Book

The Gangs of New York

by Herbert Asbury · first published 1927

The Gangs of New York: An Informal History of the Underworld is an American non-fiction book by Herbert Asbury, first published in 1928 by Alfred A. Knopf. In 1927, Asbury published an article in The American Mercury, titled "The Old-Time Gangs of New York", which was ultimately incorporated into the book published the following year. Drawing on the muckraking style of the era, the author wrote based on "legend, memory, police records, the self-aggrandizements of aging crooks, popular journalism, and solid historical research", to present an illuminating account of the gangs of old New York that ultimately gave rise to the Mafia as we know it today, from films like The Godfather. The book formed the basis for a number of films, including Gangs of New York (1938) and Martin Scorsese's 2002 Academy Award nominated film Gangs of New York, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Daniel Day-Lewis, and Cameron Diaz.

Summary: Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0