Storyline for American Godfathers – The Five Families

American Godfathers: The Five Families is catnip for crime genre fans, and it stands out by providing plenty of information that is often left out of documentaries about organized crime in America.

For example, most tales about the five families usually start at the formation of The Commission by Charles “Lucky” Luciano.

The Genovese crime family boss is thus presumed to be the founding father of the New York mafia, but a lot happened before he created a ruling body.

Lucky might get all the glory, but Salvatore “Little Ceasar” Maranzano is the person who brought the ‘organization’ up in the first place.

Following the bloody Castellammarese War, Maranzano noticed how disorganized Italian American gangs in New York City were, so he reorganized them into the Profaci, Maranzano, Luciano, Mangano, and Gagliano families.

The families would later be known as the Colombo, Gambino, Bonanno, Genovese, and Lucchese families (names created by the FBI and not the mobsters themselves).

Episodes of the American Godfathers – The Five Families

Episodes of the American Godfathers – The Five Families S1.E1 ∙ Death of The Old Rules
Chronicles the American Mafia’s rise from NYC neighborhoods through Prohibition, the 1950s boom, and how violence, drugs, and hearings undermined their code of honor.

S1.E2 ∙ Rise of the New Dons
Focusing on the conflict between the families old guard and a new generation of younger, American-born, mobsters and the long-established rules in order to fulfill their own ambitions.

Episodes of the American Godfathers – The Five Families John Gotti in American Godfathers: The Five Families
A decidedly new, more aggressive commitment by law enforcement to “eradicate” the mafia forces the families to find creative ways to stay in business and out of jail. Some are willing to throw it all away, once and for all.