"is based on Marlon Brando's portrayal of Don Vito Corleone from the 1972 film ""The Godfather"". Loeb stated in an interview that he paralleled the Falcone family to that of the Corleone family: Falcone's power and wisdom akin to Vito Corleone, his son Alberto's personality and appearance that of Fredo Corleone, and his daughter Sofia's temper matching that of Sonny Corleone. Lastly, his elder son Mario's deportation to Sicily, physical appearance and desire to legitimize the Falcone family are all traits shared with Michael Corleone. In a flashback in ""The Long Halloween"", Vincent Falcone brings his dying son, Carmine (who"
"nomination, for ""Sayonara."" Brando's performance as Vito Corleone, the ""Don,"" in ""The Godfather"" (1972), Francis Ford Coppola's adaptation of Mario Puzo's 1969 best-selling novel of the same name, was a career turning point, putting him back in the Top Ten and winning him his second Best Actor Oscar. Paramount production chief Robert Evans, who had given Puzo an advance to write ""The Godfather"" so that Paramount would own the film rights, hired Coppola after many major directors had turned the film down. Evans wanted an Italian-American director who could provide the film with cultural authenticity. Coppola also came cheap. Evans"
"The Godfather Part II The Godfather Part II is a 1974 American crime film produced and directed by Francis Ford Coppola from a screenplay co-written with Mario Puzo, starring Al Pacino and Robert De Niro. Partially based on Puzo's 1969 novel ""The Godfather"", the film is both sequel and prequel to ""The Godfather"", presenting parallel dramas: one picks up the 1958 story of Michael Corleone (Pacino), the new Don of the Corleone crime family, protecting the family business in the aftermath of an attempt on his life; the prequel covers the journey of his father, Vito Corleone (De Niro), from"
"""The Godfather"" is seen by many as one of the greatest films of all time, while ""The Godfather Part II"" is viewed by many as the best sequel in cinematic history. The series is heavily awarded, winning 9 out of 29 total Academy Award nominations. ""The Godfather"" was released on March 15, 1972. The feature-length film was directed by Francis Ford Coppola and based upon Mario Puzo's novel of the same name. The plot begins with Don Vito Corleone declining an offer to join in the narcotics business with notorious drug lord Virgil Sollozzo, which leads to an assassination attempt."
"life. He died of an illness on September 21st 1989 at the age of 64. The role of Don Tommasino was passed on to Vittorio Duse. Corrado Gaipa Corrado Gaipa (March 13, 1925 – September 21, 1989) was an Italian actor and voice actor. Born in Palermo, Sicily, Gaipa enrolled in the Silvio d’Amico Academy of Dramatic Arts, graduating in 1946. He appeared in many Italian films. Internationally, he was well known for having played Don Tommasino in Francis Ford Coppola's ""The Godfather"" in 1972. Also active on stage, radio and television, he was mainly active as a voice actor"
"Robert De Niro Robert Anthony De Niro Jr. (; born August 17, 1943) is an American actor, producer, and director. He is a recipient of various accolades, including two Academy Awards, a Golden Globe Award, the Cecil B DeMille Award, AFI Life Achievement Award, Presidential Medal of Freedom, and has been nominated for six BAFTA Awards, two Primetime Emmy Awards and four Screen Actors Guild Awards. De Niro was cast as the young Vito Corleone in the 1974 film ""The Godfather Part II"", for which he won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. His longtime collaboration with director Martin"
"The Godfather (film series) The Godfather is an American film series that consists of three crime drama films directed by Francis Ford Coppola inspired by the novel of the same name by Italian American author Mario Puzo. The series follows the trials of the Corleone family, Italian Americans whose patriarch, Vito Corleone, rises to be a major figure in American organized crime. His youngest son, Michael Corleone, becomes his successor. The films were distributed by Paramount Pictures and released in 1972, 1974 and 1990. The series achieved success at the box office, with the films earning over $550 million worldwide."
