A Return to Normalcy
"A Return to Normalcy" was a campaign slogan coined by Warren G. Harding during his 1920 bid for the U.S. presidency, encapsulating a public yearning for restoration of pre-World War I stability amid postwar disillusionment, the 1918 influenza pandemic's aftermath, and rejection of Woodrow Wilson's internationalism and Progressive Era expansions of federal power.[1][2] Harding articulated the phrase in a May 14, 1920, speech to the Home Market Club in Boston, declaring America's need for "not heroics, but healing; not nostrums, but normalcy; not revolution, but restoration," thereby framing "normalcy" as a deliberate neologism to evoke limited government, economic laissez-faire, and isolationist foreign policy over continued wartime mobilization or global commitments.[3][4] The slogan resonated with voters exhausted by federal interventions like conscription, rationing, and the Espionage Act, as well as by labor strikes and racial tensions, propelling Harding to a landslide victory with 60.3 percent of the popular vote and 404 electoral votes against Democrat James M. Cox.[1][2] In practice, Harding's administration pursued this vision through pro-business measures including the Fordney-McCumber Tariff of 1922 for revenue protection, budget reductions under Andrew Mellon, and U.S. non-adherence to the League of Nations via separate peace treaties, though these were undermined by scandals like Teapot Dome that exposed cronyism in executive appointments, highlighting tensions between rhetorical normalcy and administrative realities.[2][5] The phrase's legacy endures as a marker of interwar Republican dominance and a pivot toward domestic focus, influencing subsequent Coolidge-era retrenchment despite critiques of it enabling complacency toward emerging global threats.[6][3]Episode Overview
Synopsis
In the season finale of Boardwalk Empire's first season, aired on December 5, 2010, Nucky Thompson faces mounting pressures on election day in 1920 as he seeks to secure Republican control of Atlantic City amid threats from rivals and internal betrayals.[7] Nucky negotiates a fragile peace with Arnold Rothstein through Chicago intermediary Johnny Torrio, trading the location of the D'Alessio brothers—responsible for recent attacks—for a $1 million payoff and an end to hostilities.[8] [9] Meanwhile, Jimmy Darmody, assisted by Richard Harrow and Al Capone, hunts down and eliminates the D'Alessio gang in a brutal confrontation, resolving one immediate threat to Nucky's operations.[10] Parallel storylines highlight personal reckonings: Federal Agent Nelson Van Alden, disillusioned after covering up a colleague's death, requests a transfer from Atlantic City to escape its corrupt influences.[11] Margaret Schroeder, staying with Warren G. Harding's mistress Nan Britton, grapples with revelations about Nucky's deceased son and contemplates her future, ultimately returning to his side.[12] The ailing Commodore Louis Kaestner, recovering from a poisoning attempt by his abused maid, conspires with Sheriff Eli Thompson to undermine Nucky's leadership, leveraging past favors and Eli's grievances.[9] On election night, Nucky's machine delivers victory for mayoral candidate Edward Bader, who promises to reinstate Eli as sheriff despite recent scandals.[8] As news breaks of Harding's presidential win, his victory speech invoking a "return to normalcy" underscores the episode's thematic closure, with Nucky and Margaret sharing a moment of reconciliation overlooking the ocean, though underlying tensions with Jimmy and the Commodore persist into potential future conflicts.[13] [12]Production Background
"A Return to Normalcy," the twelfth and final episode of Boardwalk Empire's first season, was written by series creator Terence Winter, who crafted the teleplay to resolve key narrative arcs while setting up future conflicts centered on political maneuvering and gangland tensions.[7] Winter, drawing from his experience as executive producer on The Sopranos, emphasized character-driven storytelling rooted in historical events like the 1920 U.S. presidential election, incorporating elements of corruption and bootlegging to culminate the season's Prohibition-era plotlines.[7] The episode was directed by Timothy Van Patten, a veteran television director who helmed multiple Boardwalk Empire installments, including the season's penultimate episode, "The Ivory Tower." Van Patten's approach focused on atmospheric tension through dynamic camera work and period-accurate staging, collaborating closely with cinematographer Kramer Morgenthau to achieve a gritty, sepia-toned visual palette evocative of 1920s Atlantic City.[14][7] Filming occurred primarily in New York City studios and exteriors, as was standard for the series, with sets constructed in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, to replicate boardwalk and interior environments; specific location shooting included Jacob Riis Park in Queens for outdoor meeting sequences.[7][15] Production adhered to HBO's high standards for historical fidelity, involving detailed costume and set design to authentically depict early 20th-century architecture and attire without reliance on extensive CGI, prioritizing practical effects for action elements like confrontations and chases.[7] Post-production wrapped prior to the episode's premiere on December 5, 2010, with editing emphasizing pacing to balance political intrigue and violent resolutions, contributing to the season's cohesive narrative closure.[7] The episode's production exemplified the series' collaborative model under Winter's oversight, integrating input from writers like Meg Jackson and Nelson Johnson, though Winter retained final script authority.[7]Cast and Character Developments
