November 12, 1941: Abe Reles, a former Murder Inc. hitman turned federal government witness, whose testimony had sent some mobsters to the electric chair, is whacked. He was 35 years old.
He was pushed out the window of Room 623, on the 6th floor of the Half Moon Hotel in Coney Island, Brooklyn. It was a few hours before he was supposed to testify against Albert Anastasia, the boss of the crime family that would later bear the name Gambino, but not yet American organized crime's "boss of all bosses." It was suggested that he jumped, because he couldn't take the pressure, but who was kidding who?
The newspapers called Reles "The Canary Who Could Sing, But Couldn't Fly." It was later revealed that the policeman who was supposed to be guarding his room, Detective Charles Burns, was a person of interest in the disappearance of Judge Joseph Crater in 1930, which has also never officially been solved.
The rubout of Reles, known in his time as "Kid Twist," was referenced on a 2002 episode of The West Wing, in which White House Press Secretary Toby Ziegler (played by Richard Schiff) hinted to his father, Julius (Jerry Adler) that he suspected his involvement in Reles' death.
The Half Moon Hotel, named for the ship that Henry Hudson was sailing when he discovered the river that would bear his name, was at 2827 Mermaid Avenue. During World War II, the hotel was operated by the U.S. Navy, and became known as the "U. S. Naval Special Hospital Sea Gate, NY", a convalescent hospital. In the 1950s, it became a senior citizens' home called the Metropolitan Jewish Geriatric Center. They moved to another building, and it was demolished in 1995. Today the Seagate Rehabilitation and Nursing Center is on the site.
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November 12, 1941 was a Wednesday. Baseball was out of season. Football was in midweek. The NBA hadn't been founded yet. And while the NHL season was underway, no games were scheduled. So there were no scores on this historic day.
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