Denk je aan Disco dan is het Saturday Night Fever (met een piep jonge debuterende nanny aka Fran Drescher) wat de binnen schiet. Bij de Mafia denk je automatisch The Godfather, of bij bikers aan de Hells Angels. Maar weet je dat deze stereo type beelden eigenlijk allemaal ontstaan zijn door verzinsels van oa journalisten. De website Cracked.com heeft de stijlen van de boven genoemde en andere in dit artikel op feiten gecheckt en is zeer interessant om te lezen. Vooral het feit dat Marlon Brando dertig jaar lang zijn invloed op hedendaagse cultuur heeft gehad.

#4.The Mafia

The Image:

Stylish mafiosi in expensive suits, sitting around, talking about family, respect and offers you're unable to refuse, like well-dressed, cool versions of mattress salesmen. These images come to us courtesy of all of those gangster movies, The Godfather in particular.

Totally Stolen From:

According to author Tim Adler's 2007 book, Hollywood and the Mob, The Godfather "changed the way the Mafia regarded itself and ... rehabilitated gangsters into men of honour instead of what they really were -- pig-ignorant, violent-sentimental goombahs." In case you think Adler was insulting the entire murder industry without cause -- according to police records, prior to the Coppola film, mobsters were more likely to be ignorant thugs who would rat out their friends if it got them a discount at the corner sandwich shop. But after sort of making out the words "honor" and "family" from Marlon Brando's badass mumbling, the mafiosi looked around and decided that his world looked way cooler than the universe of petty larceny and parking meter smashing they inhabited.

Hell, the real Mafia didn't use the phrase "godfather" to describe a mob boss until Mario Puzo totally made it up. Ex-mob hit man Anthony Fiato described the movie's effect on the most badass Boston gangster he knew, who started out as "a 'dems and dose' kind of guy" and "after the movie came out, he starts to articulate. He starts philosophizing."

To the mob's credit, they didn't steal everything about their style from The Godfather. The more modern wise guy getup of a black shirt and white tie combo was popularized by mobster "Crazy Joe" Gallo after he saw the 1955 adaptation of Guys and Dolls, in which it was rocked by ... Marlon freaking Brando.