Spoilers Galorum-- if you are not watching Boardwalk Empire, skip this. It's worth your time & this is full of spoilers.

David Chase famously said of his team on the Sopranos "Goodfellas is our Koran". It seems like on Boardwalk Empire, the Koran has shifted to the second Godfather. In fact, in G2, there is an overlap of characters, as Hyman Roth of G2 is clearly based on Meter Lansky, and in an outtake of G2, Roth explains he took the name in homage to "the greatest man who's ever lived-- Arnold Rothstein" (because he fixed the World Series). Godfather 2 references, this season on BE:

1.) In G2, (Lansky surrogate) Hyman Roth explains to Michael Corleone why he never made a fuss when his associate Moe Greene got a bullet in the eye: "Because this is the business we have chosen for ourselves!!"

Cut to the an episode of Boardwalk Empire, which includes Rothstein and his protege Lanksy in the cast (as well as Capone & Lucciano). Meyer is running a card game and his associate Charlie "Lucky" Lucciano is conferring with him & frenemy (& fictional gangster) Jimmy Darmody in his adjoining office.

Darmody & Lucciano trade insults and start coming to blows. Lansky jumps in between them to stop the tussle with "I'm runnin' a business heah!!"

2.) IRA leader McGarrigle being popped in the background as Nucky is driven from the Irish estate echoed the G2 scene where DeNiro as Vito avenges his father's killing in Sicily by murdering the old mob boss.

3.) Jimmy answers Angela's questions honestly about his "business" and trying to whack Nucky, in a flip of the scene where Michael allows Kay to "just this once" ask him about his business. Michael lies but Jimmy tells Ange the truth. Look how that worked out for the bode of 'em...

4.) As Jimmy wakes up from the woozy stupor after he's murdered his dad, Richard Harrow is seen in the antechamber, cleaning up the body of the late Commodore. When he realizes Jimmy is awake, he walks over & draws the drapes closed on the ugly scene, as Michael Corleone's goons repeatedly shut the doors on Michael's business.

 5.) During the Margaret/ Nucky nuptials, Jimmy & Harrow "consolidate power" in a sacred/profane echo of the Baptism sequence at the end of Godfather 1.

 & the bonus reference:

6.)At the close of this last episode of season 2, as Jimmy Darmody finally leaves his trench for his assault on the afterlife, we fade to the Thompson household, where maid Katie passes, with a large pitcher of ... orange juice-- the Godfather symbol of death! (tip o the cap to Paul Doherty for this one)

And in a show full of Godfather references, there was also a  reference to "Game of Thrones" in this episode. Lord Eddard Stark famously said, in his northman way of thinking: "The man that passes the sentence should swing the sword", which is what Nucky did.

iPad illustration is the great Kelly MacDonald as the former Mrs. Schroeder, now Mrs. Thompson. Also iPad drawings of the Irish pol & McGarrigle, the IRA man. 

Over 6 months ago, I submitted my illustrations for Arthur Rowse's "Amglish, In Like Ten Easy Lessons, A Celebration of The New World Lingo", a humous overview book about the state of the dominant world language, American style English. One of the illustrations (one I suggested to Arthur, in fact), was of Apple CEO Steve Jobs, who was then still at the helm of Apple. I chose to depict Jobs as a modern saint of technology, with a halo of the Apple logo behind his head. Now, of course, most folks seeing this would think it is commenting on his sad early death-- but that is not how it was conceived. The idea is how Apple used incorrect English intentionally to make a point in their ad. 

Steve Jobs, RIP...