Set in the 1960s, the five families in ‘The Sopranos’ involved five major New York City organized crime families. Let’s find out more about them.
The American television drama, ‘The Sopranos‘, was released in 1999. Created and written by David Chase, ‘The Sopranos’ ended after airing six seasons in 2007. Even after twenty years, ‘The Sopranos’ is assessed as one of the most incredible shows that changed TV shows for good. ‘The Sopranos’ received immense critical acclaim too. It also earned twenty-one Emmy Awards and five Golden Globes during its run. Let’s find out more about the award-winning series and its on-screen families.
HIGHLIGHTS —
- What is ‘The Sopranos’ about?
- The five families on ‘The Sopranos’
- Who were the heads of the five families on ‘The Sopranos’?
What is ‘The Sopranos’ about?
The American crime drama series revolved around Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini) and his life. The show mainly revolved around Tony Soprano, how he managed to balance his relationship with his wife Carmela, his role as the head of a huge criminal organisation, and his therapy sessions with psychiatrist Jennifer Melfi.
‘The Sopranos’ followed the turbulent life of Tony. Throughout the series, we see him trying to balance his family and fight rival gangs to survive. The show has always been hugely appreciated for its storytelling. It also led to the creation of one of the most iconic anti-heroes in the history of television. Till this day, we remember its climax ending as the most talked about in the history of a TV series.
Apart from James Gandolfini as Tony Soprano, Edie Falco played the role of Tony’s wife Carmela Soprano. Tony’s distant cousin Christopher Moltisanti was played by Michael Imperioli. Other cast members include Lorraine Bracco as psychiatrist Jennifer Melfi, Jamie-Lynn Sigler as Tony’s daughter Meadow, and Robert Michael Iler as Tony’s son AJ. Dominic Chianese Corrado played the role of Junior Soprano and Steven Van Zandt as Silvio Dante.
There is also a Sopranos film prequel, ‘The Many Saints of Newark’, in production. It will showcase Tony Soprano’s early years. The film has been written by show creator David Chase.
The five families on ‘The Sopranos’
The five families comprised of Maranzano or the Bonanno family, Profaci or the Colombo family, Mangano or the Gambino family, Luciano or the Genovese family, Gagliano or the Lucchese family.
‘The Sopranos’ played a key role in the DiMeo crime family. They ran two separate crews that were headed by Johnny Boy and Junior. They also had longstanding ties with the five New York Families, especially with the Lupertazzi crime family. The Lupertazzi crime family was a Brooklyn based New York City Mafia family. They are based on real Gambino and Lucchese crime families. The Lupertazzi family was earlier an ally of the Soprano family, but later things turned around. The family references to real-life mob figures Albert Anastasia, Paul Castellano, Joe Gallo, John Gotti, Sammy Gravano, Joe Massino, and Joe Profaci.
The Colombo crime family is the youngest out of the five families of ‘The Sopranos’ that dominated planned criminal activities in New York City, United States. The gang was recognized as the Profaci crime family during Lucky Luciano’s organization of the American Mafia, the assassinations of Giuseppe Masseria and Salvatore Maranzano. It was famously known for their three internal wars on ‘The Sopranos’. Another part of the five families of ‘The Sopranos’ included the Gambino crime family. It was founded in New York after the Castellammarese War of 1931.
The Genovese crime family directed organized crime activities in New York City and New Jersey as part of the American Mafia. They mostly maintained a significant amount of influence over various small mob families outside New York, including ties with the Philadelphia, Patriarca, and Buffalo crime families. The Lucchese crime family also managed to dominate organized crime activities in New York City, United States.
Who were the heads of the five families on ‘The Sopranos’?
The Colombo crime family was run by Joseph Profaci and the Mangano family was headed by Vincent Mangano. The Luciano or the Genovese family was founded by Charles Luciano. Whereas the Gagliano or the Lucchese family was headed by Gaetano Reina. Lastly, the Maranzano crime family was founded and headed by Salvatore Maranzano who was murdered in 1931.
