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Nicholas Pileggi
Pileggi in 2010
Pileggi in 2010
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
  • Wiseguy (1985)
  • Casino: Love and Honor in Las Vegas (1995)
Spouse
(m. 1987; died 2012)

Nicholas Pileggi (/pɪˈlɛi/, 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.

Early life

Pileggi was born and raised in Brooklyn, the elder son of an Italian immigrant father, Nicola ("Nick") Pileggi from Calabria and an American-born mother, Susie. Nicola "Nick" Pileggi was a musician who played slide trombone in a cinema orchestra for silent films; he subsequently also owned shoe stores.

In the 1950s, he worked as a journalist for Associated Press and New York magazine, specializing in crime reporting for more than three decades.

Career

Nick (i.e. Nicholas) Pileggi
Pileggi in 1986

Pileggi began his career as a journalist and had a profound interest in the Mafia. 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. Pileggi also wrote the screenplay for the film City Hall (1996), starring Al Pacino. ..... He also authored Blye, Private Eye (1987).

Pileggi co-wrote the pilot of the CBS television series Vegas, which first aired in September 2012.

Personal life

Pileggi was married to fellow author, journalist, and filmmaker Nora Ephron from 1987 until her death in 2012. Journalist Gay Talese is his first cousin.

Partial filmography

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 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

See also

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