Ed Helms

I hate to be the bearer of bad news here, but this is a show about screw-ups. Duran's gambit worked. Deny, evade, deflect. It's an old playbook. And Duran was a natural. It was practically a reflex for him.

I hate to be the bearer of bad news here, but this is a show about screw-ups. Duran's gambit worked. Deny, evade, deflect. It's an old playbook. And Duran was a natural. It was practically a reflex for him.

And here's the real downer, Representative Bacon. He backed down. He asked a raft of questions. But at the key moment, when he could have asked some, you know, follow-ups, he just kind of wilted. The hearing moved on. Just imagine Duran wiping his forehead with a silk hanky and allowing himself a sly, satisfied smile.

And here's the real downer, Representative Bacon. He backed down. He asked a raft of questions. But at the key moment, when he could have asked some, you know, follow-ups, he just kind of wilted. The hearing moved on. Just imagine Duran wiping his forehead with a silk hanky and allowing himself a sly, satisfied smile.

No handcuffs, no trial, just a little chit-chat behind closed doors and a slick set of lies, and he was home free. I mean, that's so fracking insane. Do all the stuff we've talked about. Hurt and poison and kill so many people. And just walk away. The Prohibition Bureau was well aware that people were getting injured, even dying, from drinking industrial chemicals.

No handcuffs, no trial, just a little chit-chat behind closed doors and a slick set of lies, and he was home free. I mean, that's so fracking insane. Do all the stuff we've talked about. Hurt and poison and kill so many people. And just walk away. The Prohibition Bureau was well aware that people were getting injured, even dying, from drinking industrial chemicals.

They knew the system in place to manage those chemicals was porous and corrupt. They knew it was getting out into bootleg liquor. They knew that denaturing industrial alcohol was not deterring people. And in fact, it was just killing them. The indifference to all of those deaths by Duran and the dries in Congress was negligent at best.

They knew the system in place to manage those chemicals was porous and corrupt. They knew it was getting out into bootleg liquor. They knew that denaturing industrial alcohol was not deterring people. And in fact, it was just killing them. The indifference to all of those deaths by Duran and the dries in Congress was negligent at best.

Personally, I'd go for cruel, reckless, and rooted in a callous disregard for human life. But even if Duran was able to smoothly lie his way out of this one moment of congressional accountability, not everyone was so easily fooled.

Personally, I'd go for cruel, reckless, and rooted in a callous disregard for human life. But even if Duran was able to smoothly lie his way out of this one moment of congressional accountability, not everyone was so easily fooled.

Duran might deny the link, but after the public outcry from Norris and Gettler's report, the American public was finally connecting the dots between national prohibition and people dying in their own towns and neighborhoods. And in 1930, they got a little more affirmation from a bootlegger in a green hat, George Cassidy.

Duran might deny the link, but after the public outcry from Norris and Gettler's report, the American public was finally connecting the dots between national prohibition and people dying in their own towns and neighborhoods. And in 1930, they got a little more affirmation from a bootlegger in a green hat, George Cassidy.

As his case wound through the legal system, George made a connection, a reporter at the Washington Post. I imagine him chatting with folks as he walked in and out of the courtroom. George was a colorful character, and this was a high-profile bust. Some newshound was bound to catch him on a potty break.

As his case wound through the legal system, George made a connection, a reporter at the Washington Post. I imagine him chatting with folks as he walked in and out of the courtroom. George was a colorful character, and this was a high-profile bust. Some newshound was bound to catch him on a potty break.

So that meant when the verdict came down, and he was going to take the fall, and no one else was going to pay any price at all, George knew exactly what to do. He was ready to tell his story. So, as Garrett Peck says, he gave the Post their first scoop of the century.

So that meant when the verdict came down, and he was going to take the fall, and no one else was going to pay any price at all, George knew exactly what to do. He was ready to tell his story. So, as Garrett Peck says, he gave the Post their first scoop of the century.

That's right, six front page articles. Each morning, people around the country waited with bated breath for the next installment of old George's expose to land on newsstands. Will somebody please arrest me for bootlegging so I can get that kind of press?

That's right, six front page articles. Each morning, people around the country waited with bated breath for the next installment of old George's expose to land on newsstands. Will somebody please arrest me for bootlegging so I can get that kind of press?

Anyway, three weeks before people were set to cast their ballots in the 1930 midterms, a bombshell landed that made voters reconsider which box to check. On October 23, 1930, George wrote, I saw a side of Prohibition no one else has seen.

Anyway, three weeks before people were set to cast their ballots in the 1930 midterms, a bombshell landed that made voters reconsider which box to check. On October 23, 1930, George wrote, I saw a side of Prohibition no one else has seen.