On 14th February, 1929, blood and gore soaked a deserted garage in downtown Chicago as unbridled gang rivalry reached a gruesome climax. Dubbed as the Valentine’s Day Massacre, this event saw seven members of the notorious George ‘Bugs’ Moran gang being gunned down in cold blood by members of the rival Al ‘Scarface’ Capone gang.

The plan was masterminded by the Al Capone, the dreaded kingpin among gangsters, to eliminate bitter rival Moran. An effective disguise, sharpshooters and the lure of bootleg whiskey were all that it took.

Moran’s members were tricked into assembling at a garage of the S-M-C Cartage Company on North Clark Street in Chicago on the pretext of getting cheap bootlegged whiskey. Unknown to the unsuspecting victims, instead of the promised alcohol a car of Capone’s trusted six lieutenants screeched to a halt. A few were disguised as police officers. Thinking it to be a police raid, Moran’s men lined up against the wall as ordered, with their backs to Capone’s men. Within seconds, gunshots shattered the calm of the area as six bodies slumped to the ground. Although one miraculously survived the onslaught, he died without making a confession to the hopeful police.

As expected, the media went for an overkill and the highly publicized event created a sensation but, predictably, no arrests were made for want of evidence.

The police never did manage to capture Capone, at least not for this crime. Years later he was arrested for tax invasion and jailed for seven years.

However, the Valentine’s Day Massacre catapulted Capone to a celebrity status and saw his rival all but wiped out from public memory. This incident also inspired Hollywood to make not one but two movies on the subject – “Some Like it Hot” in 1959 and Roger Corman’s famous 1967 film “The St. Valentine’s Day Massacre”.