These were just some of the complaints from Paramount Pictures executives during the troubled production of The Godfather as it lumbered toward its theatrical release in March 1972. But director FrancisFordCoppola’s Oscar-winning adaptation of the MarioPuzogangster novel—about a powerful Italian American family that ascends to the top of New York City’s Mafia—is now considered a true cinematic masterpiece and a pop culture touchstone. “The movie is extraordinary on every single level, from the performances to the musical cues to the language,” says actress TaliaShire, who played Don Vito Corleone’s daughter, Connie. “Time doesn’t tick for it.” In honor of the movie’s 50th anniversary, Parade salutes the remarkable history and legacy of the most monumental mobster film ever made.
A Shaky Start
Coppola, who had co-written the big war biopic Patton, landed the coveted position of director after EliaKazan (On the Waterfront) and ArthurPenn (Bonnie and Clyde) turned it down. But his job was on shaky ground even after the cameras started to roll. “There were [directors] standing to the side ready to take over,” Shire says. “Can you imagine?!” AlPacino, a breakout in the large cast, who portrayed Vito’s youngest son, Michael, recalls, “It was a great script. But we didn’t know what filmmaking was, really.”
No Marlon Brando?
Imagine BurtLancaster, Sir Laurence Olivier or AnthonyQuinn as crime boss Don Vito Corleone. Those were the actors that Paramount preferred. “We tested everybody,” Coppola says. The director pushed for the volatile Marlon Brando and knew he had found what he wanted after the actor’s transformative screen test.
A Blond Michael?
For the role of MichaelCorleone, the studio floated RobertRedford and RyanO’Neal. MartinSheen also auditioned for the part. So how did little-known Al Pacino land it? Coppola and Pacino were already friendly because they had worked together on an unproduced film. “One of my advantages was I got to know him a little during our time together,” Pacino says.
Improv Wedding
Near the beginning of the movie, Shire’s Connie—Vito’s only daughter—gets married at a lavish wedding on the family compound (actual location: the Todt Hill neighborhood of New York City’s Staten Island). Because Coppola only had two days to shoot, he asked the cast to improvise in the background and shot specific vignettes within the swirl of the festivities.
That Cat!
At least Vito’s cat didn’t have to audition. He was a walk-on…or a carry-on. On the day of the shoot in Vito’s study, Coppola scooped up a stray cat and told Brando to improvise with it. “I saw the cat running around the studio and put it in his hands,” the director says. The cat sat calmly in Brando’s lap all day.
Those Pranksters!
JamesCaan (Sonny Corleone) and RobertDuvall (Tom Hagen, the Corleones’ consigliere, or lawyer) were initially intimidated by the legendary Brando, who had received acclaim all the way back in 1951 for his breakout role in A Streetcar Named Desire—and an Oscar for On the Waterfront (1954). But they broke the ice by dropping their pants and mooning him. “He made me!” Caan says of Duvall. Brando upstaged them all by dropping his own trousers while the crew was setting up the wedding photo scene.
Gimme a Break
There was supposed to be an intermission just after Michael assassinates a rival mobster and a police captain at a restaurant. But the idea was scuttled to avoid ruining the momentum. The film’s final, uninterrupted running time: 175 minutes.
The Oranges
There’s a reason why oranges are prevalent throughout the film, including the ones that roll across the street as Vito gets shot and in the vineyard scene toward the end, where he plays with his grandson with an orange peel in his mouth. The production designer liked the contrast of the bright colors against the visual doom and gloom of the story.
The Price of Death
For the hotheaded Sonny, an ordinary death would not do. Cue a hailstorm of bullets at an ambush at a tollbooth on the Long Beach Causeway. The scene took three days, and the technicians and explosives cost $100,000, which was a sizable chunk of the film’s $6.5 million budget.
The Horse, of Course
That bloody horse head discovered in the bed of the ruthless movie producer Jack Woltz (JohnMarley) wasn’t a prop: Coppola’s scouts obtained a real horse’s head from a dog food plant in New Jersey.
