Nicholas Pileggi, 88

Nicholas Pileggi might be looking at 90 soon, but his contributions always feel like they happened the other day. His most iconic work is his screenplay for ‘Goodfellas’ which got him an Academy Award nomination. His writing skills can be traced back to his time as a journalist for ‘Associated Press’ and ‘New York’ magazine in the ’50s.

Before writing, Pileggi was a competent musician who played the trombone in cinema orchestra for silent films. Aside from this, young Pileggi was an ardent entrepreneur, as he owned several shoe stores. He has dramatically slowed down since his peak moment in the ’90s, and we rarely see the man in public unless it’s a special occasion.