Mobsters That Influenced “The Godfather” — New Film Announced By the Weinsteins
If you know your mafia history, you know of The Gallo Brothers. (No, not the wine guys.) And you may know of their effect on movies like The Godfather. In the 1960s, as members of the New York Profaci family, the three brothers attempted a “cosa nostra” uprising against their own.
No surprise Joey Gallo was nicknamed “Crazy Joe”.
These gangsters–and their actions–influenced The Godfather films, the crime comedy The Gang That Couldn’t Shoot Straight and, obviously, 1974’s Crazy Joe, with Peter Boyle in the title role.
The influence continues. The Weinstein Company announced they’ve acquired the rights to The Mad Ones, based on the not-yet-written Tom Folsom book — which Weinstein Books will release in 2009.
When it comes to the Mafia-Hollywood connection, it’s tough to determine which fed which. According to Jerry Capeci’s “The Complete Idiot’s Guide to the Mafia,” (is there a funnier book title?), Luca Brasi’s gruesome killing in The Godfather was partially based on an attempt to murder Larry Gallo.
Then, in 1972, The New York Times reported that The Godfather’s success convinced Crazy Joe Gallo to write his memoirs. And, as we learned from the excellent true crime drama Donnie Brasco, some of these mob stories are stranger–and more dangerous–than fiction.
GEEK NOTE: Joe Gallo was friends with actor Jerry Orbach, and was married in Orbach’s home. Orbach starred in the previously mentioned The Gang That Couldn’t Shoot Straight (1971).
QUESTION:
What are some of your favorite scenes / lines / characters in mob movies? TELL US
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