Allister Cooper, 2011

Trivia: Though the film never mentions him, the second son of Henry's mob chief Paul, Paulie Jr., was actually Henry's best friend since youth and even introduced him to Karen. In the film he was replaced with Tommy, played by Joe Pesci. Paul Sr. had three sons with his wife Phyliss: Peter, Paul Jr., and Leonard.

Allister Cooper, 2011

Trivia: In the book Wiseguy, it is stated that even in the gangster world, discipline and order had to maintained. No one could kill anyone they wanted whenever they pleased. Dead bodies were not allowed to be haphazardly left in the streets for all to see. People who had grudges against certain individuals had to sit down with mob chiefs to get their okay to have them 'whacked'. Since Tommy killed Billy Batts and several others without permission, he sealed his own fate. There are similar cases mentioned in the book regarding loose cannons, deadbeats, and snitches and their ultimate demise. Henry put it so in the case of Stacks Edwards: "It was Jimmy who gave the order, but it was Paulie who gave Jimmy the look."

Allister Cooper, 2011

Trivia: When the Hill family were about to begin life in hiding under the Witness Protection Program, Karen's optimism is revealed. In the book Wiseguy, she said something to the effect of 'There'd be no more gangsters, hitmen, and no more cheating girlfriends. I thought maybe it wasn't going to be so bad after all.'

Allister Cooper, 2011

Trivia: In the film, Henry and Karen meet with U.S. Attorney Ed McDonald regarding the Witness Protection Program. It is the very same Ed McDonald who met with the real Henry and Karen Hill when they were about to go into hiding.

Allister Cooper, 2011

Trivia: In the film, we see a young Henry Hill in his parents' kitchen with his younger sisters. The opposite is true; Henry had 4 sisters older than him, and a brother who grew up in a wheelchair.

Allister Cooper, 2011

Trivia: And what does the real Henry Hill think of Goodfellas? After viewing it, he stated that it was 'very, very good. If I had done the movie myself, had I known anything about filmmaking, who knows if I would've done a better job.'

Allister Cooper, 2011

Trivia: Although Paul Vario was a large fellow, this did not mean that he could not move fast whenever he wanted to. In the book Wiseguy, it is stated that Henry saw him grab a sawed-off baseball bat from the trunk of his car and chase a nimbler man up five flights of stairs to collect a loan shark debt.

Allister Cooper, 2011

Trivia: In the film, Tommy is seen 'whacking' Morrie. In real life, by the time that happened, Tommy was already gone forever. Someone else was sent to hit Morrie.

Allister Cooper, 2011

Trivia: Near the film's end, Henry goes and apologizes to Paulie for being busted. Actually, it was not Henry that went to see Paulie; it was Karen. At the time, Paulie had already refused to help bail out Henry due to the drug charges and because of that, Henry was still inside. Paulie actually told Karen that he had to turn his back on Henry. He then gave the money to Karen.

Allister Cooper, 2011

Trivia: Ray Liotta was suggested to director Martin Scorcese by Robert De Niro. When Scorcese asked, 'So who do we get for Henry Hill?' De Niro responded, 'How about that guy from Something Wild?' Similarly, Scorcese recalls Joe Pesci telling him to hire Frank DiLeo for Tuddy by saying, 'Marty, you should get Frank DiLeo for this part. He's perfect.' And the rest, as they say, is history.

Allister Cooper, 2011

Trivia: In the film, Paulie had a younger brother, Tuddy. True in real life, but Paulie also had an older brother, Lenny, and another younger brother. Incidentally, the real Tuddy limped because he had a missing leg - he lost it in the Korean War.

Allister Cooper, 2011

Trivia: Jimmy Conway really went by the name Jimmy Burke. In the book Wiseguy, he tells Henry that all he knew about his family is that he 'was born to a woman named Conway.'

Allister Cooper, 2011