Hoodlum
Encyclopedia
Hoodlum is a 1997 crime film
that gives a fictionalized account of the gang war between the Italian
/Jewish mafia
alliance and the black gangsters of Harlem
that took place in the late 1920s and early 1930s. The film concentrated on Ellsworth "Bumpy" Johnson (Laurence Fishburne
), Dutch Schultz
(Tim Roth
), and Lucky Luciano
(Andy García
).
by the warden, who is impressed by Johnson's conduct while incarcerated, but believes Johnson does not regret committing the murder that sent him to prison. Johnson returns to Harlem
and reunites with friends, most notably Illinois Gordon. Johnson is quickly established as a highly respected member of the community, and his friends include Stephanie "Madam Queen" St. Clair, who runs the numbers racket in Harlem despite competition from the Italian Mafia.
Dutch Schultz
, a Mafia underboss
who reports to Lucky Luciano
, asks to partner with the Queen, who declines the offer, as she disapproves of the violent tactics Schultz has taken to terrorize her customers. Friends with the chief of police, Schultz arranges for the Queen to be arrested, and the Queen asks Johnson to take charge of the business during her incarceration. The Queen instructs that Johnson avoid bloodshed, but Schultz's men grow increasingly violent.
Most of the film divides its attention between the mob war that results, and Johnson's relationships with other Harlem residents, most notably a romance with Red Cross nurse Francine Hughes. A key subplot centers around the increasingly antagonistic relationship between Schultz, who wants to become a boss in his own right, and Luciano, who is pressured by prosecutor Thomas Dewey
to keep Schultz in check.
In reality, Bumpy Johnson did not beat Dutch Schultz for the numbers. He entered into a truce with Schultz. It involved he and Stephanie St. Clair paying the "tax" to Dutch and the Italian families, in order to continue to operate independently. The only sense of winning came from the murder of Schultz in 1935. The murder was arranged by Lucky Luciano and the Italian families. The reason for Dutch's killing had nothing to do with Johnson, "Madam Queen" or the Harlem numbers rackets. Ironically, Johnson ended up becoming a Genovese crime family
enforcer for the Bronx and Harlem territories.
The film's depiction of Thomas Dewey
as corrupt is a fiction. In reality, Dewey was famously incorruptible and used his office to root out dishonesty and gangsterism.
. It peaked at #94 on the Billboard 200
and #23 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums
.
Crime film
Crime films are films which focus on the lives of criminals. The stylistic approach to a crime film varies from realistic portrayals of real-life criminal figures, to the far-fetched evil doings of imaginary arch-villains. Criminal acts are almost always glorified in these movies.- Plays and films...
that gives a fictionalized account of the gang war between the Italian
Mafia
The Mafia is a criminal syndicate that emerged in the mid-nineteenth century in Sicily, Italy. It is a loose association of criminal groups that share a common organizational structure and code of conduct, and whose common enterprise is protection racketeering...
/Jewish mafia
Jewish-American organized crime
Jewish-American organized crime , emerged during the late 19th century and early 20th century....
alliance and the black gangsters of Harlem
Harlem
Harlem is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan, which since the 1920s has been a major African-American residential, cultural and business center. Originally a Dutch village, formally organized in 1658, it is named after the city of Haarlem in the Netherlands...
that took place in the late 1920s and early 1930s. The film concentrated on Ellsworth "Bumpy" Johnson (Laurence Fishburne
Laurence Fishburne
Laurence John Fishburne III is an American film and stage actor, playwright, director, and producer. He is perhaps best known for his roles as Morpheus in the Matrix science fiction film trilogy, as Cowboy Curtis on the 1980's television show Pee-wee's Playhouse, and as singer-musician Ike Turner...
), Dutch Schultz
Dutch Schultz
Dutch Schultz was a New York City-area Jewish American gangster of the 1920s and 1930s who made his fortune in organized crime-related activities such as bootlegging alcohol and the numbers racket...
(Tim Roth
Tim Roth
Simon Timothy "Tim" Roth is an English film actor and director best known for his roles in the American films,Legend of 1900, Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction, Four Rooms, Skellig, Planet of the Apes, The Incredible Hulk and Rob Roy, receiving an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for...
), and Lucky Luciano
Lucky Luciano
Charlie "Lucky" Luciano was an Italian mobster born in Sicily. Luciano is considered the father of modern organized crime in the United States for splitting New York City into five different Mafia crime families and the establishment of the first commission...
(Andy García
Andy García
Andrés Arturo García Menéndez , professionally known as Andy García, is a Cuban American actor. He became known in the late 1980s and 1990s, having appeared in several successful Hollywood films, including The Godfather: Part III, The Untouchables, Internal Affairs and When a Man Loves a Woman...
