Whack 'em!: The Ultimate Mafia Quiz

Estimated Completion Time
3 min
Whack 'em!: The Ultimate Mafia Quiz
Image: Wiki Commons

About This Quiz

The Mafia makes for great movies, but these gangsters are real-life thugs who shake down ordinary citizens for the sake of money and power while disguising their criminality behind a veneer of honor. How much do you know about the Mafia?
What business did the Mafia take up with great enthusiasm during the 1920s?
weapons
booze
wire fraud
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

With the dawn of Prohibition, there was fantastic money to be made in the black market for alcoholic beverages. The Mafia took up the trade with gusto, often warring with competing families for control of the lucrative business.

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The word "mafia" first referred to gangsters from what place?
Greece
Sicily
Spain
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

The Sicilian mafia was the original mafia … but now the word refers to gangsters in other places, too, including America. The Mafia specializes in all sorts of organized crime.

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Where did the term "mafia" first gain widespread use?
in Japan
in France
in America
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

In the years after the American Civil War, many Sicilians wound up in the United States as workers. Many Americans used "mafia" as shorthand for referring to Sicilians … and not in a nice way.

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There are now mafia groups all over the world.
true
false
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Organized criminals, of course, are common all over the world. In many places, these groups are lumped into a category as simply "mafia," but there are other names for these criminals, too.

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What is a "capo"?
a Mafia hit list
a Mafia captain
a Mafia member's girlfriend
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Capos are the Mafia captains. They are in charge of multiple soldiers, who follow the captain's orders.

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What's the name of the law enforcement act that helped authorities crack down on organized crime?
LICO
RICO
SUAVE
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

The RICO Act was passed into law in 1970. It stands for Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, and it's been instrumental in helping authorities break down Mafia groups nationwide.

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"Associates" are NOT actual members of the Mafia.
true
false
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Associates aren't part of the gang. The term refers to anyone outside the Mafia who does business with the group -- for instance, crooked cops, politicians, lawyers or anyone else looking to make money while breaking the law.

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What was mobster Charles Luciano's nickname?
Lucifer
Lucky
Luger
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Luciano was "Lucky," a vicious man who helped spread organized crime in America. He rose to become boss of the Genovese crime family and was eventually given a long prison sentence … which he managed to avoid.

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In the 1980s Rudolph Giuliani successfully prosecuted leaders from all five of New York's crime families.
true
false
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Giuliani made a name for himself by putting numerous Mafia leaders behind bars in the late 80s. The Mafia then plotted to assassinate Giuliani but never followed through on the plan.

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Which Mafia boss was known as "The Dapper Don"?
John Gotti
Frank Costello
Paul Castellano
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

John Gotti took control of the Gambino crime family and became a flamboyant leader who loved the public spotlight. Unlike other bosses, he had no qualms about appearing in front of cameras.

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In the 1930s, Salvatore Maranzano declared himself "the boss of all bosses" and in charge of mafia activities in all of New York City. What happened next?
he killed all of the other bosses
he took over the Mafia in Chicago, too
he was murdered
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

In early 1931, Maranzano gathered the other bosses in New York and told them that he was in command. His title lasted for less than half year. Disgruntled gangsters killed him.

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What does it mean if you are a "made man"?
you killed at least three people
you are a full member of the gang
you are a mafia target
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Full-fledged members of the Mafia are called made men. They are also sometimes unironically called "men of honor."

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Which city did NOT initially provide a foundation for the Mafia in the United States?
New Orleans
Los Angeles
New York
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

L.A. wasn’t much of a Mafia town in the late 19th century. But New Orleans and New York were hotbeds of gang activity, and corruption and violence were rampant.

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What prompted many Mafia members to leave Italy for America in the 1920s?
A plague
Sicily was bombed to bits
Mussolini's rise to power
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

A fascist leader named Benito Mussolini took power in Italy, and he initiated a takedown of Mafia-related activities. To escape Mussolini, many Italians (including the mobsters) fled to America.

