China's Goodfellas

The provincial boss and his police chief loved playing Robin Hood. But shaking down a rich man for some $700 million was a step too far.

Updated March 31, 2013 7:20 p.m. ET

Color-drenched historical dramas involving endless struggles for power are a mainstay of Chinese television. Why should it be otherwise in a country with 5,000 years of history that has seen dynasties rise and fall in mind-numbing succession? Yet in the past year, a real-life political drama has presented a compelling alternative.

In a bold push for power, a provincial politician named Bo Xilai tried to use his family's revolutionary pedigree, his charisma and his good looks to leapfrog onto the highest rung on China's...

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