Mobsters and gangsters

Gangsters. The Mob. The Mafia. John Dillinger. Lucky Lucchese. Al Capone. The Untouchables. John Gotti. The Chin. Don Corleone. Tony Soprano. In real life, in literature, in movies and television, no saga has so gripped the human consciousness and imagination as gangsters and the war on crime. On the streets and on the big and small screens, the mob world has made for vivid pictures and unimaginable stories, and for nearly 70 years LIFE has been there to chronicle all the action and mayhem. From the all-too-real Naked City photography of the legendary Weegee to the brilliant depictions of Francis Ford Coppola's films, the story of the Mafia will be revealed in this exciting, gripping book. Note the infamous photographs from inside the speakeasies, from inside the cells, from inside the government's investigations and from the backlots of productions ranging from Cagney's "Public Enemy" to HBO's "Sopranos". LIFE takes on the mob and brings it to you in this stunning pictorial hardback.