"Corrado Gaipa Corrado Gaipa (March 13, 1925 – September 21, 1989) was an Italian actor and voice actor. Born in Palermo, Sicily, Gaipa enrolled in the Silvio d’Amico Academy of Dramatic Arts, graduating in 1946. He appeared in many Italian films. Internationally, he was well known for having played Don Tommasino in Francis Ford Coppola's ""The Godfather"" in 1972. Also active on stage, radio and television, he was mainly active as a voice actor and a dubber. He was in a wheelchair. At the time of his death, he had just signed to reprise the role of Don Tommasino in"
"Vittorio Duse Vittorio Duse (21 March 1916 – 2 June 2005) also known as ""Victor Duncan"" or ""Victor Duse"" was an Italian actor born on 21 March 1916 in Marche, Italy. He died on 2 June 2005 in Rome, Italy. One of his first roles was in Luchino Visconti's debut feature ""Ossessione"" (1942). Outside Italy, Duse is known for his role in ""The Godfather Part III"" as Don Tommasino in 1990, replacing Corrado Gaipa, who died one year prior to the film's release. Duse mostly starred in Italian films, although he also appeared in ""The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles"", ""The"
"agency Creative Management Associates (CMA). His role as a heroin addict in ""The Panic in Needle Park"" (1971) brought Pacino to the attention of director Francis Ford Coppola, who cast him as Michael Corleone in what became a blockbuster Mafia film, ""The Godfather"" (1972). Although Jack Nicholson, Robert Redford, Warren Beatty, and the little-known Robert De Niro were tried out for the part, Coppola selected Pacino, to the dismay of studio executives who wanted someone better known. Pacino's performance earned him an Academy Award nomination, and offered a prime example of his early acting style. This was described by ""Halliwell's"
"Littlefeather was presenting to the Federal Communications Commission about minorities, they met and found in common their involvement with AIM. In 1972, Brando played Vito Corleone in ""The Godfather"", which is considered one of the greatest films of all time. For the performance, he was nominated for Best Actor for the role at the 45th Academy Awards, which were presented on March 27, 1973, at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles, California. But before the ceremony, Brando decided that – as the favorite to win – he would boycott as a protest against the ongoing siege at Wounded Knee"
"Marlon Brando Marlon Brando Jr. (April 3, 1924 – July 1, 2004) was an American actor and film director. With a career spanning 60 years, he is regarded for his cultural influence on 20th-century film. Brando's Academy Award-winning performances include that of Terry Malloy in ""On the Waterfront"" (1954) and Don Vito Corleone in ""The Godfather"" (1972). Brando was an activist for many causes, notably the civil rights movement and various Native American movements. He is credited with helping to popularize the Stanislavski system of acting having studied with Stella Adler in the 1940s. He initially gained acclaim and an"
"Corleone, Carlo Rizzi, and Paulie Gatto in ""The Godfather"". His performance earned him his first Academy Award, for Best Supporting Actor, although Coppola accepted the award as De Niro was not present at the ceremony. De Niro became the first actor to win an Academy Award speaking mainly a foreign language. In this case, several Sicilian dialects, although he delivered a few lines in English. He and Marlon Brando, who played the older Vito Corleone in the first film, are the only actors to have won Oscars for portraying the same fictional character. After working with Scorsese in ""Mean Streets"","
"successful film, he won his second Academy Award for playing Vito Corleone in Francis Ford Coppola's ""The Godfather"", a role critics consider among his greatest. ""The Godfather"" was then one of the most commercially successful films of all time. With that and his Oscar-nominated performance in ""Last Tango in Paris"", Brando re-established himself in the ranks of top box-office stars, placing sixth and tenth in the Money Making Stars poll in 1972 and 1973, respectively. Brando took a four-year hiatus before appearing in ""The Missouri Breaks"" (1976). After this, he was content with being a highly paid character actor in"
"John Cazale John Holland Cazale (; ; August 12, 1935 – March 13, 1978) was an American actor. He appeared in five films over six years, all of which were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture: ""The Godfather"", ""The Conversation"", ""The Godfather Part II"", ""Dog Day Afternoon"", and ""The Deer Hunter."" He appeared in archival footage in ""The Godfather Part III"", also nominated for Best Picture. From his start as a theater actor, he became one of Hollywood's premier character actors, starting with his role as the doomed, weak-minded Fredo Corleone opposite longtime friend Al Pacino in Francis"
"Sonny Corleone Santino ""Sonny"" Corleone is a fictional character in Mario Puzo's 1969 novel ""The Godfather"" and its 1972 film adaptation. He is the oldest son of the mafia don Vito Corleone and Carmela Corleone. He has two brothers, Fredo and Michael, and a sister, Connie. In the film, Sonny was portrayed by James Caan, who reprised his role for a flashback scene in ""The Godfather Part II"". Director Francis Ford Coppola's son Roman Coppola played Sonny as a boy in the 1920s scene of ""The Godfather Part II"". In both the novel and the movie, Sonny is the eldest"