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In the 1930s, there were how many Mafia crime families in the United States?
one
at least 20
at least 150
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

There were at least 20 Mafia groups operating in America in the 30s. In most cities, there was room for just one family, but in bigger cities sometimes there would be several, at times erupting in violent conflict.

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Where did the Castellammarese War -- a war between mafia families -- break out?
New York
Omaha
Kansas City
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

The Castellammarese War was a power struggle between the two biggest Mafia groups in New York. The two sides exchanged murders for more than a year as they fought for control of the city.

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How did John Gotti die?
became ill in prison
no one knows
was murdered
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Gotti was convicted on a laundry list of felonies, including murder, and sent to prison in Missouri. He died in 2002 after developing throat cancer.

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In the 1930s, how many Mafia crime families were operating in New York City?
zero
five
100
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

There were five Mafia crime families vying for control of the city. They were the Gambino, Lucchese, Genovese, Colombo and Bonanno families.

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After Maranzano (the boss of all bosses) was murdered, what was the name of the entity that took his place in terms of Mafia decision-making?
The Gathering
The Commission
The League
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

The Commission is the name of the governing entity for the American Mafia -- its been around since 1931 and continues to this day.

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"The Godfather" was part of which New York crime family?
Colombo
Lucchese
Gambino
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Carlo Gambino was infamous as "The Godfather." He was a secretive but incredibly powerful gangster in the 1960s and 70s. A famous movie highlights (and fictionalizes) parts of his legend.

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What was mobster Vincent Gigante's nickname?
Chin
Toenail
Earlobe
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

For decades Gigante (know as "Chin") made moves up the Mafia ladder. After John Gotti was imprisoned, Chin became the most powerful Mafia leader in America.

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How many Mafia bosses are there believed to be in New York City today?
zero
five
20
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Just as in 1931, there are still five main crime families -- and bosses -- in New York City. The Mafia maintains a lower profile today in order to avoid too much scrutiny from the press … and law enforcement.

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Why did mobster Vincent Gigante sometimes walk the streets of New York in his bathrobe while talking to himself?
to show off his power
to avoid prosecution
he was a slob
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Gigante made elaborate displays of supposed insanity in the hopes that if he was arrested, he'd be declared insane … and of course, unfit for trial. Eventually, he was convicted, anyway.

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What does it mean if a Mafia family says the "books are closed"?
sealed a huge business deal
won't accept new members
killed someone
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Sometimes a Mafia group seeks out new members to expand their ranks … and other times, "the books are closed" and the group can't or won't bring in new people.

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In the Mafia hierarchy, who does most of the street-level dirty work?
soldiers
capos
bosses
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Soldiers make up the lowest level of the Mafia hierarchy. They perform some of the nastiest business of the organization, such as physical violence, in hopes of working their way up the family ladder.

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In 1890, the Mafia received their first real media attention for killing the police chief in which city?
London
New Orleans
San Francisco
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

David Hennessy was the chief of police in New Orleans when he was executed by several men. Nearly 20 Italian men were eventually indicted for the murder.

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What happened to the men accused of murdering police chief Hennessy?
they were killed by an angry mob
they escaped prison
they were never seen again
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Furious locals, enraged by the press accounts of the murder, took matters into their own hands. They forced the men out of jail and hung 11 of them without proper convictions.

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The "capo famiglia" is also known as what?
Mafia soldier
Mafia captain
Mafia boss
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

The capo famiglia refers to a mafia boss -- he's the guy in charge of a local Mafia family, and he makes all of the biggest decisions.

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The Mafia is well-known for certain criminal schemes. What is "protection racketeering"?
people pay the Mafia for the right to smuggle certain goods
people pay the Mafia not to harm them
people pay the Mafia for protection from other criminals
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

People pay the Mafia to protect them from other criminals who might cause them problems. The Mafia's ability to exert physical force means it has serious leverage in any dispute ... and it means they can harass the people who pay them for protection, too.

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Only men with 100% Italian blood are allowed into the American Mafia.
true
false
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

At one point, Italian blood was a prerequisite for acceptance into the Italian-American Mafia. But these days, the rules are a little more relaxed, allowing mixed-blood members into the fold.

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