Food in Gangster Movies

I heard an interesting discussion on the radio today about food in gangster films, and thought it would be a good fit for the forums.

What are some interesting, or notable, uses of food in gangster or crime movies. The first and most obvious one for me, I guess would be James Cagney pushing a grapefruit into Jean Harlow's face in The Public Enemy.

Pulp Fiction has numerous use of food. It seems like through the whole movie, if the characters aren't eating, they're talking about food:

-Jules and Vincent and the "Le Big Mac" conversation.
-Jules eating Brad's hamburger and sucking down the last of his soda (signaling that Brad ain't gonna be needing that soda any more) just before offing him.
-The whole Jack Rabbit Slim scene
-Lance eating cornflakes just before Vincent spoils his evening.
-Blueberry pancakes conversation
-Pop Tarts=Death
-Jules and Vincent discussing pork at the diner.
-Marcellus is carrying a fast food order when he encounters Butch

I'm not sure what the significance is of all this, but there sure is a lot of food in Pulp Fiction!

What are some other gangster movies that have interesting or significant uses of food?

The one that comes to mind instantly is the Godfather trilogy, which often uses the presence of oranges as an omen for death.

Another example is Goodfellas, which also has a lot of focus on food (main highlight is when Henry and the other wise guys are in jail and all the movie focuses on at that point is how they slice onions with razor blades), mainly as a by-product of the gangster lifestyle - not to mention they're in jail of all places and the most important thing they're thinking about are proper ways to cook spaghetti.

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I thought about The Godfather, too, but just the first movie; not necessarily the sequels. They're in a restaurant when Michael takes his revenge for the attempted murder of his father (but of course, restaurants are famous as locations of mob slayings, even in real life).

Also, Paulie teaching Mike how to make spaghetti, and of course: "Leave the gun; takes the cannolis."

The first thing I thought of when I read this thread title was the dinner at Paulie's house in Goodfellas - that huge plate of meatballs just makes me want to head straight to The Olive Garden or Carrabas and pig out!

The famous grapefruit scene (with Mae Clark, I think, not Harlow) owed less to any symbolism of food and more to the reality of gangsters because Cagney's character was based on a real-life hood who smacked his girl in the face with some other breakfast food--I'm thinking it was a bowl of oatmeal, but it's been a long time since I saw anything on that and I may dis-remember.

(OK, just had to look it up: The gangster was the very lethal Earl "Hymie" Weiss, back in the days of the Jewish gangs, who pushed an omelet into a girl's face.)

Some films of gangsters from the 1930s still stick closely to the facts; As depicted in Billy Bathgate, for instance, Dutch Schultz, was gunned down in a New Jersey chop house that he frequented. Two gunmen came into the place and one just happened to check the bathroom on his way in; saw a guy standing at a urinal and put some slugs in him, then joined his co-worker in the dining room and shot up 3-4 guys at a table. The guy in the toilet was Schultz, the others members of his gang. Schultz lingered for some hours, long enough to get through the emergency aid and into a hospital bed. Kept drifting in and out of consciousness; Police asked, "Who shot you," and in a rare lucid moment he replied, "Nobody shot me." Most of the time he was out of it but just rambled on talking a stream of conscience, I guess. Police had a person sit by the bed and take down everything Schultz said before he died. You should look it up on the internet--lots of hints at what was in the news and in the stores back at that time, and major leaps from one subject to another. Gotta wonder what was going on in his mind as he lay dying.

I liked the capo telling Mikey how to cook meatballs for a bunch of hoods who had taken "to the mattresses" in The Godfather. Sounded good.

For the curious, here's an account of Dutch Schultz's last words:

Statements made by Arthur (Dutch Schultz) Flegenheimer were taken down by a Newark police stenographer, F. J. Lang. The notes covered a period from about 4 o'clock Thursday afternoon until Schultz died. During that period he was delirious most of the time, but lucid at intervals. A transcript of all he said follows:
Schultz at this time was irrational, suffering with a fever of 106 degrees and a bullet in his stomach. Sergeant Luke Conlon and other detectives from Newark police headquarters were at his bedside. One of the officers had a newspaper.
(Schultz noticed newspaper and spoke) - Has it been in any other papers? George, don't make no full moves. What have you done with him? Oh, mama, mama, mama. Oh stop it, stop it; eh, oh, oh. Sure, sure, mama.
Now listen, Phil, fun is fun. Ah please, papa. What happened to the sixteen? Oh, oh, he done it, please. John, please, oh, did you buy the hotel? You promised a million sure. Get out. I wished I knew.
Please make it quick, fast and furious. Please. Fast and furious. Please help me get out; I am getting my wind back, thank God. Please, please, oh please. You will have to please tell him, you got no case.
You get ahead with the dot dash system didn't I speak that time last night. Whose number is that in your pocket book, Phi1 13780. Who was it? Oh- please, please. Reserve decision. Police, police, Henry and Frankie. Oh, oh, dog biscuits and when he is happy he doesn't get snappy please, please to do this. Then Henry, Henry, Frankie you didn't even meet me. The glove will fit what I say oh, Kayiyi, oh Kayiyi. Sure who cares when you are through? How do you know this? How do you know this? Well, then oh, Cocoa know thinks he is a grandpa again. He is jumping around. No Hobo and Poboe I think he means the same thing.

