The Vapors

A Southern Family, the New York Mob, and the Rise and Fall of Hot Springs, America's Forgotten Capital of Vice

By: David Hill

Narrated by: George Newbern

Length: 9 hrs and 31 mins

Publisher's summary

One of "21 books we can't wait to read in 2020" --Thrillist

A New York Times Book Review summer reading pick

A Kirkus Reviews hottest summer read

A Publishers Weekly summer reads staff pick

The incredible true story of America's original - and forgotten - capital of vice

Back in the days before Vegas was big, when the Mob was at its peak and neon lights were but a glimmer on the horizon, a little Southern town styled itself as a premier destination for the American leisure class. Hot Springs, Arkansas was home to healing waters, Art Deco splendor, and America's original national park - as well as horse racing, nearly a dozen illegal casinos, countless backrooms and brothels, and some of the country’s most bald-faced criminals.

Gangsters, gamblers, and gamines: all once flocked to America's forgotten capital of vice, a place where small-town hustlers and bigtime high-rollers could make their fortunes, and hide from the law. The Vapors is the extraordinary story of three individuals - spanning the golden decades of Hot Springs, from the 1930s through the 1960s - and the lavish casino whose spectacular rise and fall would bring them together before blowing them apart.

Hazel Hill was still a young girl when legendary mobster Owney Madden rolled into town in his convertible, fresh off a crime spree in New York. He quickly established himself as the gentleman Godfather of Hot Springs, cutting barroom deals and buying stakes in the clubs at which Hazel made her living - and drank away her sorrows. Owney's protégé was Dane Harris, the son of a Cherokee bootlegger who rose through the town's ranks to become Boss Gambler. It was his idea to build The Vapors, a pleasure palace more spectacular than any the town had ever seen, and an establishment to rival anything on the Vegas Strip or Broadway in sophistication and supercharged glamour.

In this riveting work of forgotten history, native Arkansan David Hill plots the trajectory of everything from organized crime to America's fraught racial past, examining how a town synonymous with white gangsters supported a burgeoning black middle class. He reveals how the louche underbelly of the South was also home to veterans hospitals and baseball's spring training grounds, giving rise to everyone from Babe Ruth to President Bill Clinton. Infused with the sights and sounds of America's entertainment heyday - jazz orchestras and auctioneers, slot machines and suited comedians - The Vapors is an arresting glimpse into a bygone era of American vice.

©2020 David Hill (P)2020 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

Critic reviews

"With comfortable Southern charm, narrator George Newbern, a Little Rock native, delivers this decades-spanning account of Hot Springs, Arkansas, when it was the uncontested gambling and sin capital of North America.... Newbern reflects the author's easy humor when mentioning the likes of Babe Ruth, mobster Frank Costello, the Andrews Sisters, and even a young Bill Clinton as occasional visitors and performers. A wonderful slice of Americana." (AudioFile Magazine)

“[David Hill’s] fantastic debut blends true crime and Southern history to chronicle the transformation of Hot Springs, Arkansas, from a spa town into a hotbed of horse racing, prostitution, and illegal gambling.... Hill tracks this history through the lives of three central figures: Owney Madden, Dane Harris, and Hazel Hill (the author’s grandmother).... Expertly interweaving family memoir, Arkansas politics, and Mafia lore, Hill packs the story full of colorful characters and hair-raising events. This novelistic history hits the jackpot.” (Publishers Weekly, starred review)

“A juicy tale...[David Hill] offers up a huge cast of colorful, mostly sleazy characters, but he focuses on three key players.... Weaving their stories in and out.... Hill unfolds an engrossing history of corruption at the highest levels.... Captivating.” (Kirkus Reviews)

Hot Springs, who knew?

This is a surprising story about organized crime in Hot Springs, AK. The story is well written and performed. I recommend this one to anyone interested in true crime,the South, the people who are born here, and the people who move here. This one is worth the time to listen.

Hot Springs - Wow!

The Vapors tells the back story of a town I once lived in and still love to visit. Eye opening… thanks for the history lesson.

You don’t need to be from Arkansas

Excellent read. Great characters who were actual people. Great synopsis of the development of LAS Vegas. Whether pro or con gambling the history of Hot Springs is interesting. Begs the question of what Hot Springs could have become.

Loved it

As an Arkansan, it was pure delight to learn more about Hots Springs’ colorful past. Boy, we got some crooked folks down here. I enthusiastically recommend.

Great book for Mafia Buffs

This book is a very informative expose on the history of Hot Springs and the decades long connection to the NY and Chicago mobs. Not being aware of what Hot Springs was like back in the day I was surprised to learn that it was essentially the Las Vegas of the time as illegal casinos operated in the open with of course the help of law enforcement and politicians.

I recommend this book to you mafia aficionados I'm sure there is some new info here that you might not know about.

Quite dull

Hot Springs, Arkansas has an amazing history. From the phenomenon of its geological formation, to the singular history of illegal gambling practiced openly in the town.

Unfortunately, the somewhat dry reading of the facts takes this exciting story and presents it as a dull recitation. There are several vividly colorful characters but, again, painted in all one hue. The changes in the town and the development of its residents was told in the past tense, both literally and figuratively.

This could have been a fascinating tale, but the style of the writing and its reading, were disappointing.

Excellent Book

The author tells a most interesting story of how Hot Springs Arkansas once rivaled Las Vegas as the Nation’s gambling capital. The politicians looked away as long as they received their cash payoffs.
I recommend the book for those that like gambling and gambling stories.
Exceptionally well written and narrated.

Mark Paul

This is a MUST READ!

I loved every bit of it. I’ve read it three times and listened three times. I really hope a television is made of this and it stays true to the author’s telling. Well done Mr. Hill, we’ll done!

Great Story

Have lived in Arkansas during this period, it was great to hear the details. Hot springs was a great place to go. I remember sitting on a piano bench with Charlie Rich in Hot Springs. He was a lounge artist playing piano and singing. I thought this guy is really good… duh. It was our connection to the entertainment world.

Excellent story and great narrations

The history here is something you don’t find anywhere else. The narrator did an excellent job and kept me coming back to listen. I am only sad because i finished it.