{"id":146721,"date":"2021-10-31T10:45:39","date_gmt":"2021-10-31T14:45:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.gunsamerica.com\/digest\/?p=146721"},"modified":"2021-10-31T10:45:39","modified_gmt":"2023-09-07T13:14:13","slug":"guiseppe-zangara-and-the-wobbly-chair-that-changed-the-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gunsamerica.com\/digest\/guiseppe-zangara-and-the-wobbly-chair-that-changed-the-world\/","title":{"rendered":"Guiseppe Zangara and the Wobbly Chair That Changed the World"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Guiseppe
Guiseppe “Joe” Zangara stood all of five feet tall and spoke poor English. Back in 1933 this angry little guy very nearly killed the President.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s tough for the modern mind to appreciate how bad the Great Depression actually was. It\u2019s not that Americans did without cell phones, the latest sneakers, or Netflix, American citizens back then knew true hunger. Those that had work did OK. However, there wasn\u2019t a great deal of work to be had. If you didn\u2019t work, you just went hungry. In 1933 the national unemployment rate hit 24.9%. By contrast, on the heels of the worst planetary pandemic in a century US unemployment hovers around 6% today. We really have no idea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Guiseppe
During the Great Depression Americans knew real hunger. This Chicago soup kitchen was bankrolled by the infamous gangster Al Capone.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

These extraordinary economic trials catalyzed a series of watershed changes to the very fabric of our great republic. In the guise of battling the Great Depression and organized crime, President Franklin Roosevelt undertook unprecedented social reforms. The consolidation of power with the central government, the manipulation of the sundry branches to further his agenda, and the country\u2019s first solid taste of gun control all arose under FDR\u2019s leadership.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Guiseppe
Franklin Delano Roosevelt was one of the most influential Presidents in American history. The social reforms he instituted altered the course of our society.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Franklin Roosevelt was an undeniably enigmatic figure. FDR ultimately served twelve years through some of the nation\u2019s darkest history. His was the longest tenure of any American President in history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Guiseppe
FDR’s disability was a poorly-held secret. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In the summer of 1921 at the age of thirty-nine, FDR developed a severe form of migratory paralysis. While his symptoms were attributed to poliomyelitis at the time, there has been some subsequent conjecture that it might have actually been Guillain-Barre Syndrome. Regardless, from that point forward FDR could stand and walk only short distances and that only with extreme difficulty. However, great pains were taken to avoid photographing him in his wheelchair out of concern for portraying an image of weakness during WW2.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Guiseppe
FDR’s New Deal was a groundbreaking concept.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Guiseppe
The Civilian Conservation Corps built state parks like this one near my home all across the country. This cool swinging bridge is a lasting tribute to American industry in the 1930s.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

FDR\u2019s New Deal consisted of two separate legislative overhauls that consolidated unprecedented power within the federal government. The Civilian Conservation Corps, the Agricultural Adjustment Administration, the Public Works Administration, the Social Security Administration, and the Federal Emergency Relief Administration were but a few of the massive new government agencies birthed underneath the umbrella of the New Deal. FDR was the initial architect of the Big Government solutions to societal problems so championed by the Left today. It all started here. However, that was a very iffy thing indeed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Guiseppe
FDR was hoping for one last meet and greet before retiring to a friend’s yacht for a brief vacation.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

