Forty years after Geraldo Rivera's televised opening of 'Capone's vault' became what many called the biggest disaster in television history, a new book promises to reveal what really happened and why the event mattered beyond the empty chamber. 'Capone's Vault' by William Elliott Hazelgrove, releasing April 16, 2026, uses new documents, interviews with Rivera and original producers, unpublished photos, and eyewitness reporting to dissect the media spectacle, myths about Al Capone, and the Chicago forces that enabled the stunt.
On April 21, 1986, at 9:15 p.m. Eastern time, Geraldo Rivera gave the signal during the live broadcast to blow open a subterranean vault with dynamite, promising to reveal Al Capone's secrets to thirty million viewers. A medical examiner was present to examine any bodies, and IRS agents stood ready to catalog Capone's millions. After the blast, Rivera entered the chamber only to find a single bottle of bootleg gin, creating what was branded the greatest catastrophe of modern television.
Hazelgrove's investigation, detailed on his website www.williamhazelgrove.com, aims to uncover what was truly in the basement of the Lexington Hotel and contextualize the event within broader media and cultural narratives. The book challenges the simplistic view of the broadcast as merely a failure, arguing it reflected and influenced public fascination with crime, celebrity, and sensationalized journalism.
The importance of this revelation lies in its examination of how media events shape historical perception and public memory. By revisiting the vault opening with new evidence, Hazelgrove highlights the interplay between entertainment, history, and journalism, showing how a televised stunt can obscure deeper truths about figures like Al Capone and the era he represented. For readers and industry observers, this underscores the enduring impact of media spectacles on collective understanding and the need for critical scrutiny of such events.
Hazelgrove, a national bestselling author, brings credibility to this exploration, with his work featured in outlets like USA Today and The Smithsonian Magazine. His forthcoming book not only revisits a pop culture milestone but also prompts reflection on how media narratives are constructed and consumed, making it relevant for discussions on journalism ethics, historical accuracy, and the entertainment industry's role in shaping public discourse.
