………………The infamous “Half Moon Hotel” where my parents got married in 1938, was built in 1927………Who would guess one of the most famous MAFIA HITS would take place there only three years later…….The Half Moon Hotel was built as a resort for the very rich to lure them away from Atlantic City. At the time it was built, there was nothing around the hotel and it could be seen from miles away because it was so tall….Prohibition and the depression hit the hotel hard, and they kept afloat by renting out the ball rooms for weddings and conventions…..At the time the hotel was considered very splendid and beautifully done…..An interesting part of its’ history is its’ connection to a to a famous murder…..Abe Reles, a notorious killer himself, was going to be a witness against Albert Anastasia, “The Lord High Executioner” as he was called…..Anastasia was the number one man in the “Murder Inc.” organization. This organization was comprised of Italian and Jewish gangsters and was the most powerful syndicate in NYC and the Bronx…..Reles was being guarded at THE HALF MOON HOTEL on the 6th floor. These five detectives were assigned to protect him from being knocked off. He was given immunity to testify. The night before the trial they found his dead body on a roof top below his 6th floor room. They also found sheets that were badly tied together, which the detectives said he used to try and escape. The question was…why would he want to escape their protection???? EVERYONE knew this was a lie, and suspected the detectives from the start…….It was later found out that these detectives were paid $50,000 to kill him. In those days that was a huge amount of money. The next day after his body was discovered the newspapers read……………….”THE CANARY COULD SING, BUT IT COULDN’T FLY”……..During WW11 the hotel was turned into a naval hospital, and became a series of medical facilities until it was torn down in 1995. My parents never mentioned the history of the Half Moon Hotel to any of us. I found out all of the juicy information doing my own research….You can google The Half Moon Hotel Past and Present for all of its’ very interesting stories………..History is so interesting!!! At the time of their marriage having their reception at the Half Moon Hotel was a big deal. Who was to know it would become infamous years later……..I always loved the name of the hotel……………”The Half Moon”…………..like something out of a Fitzgerald novel.