Earl J. "Hymie" Weiss, born Henryk Wojciechowski in Sieradz, Congress Kingdom of Poland in 1898, was a prominent figure in the organized crime landscape of the Prohibition era. He grew up in a Polish immigrant family and, in his early teens, became involved in criminal activities alongside his friend Dion O'Banion. Together, they founded the Northside Gang, notorious for its involvement in bootlegging and other illicit operations during a time of fierce gang rivalries in Chicago. Weiss's organizational skills and loyalty were pivotal in establishing the gang as a significant player in the illegal alcohol trade. He was known as "the only man Al Capone feared".