Ep. 10 - The Godfather at 50
Marlon Brando as Vito Corleone in Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather (1972) based on the crime novel by Mario Puzo. Photo credit: Paramount Pictures
Fifty years ago in March 1972 The Godfather had its world premiere in New York City. Based on the 1969 crime novel by Mario Puzo and directed by Francis Ford Coppola, The Godfather is praised for its cinematic artistry, performances and storytelling around an organized crime family at the end of World War II. But does The Godfather romanticize organized crime?
In episode 10 we revisit Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather 50 years later with Dan Moldea, an investigative journalist and best-selling author who specializes in organized crime. The Boston Sisters talk with Moldea about the cultural impact of The Godfather film, real-life Mob stories including Moldea’s investigation into the murder and disappearance of Jimmy Hoffa. (Recorded February 28, 2022)
Advisory: Episode 10 contains spoilers and some descriptive language in telling violent crime stories.
Dan Moldea. Photo by E. Ethelbert Miller
DAN E. MOLDEA
A specialist on investigations of organized crime and political corruption since 1974, best-selling author and investigative journalist Dan E. Moldea has published ten nonfiction books including: The Hoffa Wars: Teamsters, Rebels, Politicians, and the Mob (1978); Dark Victory: Ronald Reagan, MCA, and the Mob (1986); Interference: How Organized Crime Influences Professional Football (1989); The Killing of Robert F. Kennedy: An Investigation of Motive, Means, and Opportunity (1995). Also in 2020, Moldea published the third edition of his memoir, Confessions of a Guerrilla Writer: Adventures in the Jungles of Crime, Politics, and Journalism.
Bio source: The Authors Guild
Dan Moldea’s website
BONUS SPECIAL EDITION - A Conversation with Eater DC’s Tierney Plumb
The Godfather raised the profile of the cannoli in popular culture with one of the film’s most quoted lines, “Leave the gun. Take the cannoli.” The Boston Sisters (who call DC “home”) invited Tierney Plumb, senior associate editor of the online food guide Eater DC, to tell us where we can find the best cannolis in the DC-MD-VA or DMV area. Check out Tierney’s Eater DC’s Cannoli map. Listen to this Special Edition podcast AND episode 10.
(This segment has been updated to mention the 2022 Eater DC Cannoli map)
Directed by Francis Ford Coppola, The Godfather is frequently described as one of the greatest films of all time. It is also the most widely quoted — “Make him an offer he can’t refuse,” “Leave the gun. Take the cannoli,” “Bada Bing!” — imitated and spoofed.
Set in the late 1940s in New York, Marlon Brando and Al Pacino star as Vito Corleone and his youngest son, Michael. Corleone is, in organized crime jargon, a "godfather" or "don," the head of a Mob family. Michael, a free thinker who defied his father by enlisting in the Marines to fight in World War II, has returned a captain and a war hero. Having long ago rejected the family business, Michael is reluctantly pulled in and becomes involved in the inevitable cycle of violence and betrayal.
The Godfather also stars James Caan as Michael’s older brother Sonny (or Santino), John Cazale as the middle son Fredo, Talia Shire as their sister Connie, Diane Keaton as Michael’s girlfriend Kay, Robert Duvall as Tom Hagen the Corleone family’s consigliere or legal advisor, Gianni Russo as the ill-fated brother-in-law Carlo and many more noteworthy performances.
The Godfather was nominated for 11 Academy Awards, winning for Best Picture, Best Actor (Marlon Brando), and Best Adapted Screenplay (Mario Puzo/Francis Ford Coppola).
The Godfather was not without controversy on-screen and off.
In 2009 author Mark Seal published a feature article in Vanity Fair titled “The Godfather Wars,” a behind-the-scenes reveal of the clash between film executives, creatives and the real Mob in the making of the film. Seal’s recent book based on that story, Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli, was released in time for the film’s 50th anniversary. The Offer, a limited dramatic series (and historical drama) about the making of The Godfather, will premiere on Paramount Plus April 28, 2022.
At the Academy Awards ceremony March 27, 1973, Marlon Brando declined his award. He was represented by Native American activist Sacheen Littlefeather who explained that Marlon Brando could not accept the Oscar because of “the treatment of American Indians today by the film industry” and the month long standoff at that time between Native American activists and US authorities at Wounded Knee (South Dakota), set off by the murder of a Lakota man.
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In addition to The Godfather the following sequels and films mentioned in this podcast episode are available for streaming (check availability) with a subscription or for purchase/rental, and on Blu-ray/DVD (for purchase or to borrow from your local library).
The Godfather (1972) by Francis Ford Coppola - available for rent on Apple tv, Google, Amazon, YouTube
Godfather II (1974) by Francis Ford Coppola (Godfather II was the first sequel to win an Academy Award for Best Picture.) - available for rent on Apple tv, Google, Amazon, YouTube
Godfather III (1990) by Francis Ford Coppola - The director re-edited the film with a different beginning and ending to tell the story he intended. Godfather III was re-released in 2020 with a new title: The Godfather, Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone - available on DVD
Goodfellas (1990) by Martin Scorsese - available on HBO Max, available for rent on Apple tv, Google, Amazon
The Irishman (2019) by Martin Scorsese - available on Netflix
Casino (1995) by Martin Scorsese - available on Peacock, available for rent on Apple tv, Amazon, YouTube
The Untouchables (1959-1963 TV series) - available on DVD, some episodes can be seen on YouTube