Racketeer Scalise

Many a New Yorker well remembers March 1936, when, for 15 days, he climbed and panted up & down skyscraper office buildings, apartments, hotels left elevator-less by the building-service strike. Not so many remember the smoothly smiling, dapper man named George Scalise (rhymes with police), who was one of the war council running the strike.

Inconspicuous then, Mr. Scalise became scarcely better-known when he rose to the presidency of A. F. of L.'s Building Service Employees' International Union (with a membership of some 70,000 charwomen, chambermaids, elevator operators, window washers), a $25,000-a-year salary, an unlimited expense account. A little-known figure he might have remained, had not crusty, crusading Columnist Westbrook Pegler (who last fortnight got William Bioff, boss of A. F. of L. studio labor in Hollywood, sent to jail in Illinois to serve out an 18-year-old sentence for pandering) grown curious about Mr. Scalise.

Last January, Pegler wrote in an open letter to A. F. of L. President William Green: "I am going to tell you today that the head of one of your big international unions was sentenced to Atlanta Penitentiary for four years and six months for white slavery. . . . The man I mean is George Scalise ... a criminal of the vilest type." Thick & fast followed Pegler accusations that Mr. Scalise was a racketeer, had acquired a 27-room mansion out of his savings. "What have the New York police and District Attorney Tom Dewey's investigators to say as to his activities in the last ten or 15 years?" hissed Mr. Pegler.

Indignantly bumbling Mr. Green replied: "Scalise came to me and told me his story. He said that ever since he got out of jail he had gone straight. . . . Furthermore Mr. Scalise charged that certain local officials of his union whom he had exposed for alleged misappropriation of funds were responsible for reviving and spreading by anonymous circulars the early chapter of his life. Mr. Scalise made the point that if he were himself a racketeer he certainly would not be active in extirpating racketeers in his union. . ..

Last week, into Manhattan's Commodore Hotel, where Mr. Scalise slept, swooped agents of District Attorney Dewey, who carried him off to jail. The charge: extortion and conspiracy. Victims of his alleged extortions had been office-building cleaning companies, exterminators, hotel owners. On the threat of calling organization drives or strikes, said the charges, Scalise and confederates had gouged them for "protection" ranging from $100 to $9,000, had collected at least $97,150 in all. Through his counsel, Mr. Scalise pleaded not guilty.

Said Assistant District Attorney Murray I. Gurfein: "The union is to Scalise what a jimmy is to a burglar."

Scalise, out in $40,000 bond, resigned his union presidency, wrote the executive board of the B. S. E. I. U.: "Dear brothers and sisters: . . . Under no circumstances will I permit my misfortune to affect those to whom I owe so much. . . ." Thoughtful Mr. Scalise was 24 hours late. The board had already decided to suspend him.

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