"""The Panic in Needle Park"" (1971), playing Al Pacino's brother Hank. In 1972 he appeared in Francis Ford Coppola's adaptation of ""The Godfather"" as Al Neri, Michael Corleone (Al Pacino)'s primary enforcer and bodyguard. Michael, as the don of the Corleone Family, implements a security detail that keeps Neri and Rocco Lampone close by at all times. A deleted scene from ""The Godfather"" shows former consiglieri and family attorney Tom Hagen reviewing the payroll ledgers and finding both Neri and Lampone being paid much more than their nominal jobs are worth. It is soon revealed that both are, in fact,"
"Anthony Corleone Anthony Vito ""Tony"" Corleone is a fictional character in ""The Godfather"" trilogy of films directed by Francis Ford Coppola. He is portrayed by Anthony Gounaris in the first film, James Gounaris in the second, and singer Franc D'Ambrosio in the third. (The character was given the name Anthony because it was thought that the 3-year-old Gounaris of the first film would respond best if his own name was used.) He is the son of Michael (Al Pacino) and Kay Corleone (Diane Keaton), and the older brother of Mary Corleone (Sofia Coppola). While Anthony was never a major character"
"novel stated that Lucy never bore a child with Sonny. Sonny Corleone Santino ""Sonny"" Corleone is a fictional character in Mario Puzo's 1969 novel ""The Godfather"" and its 1972 film adaptation. He is the oldest son of the mafia don Vito Corleone and Carmela Corleone. He has two brothers, Fredo and Michael, and a sister, Connie. In the film, Sonny was portrayed by James Caan, who reprised his role for a flashback scene in ""The Godfather Part II"". Director Francis Ford Coppola's son Roman Coppola played Sonny as a boy in the 1920s scene of ""The Godfather Part II"". In"
"in ""The Godfather Part II"". He lost to Robert De Niro, who played Vito Corleone in the same film. Gazzo died on February 14, 1995 at age 71 due to complications from a stroke. He was buried in the Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles. Michael V. Gazzo Michael Vincenzo Gazzo (April 5, 1923 – February 14, 1995) was an American playwright who later in life became a film and television actor. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his role in ""The Godfather Part II"" (1974). Gazzo was born on April 5, 1923. He was a"
"""Variety"" magazine. Notes Citations Bibliography Marlon Brando Marlon Brando Jr. (April 3, 1924 – July 1, 2004) was an American actor and film director. With a career spanning 60 years, he is regarded for his cultural influence on 20th-century film. Brando's Academy Award-winning performances include that of Terry Malloy in ""On the Waterfront"" (1954) and Don Vito Corleone in ""The Godfather"" (1972). Brando was an activist for many causes, notably the civil rights movement and various Native American movements. He is credited with helping to popularize the Stanislavski system of acting having studied with Stella Adler in the 1940s. He"
"of the five families on the day of his nephew's baptism. Other subplots include Vito's daughter's abusive marriage, Johnny Fontaine's success in Hollywood and Vito's second son Fredo's role in the family business in Las Vegas. ""The Godfather Part II"" was released on December 20, 1974. The feature-length film was again directed by Francis Ford Coppola and based upon Mario Puzo's novel of the same name. The film is in part both a sequel and a prequel to ""The Godfather"", presenting two parallel dramas. The main storyline, following the first film's events, centers on Michael Corleone, the new Don of"
"Connie Corleone Constanzia ""Connie"" Corleone is a fictional character in ""The Godfather"", a novel by Mario Puzo and the 1972 film ""The Godfather"". In the film, Connie is portrayed by Talia Shire, the sister of the director Francis Ford Coppola. Shire was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her portrayal of Connie Corleone in ""The Godfather Part II"". Born in 1925, Connie is the youngest child and only daughter of Mafia don Vito Corleone and his wife Carmella. She is the sister of Sonny, Fredo and Michael Corleone. In 1945, she marries Sonny's friend Carlo Rizzi."
"season for her debut performance. Julie Gregg Julie Gregg (January 24, 1937 – November 7, 2016) was an American television, film and stage actress. She is best known for her portrayal of Sandra Corleone in ""The Godfather"" (1972). Also notably, she was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her performance in the 1968 musical ""The Happy Time"". Gregg was born Beverly Scalzo, on January 24, 1937 in Niagara Falls, New York, the daughter of Italian parents Victoria (née Larocca) and Caspar Scalzo. She moved to California to attend the University of Southern California"
"Coppola's film ""The Godfather"". In the novel, Vito Andolini emigrates from the village of Corleone. In the cinematic release of ""The Godfather, Part II"", young Vito, shy and unable to speak English, cannot respond when asked for his proper name, and is given the last surname Corleone by an immigration official at Ellis Island. Throughout the film series, various members of the Corleone family visit the town. In the films, the towns of Savoca and Forza d'Agrò were used as locations for those scenes set in Corleone. Michael Corleone is played by Al Pacino, whose real-life maternal grandparents were Corleonese."