A Family Affair
Shire (Connie) happens to be Coppola’s sister—and their father, Carmine, popped up as a piano player during a montage and composed several pieces of music for the soundtrack. The director’s two sons, Roman and Gian-Carlo, also have background roles. And Michael and Kay’s baby boy in the baptism scene? That’s actually Coppola’s daughter, Sofia, who grew up to appear in the sequels (in other roles) and has become a renowned writer and director herself.
This Is the End
In the haunting last shot, Michael’s wife, Kay (DianeKeaton), realizes that her husband is a powerful murdering gangster as his office door is slowly shut in her face. “It’s a violent act,” Shire says. Coppola also shot a scene of Kay in a church, lighting a candle for salvation of her husband’s soul, the book’s ending. He opted for the closing door.
Best in Show
The Godfather won the coveted 1972 Best Picture Oscar, and its 1974 sequel took the same honor. No other franchise had—or has—ever pulled off such a feat. And though The Godfather: Part III (1990) was not quite as acclaimed as its predecessors, it did receive a Best Picture nomination, losing to Dances With Wolves.
Box Office Killing
The Godfather was released on March 24, 1972, becoming an instant hit. It went on to gross $136 million in all, surpassed at the time by only Gone With the Wind and The Sound of Music. Adjusted for inflation, that’s a whopping $711 million, making it the 26th most successful film of all time.
The Godfather the Numbers
8 book publishers: The number who rejected Mario Puzo’s outline for The Godfather$5,000: The advance the New York City native, 45, got from G.P. Putnam’s SonsMarch 10, 1969: The day the book went on sale67: Number of weeks on the bestseller list21: Millions of copies sold worldwide3: Screenplay collaborations between Coppola and Puzo (for movies in 1972, 1974 and 1990)78: Puzo’s age when he died in 1999 of heart failure
The Godfather in Pop Culture
You know your movie is one for the ages when it’s referenced, copied and parodied for decades to come. Here’s a roundup of Godfather homages.
Return of the Jedi (1983): It’s no coincidence that Princess Leia kills Jabba the Hutt by strangling him with her chain. The film’s screenwriter LawrenceKasdan was inspired by Vito’s enforcer Luca Brasi (LennyMontana), whose eyes and tongue bulge out as he’s garroted by an assassin.The Simpsons (1992): Even in a series with more than 500 episodes, “Mr. Plow” remains won-d’oh!-ful, as Bart Simpson gets pelted with snowballs by the other kids in a spot-on parody of the tollbooth scene in which Sonny meets his demise. Caan himself spoofed the scene in a 2004 episode.Seinfeld (1993): For “The Bris” episode, Jerry (JerrySeinfeld) and Elaine (JuliaLouis-Dreyfus) agree to be a baby’s godparents. Turns out Kramer (MichaelRichards) is better at the job, and the child’s parents slowly close the apartment door on Jerry and Elaine and George (JasonAlexander), shutting them out of the arrangement. Sound familiar?Get Shorty (1995): AlexRocco—who played renowned Jewish mobster and Las Vegas proprietor Moe Greene—has a brief scene in this sly mob comedy in which he receives a body massage. That’s exactly what Moe was doing in The Godfather just before he was killed, with a single shot through his eyeglasses.You’ve Got Mail (1998): Doing his best Brando impression, TomHanks insists that all of life’s problems can be solved by using one of The Godfather’s credos. He soon implores MegRyan to “go to the mattresses,” to hunker down and fight for her business to stay open.The Sopranos (1999): You better believe the classic TV series made several references to the original mob family. Like when Tony Soprano (JamesGandolfini) gets shot after chugging orange juice near his car in the first season.Ocean’s Eleven (2001): In this comedic heist trilogy, the bickering brothers played by CaseyAffleck and ScottCaan (son of James) are named Virgil and Turk Molloy. That’s a wink to Virgil “The Turk” Sollozzo (AlLettieri), the Sicilian heroin trafficker killed by Michael in the restaurant.Despicable Me (2010): Even a G-rated kiddie movie can include a reference. Here, villain Gru (SteveCarell) finds a doll’s head in his bed and screams bloody murder, just like movie producer Jack Woltz.
Next, See the Cast of The Godfather Then and Now
