --> 0:21:46.159 the Brooklyn Dodgers. The following year, they were back playing 0:21:46.200 --> 0:21:49.920 better than ever. With grates like Yogi Barra and Mickey Mantle, 0:21:50.280 --> 0:21:53.440 fans thought that they had found an unstoppable dream team 0:21:53.520 --> 0:21:58.040 in Major League Baseball. On May sixteen, the celebrations resumed 0:21:58.080 --> 0:22:03.040 with Billy Martin's twenty nine A teammates Whitey Ford, Hank Bauer, 0:22:03.280 --> 0:22:07.000 Mickey Mantle, Yogi Barra, Martin, and their wives headed to 0:22:07.000 --> 0:22:09.680 the Copa Cabana and The club had opened in nineteen 0:22:09.720 --> 0:22:14.080 forty with ties to mobster Frank Costello. Decorated in Latin 0:22:14.080 --> 0:22:18.440 American furnishing and style, the Copa Cabana offered musical talents 0:22:18.440 --> 0:22:22.680 and food to match. Patrons enjoyed the famous chorus girls 0:22:22.720 --> 0:22:26.760 and celebrity sidings. The club had two rules, a proper 0:22:26.840 --> 0:22:31.480 dress code and no black patrons. The club even refused 0:22:31.520 --> 0:22:35.720 to host celebrities like Harry Belafonte while the dress code remained. 0:22:35.920 --> 0:22:39.679 The club eventually allowed black performers in the nineteen fifties, 0:22:40.160 --> 0:22:43.280 and on the night of Martin's birthday, Sammy Davis Jr. 0:22:43.400 --> 0:22:46.560 Was playing one of his last shows at the Club Mantle. 0:22:46.720 --> 0:22:49.080 Martin and the rest had made the rounds at two 0:22:49.119 --> 0:22:52.080 other clubs before they walked into the Copacabana and took 0:22:52.119 --> 0:22:54.080 their seats at a table next to a group of 0:22:54.119 --> 0:22:58.000 bowlers from Washington Heights. However much the Yankees and their 0:22:58.040 --> 0:23:01.840 wives drank before arriving, the bowlers were twice as strong, 0:23:02.400 --> 0:23:06.600 and normally staff ushered improperly attired or rowdy clientele to 0:23:06.640 --> 0:23:10.160 the cheap seats in the Burma Road section. The bowlers 0:23:10.200 --> 0:23:12.360 had managed to sneak past the bouncer at the door 0:23:12.640 --> 0:23:15.760 and take a table near the stage. The bowlers became 0:23:16.000 --> 0:23:20.280 louder and louder of voicing their opinions to anyone within earshot, 0:23:20.880 --> 0:23:25.920 especially negative and racially charged comments regarding Sammy Davis Jr. 0:23:26.320 --> 0:23:30.400 Each new insult made Billy Martin angrier, and his reputation 0:23:30.520 --> 0:23:33.960 for a bad temper preceded him. He told the bowlers 0:23:34.000 --> 0:23:37.880 to stop heckling Davis or else. One of the bowlers 0:23:37.920 --> 0:23:40.560 looked over at the table and said, don't trust your luck. 0:23:40.640 --> 0:23:44.040 Yankee Hank Bauer was quick to respond and telling the 0:23:44.040 --> 0:23:48.840 bowler to go perform a physically impossible act on himself. Meanwhile, 0:23:48.960 --> 0:23:51.400 one of the bowlers, who had been hurling insults at Davis, 0:23:51.440 --> 0:23:55.440 went to the restroom. Martin and Whitey followed. Ford's wife 0:23:55.480 --> 0:23:58.160 leaned over and asked Bower to go see what was happening. 0:23:58.800 --> 0:24:00.760 He had been a marine before landing a spot on 0:24:00.760 --> 0:24:03.600 the Yankees, so he went to ensure that there wasn't 0:24:03.640 --> 0:24:07.200 any trouble. He later told reporters that he was too late. 0:24:07.400 --> 0:24:11.240 Bouncers had already arrived, Barrap or Whitey, he couldn't recall 0:24:11.280 --> 0:24:13.560 which one grabbed him and told him to get out 0:24:13.560 --> 0:24:16.240 of there. He claimed. He left and went back to 0:24:16.320 --> 0:24:19.760 his hotel. Around four thirty in the morning, Bower said 0:24:19.800 --> 0:24:22.520 the phone rang. A writer for the paper told him 0:24:22.520 --> 0:24:24.800 that one of the bowlers was accusing him of assault, 0:24:25.200 --> 0:24:28.040 and the next day Dan Topping, the Yankees president and 0:24:28.160 --> 0:24:31.440 part owner, called the team in. Topping told the players, 0:24:31.480 --> 0:24:34.240 that'll cost you each a grand One of the bowlers, 0:24:34.359 --> 0:24:37.720 Edward Jones, disagreed. He had been sent to the hospital 0:24:37.760 --> 0:24:40.480 with a broken nose, a broken jaw, and a concussion, 0:24:41.480 --> 0:24:44.120 though Bauer insisted he never laid a hand on him. 0:24:44.359 --> 0:24:47.959 Jones pressed charges and filed a lawsuit. The team was 0:24:48.000 --> 0:24:51.400 closely knit and came to his defense in court. Abara 0:24:51.520 --> 0:24:54.240 told one of the reporters nobody did nothing to nobody. 0:24:54.640 --> 0:24:57.280 Mantle was asked if he had seen an unconscious man 0:24:57.440 --> 0:25:00.560 lying on the club's floor. He replied that he had, 0:25:00.600 --> 0:25:02.600 but had no idea how he had come to be 0:25:02.640 --> 0:25:06.160 there unless Roy Rogers rode through and trigger kicked him. 0:25:06.200 --> 0:25:09.680 The jury broke into laughter. Without sufficient evidence to prove 0:25:09.760 --> 0:25:12.119 Bower had been in a fight or had hit Jones, 0:25:12.440 --> 0:25:16.600 the judge dismissed the case. The Yankees manager traded Martin 0:25:16.680 --> 0:25:20.480 to Kansas City, a Bower's position in the lineup dropped. However, 0:25:20.680 --> 0:25:25.119 Mantle wasn't punished. The manager insisted he was mad, but 0:25:25.400 --> 0:25:35.320 not mad enough to potentially lose a pennant. American Shadows 0:25:35.400 --> 0:25:39.000 is hosted by Lauren Vogelbaum. This episode was written by 0:25:39.000 --> 0:25:43.200