In 1968 , Paramount Pictures released the film '' The Brotherhood '' starring Kirk Douglas as a mafia don , which was a financial flop . Nevertheless , Paramount 's production chief Robert Evans subsidized the completion of a Mario Puzo novel with similar themes and plot elements , and bought the screen rights '' before '' completion . Directed by Francis Ford Coppola , '' The Godfather '' became a huge success , both critically and financially ( it won the Best Picture Oscar and for a year was the highest-grossing film ever made ) . It immediately inspired other mafia-related films , including a direct sequel , '' The Godfather Part II '' ( 1974 ) , also ( partly ) based on Puzo 's novel , and yet another big winner at the Academy Awards , as well as films based on real Mafiosi like '' Honor Thy Father '' and '' Lucky Luciano '' ( both in 1973 ) and '' Lepke '' and '' Capone '' ( both in 1975 ) . An ambitious 13-part miniseries by NBC called '' The Gangster Chronicles '' based on the rise of many major crime bosses of the 1920s and 1930s , aired in 1981 . '' The Sopranos '' was an award-winning HBO television show that depicted modern day American-Italian mob culture in New Jersey . Although the show is fictional , the general storyline is based on its creator David Chase ’s experiences growing up and interacting with New Jersey crime families . Ex-members of the Mafia came together in '' Inside the American Mob '' documentary where they spoke about the different rules of the five families , and how they remained virtually untouchable for quite some time . The documentary also features the Mob 's decline over time due to infiltration by the FBI
Academy Awards
47th Academy Awards
American Mafia