Boardwalk Empire is a program.
Boardwalk Empire is an American period crime drama television series created by Terence Winter and airing on premium cable channel HBO . Winter , a Primetime Emmy Award-winning screenwriter and producer , created the show , inspired by the book Boardwalk Empire : The Birth , High Times , and Corruption of Atlantic City by Nelson Johnson about historical criminal kingpin Enoch L. Johnson . The series premiered on September 19 , 2010 , and completed its five-season run on October 26 , 2014 . The series also won the Golden Globe Award for Best Television Series -- Drama in 2011 and two Screen Actors Guild Awards for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series in 2011 and 2012 .