Q. (from Sergeant Conlon) - Who shot you?

A.- The boss himself.

Q.- He did?

A.- Yes, I don't know.

Q.- What did he shoot you for?

A.- I showed him boss; did you hear him meet me? An appointment. Appeal stuck. All right, mother.

Q.- Was it the boss shot you?
A.- Who shot me? No one.

Q.- We will help you.

A.- Will you help me up? O.K. I won't be such a big creep. Oh, mama. I can't go through with it, please. Oh, and then he clips me; come on. Cut that out, we don't owe a nickel; hold it; instead, hold it against him; I am a pretty good pretzler -Winifred- Department of Justice. I even got it from the department. Sir, please stop it. Say listen the last night!

(Statement by Sergeant Conlon) - Don't holler.

A.- I don't want to holler.

Q.- What did they shoot you for?

A.- I don't know, sir. Honestly I don't. I don't even know who was with me, honestly. I was in the toilet and when I reached the -the boy came at me.

Q.- The big fellow gave it to you?
A.- Yes, he gave it to me.

Q.- Do you know who this big fellow was?

A.- No. If he wanted to break the ring no, please I get a month. They did it. Come on. (A name, not clear) cut me off and says you are not to be the beneficiary of this will. Is that right? I will be checked and double-checked and please pull for me. Will you pull? How many good ones and how many bad ones? Please I had nothing with him he was a cowboy in one of the seven days a week fight. No business; no hangout; no friends; nothing; just what you pick up and what you need. I don't know who shot me. Don't put anyone near this check~ you might have -please do it for me. Let me get up. heh? In the olden days they waited and they waited. Please give me a shot. It is from the factory. Sure, that is a bad. Well, oh good ahead that happens for trying. I don't want harmony. I want harmony. Oh, mamma, mamma! Who give it to him? Who give it to him? Let me in the district -fire-factory that he was nowhere near. It smoldered No, no. There are only ten of us and there ten million fighting somewhere of you, so get your onions up and we will throw up the truce flag. Oh, please let me up. Please shift me. Police are here. Communistic...strike...baloney...honestly this is a habit I get; sometimes I give it and sometimes I don't. Oh, I am all in. That settles it. Are you sure? Please let me get in and eat. Let him harass himself to you and then bother you. Please don't ask me to go there. I don't want to. I still don't want him in the path. It is no use to stage a riot. The sidewalk was in trouble and the bears were in trouble and I broke it up. Please put me in that room. Please keep him in control. My gilt edged stuff and those dirty rats have tuned in. Please mother, don't tear, don't rip; that is something that shouldn't be spoken about. Please get me up, my friends. Please, look out. The shooting is a bit wild, and that kind of shooting saved a man's life. No payrolls. No wells. No coupons. That would be entirely out. Pardon me, I forgot I am plaintiff and not defendant. Look out. Look out for him. Please. He owed me money; he owes everyone money. Why can't he just pullout and give me control? Please, mother, you pick me up now. Please, you know me. No. Don't you scare me. My friends and I think I do a better job. Police are looking for you all over. Be instrumental in letting us know. They are Englishmen and they are a type I don't know who is best, they or us. Oh, sir, get the doll a roofing. You can play jacks and girls do that with a soft ball and do tricks with it. I take all events into consideration. No. No. And it is no. It is confused and its says no. A boy has never wept nor dashed a thousand kim. Did you hear me?

Q. (By Detective) - Who shot you?

A.- I don't know.

Q.- How many shots were fired?

A.- I don't know.

Q.- How many?

A.- Two thousand. Come one, get some money in that treasury. We need it. Come on, please get it. I can't tell you to. That is not what you have in the book. Oh, please warden. What am I going to do for money? Please put me up on my feet at once. You are a hard boiled man. Did you hear me? I would hear it, the Circuit Court would hear it, and the Supreme Court might hear it. If that ain't the pay-off. Please crack down on the Chinaman's friends and Hitler's commander. I am sore and I am going up and I am going to give you honey if I can. Mother is the best bet and don't let Satan draw you too fast.

Q. (By Detective) - What did the big fellow shoot you for?

A.- Him? John? Over a million, five million dollars.

Q.- You want to get well, don't you?

A.- Yes.

Q.- Then lie quiet.

A.- Yes, I will lie quiet.

Q.- John shot and we will take care of John.

A.- That is what caused the trouble. Look out. Please let me up. If you do this, you can go on and jump right here in the lake. I know who they are. They are French people. All right. Look out, look out. Oh, my memory is gone. A work relief police. Who gets it? I don't know and I don't want to know, but look out. It can be traced. He changed for the worse. Please look out; my fortunes have changed and come back and went back since that. It was desperate. I am wobbly. You ain't got nothing on him but you got it on his helper.

Q. (By detective ) - Control yourself.

A.- But I am dying.
(Statemnt by detective) - No, you are not.

