who is nucky thompson based on
Nolan Lyons (1884) Marc Pickering (1897) Enoch Malachi Nucky Thompson, played by Steve Buscemi, is the protagonist of the series Boardwalk Empire. He is very loosely based on the real New Jersey politician Enoch L. Johnson (1883-1968), who was in control of Atlantic City for two decades, between 1911 and 1931.