).
Plot
Ellsworth "Bumpy" Johnson is paroled from Sing SingSing Sing
Sing Sing Correctional Facility is a maximum security prison operated by the New York State Department of Correctional Services in the town of Ossining, New York...
by the warden, who is impressed by Johnson's conduct while incarcerated, but believes Johnson does not regret committing the murder that sent him to prison. Johnson returns to Harlem
Harlem
Harlem is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan, which since the 1920s has been a major African-American residential, cultural and business center. Originally a Dutch village, formally organized in 1658, it is named after the city of Haarlem in the Netherlands...
and reunites with friends, most notably Illinois Gordon. Johnson is quickly established as a highly respected member of the community, and his friends include Stephanie "Madam Queen" St. Clair, who runs the numbers racket in Harlem despite competition from the Italian Mafia.
Dutch Schultz
Dutch Schultz
Dutch Schultz was a New York City-area Jewish American gangster of the 1920s and 1930s who made his fortune in organized crime-related activities such as bootlegging alcohol and the numbers racket...
, a Mafia underboss
Underboss
Underboss is a position within the leadership structure of Sicilian and American Mafia crime families. The underboss is second in command to the boss...
who reports to Lucky Luciano
Lucky Luciano
Charlie "Lucky" Luciano was an Italian mobster born in Sicily. Luciano is considered the father of modern organized crime in the United States for splitting New York City into five different Mafia crime families and the establishment of the first commission...
, asks to partner with the Queen, who declines the offer, as she disapproves of the violent tactics Schultz has taken to terrorize her customers. Friends with the chief of police, Schultz arranges for the Queen to be arrested, and the Queen asks Johnson to take charge of the business during her incarceration. The Queen instructs that Johnson avoid bloodshed, but Schultz's men grow increasingly violent.
Most of the film divides its attention between the mob war that results, and Johnson's relationships with other Harlem residents, most notably a romance with Red Cross nurse Francine Hughes. A key subplot centers around the increasingly antagonistic relationship between Schultz, who wants to become a boss in his own right, and Luciano, who is pressured by prosecutor Thomas Dewey
Thomas Dewey
Thomas Edmund Dewey was the 47th Governor of New York . In 1944 and 1948, he was the Republican candidate for President, but lost both times. He led the liberal faction of the Republican Party, in which he fought conservative Ohio Senator Robert A. Taft...
to keep Schultz in check.
Cast
- Laurence FishburneLaurence FishburneLaurence John Fishburne III is an American film and stage actor, playwright, director, and producer. He is perhaps best known for his roles as Morpheus in the Matrix science fiction film trilogy, as Cowboy Curtis on the 1980's television show Pee-wee's Playhouse, and as singer-musician Ike Turner...
as Ellsworth "Bumpy" Johnson - Tim RothTim RothSimon Timothy "Tim" Roth is an English film actor and director best known for his roles in the American films,Legend of 1900, Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction, Four Rooms, Skellig, Planet of the Apes, The Incredible Hulk and Rob Roy, receiving an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for...
as Dutch SchultzDutch SchultzDutch Schultz was a New York City-area Jewish American gangster of the 1920s and 1930s who made his fortune in organized crime-related activities such as bootlegging alcohol and the numbers racket... - Vanessa L. WilliamsVanessa L. WilliamsVanessa Lynn Williams is an American pop-R&B recording artist, producer, dancer, model, actress and showgirl. In 1983, she became the first woman of African-American descent to be crowned Miss America, but a scandal generated by her having posed for nude photographs published in Penthouse magazine...
as Francine Hughes - Andy GarcíaAndy GarcíaAndrés Arturo García Menéndez , professionally known as Andy García, is a Cuban American actor. He became known in the late 1980s and 1990s, having appeared in several successful Hollywood films, including The Godfather: Part III, The Untouchables, Internal Affairs and When a Man Loves a Woman...
as Charles "Lucky" LucianoLucky LucianoCharlie "Lucky" Luciano was an Italian mobster born in Sicily. Luciano is considered the father of modern organized crime in the United States for splitting New York City into five different Mafia crime families and the establishment of the first commission... - Cicely TysonCicely TysonCicely Tyson is an American actress. A successful stage actress, Tyson is also known for her Oscar-nominated role in the film Sounder and the television movies The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman and Roots....
as Stephanie St. Clair/Madam QueenStephanie St. ClairStephanie St. Clair was a bookmaker in Manhattan's Harlem neighborhood.-Early life:Madam St. Clair was born of mixed French and African descent on Martinique. She immigrated to the United States via Marseilles in 1912 and ten years later took $10,000 of her own money and set up a numbers bank in... - Chi McBrideChi McBrideKenneth "Chi" McBride is an American actor. He starred as Steven Harper on the series Boston Public, as Emerson Cod on Pushing Daisies, and recently appeared in Fox's drama Human Target.-Early life:...