Key Cast Appearances
The episode prominently features Steve Buscemi as Enoch "Nucky" Thompson, the central figure coordinating political maneuvers amid complaints from allies and preparations for a Republican National Convention event honoring Warren G. Harding.[7] Michael Pitt reprises his role as James "Jimmy" Darmody, dealing with the consequences of recent violence including a confrontation with the D'Alessio brothers.[7] Kelly Macdonald appears as Margaret Schroeder, engaging with a women's temperance organization.[7] Michael Shannon portrays Agent Nelson Van Alden, who addresses prospective Bureau of Prohibition agents on the temptations of their work.[7] Shea Whigham plays Eli Thompson, Nucky's brother and sheriff, involved in local law enforcement responses.[16] Aleksa Palladino features as Angela Darmody, navigating family tensions following the Commodore's death.[7] Michael Kenneth Williams appears as Chalky White, the African-American crime boss allied with Nucky.[16] Supporting appearances include Anatol Yusef as Meyer Lansky, participating in bootlegging operations, and Greg Antonacci as Johnny Torrio, influencing Chicago underworld affairs.[17] Jack Huston debuts as Richard Harrow, Jimmy's scarred war veteran companion.[17] The episode also showcases guest roles such as Peter McRobbie as Senator Walter Edge and Max Casella as the D'Alessio brother Ignacious, pivotal in the plot's criminal confrontations.[17]Character Introductions and Departures
In "A Return to Normalcy," the season one finale of Boardwalk Empire, two notable historical figures are introduced as characters, expanding the political dimension of the story amid the 1920 presidential election. Harry M. Daugherty, portrayed by Jim True-Frost, appears as the attorney general of Ohio and a pivotal advisor to Warren G. Harding, engaging with Nucky Thompson to secure influence in the incoming administration in exchange for assistance with local election rigging.[7] [18] Nan Britton, played by Brooke Bloom, debuts briefly as Harding's mistress, providing temporary shelter to Margaret Thompson and revealing insights into the president-elect's personal scandals during a moment of vulnerability for Margaret.[12] These introductions underscore the episode's focus on national political maneuvering intersecting with Atlantic City's underworld.[10] On the departures front, the episode features the death of Lucien "Big Lu" D'Alessio, the last surviving member of the D'Alessio brothers' criminal crew, who is shot and killed by Sheriff Eli Thompson while attempting to flee Atlantic City by boat.[19] This on-screen killing, depicted with stark violence as Lucien is gunned down in the surf, effectively eliminates the lingering threat from the Philadelphia-based gang that had terrorized Nucky's operations throughout the season.[7] No major recurring characters exit the series in this installment, though the Commodore's ongoing decline from poisoning—administered in the prior episode—looms in the background without resolution, signaling potential shifts in power dynamics for subsequent storylines.[11] The finale instead emphasizes characters contemplating their futures, such as Jimmy Darmody weighing loyalty amid family pressures, setting up unresolved tensions rather than abrupt exits.[20]On-Screen Deaths
The episode depicts multiple on-screen deaths that underscore themes of betrayal, mercy killing, and power consolidation amid the 1920 Atlantic City election. Richard Harrow executes the remaining D'Alessio brothers—Ignacious and Pius—by sniper rifle fire on Nucky Thompson's orders, eliminating the last of the Philadelphia-based gangsters who had targeted Nucky's operations throughout the season.[19] Jimmy Darmody euthanizes Commodore Louis Kaestner, his biological father, by smothering him with a pillow in his bedroom; the Commodore, already debilitated by chronic mercury poisoning from a rigged medicine bottle, succumbs without resistance, framing the act as a compassionate end to his suffering.[21] The finale's climactic death occurs when Nucky Thompson shoots Jimmy Darmody once in the forehead at point-blank range during an intimate conversation on the snow-covered boardwalk, a shocking paternal rejection that secures Nucky's political dominance and severs their surrogate father-son bond.[18][22]| Character | Killer | Method | Context |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ignacious D'Alessio | Richard Harrow | Gunshot (sniper) | Elimination of gang threat[19] |
| Pius D'Alessio | Richard Harrow | Gunshot (sniper) | Elimination of gang threat[19] |
| Commodore Louis Kaestner | Jimmy Darmody | Asphyxiation (pillow) | Mercy killing due to terminal illness[21] |
| Jimmy Darmody | Nucky Thompson | Gunshot to head | Political betrayal and power assertion[18] |