While Prohibition did much to reduce the consumption of alcoholic beverages by Americans, it also presented lucrative opportunities for organized crime ([Al Capone]? probably the most famous bootlegger of them all) to take over the manufacture and distribution of alcoholic beverages.
The term "prohibition" is also used to refer to other laws banning the sale and consumption of alcohol, in particular, local laws that have the same effect. The 21st amendment, which repealed nationwide prohibition, explicitly gives states the right to restrict or ban the purchase and sale of alcohol; this has led to a patchwork of laws, in which alcohol may be legally sold in some but not all towns or counties within a state.