| Edition |
1st ed. |
| Description |
1 online resource (xxiv, 446 pages) : illustrations. |
| Series |
Sports and entertainment |
|
Sports and entertainment.
|
| Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references (pages 413-430) and index. |
| Summary |
"Riess narrates the history of horse racing, detailing how and why New York became the national capital of the sport from the mid-1860s until the early twentieth century. The sport's survival depended upon the racetrack being the nexus between politicians and organized crime. The powerful alliance between urban machine politics and track owners enabled racing in New York to flourish. Gambling, the heart of racing's appeal, made the sport morally suspect. Yet democratic politicians protected the sport, helping to establish the State Racing Commission, the first state agency to regulate sport in the United States. At the same time, racetracks became a key connection between the underworld and Tammany Hall, enabling illegal poolrooms and off-course bookies to operate. Organized crime worked in close cooperation with machine politicians and local police officers to protect these illegal operations. In The Sport of Kings and the Kings of Crime, Riess fills a long-neglected gap in sports history, offering a richly detailed and fascinating chronicle of thoroughbred racing's heyday." |
| Subject |
Horse racing -- New York (State) -- New York -- History.
|
|
Horse racing -- Political aspects -- New York (State) -- New York -- History.
|
|
Organized crime -- New York (State) -- New York -- History.
|
|
Political corruption -- New York (State) -- New York -- History.
|
|
SPORTS & RECREATION -- Equestrian.
|
| Genre/Form |
Electronic books.
|
| Other Form: |
Print version: Riess, Steven A. Sport of kings and the kings of crime. 1st ed. Syracuse, N.Y. : Syracuse University Press, ©2011 (DLC) 2011011114 |
| ISBN |
9780815651543 (electronic bk.) |
|
0815651546 (electronic bk.) |
|