On February 15, 1933, President-Elect Roosevelt, the fifth cousin to former President Theodore Roosevelt, was seventeen days shy of his inauguration as the 32d President of the United States. He was in Miami, Florida, anticipating a cruise to clear his head prior to assuming responsibility for the country. Briefly detouring to the Bayfront Park neighborhood for a quick address to an assembled crowd of some 25,000 supporters, FDR gave an impromptu speech from the back of his green Buick. Surrounding the President-elect were ample straphangers to include Anton Cermak, the mayor of Chicago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Shooter<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\"Guiseppe
This poor little guy just had a tough life.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Giuseppe \u201cJoe\u201d Zangara was a man simply cursed. Born in Italy in 1900, Zangara fought in World War 1 before immigrating to the United States in search of a better life. He had worked at hard labor from childhood starting on his father\u2019s hardscrabble Italian farm. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Guiseppe
By the standards of the day, Guiseppe Zangara had done fairly well for himself. However, when he lost his life’s savings gambling, it kind of pushed him over the edge.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Zangara toiled as a bricklayer to make ends meet in the US and did well for himself through extreme frugality. He made $15 per week laying bricks and had by 1933 accumulated some $3,000. However, in the days and weeks leading up to February 15th, he lost his job and gambled away most of his savings betting on dog races. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Guiseppe
Chronic medical problems compounded Zangara’s sordid lot.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Additionally, Zangara suffered mightily from chronic belly pain beginning around age six. He had his appendix removed prophylactically, but that just made it worse. Post-mortem evaluation placed the blame on gallbladder adhesions. However, given the primitive state of the medical arts at the time, there was little to be done about that. He was therefore a chronically bitter and broken man.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Guiseppe
On this fateful day in 1933 FDR just represented a handy outlet for Joe Zangara’s frustrations. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Giuseppe Zangara stood but five feet tall, and he blamed all of his myriad problems on capitalists and politicians. Though he apparently knew little about FDR, he held the newly-elected President responsible for his sordid state. A few days before the President\u2019s visit, Zangara bought a five-shot .32-caliber revolver made by the United States Revolver Company from a local pawn shop for $8. That\u2019s about $159 today. Zangara was later quoted as having said, \u201cI don\u2019t hate Mr. Roosevelt personally. I hate all elected officials and anyone who is rich.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Shooting<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\"Guiseppe
Joe Zangara was one of the thousands in attendance at FDR’s impromptu speech.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Zangara was in the third row some thirty feet from where FDR was speaking. However, given his diminutive stature, he was unable to see above the crowd to get a clear shot. As a result, he found an old rickety chair and mounted it to gain a better vantage. He teetered atop the chair behind a woman named Lillian Cross. Zangara then shouted, \u201cToo many people are starving!\u201d produced his tiny pistol, and opened fire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Guiseppe
This is Chicago Mayor Anton Cermak right after Joe Zangara shot him in the chest with a cheap .32-caliber revolver.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

After the first shot, Ms. Cross struck Zangara\u2019s arm, throwing his aim wide. The Chicago Mayor Anton Cermak caught a round to the lungs. Another shot hit Mrs. Joseph Gill, wounding her badly. Follow-up rounds struck Russell Caldwell, Margret Kruis, and a New York Detective named William Sinnott. President-elect Franklin Roosevelt was unhurt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Gun<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\"Guiseppe
These inexpensive little revolvers were everywhere back in the 1930s.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Zangara\u2019s .32-caliber handgun was likely an inexpensive 5-shot top-break design. The United States Revolver Company was a subsidiary of Iver Johnson. Johnson was a Norwegian-born gunsmith who started the Iver Johnson Gun Company in 1871. The company operated out of Fitchburg, MA, and employed O.F. Mossberg. Mr. Mossberg ultimately went on to form a familiar gun company of his own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Guiseppe
We would call this a transfer bar action today. Iver Johnson was quite proud of the efficacy of this mechanism.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Guiseppe
Holy crap. Do you think anyone might speak up if a gun company advertised their products as being safe enough to be left in bed with a child today?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

These little pocket pistols were known for their top-latching mechanism and the \u201cHammer-the-Hammer\u201d ignition system. This was an early transfer bar safety system that prevented the gun from firing accidentally without the trigger having been pulled. Similar designs are commonplace among revolvers today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Guiseppe
The sights were an afterthought, but these old US Revolver Company pistols were indeed reliable and handy.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The sights on this pistol are uselessly small. Breaking the top latch free allows the gun to open up and kick out its empties via an automatic ejector. My copy is indeed compact, handy, rugged, and comfortable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Rest of the Story<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\"Guiseppe
Joe Zangara was apprehended at the scene.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The crowd threw themselves on Zangara, threatening to dismember him on the spot. Only through personal intervention by Roosevelt were they prevented from beating him to death. A nearby policeman smacked Zangara with a sap, and he was taken into custody.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Guiseppe
Anton Cermak’s selfless observations in the moments following the shooting were likely the musings of some imaginative political aide. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The Secret Service transported Mayor Cermak to the hospital in the green Buick, Roosevelt cradling him as they sped along. Cermak purportedly stated, \u201cI\u2019m glad it was me instead of you.\u201d This is inscribed on his tombstone today. However, modern scholars suspect the report of such terminal gallantry to have been apocryphal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Guiseppe
Joe Zangara didn’t seem to show a great deal of remorse during his legal proceedings.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The wheels of justice were a bit better lubricated back then. Zangara pled guilty to four counts of attempted murder at the Dade County Courthouse and was immediately sentenced to 80 years in prison. He taunted the judge as he left the courtroom suggesting perhaps it should be an even hundred. However, on March 6, 1933, two days after FDR\u2019s inauguration and twenty-one days after the shooting, Anton Cermak died of sepsis. The charge against Zangara was then upgraded to murder in the first degree. He pled guilty to this as well and was sentenced to death in the electric chair.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Guiseppe
Florida’s Death Row back then was just two guys. That’s because convicts were pretty much ganked as soon as they were convicted back in the 1930s.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

