Speakeasy
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- For other articles titled "Speakeasy" refer to the disambiguation page.'
A Speakeasy was an establishment that was used for selling and drinking alcoholic beverages during the period of U.S. history known as Prohibition, when selling or buying alcohol was illegal. The term comes from a patron's manner of ordering alcohol - a bartender would tell a patron to be quiet and 'speak easy'.
The origin of the word predates Prohibition by at least 30 years. Samuel Hudson, a newspaperman in the late 19th century said he heard the term used in Pittsburgh in the 1880's by an old Irish woman who sold her liquor without a license. She told her clients to "spake asy" if they wanted to buy some. The Cassell Dictionary of Slang lists the word as coming into usage in around 1890. The term spake-aisy was used even a century before this, where it referred to smugglers' hideouts.
Speakeasies became more popular and numerous as the Prohibition years progressed, as well as more commonly operated by those with connections to organized crime. While police and United States Federal Government agents would raid such establishments and arrest the owners and patrons, the business of running speakeasies was so lucrative that such establishments continued to flourish throughout the nation. In major cities, speakeasies could often be elaborate, offering food, live bands, and floor shows. Police were notoriously bribed by speakeasy operators to either leave them alone or at least give them advance notice of any planned raid.
Other slang terms for a speakeasy included "Blind pig", or, "Blind pigs".
Some discreet venues called smoke-easies have popped up in states such as New York, California, and Massachusetts where smoking in bars and clubs is prohibited.