This is the first book to look at the life and times of Elise Olmstead, wife of Roy Olmstead, Seattle's notorious "Gentlman Bootlegger." The newspapers crowned her Seattle's "Queen of the Bootleggers" during Prohibition and she became an endless object of fascination, speculation and interest for reporters. It sold newspapers. But what was myth and what was merely mystery? Did she leave behind a dark secret when she came from England to Canada? Did she illegally enter the U.S.? Was she an informer for Prohibition agents before she married, or, did she become the brains of Roy's business after? Was it true that she used her radio show to send coded messages to Roy's rum-running ships while reading bedtime stories for children over the air? Who was the real Elise? On trial with Roy and dozens of her cohorts for violating Prohibition laws, she was acquitted, but Roy went to jail for four years. How did she survive? Why didn't their marriage last? This is the true story of an independent woman, ahead of her time, an entrepreneur running a radio station and bringing live orchestra music to the airwaves. An intensely private and secretive person, Elise's story has never been fully or accurately told until now. back cover

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I. Elise, before Roy

II. Roy, before Elise

III. When money flowed like water

IV. The prosecution and trial of Elise and Roy

V. Elise alone

VI. Elise and Roy, together again

VII. Unraveled

Appendix I: Roy Olmstead's family history

Appendix II: Roy's letter dated May 28, 1931, to Elise