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    Legs

    William Kennedy

    Study Guide
    • Study Guide
    • Summary
      • Summary & Analysis
      • Chapter 1: Jack's Alive
      • Chapter 2: Jack Sauce
      • Chapter 3: Jack, Out of Doors, Part I
      • Chapter 3: Jack, Out of Doors, Part II
      • Chapter 4: Johnny Raw, Jack Gentleman: Part I
      • Chapter 4: Johnny Raw, Jack Gentleman, Part II
      • Chapter 5: Playing the Jack
      • Chapter 6: John Thompson's Man
      • Chapter 7: Jack Among the Maids
      • Chapter 8: Jack-in-the-Box
      • Chapters 9 & 10
      • Full Book
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      • Key Facts
    • Characters
      • Character List
      • Jack Diamond
      • Marcus Gorman
      • Alice Diamond
      • Kiki Roberts
    • Literary Devices
      • Themes
      • Motifs
      • Symbols
    • Quotes
      • Important quotes explained
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      • Full Book Quiz
      • Chapter 1: Jack's Alive
      • Chapter 2: Jack Sauce
      • Chapter 3: Jack, Out of Doors, Part 1
      • Chapter 3: Jack, Out of Doors, Part 2
      • Chapter 4: Johnny Raw, Jack Gentleman: Part 1
      • Chapter 4: Johnny Raw, Jack Gentleman, Part 2
      • Chapter 5: Playing the Jack
      • Chapter 6: John Thompson's Man
      • Chapter 7: Jack Among the Maids
      • Chapter 8: Jack-in-the-Box
      • Chapters 9 & 10
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        • Context
        • Plot Overview
        • Character List
        • Character Analysis
        • Themes, Motifs, and Symbols
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          • William Kennedy and Legs Background

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        Characters

        Character List

        Characters Character List
        • Jack "Legs" Diamond

          The novel's protagonist, he is a ruthless gangster who has built an underground empire based on bootlegging, drug dealing, and money laundering. Although he has a business-wise mean streak, Jack does not relish violence. His vibrant personality has made it easy for the press and others to see him as a larger- than-life bad guy. Jack loves his wife, but he also loves his girlfriend.

        • Marcus Gorman

          The novel's narrator, he is an Albany lawyer who ends up representing the infamous New York gangster, Jack Diamond. The novel consists of Marcus's recollections of Jack and Jack's legacy. Marcus is cocky and confident that Jack's myth deserves its place in the book of American legends. The most exciting spell of Marcus's life came when he worked for Jack Diamond.

          Read an in-depth analysis of Marcus Gorman .

        • Alice Diamond

          Jack's faithful wife, she is the archetypal good homemaker. She cooks for Jack and keeps his house well furnished. Troubled by Jack's corrupt occupation, Alice surrounds him with reminders of his Irish Catholic heritage. Deep down, though, Alice has a small ruthless streak.

          Read an in-depth analysis of Alice Diamond .

        • Marion "Kiki" Roberts

          Jack's girlfriend, she is a stereotypical Broadway dancer. She has a perfect body and knows how to wield her sex appeal, but is not exceptionally intelligent and she can't cook, either. She loves to party and hates being left alone when Jack has to do business or go home to his wife.

        • Eddie Diamond

          Jack's brother, he was Jack's closest companion. They got into the life of crime together when they started stealing bootleg booze. Jack thinks that Eddie brought him good luck. Eddie died of tuberculosis before most of the events in this novel take place.

        • Joe "Speed" Fogerty

          Jack's driver and right-hand man, he is the spitting image of Eddie. Fogerty carries around Eddie's revolver and essentially provides a replacement for Jack's brother. Fogerty does not like to fight, so Jack rarely asks him to strong-arm anyone, and Fogerty usually leaves Eddie's .38 millimeter gun unloaded.

        • Murray "The Goose" Pucinski

          A short but stocky man with an eye patch, he is Jack's strong man. The Goose is the guy Jack calls to do his dirty work. They met in the army when they were both in prison. During an argument,Jack punched out Goose's eye, which is why Goose wears an eye patch.

        • Jimmy Biondo

          Another figure of the New York underworld, he owns a farm that Jack rents and uses to make and store booze. Not a particularly pleasant fellow, Biondo is a partner of sorts with Jack until Jack refuses to return the money that Biondo loaned him to make a drug deal.

        • Clem Streeter

          A local upstate bumpkin, he happens to be moving a small truck of hard cider as Jack drives by one evening. Streeter is taken to Jack's farm and tortured so that he will reveal the location of his sill. This incident leads directly to the stepped-up statewide effort to catch Jack.

        • Arnold Rothstein

          The Jewish mob boss under whom Jack begins his tutelage. When Rothstein tells Jack that he needs a new haircut, Jack murders and robs a man to pay for one.

        • Owney Madden

          An underworld figure who provides Jack with financial support when Jack is down and out.

        • Packy Delaney

          Owner of a favorite latter-day Diamond hangout, The Parody Club, he is an Irish American barkeep who does a few favors for Jack. At the beginning of the novel, Marcus and Packy reminisce about Jack.

        • Flossie

          A fun-loving hooker with the proverbial heart of gold. She sleeps with both Jack and Marcus and is a mainstay at the Parody Club, where she sings as well as sells her body.

        Next section Jack Diamond
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        Popular pages: Legs

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