Nicholas Pileggi (/pɪˈlɛdʒi/, Italian: [piˈleddʒi]; born February 22, 1933) is an American author and screenwriter. He wrote the 1985 non-fiction book Wiseguy and co-wrote the screenplay for Goodfellas, its 1990 film adaptation, for which he received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay.
Nicholas Pileggi
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Pileggi in 2010
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| Born | (1933-02-22) February 22, 1933 (age 91) New York City, U.S. |
| Occupation | Author, screenwriter, journalist |
| Genre | Crime fiction |
| Subject | Mafia |
| Years active | 1989–present |
| Notable works |
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| Spouse |
(m. 1987; died 2012) |
Pileggi was born and raised in Brooklyn,[1] the elder son of an Italian immigrant father, Nicola ("Nick") Pileggi from Calabria, a musician who played slide trombone in a cinema orchestra for silent films and subsequently also owned shoe stores, and an American-born mother, Susie.[2]
In the 1950s, he worked as a journalist for Associated Press and New York magazine, specializing in crime reporting for more than three decades.[2]
Pileggi began his career as a journalist and had a profound interest in the Mafia.[2] He is best known for writing Wiseguy: Life in a Mafia Family (1985), which he adapted into the movie Goodfellas (1990), and for writing Casino: Love and Honor in Las Vegas and the subsequent screenplay for Casino (1995). The movie versions of both were directed and co-written by Martin Scorsese.[3] Pileggi also wrote the screenplay for the film City Hall (1996), starring Al Pacino. He served as an executive producer of American Gangster (2007), a biographical crime film based on the criminal career of Frank Lucas. He also authored Blye, Private Eye (1987).[4]
Pileggi co-wrote the pilot of the CBS television series Vegas, which first aired in September 2012.[2]
Pileggi was married to fellow author, journalist, and filmmaker Nora Ephron from 1987 until her death in 2012.[2] Journalist Gay Talese is his first cousin.[5]
| Year | Film | Role | Notes / Awards Won |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | Goodfellas | Screenplay / Book | BAFTA – Best Screenplay – Adapted (1991) Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Screenplay |
| 1993 | Father Hood | Producer | |
| 1994 | Loyalty & Betrayal: The Story of the American Mob[6] | Writer | – |
| 1995 | Casino | Screenplay / Book | – |
| 1996 | City Hall | Written by | – |
| 2007 | Kings of South Beach | Written by / Producer | – |
| American Gangster | Executive Producer | – | |
| 2012 | Vegas | Co-Creator and Executive Producer | |
| 2019 | The Irishman | Executive Producer | – |
| 2024 | Alto Knights | Writer |
