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If there were ever a film you wouldn’t expect to view in a museum, it would be of frolicking gangsters jumping off a high dive. But that’s exactly what you’ll now see in The Mob Museum, which has just acquired a rare home movie shot by Al Capone in 1929. Set in the waterfront Miami mansion to which he would retire after he was released from prison in 1939, the film also features fellow mobsters Lucky Luciano and Frank Costello. The new exhibit, “The First Public Enemy,” also showcases “Sweetheart,” Capone’s Colt 1911 .45-caliber semiautomatic pistol, which had reportedly saved his life on more than one occasion.
Step into the secret world of Prohibition at The Underground speakeasy and distillery, hidden beneath The Mob Museum
The new Al Capone artifacts make a natural starting place for exploring The Mob Museum, which is set in the renovated post office and federal courthouse in Downtown Las Vegas where real gangsters were tried in the Kefauver Committee hearings in the early 1950s. (And in perhaps the best example of art meets life meets art, Las Vegas’ former mayor, Oscar Goodman, defended mobsters in this same courthouse and later played himself in the movie Casino. The museum was his brainchild.) Officially the National Museum of Organized Crime and Law Enforcement, the museum explores the interplay between crime and law enforcement in the U.S. For a sweeping view of how this relationship played out over decades, you’ll want to start at the beginning, on the third floor, and work your way down.
You’ll start with Capone and delve into the origins of organized crime in America’s major cities. Exhibits on the third floor highlight how small-time hoodlums evolved into powerful figures during the Prohibition era. You’ll also learn about how Las Vegas, a hardscrabble railroad stop in the Nevada desert, figured into the Mob’s timeline. A standout attraction is the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre Wall, a portion of the actual brick wall from the infamous 1929 massacre in Chicago allegedly orchestrated by Al Capone’s gang—bullet holes and all. Don't miss the new exhibition, “Art of the Mob: The LeRoy Neiman Portraits,” featuring 13 never-before-seen impressionistic portraits of figures like Meyer Lansky, Bugsy Siegel, and FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover, which will run through the end of 2025.
On the second floor, you’ll enter the historic courtroom in which the Kefauver hearings, which investigated organized crime and interstate commerce, exposed the reach of crime syndicates nationwide. The courtroom is now a multimedia exhibit, offering a look at the proceedings and their significance in American history. This floor also explores the Mob’s involvement in various illegal activities and the law enforcement efforts to combat them.
On the first floor, the focus shifts to contemporary organized crime. The Organized Crime Today exhibit uses interactive touchscreens and artifacts to delve into topics like drug cartels, human trafficking, and cybercrime. You can also try the Firearm Training Simulator and explore the Crime Lab (both available as additional paid experiences). The first floor also features a Wall of Infamy, profiling notorious figures from over a century of Mob history. One of the highlights of visiting the museum is the opportunity to hear from Frank Calabrese Jr., a reformed mobster who shares his story of life in the Chicago Outfit at the top of the hour from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. His talks are included with museum admission, and you’ll get a fascinating firsthand account of life within the Mob and Calabrese’s pivotal role in the FBI’s Operation Family Secrets, which eventually dismantled the Chicago Outfit.
Finally, you’ll descend to the basement to experience The Underground, a fully operational speakeasy and distillery. You’ll be transported back to the Prohibition era, complete with the museum’s own moonshine, crafted in a custom-built pot still. If you’re over 21, you can take part in the museum’s Distillery Tasting, sampling its flavored moonshines (new flavors are introduced all the time) while watching the distillers at work. Like any good Prohibition-era joint, you’ll need the week’s password, which you can find on the Mob Museum’s social media and by looking it up on the museum’s site. Say it at the door and you’re in.
Plan ahead: The museum is busiest between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m., so consider visiting early or later in the day if you want a more relaxed experience.
Use audio tours: You can book a guided walking tour if you’re coming with a group, but this is one museum in which the audio tour is well worth the small extra fee. You’ll get a guided tour and historical context.
Allow plenty of time: You’ll easily spend a solid two hours in the museum, but if you add interactive experiences, a talk, and some quality time in the speakeasy, you’ll want to allow for more.
Consider interactive experiences: There are essentially two tiers of tickets, a general admission and two levels that include interactive experiences: Deluxe and Premier. You’ll get into the exhibits with the General, and either one or two interactive experiences with the latter two. The experiences are: Distillery Tasting, Firearm Training Simulator, and Crime Lab.
