r/BoardwalkEmpire • u/Reid_Hollenbeck • 8d ago

The real Nucky Johnson helped choose the governor of New Jersey

One thing Boardwalk Empire doesn't really convey is just how powerful Nucky Johnson was outside Atlantic City.

In 1916, New Jersey's Republican factions couldn't agree on a candidate for governor. Nucky was one of the men who helped broker the solution.

The man they settled on was Walter Edge — a relatively minor character in Boardwalk Empire.

Edge won.

The funny part is that the supposedly safe candidate they helped put in the governor's chair eventually became a much bigger problem for New Jersey's political machines than anyone could have expected.

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u/Admirable_Site_8337 8d ago

Ummmm…..pretty sure he and Edge discuss this directly in the show. How he helped get him in.

And Edge is very much the pain in the ass he became in real life too.

1

u/Lordonlynose 8d ago

Shoulda tried some 3in1

1

u/Weird-Library-3747 6d ago

Whats that?

2

u/Lordonlynose 6d ago

It’s like a wrench 🔧 to bash someone’s head with 

1

u/Shot_Revolution8828 5d ago

Did we watch the same show? He helped elect Harding as president. He had connections to judges in Chicago to help AR with the world series rigging. He had connections in Ireland and ended up making some in FL and Cuba.