Plot Synopsis

Enoch 'Nucky' Thompson was equal parts politician and gangster in Atlantic City in 1920 -- at a time when The Great War was ending, Wall Street was about to boom, women got the vote, broadcast radio began, and Prohibition was just starting. Nucky was the treasurer and political fixer for this resort town known as "The World's Playground," and he was also a backroom dealer who carved out a niche for himself as the man to see for illegal alcohol. Plus, Atlantic City was an ideal location for rum-runners since it was on the seaboard only minutes from Philadelphia, about a few hours from New York City and less than a day's drive from Chicago. So Nucky took full advantage of the situation and his position -- with the help of local thugs, a crew of ward bosses and his brother Elias, who was also the town Sheriff -- allowing him to do business with gangsters like 'Lucky' Luciano, Al Capone, 'Big Jim' Colosimo, and Arnold Rothstein. But Nucky's life did have its complications. Jimmy Darmody, his former protege, returned from The Great War to reclaim his position in the organization, but when he didn't advance quickly enough his actions put the Feds -- led by Agent Nelson Van Alden -- on his mentor's tail. Plus, Nucky was balancing relationships with three different women: Lucy, his girlfriend; Margaret Schroeder, a woman in an abusive marriage whom he tries to help out; and Gillian, a local showgirl with whom he shares a long and complicated history. Following the 1920 election that appeared to have solidified his hold on power by rigging an election and getting a crony elected mayor, Nucky finds himself the target of an investigation for voter fraud and faces not only jail, but insurrection by some of those he considered his closest allies. By the end of Season 2, Nucky married Margaret to prevent her from testifying in court and took revenge on Jimmy Darmody for his role in a plot against him, but she signed away his highway windfall to the church. In Season 3, which begins on New Year's Eve 1922, Nucky's marriage is on the rocks and he faces the challenge of mending old relationships and encounters new competition from a hairtrigger gangster determined to siphon off his business. Season 4 opens in February 1924 in Atlantic City, where, after barely surviving an overthrow by gangster Gyp Rossetti, Nucky is laying low at the end of the Boardwalk. But the calm is short-lived, as Nucky faces challenges, including a clash with the mayor, a battle with his brother Eli over Eli's college-age son, and the lure of lucrative, but perilous, opportunities in Florida. The fourth season of BOARDWALK EMPIRE premiered on Sunday, September 8, 2013 at 9pm ET/PT on HBO. BOARDWALK EMPIRE returned for its eight-episode, fifth and final season on Sunday, September 7, 2014 at 9pm ET/PT on HBO. The first four seasons took place during the 1920s, but Season 5 opens in 1931 in Atlantic City. As the country struggles to cope with the Great Depression and the end of Prohibition looms, Nucky Thompson looks to legitimize himself through alliances with liquor producers, while rivals Lucky Luciano and Meyer Lansky seek to consolidate their power in the wake of Arnold Rothstein's death and eliminate all competition -- by any means necessary.
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On Sunday, October 26, 2014 at 9pm ET/PT, HBO premiered the series finale of BOARDWALK EMPIRE. In the series ender, "Eldorado," Nucky looks to relocate to Manhattan from Atlantic City. Margaret impresses Nucky and a grain-company stockholder; Luciano tends to unfinished business while establishing a mob commission; Capone grapples with tax-evasion charges; Nucky visits Gillian at the hospital. In 1897, a young Nucky copes with a family crisis, while making a deal with the Commodore that will settle his future.