A.- Come on, mama. All right, dear, you have to get it.
At this point, Schultz's wife, Frances, was brought to his bedside. She spoke.
(Statement by Mrs. Schultz) - This is Frances.
Schultz began to talk again, saying:
Then pull me out. I am half crazy. They won't let me get up. They dyed my shoes. Open those shoes. Give me something. I am so sick. Give me some water, the only thing that I want. Open this up and break it so I can touch you. Danny, please get me in the car.
At this point Mrs. Schultz left the room.
(Sergeant Conlon questioned Schultz again) - Who shot you?

A.- I don't know. I didn't even get a look. I don't know who can have done it. Anybody. Kindly take my shoes off. (He was told that they were off.) No. There is a handcuff on them. The Baron says these things. I know what I am doing here with my collection of papers. It isn't worth a nickel to two guys like you or me but to a collector it is worth a fortune. It is priceless. I am going to turn it over to... Turn you back to me, please Henry. I am so sick now. The police are getting many complaints. Look out. I want that G-note. Look out for Jimmy Valentine for he is an old pal of mine. Come on, come on, Jim. Ok, ok, I am all through. Can't do another thing. Look out mamma, look out for her. You can't beat him. Police, mamma, Helen, mother, please take me out. I will settle the indictment. Come on, open the soap duckets. The chimney sweeps. Talk to the sword. Shut up, you got a big mouth! Please help me up, Henry. Max, come over here. French-Canadian bean soup. I want to pay. Let them leave me alone.
Schultz sank into unconsciousness then. It was 6:40 P.M. He died less than two hours later, without saying anything else.

I am remembering fondly that we tended to have spaghetti and meatballs on Sunday nights because we were gearing up for a new Sopranos episode that night ... and every time James Gandolfini ate (especially Italian food), I had to have some right now. Same thing with watching him eat ice cream (which he did a LOT on that show).... suddenly I wanted ice cream.

I remember a scene with Joe Pantoliano where he and his stepson and one of his stepson's friends were all sitting around talking and eating spaghetti and meatballs ... I could almost taste it.

I don't usually get like that about food in movies or on TV, but for some reason, in gangster shows and movies, especially with Italian food, suddenly I have to have it myself. How dumb is that? Or do they just always make it look so good?

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Wow does this remind me of an awful diet I was on twenty years ago. Just a horridness. I could eat like a small thingy of chicken, beets YUCK!, and other assorted snotty foods & only small portions. It was one of those diets you were on for 7 days and off 3. So Im watching "The Godfather" which Id seen a million times, and the spaghetti.....it was just killing me! Do you know how many scenes there are in The Godfather with spaghetti. i vocally cried out my hunger was so bad, and my mom came into the room to make sure I was ok. The week after the film just the memory of it would get me going. My 3 day leave came, and sure enough I just gorged myself with spaghetti. Afterward I just sat there, will a distended belly full of pasta & meatsauce. Really unable to move actually. It was a bad diet.

Tongo, sounds like a weird sort of binge-and-purge thing going on with that diet.

Right now I'm not on an official diet, but I am trying to stick to a "no second helpings" rule (which has been quite easy). Now, the big issue for me is that hubby is working overnights so I've been staying up late (till about 3 a.m.). .. and it's been difficult not to eat one more time between dinner and bedtime. (It's often a 7- to 8-hour stretch of time!)

Ack! He goes back on days next week, so I am just trying to get through this week and hope for the best next week.

If reruns of The Sopranos are on, though, it'll be spaghetti every night of the week!

Virgil Starkwell (Woody Allen) is certainly a[n unsuccessful] gangster in Take the Money and Run. Sample narration: "Food on a chain gang is scarce and not very nourishing. The men get one hot meal a day: a bowl of steam."



Maybe I'm going off-topic by mentioning another chain gang movie, but what about Luke (Paul Newman) and the 50 hard-boiled eggs?

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You need to eat if you're gonna kill a lot of people. Murder takes energy and food gives you energy.

I, too, like the jail scene from Goodfellas.

As you said, killin' people creates one helluva appetite!

And you might be on to something because all of these Italian gangsters are usually fat. Perhaps it's because restaurants are usually used as cover for illegal activities and operations?

Look at Mean Streets.

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AMC has been playing the Godfather movies this weekend, and I realized yesterday that I totally forgot to mention the scene in Godfather II -- one of the flashback scenes with DeNiro and Bruno Kirby and whoever that third guy is (ha). They're yammering on in Italian about being shaken down, and Corleone's wife hands out three bowls of spaghetti for the men. So, throughout the scene, they're yammering and twirling and eating this spaghetti.

It's one of those scenes that makes me hungry for spaghetti. Hate when that happens.

The first thing I thought of when I saw this thread was "Leave the gun, take the cannolis." from The Godfather

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The oranges were always preceding something bad happening. They are also used notably in Old School as an homage: ****** SPOILER****** there's a bowl of oranges in Mitch's living room before he walks in on the girlfriend and the other couple.

I guess this would be the right thread to ask, what's a gabagoo ?

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It's actually spelled "capicola" ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capicola ).

It's an Italian spiced ham deli meat. They pronounce it that way and it then becomes impossible to learn how to spell properly. We boring Americans will just pronounce it like it's spelled.