At this time folks didn\u2019t linger awaiting their appointment with Old Sparky. However, there was already one man ahead of him in Florida. As such prison officials expanded the single pre-execution holding cell to create the state\u2019s first Death Row to house the two condemned men. Zangara languished there an aggregate of ten days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Guiseppe
I’ve mounted one of these before. Suffice it to say they weren’t designed with the sitter’s comfort in mind.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

On March 20, 1933, a mere thirty-three days after the shooting, Joe Zangara was strapped into the chair. His final words were, “Viva l’Italia! Goodbye to all poor peoples everywhere!… Push the button! Go ahead, push the button!” Witnesses said the words came out as \u201cPusha da button!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Conspiracy Theories<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\"Guiseppe
The notorious mobster Frank Nitti was suspected of playing a part in the assassination attempt at the time, but this theory has since been discredited.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Despite not having the Internet to feed the inevitable lunatic fringe, then as now folks\u2019 imaginations occasionally got the better of them. As mayor of Chicago, Anton Cermak naturally had a nexus to organized crime. The exploits of Chicago gangsters captured the imagination. It was then postulated that Zangara might actually have been in the covert employ of Chicago mob boss Frank Nitti who had staged the whole assassination attempt as a cover to waste Mayor Cermak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Guiseppe
Though conspiracy theorists suspected otherwise, it turned out that Joe Zangara was just another garden-variety, run-of-the-mill loser.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Subsequent scholarship stretching into the 21st<\/sup> century reliably indicates that Joe Zangara\u2019s story was actually just as simple as it seems. He was poor, down on his luck, and angry. FDR was apparently just a handy target upon whom to vent his frustrations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Guiseppe
Folks linger on Death Row for decades nowadays. Things moved more quickly back in the 1930s.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Giuseppe Zangara died in the electric chair just one month after he pulled the trigger. The average stay on death row in America today is fifteen years. Unlike today, the expeditious death penalty back then was an effective deterrent to crime.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Guiseppe
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and I have absolutely nothing in common except perhaps our species. Her peculiar brand of cultural revolution all began back in the 1930s with FDR.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

It is thought-provoking to imagine how the world might have been different had Giuseppe Zangara connected with his intended target that day. On June 26th<\/sup>\u00a0of the following year, FDR signed the National Firearms Act of 1934. This legislation established the National Firearms Registry and Transfer Record, subjecting machineguns, short-barreled weapons, and sound suppressors to registration and a $200 transfer tax. FDR also laid the foundation for most of the Left-wing big government that was to follow. AOC is his heir apparent today. FDR’s inspirational leadership also ably carried America through World War 2. However, sometimes the most profound stuff turns on the smallest things, like an old wobbly chair and a really short angry man.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Guiseppe
The myriad laws governing this quirky little hobby of ours all began back in 1934 during the Roosevelt Administration.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

***Buy and Sell on GunsAmerica!<\/a>***<\/h2>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Guiseppe “Joe” Zangara stood all of five feet tall and spoke poor English. 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However, shooting guns and claiming it was work seemed like a pretty sweet hustle. As a result, Will serendipitously transformed an avocation into a vocation. Raised in the Mississippi Delta, Will flew UH1H, OH58A\\\/C, CH47D and AH1S helicopters operationally as an Army Aviator. He is SCUBA-qualified and has parachuted out of perfectly good airplanes at 3 o'clock in the morning. Will has summited Mount McKinley, Alaska, six times\u2026always at the controls of an Army helicopter, which is the only way sensible folk climb mountains. Will has delivered sixty babies and occasionally wrung human blood out of his socks. He is married to his high school sweetheart and has three awesome adult children. 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