These days, the mob bosses pulling the strings in Hollywood skew towards tech scions and industry CEOs. But back when film was just beginning to boom, those calling the shots were some of organized crime’s most violent figures. Smitten with the industry, Al Capone often traveled from Chicago to L.A., inserting himself within the scene to sway the making of Scarface, a 1932 film loosely based on him. Others looked to forge their own path into Hollywood, like the Capone-backed Lew Wasserman, whose talent agency MCA commanded the industry and earned him a spot in the “Supermob.” The Godfather was even funded by mafia boss and Vatican banker Michele Sindona. The new series Hollywood Crime Store: The Mob Takes Over the Movies looks at how crime lords imposed themselves on Hollywood from the early years through the 1980s, and how the production of pornography cleared a path for the independent film boom of the 1990s. —Maggie Turner