as Illinois Gordon - Clarence Williams IIIClarence Williams IIIClarence Williams III is an American actor.-Early life:Williams was born in New York City. His grandfather was Clarence Williams, the jazz pianist and composer. He was raised by his grandmother.-Career:...
as Bub Hewlett - Richard BradfordRichard Bradford (actor)Richard Bradford is an American actor, known for his lead role as former CIA agent turned private eye McGill in the British TV adventure series Man in a Suitcase, made by ITC in 1967....
as Captain Foley - William AthertonWilliam AthertonWilliam Atherton , born William Atherton Knight II, is an American film, stage and television actor.-Early life:Atherton was born in Orange, Connecticut, the son of Roby and Robert Atherton Knight...
as Thomas E. Dewey - Loretta DevineLoretta DevineLoretta Devine is an American stage, film and television actress known for her roles on Boston Public, Grey's Anatomy, and Eli Stone. She also provided her voice for the stop motion animated television series The PJs. Devine is a NAACP Image Award and Emmy award winning actress.-Early life:Devine...
as Pigfoot Mary - Queen LatifahQueen LatifahDana Elaine Owens , better known by her stage name Queen Latifah, is an American singer, rapper, and actress. Her work in music, film and television has earned her a Golden Globe award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, two Image Awards, a Grammy Award, six additional Grammy nominations, an Emmy...
as Sulie - Ed O'RossEd O'RossEd O'Ross is an American actor perhaps best known for playing the giggling spectacled gangster Itchy in Dick Tracy, ruthless Georgian mobster Viktor Rostavili in Red Heat, and tough-then-alien-possessed police detective Cliff Willis in The Hidden.-Early life:O'Ross was born Edward Oross in...
as Lulu Rosenkrantz - Mike StarrMike Starr (actor)Michael "Mike" Starr is an American actor. Starr is notable for his large size, standing 6 ft 3 1/2 in , and has typically been typecast as thugs or henchmen....
as Albert Salke - Beau StarrBeau StarrBeau Starr is an American actor who has starred in movies and on television. He is known for his film role as Sheriff Ben Meeker in the 1988 hit horror movie Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers; he reprised his role in the 1989 sequel Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers.Starr was born...
as Jules Salke - Paul BenjaminPaul BenjaminPaul Benjamin is an American actor.Benjamin was born in Pelion, South Carolina. He made his film debut in 1969 as a bartender in Midnight Cowboy...
as Whispers - Tony Rich as Duke EllingtonDuke EllingtonEdward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington was an American composer, pianist, and big band leader. Ellington wrote over 1,000 compositions...
Historical Inaccuracies
At the beginning of a scene at Dutch's office, an onscreen title card reads "December, 1934." At the same time, a Yankees game is on the radio. A baseball game would have put the timeframe between April 1934-October 1934.In reality, Bumpy Johnson did not beat Dutch Schultz for the numbers. He entered into a truce with Schultz. It involved he and Stephanie St. Clair paying the "tax" to Dutch and the Italian families, in order to continue to operate independently. The only sense of winning came from the murder of Schultz in 1935. The murder was arranged by Lucky Luciano and the Italian families. The reason for Dutch's killing had nothing to do with Johnson, "Madam Queen" or the Harlem numbers rackets. Ironically, Johnson ended up becoming a Genovese crime family
Genovese crime family
The Genovese crime family , is one of the "Five Families" that dominates organized crime activities in New York City, United States, within the nationwide criminal phenomenon known as the Mafia . The Genovese crime family has been nicknamed the "Ivy League" and "Rolls Royce" of organized crime...
enforcer for the Bronx and Harlem territories.
The film's depiction of Thomas Dewey
Thomas Dewey
Thomas Edmund Dewey was the 47th Governor of New York . In 1944 and 1948, he was the Republican candidate for President, but lost both times. He led the liberal faction of the Republican Party, in which he fought conservative Ohio Senator Robert A. Taft...
as corrupt is a fiction. In reality, Dewey was famously incorruptible and used his office to root out dishonesty and gangsterism.
Soundtrack
A soundtrack containing hip hop and R&B music was released on August 12, 1997 by Interscope RecordsInterscope Records
Interscope Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group that currently operates as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-History:...
. It peaked at #94 on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
and #23 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums
Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums
Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a chart published by Billboard magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The name of the chart was changed from Top R&B Albums in 1999...
.
External links
- Hoodlum film trailer