THE OUTFIT: BIG JIM COLOSIMO - The First Chicago Godfather
Fireside chat with Cage by Bill Muise
S1 · E67
Aug 28, 2026
06:57
Episode notes
Before Al Capone.
Before the St. Valentine's Day Massacre.
There was Big Jim.
James Colosimo ruled Chicago's Levee District.
Gambling. Prostitution. Politics.
He built an empire on vice...
but refused to go to war for Prohibition.
On May 11, 1920, he was shot dead in his own restaurant.
His murder didn't end the Outfit.
It created it.
This is Big Jim.
Keywords
Big Jim Colosimo, Chicago Outfit origin, Johnny Torrio, Al Capone, Levee District