On January 7, 1959, a significant chapter in Cuba’s history closed when the architect of its transformation into a hub for American gangsters fled just ahead of the advancing Communist revolutionaries.
Meyer Lansky, originally named Maier Suchowljansky, was born in 1902 in the Russian Empire and immigrated to the United States in 1911.
From a young age, Lansky was drawn to the world of organized crime, forming alliances with notorious figures like Charles “Lucky” Luciano, Arnold Rothstein, and Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel. Alongside Siegel, Lansky established a bootlegging operation during Prohibition while they were still teenagers.
Eventually, Lansky expanded his criminal endeavors into the gambling industry and played a pivotal role in Luciano’s efforts to create a nationwide organized crime syndicate in the United States.
In the years leading up to World War II, Lansky and his associates took action against pro-Nazi groups in the U.S. upon the request of a New York judge. Lansky declined any financial reward, stating that his actions were driven by his Jewish heritage and a desire to aid European Jews.
During the conflict, Lansky was among several underworld figures enlisted by U.S. intelligence agencies to counteract potential saboteurs targeting the New York docks.
After the war, Lansky took an interest in Cuba, where Fulgencio Batista was kingmaker and kingpin, and once and future dictator.
Batista agreed to have his palms agreeably greased in exchange for letting the mob run hotels, casinos, and racetracks in the country.
Lansky became what might delicately be referred to as a major investor in Cuba, building hotels and running organised crime interest on behalf of his fellows.
But Fidel Castro’s revolution in the late 1950s changed everything. Castro was no friend to the mob, and on New Year’s Eve of 1958, several of Lansky’s plush institutions were looted and burned.
Lansky decided he’d best stay ahead of the revolutionaries and fled to the Bahamas on January 7, 1959. Shortly after, Castro outlawed gambling in Cuba and imprisoned a number of organised crime figures.
After an attempted immigration to Israel, Lansky was deported to the US on the basis of his criminal past.
He retired in Miami and died in 1983, at the age of 80.
He was portrayed onscreen multiple times, perhaps most notably by legendary actor Lee Strasberg in The Godfather: Part II, in the form of Jewish gangster Hyman Roth.
Lansky was said to have congratulated Strasberg on his performance, for which Strasberg was nominated for an Oscar.
But, he scolded Strasberg, he could have made the character seem “more sympathetic”.
