Product Details

• Format: Color, NTSC
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: A & E Home Video
• VHS Release Date: February 8, 2000
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• ASIN: B000006QUS
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #593,629 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

The Five Points is to Organized Crime as Plymouth Rock is to America. From the worst slum in New York City springs a steady stream of Irish thugs, Jewish racketeers and Italian hit men who would make organized crime a permanent part of the American scene. It started in the 1800s when, driven by the Irish potato famine, millions of immigrants came to America, most settling in the worst part of New York City - the Five Points. With no money and few prospects, many Irishmen turned to crime. Colorfully named gangs such as ìThe Dead Rabbit Gangî and the ìPug Ugliesî battled ìThe Bowery Boysî and other hoods for control of the streets. The Irish gangs also went to work for New Yorkís corrupt government, Tammany Hall. In the 1863 draft riots, Five Points gangs were involved in violence that left New York burning for five days and more than 2,000 dead. By the early 20th century, Jewish organized crime arrived, transforming the concept of gangs from Irish bully boys who ran illegal gambling to mixed-ethnicity enforcers with links to the legitimate business world. Italians next bread the most dominant group in American crime, from Al Capone and Lucky Luciano to Meyer Lansky and Bugsy Siegel. Prohibition elevated their power through bootlegging. Luciano reinvented American organized crime into the Mafia that we know today.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars How I Rate Five Points Gangs, June 28, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: In Search of History: Five Points Gang [VHS] (VHS Tape)

I saw Five Points Gangs, and it was a very good documentary. It does a excellent job of showing us how the lives of these young people are affected by their participation in their gangs. I found it to be both entertaining and informative, and the perfect movie for anyone with an interest in the gang lifestyle and those who live it.