Johnny Jack Nounes | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | John Louis Nonus January 12, 1890 Galveston, Texas, U.S. |
| Died | March 11, 1970 (aged 80) Galveston, Texas, U.S. |
| Other names |
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| Occupation(s) | Gangster, Mob Boss |
| Title | Boss |
| Criminal status | Deceased |
| Spouses |
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| Children | 3 |
| Parent(s) | Emanuel Nonus and Angelica Pinto Nonus |
| Allegiance | Downtown Gang |
| Conviction(s) | 1924 and 1929 |
| Criminal charge | Bootlegging |
| Penalty | Imprisonment, Leavenworth Penitentiary and Atlanta Penitentiary |
| Mayor of West Beach, Galveston, Texas | |
| In office 1947–1949 | |
| Mayor of Pirates Beach, Galveston, Texas | |
| In office 1960–? | |
Johnny Jack Nounes, also known as the "Beau Brummell of Galveston", was a mob boss in Galveston, Texas, United States, during the 1920s and 1930s. He, with one-armed George Musey, led the Downtown Gang, one of the two gangs which controlled most of the Galveston Crime Syndicate until the early 1930s. They fought for control of the island against the rival Beach Gang led by Ollie Quinn and Dutch Voight, and later their successors, the Maceo Crime Syndicate. As the prohibition era began, his gang came to be one of the dominant forces in the Galveston Crime Syndicate. Galveston became the main port of entry for liquor supply in Texas and many parts of the Midwest. Nounes' flamboyance attracted the attention of federal authorities, leading to his conviction in 1924 and sentencing to Leavenworth Penitentiary.[1] His prison term was short but only two years after being released he was again sentenced to prison after being caught with a shipment of liquor in Seabrook.[2] Frank Nitti, a business partner of Nounes, was the "enforcer" for Al Capone's crime organization in Chicago as well as the future boss of the Chicago Outfit.[3]
- ^ Haile (1998), p. 15. "Johnny Jack’s free-spending flamboyance earned him folk-hero status among tolerant Galvestonians but also attracted the attention of federal agents, who succeeded in sending him to Leavenworth in 1924."
- ^ Haile (1998), p. 15. "Less than two years after his triumphant return, Nounes and partner Musey were caught red-handed at Seabrook with a boatload of booze."
- ^ Cartwright (1998), pg. 210.