CINCINNATI — Before gangsters ran the prohibition-era liquor game, there was George Remus.
Remus, a pharmacist turned lawyer, discovered a loophole allowing him to buy distilleries and pharmacies to produce and sell bonded liquor for medicinal purposes, under government licenses.
By 1920, Remus was earning $500,000 a year, approximately $6,381,000 today. He was the inspiration for the character Jay Gatsby in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s classic novel, The Great Gatsby.
Listen to the Season 2 debut of “Chalk Murder to Me” here:
In this episode of Chalk Murder to Me, hosts, Adam Fox and Noah Jones sit down with Richland Source managing editor Larry Phillips and New York Times best-selling author Karen Abbott, a dramatic murder in Eden Park in Cincinnati. Remus was charged with killing his wife, Imogene after an incredible tale of sabotage, prison time, undercover prohibition agents gone awry and an unexpected verdict.
Abbott’s book, The Ghosts of Eden Park, was the impetus that led to this podcast episode.
Abbott will be in Cincinnati on March 4 at The Mercantile Library doing a book reading.
