Gangster Speak

As you may have noticed, we at Chocolate Covered Films have a thing for film noir. This page is full of vocabulary that peppered gangster and detective films of the 1940's. Have fun reading through the list (and if you want, try out some of the words yourself speaking with your best New York accent). This list will be growing so check back now and then to brush up on your gangster slang!

• Stiff- dead body
• Heater- gun
• Rod- gun
• Pump- heart
• Stoole- member of a gang who rats them out
• Lettuce- money
• Slugs- bullets
• Boss- title used to describe the top man in a gang
• Copper- police/cop
• Tuxedo- straightjacket
• Rap- the job/crime a guy gets arrested for
• Racket- a job/career/field (ex: detective's racket= detective's business)
• Slammer- prison
• Mugs- criminals