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15 Things You Probably Didn’t Know About The Making of the Godfather Movies

Somehow, George Lucas is responsible for a small (yet crucial) part of The Godfather. Here’s the full story on that, plus 14 others:

15

The Godfather got made partly because a studio bigwig loved the mafia. Bluhdorn When Charles Bluhdorn, who was chairman of Paramount's parent company and had rumored mafia connections, asked producer Al Ruddy What do you want to do with this movie? Ruddy said Charlie, I want to make an ice-blue,

Source: Vanity Fair

14

The Ellis island scene in The Godfather Part II was shot in Trieste, Italy. The location was Trieste's Old Fish Market (which has since been restored and turned into a cultural center).

Source: Movie Locations

13

Originally, Marlon Brando was going to have a cameo in The Godfather Part IL. He was scheduled to appear for one day of shooting, but didn't show up, apparently because of a financial dispute with the studioc so the flashback scene was rewritten at the last second. CRACKED.COM

Source: IndieWire

12

They were going to make The Godfather Part IV. Coppola had an idea for it and discussed it with Mario Puzo, and Andy Garcia was going to play the lead. But the project folded after Puzo died.

Source: GQ

11

They pulled a prank on Lenny Montana in The Godfather to get him to relax. Montana, who wasn't an actor but played Luca Brasi, was super nervous about doing a scene with Marlon Brando. So they put a piece of tape on his tongue with F**k You written on it,

Source: Vanity Fair

10

Burt Reynolds was offered the role of Michael Corleone, but passed. According to rumor, Marlon Brando said he'd quit if they brought Reynolds onboard. I was flattered that he was upset, said Reynolds.

Source: Variety

9

The Godfather doesn't use the words mafia or la cosa nostra because of an agreement with the mob. W W W R Joe colombo After Joe Colombo, mobster and also cofounder of the Italian-American Civil Rights League, threatened to obstruct the movie shoot, producer Al Ruddy assured him the movie

Source: MentalFloss

8

Hyman Roth from The Godfather: Part II was based on Meyer Lansky, a real gangster. The story goes that Lansky called Roth after seeing the movie and said the performance was great, but also told him, You could have made me more sympathetic. After all, I am a grandfather.

Source: AMC

7

Tony Vallelonga (from The Green Book) was in The Godfather. Vallelonga (played by Viggo Mortensen in The Green Book) met Francis Ford Coppola and casting director Louis DiGiaimo at the nightclub Copacabana, and they put him in the movie as an uncredited wedding guest.

Source: Bustle

6

The studio absolutely did not want Marlon Brando in The Godfather. They thought he was so much trouble, they'd only consider him if he did a screen test, took zero pay, and put up a million-dollar bond as insurance. In the end, he did a screen test, got paid

Source: NPR

5

The Godfather was almost set in Kansas City. M That's where the first draft of the script was set, and the studio even took Francis Ford Coppola on a tour of the Italian neighborhoods in Kansas City.

Source: NPR

4

Sofia Coppola replaced Winona Ryder in The Godfather Part IlI at the last minute. Ryder got suddenly sick, and the two alternatives they'd had didn't pan out, so Francis Ford Coppola said I'm going to try Sofia. CRACKED.COM

Source: Entertainment Wekkly

3

George Lucas shot the news insert footage in The Godfather. Mirror Daily 3 NEW CORLEQ VITO FEARED MURDER Lucas and Francis Ford Coppola are longtime friends, and they've worked on each other's films over the years. CRACKED.COM

Source: TIME

2

Real-life gangster Frank Costello inspired Don Corleone. He was called The Prime Minister of the Mafia, and he was measured and used violence only when other options were exhausted. Marlon Brando even based Corleone's voice on Costello's. CRACKED.COM

Source: AMC

1

Jack Nicholson turned down the role of Michael Corleone. Back then I believed that Indians should play Indians and Italians should play Italians, he said.

Source: MovieLine

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