Radio Smart Talk for Thursday, September 29:

The 18th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution banned the manufacture, sale, and transportation of intoxicating beverages in the United States.  From 1920 to 1933, it was known as the Prohibition era. Pulitzer Prize finalist and author Daniel Okrent described that period maybe better than anyone in his 2010 bestseller, "Last Call: The Rise and Fall of Prohibition." Okrent's book was the basis for the latest Ken Burns' film, "Prohibition" that will air on WITF-TV and PBS beginning Sunday night.

As Okrent details in Last Call, prohibition was more than just a ban on alcohol.  It couldn't have happened without the women's sufferage movement or the great political strength of "dry" politicians. After decades of campaigning for prohibition, Americans found many, many ways to quench their thirst for alcohol and enterprising suppliers did their best to make sure they didn't go thirsty.

The era gave rise to the income tax, racism, a backlash against immigrants and of course bootlegging.

Okrent joins us Radio Smart Talk Thursday to discuss his bok and the Prohibition era.

Listen to the program: