''Growing Up Gotti'' is an American

reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...

series that aired on A&E. It featured the life of

Victoria Gotti Victoria Gotti (born November 27, 1962) is an American writer and television personality. She is best known for being the daughter of Gambino crime family Mafia boss John Gotti. Early life Victoria Gotti was born November 27, 1962, in Brooklyn ...

, daughter of

Mafia "Mafia" is an informal term that is used to describe criminal organizations that bear a strong similarity to the original “Mafia”, the Sicilian Mafia and Italian Mafia. The central activity of such an organization would be the arbitration of d ...

boss

John Gotti John Joseph Gotti Jr.Capeci, Mustain (1996), pp. 25–26 (, ; October 27, 1940 – June 10, 2002) was an American gangster and boss of the Gambino crime family in New York City. He ordered and helped to orchestrate the murder of Gambino boss ...

, and her three sons; Frank Gotti Agnello, John Gotti Agnello Jr., and Carmine Gotti Agnello. The production of the pilot episode was announced in January 2004 with the show being picked up several months later. A&E canceled ''Growing Up Gotti'' after three seasons. In 2014, the network aired an anniversary special ''Growing Up Gotti: Ten Years Later''.

Episodes

Reception

Shirleen Holt of

Film.com RealNetworks, Inc. is a provider of artificial intelligence and computer vision based products. RealNetworks was a pioneer in Internet streaming software and services. They are based in Seattle, Washington, United States. The company also p ...

said that "Victoria Gotti has the warmth of an ice pick and her sons the charm of, well, thugs." Robert Hofler, reviewing the show for ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'', said that the show is too much controlled and focused on Victoria Gotti who also acts as an executive producer, and added, "A&E has the potential for a sleeper hit with its new reality TV show ..but they clearly muffed the title. "Mommy as Monster" is closer to the target." Alessandra Stanley of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' said that the show is "a one-joke novelty item, but it is at times quite funny and Ms. Gotti is an oddly compelling figure.".

Genovese Crime Family The Genovese crime family, () also sometimes referred to as the Westside, is an Italian-American Mafia crime family and one of the "Five Families" that dominate organized crime activities in New York City and New Jersey as part of the American M ...

Soldier

Ciro Perrone Ciro Perrone (January 8, 1921 – November 26, 2011) was a New York City mobster and soldier in the Genovese crime family. Perrone was captain Matthew Ianniello's top soldier and his second-in-command since the 1970s. At various times, Perrone se ...

and Ralph Scopo were recorded on tape criticizing the show, with Perrone commenting "It's a soap opera, and the kids look like girls.".

Reunion

On November 10, 2014, the network aired a one-hour anniversary special entitled ''Growing Up Gotti: Ten Years Later''. The special featured Victoria Gotti and her three sons who reunited to talk about the highlights of their family reality series. ''Growing up Gotti: 10 Years Later'' was produced by Left/Right.

References

External links

* * 2004 American television series debuts 2005 American television series endings 2000s American reality television series A&E (TV network) original programming English-language television shows Gotti family {{US-reality-tv-stub