Morris Kessler

Morris Kessler
Born	January 6, 1912(1912-01-06) New York City, New York, United States
Died	September 30, 1935(1935-09-30) (aged 23) Brownsville, Brooklyn, New York, United States
Cause of death	Murdered
Body discovered	Blake-Christopher Garage, 385 Blake Avenue
Resting place	Mount Hebron Cemetery, Flushing, Queens
Residence	50 Tapscott Street
Nationality	American
Ethnicity	Jewish-American
Known for	chauffeur and bodyguard of New York mobster Joseph Amberg.
Religion	Jewish

Morris L. Kessler (January 6, 1912 – September 30, 1935) was an American mobster and member of Joseph Amberg's gang in Brooklyn during the early 1930s. As Amberg's personal chauffeur and bodyguard, Kessler was a close associate in his organization until he was killed alongside his boss at a Brownsville auto garage by members of Murder Incorporated in 1935. The gangland slayings of Kessler and Amberg were among the first major contract killings committed by Murder Inc. and was one of the most publicized of the era.

Biography

Morris L. Kessler was born in New York City on January 6, 1912. Although he had no known criminal record during his life, he had become a member of Brooklyn mobsters Joseph and Louis "Pretty" Amberg criminal organization in Brownsville by the early 1930s. Kessler became Joe Amberg's personal chauffeur and bodyguard.^[1]

On the afternoon of September 30, 1935, at 12:45 pm, Kessler and Amberg stopped at the Blake-Christopher auto garage at Blake and Christopher Avenues prior to collecting "protection money" from neighborhood barber shops and restaurants. As they prepared to leave in their limousine, however, three unidentified gunmen believed to be members of Murder Incorporated entered the garage. Armed with pistols, they forced the two men against the wall at gunpoint. According to the owner Henry Kutnetz and mechanics Nat Horowitz and August Mattern, all of whom witnessed the incident, the gunmen taunted the two men before gunning them down. They shot Amberg first and then Kessler;^[2] police later found Kessler had been shot once in the forehead and three times in the back.^[1] The two men were buried at Mount Hebron Cemetery in Flushing, Queens two days later.^[3]

Louis Amberg had been killed only three weeks before, the Ambergs being involved in a gang war with rivals Louis "Lepke" Buchalter and Jacob "Gurrah" Shapiro, though authorities believed the murders of Kessler and Amberg were linked to the then-recent deaths of small-time racketeers Abe Meer and Irving Amron.^[1][2] Although the getaway car used in the murder was later found by authorities, the crime remained unsolved.^[3]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} "GANGSTERS KILL 2 LINED UP AT WALL; Enemies Trap Joseph Amberg, Racketeer, and His Chauffeur in Brooklyn Garage. TAUNT VICTIM, THEN FIRE Escape After Riddling Body of Man Whose Brother Committed Suicide in Tombs Break.". The New York Times. October 1, 1935. 
2. ^ ^{a b} Block, Alan A. East Side, West Side: Organizing Crime in New York, 1930-1950. New Brunswick, New Jersey: Transaction Books, 1983. (pg. 225) ISBN 0-87855-931-0
3. ^ ^{a b} "SLAIN GANGSTERS BURIED.; Police Find Car Used by Killers of Amberg and Chauffeur.". New York Times. October 1, 1935. 

External links

Biography portal

• Morris Kessler at Find a Grave

Persondata
Name	Kessler, Morris
Alternative names
Short description	chauffeur and bodyguard for New York mobster Joseph Amberg.
Date of birth	January 6, 1912
Place of birth	New York City, New York, United States
Date of death	September 30, 1935
Place of death	Brownsville, Brooklyn, New York