"at the age of 90 in 2008 from natural causes. He is survived by his wife and son. Louis Guss Louis Guss (January 4, 1918 – September 29, 2008) was an American character actor with a long line of screen credits, having appeared in hundreds of TV series, feature films and stage productions, specializing in blue-collar ethnic roles, over a five decade career. He is perhaps best known for his roles as Don Zaluchi in ""The Godfather"" (1972), Joseph Magliocco in ""Crazy Joe"" (1974), Raymond Capomaggi in ""Moonstruck"" (1987), Nathan Grodner in ""The Yards"" (2000), and Jerry ""the Hammer"" Fungo"
"James Caan James Edmund Caan (born March 26, 1940) is an American actor. After early roles in ""The Glory Guys"" (1965), for which he received a Golden Globe nomination, ""El Dorado"" (1967), and ""The Rain People"" (1969), he came to prominence in the 1970s with significant roles in films such as ""Brian's Song"" (1971), ""Cinderella Liberty"" (1973), ""The Gambler"" (1974), ""Freebie and the Bean"" (1974), ""Rollerball"" (1975), ""Funny Lady"" (1975), ""A Bridge Too Far"" (1977) and ""Chapter Two"" (1979). For his signature role in ""The Godfather"" (1972), that of hot-tempered Sonny Corleone, Caan was nominated for the Academy Award for"
"Louis Guss Louis Guss (January 4, 1918 – September 29, 2008) was an American character actor with a long line of screen credits, having appeared in hundreds of TV series, feature films and stage productions, specializing in blue-collar ethnic roles, over a five decade career. He is perhaps best known for his roles as Don Zaluchi in ""The Godfather"" (1972), Joseph Magliocco in ""Crazy Joe"" (1974), Raymond Capomaggi in ""Moonstruck"" (1987), Nathan Grodner in ""The Yards"" (2000), and Jerry ""the Hammer"" Fungo in ""The Crew"" (2000). His last role was in Sidney Lumet's ""Find Me Guilty"" in 2006. Guss died"
"for the same film. Tom Hagen Thomas Hagen is a fictional character in Mario Puzo's novel ""The Godfather"" and Francis Ford Coppola's films ""The Godfather"" and ""The Godfather Part II"". He is portrayed by Robert Duvall in the films. Hagen is the informally adopted son of the mafia don Vito Corleone. He is a qualified lawyer and the ""consigliere"" to the Corleone American mafia family. Mild-mannered and soft-spoken, he serves as the voice of reason within the family. The novel and first film establish that he is of German-Irish ancestry. Sonny Corleone befriends 11-year-old Tom, who was living on the"
"Sopranos"", and in ""When in Rome"". In 1989, Duse starred in the film ""Queen of Hearts"", and he won the Jury Distinction Award at the Montréal World Film Festival. Vittorio Duse Vittorio Duse (21 March 1916 – 2 June 2005) also known as ""Victor Duncan"" or ""Victor Duse"" was an Italian actor born on 21 March 1916 in Marche, Italy. He died on 2 June 2005 in Rome, Italy. One of his first roles was in Luchino Visconti's debut feature ""Ossessione"" (1942). Outside Italy, Duse is known for his role in ""The Godfather Part III"" as Don Tommasino in 1990,"
"The Godfather Part III The Godfather Part III is a 1990 American crime film written by Mario Puzo and Francis Ford Coppola, and directed by Coppola. A sequel to ""The Godfather"" (1972) and ""The Godfather Part II"" (1974), it completes the story of Michael Corleone, a Mafia kingpin who attempts to legitimize his criminal empire. The film also includes fictionalized accounts of two real-life events: the 1978 death of Pope John Paul I and the Papal banking scandal of 1981–82, both linked to Michael Corleone's business affairs. The film stars Al Pacino, Diane Keaton, Talia Shire, and Andy García, and"
"and television. Russo's portrayal of Rizzi led him to be the spokesperson for the 2016 brand of Don Corleone Organic Italian Vodka. Carlo Rizzi (The Godfather) Carlo Rizzi is a fictional character in Mario Puzo's novel ""The Godfather"". In the 1972 film adaptation, he was portrayed by Gianni Russo. Described in the novel as ""a punk, sore at the world"", Rizzi is born in Nevada and moves to New York City following some trouble he'd run into with the law. He befriends Sonny Corleone and in 1941, he meets Connie at a surprise birthday party for Vito. The two marry"
"Carmela Corleone Carmela Corleone (1897–1959) a fictional character in Mario Puzo's ""The Godfather"", is the wife of Don Vito Corleone. Carmela is portrayed by Italian-American Morgana King in Francis Ford Coppola's film adaptation of the novel, and in ""The Godfather Part II"". King was born Maria Grazia Morgana Messina in Pleasantville, New York; her parents were ""from Fiumefreddo di Sicilia, Province of Catania, Sicily, Italy."" King is better known as a singer and is given a brief chance to display her vocal skills in the wedding reception scene of ""The Godfather"" when she sings the song ""Luna Mezz'O Mare"". Carmela"