In the late 1960s Sydney was one of the most prosperous places on earth and one of the most corrupt. A large proportion of the population was engaged in illegal gambling and other activities that made colourful characters such as Lennie McPherson, Abe Saffron and George Freeman wealthy and, to many, folk heroes. Thousands of American soldiers on their seven-day leave from Vietnam turned Kings Cross, with its strip shows and night clubs, into one big party.The whole corrupt carnival was run by the police in an arrangement known as `the joke'. They could just about get away with that term...

It seems that not even world war could stop crime in Sydney. In fact, World War Noir confirms that war and crime - in the form of sex, drugs, alcohol, racketeering and other illicit activities - go hand in hand. A companion book to the later glory days of the Sydney underworld from Sydney Noir, here Michael Duffy and Nick Hordern tell the story of a time when many Australians were not as patriotic as we have been told. With soldiers' pockets full of cash and the freedom of being on leave, criminal possibilities opened up during World War II. Told from the ground - or the gutter - up, World...