
Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli
The Epic Story of the Making of The Godfather
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Narrated by:
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Phil Thron
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By:
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Mark Seal
About this listen
This “wickedly pacey page-turner” (Total Film) unfurls the behind-the-scenes story of the making of The Godfather, 50 years after the classic film’s original release.
The story of how The Godfather was made is as dramatic, operatic, and entertaining as the film itself. Over the years, many versions of various aspects of the movie’s fiery creation have been told - sometimes conflicting, but always compelling. Mark Seal sifts through the evidence, has extensive new conversations with director Francis Ford Coppola and several heretofore silent sources, and complements them with colorful interviews with key players including actors Al Pacino, James Caan, Talia Shire, and others to write “the definitive look at the making of an American classic” (Library Journal, starred review).
On top of the usual complications of filmmaking, the creators of The Godfather had to contend with the real-life members of its subject matter: the Mob. During production of the movie, location permits were inexplicably revoked, author Mario Puzo got into a public brawl with an irate Frank Sinatra, producer Al Ruddy’s car was found riddled with bullets, men with “connections” vied to be in the cast, and some were given film roles.
As Seal notes, this is the tale of a “movie that revolutionized filmmaking, saved Paramount Pictures, minted a new generation of movie stars, made its struggling author Mario Puzo rich and famous, and sparked a war between two of the mightiest powers in America: the sharks of Hollywood and the highest echelons of the Mob.”
“For fans of books about moviemaking, this is a definite must-read” (Booklist).
©2021 Mark Seal. All rights reserved. (P)2021 Simon & Schuster, Inc. All rights reserved.Listeners also enjoyed...
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Outstanding: An Instant Classic!
- By steve on 09-10-12
By: Ed Falco
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The Friedkin Connection
- A Memoir
- By: William Friedkin
- Narrated by: William Friedkin
- Length: 19 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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Friedkin Connection takes listeners from the streets of Chicago to the suites of Hollywood and from the sixties to today. William Friedkin offers a candid look at a thrilling era of Hollywood cinema, when traditional storytelling gave way to the rebellious and alternative; when filmmakers like him captured the paranoia and fear of a nation undergoing a cultural nervous breakdown.
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Thank you, William Friedkin
- By L. Robertson on 04-30-25
By: William Friedkin
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Made Men
- The Story of Goodfellas
- By: Glenn Kenny
- Narrated by: Stephen Graybill
- Length: 11 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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When Goodfellas first hit the theaters in 1990, a classic was born. Few could anticipate the unparalleled influence it would have on pop culture, one that would inspire future filmmakers and redefine the gangster picture as we know it today. From the rush of grotesque violence in the opening scene to the iconic hilarity of Joe Pesci’s endlessly quoted “Funny how?” shtick, it’s little wonder the film is widely regarded as a mainstay in contemporary cinema.
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Mostly script-reading and pedantic film criticism
- By Buretto on 09-26-20
By: Glenn Kenny
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Hollywood and the Movies of the Fifties
- The Collapse of the Studio System, the Thrill of Cinerama, and the Invasion of the Ultimate Body Snatcher—Television
- By: Foster Hirsch
- Narrated by: Foster Hirsch
- Length: 36 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
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Hollywood in the 1950s was a period when the film industry both set conventions and broke norms and traditions—from Cinerama, Cinemascope and Vistavision to the epic film and lavish musical. It was a decade that saw the rise of the anti-hero; the smoldering, the hidden, and the unspoken; teenagers gone wild in the streets; the sacred and the profane; the revolution of the Method; the socially conscious; the implosion of the studios, the end of the production code; and the invasion of the ultimate body snatcher: the “small screen” television.
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Captivating from start to finish
- By Steve C. on 02-01-25
By: Foster Hirsch
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Omerta
- A Novel
- By: Mario Puzo
- Narrated by: Michael Imperioli
- Length: 8 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
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To Don Raymonde Aprile’s children, he was a loyal family member, their father’s adopted “nephew.” To the FBI he was a man who would rather ride his horses than do Mob business. No one knew why Aprile, the last great American don, had adopted Astorre Viola many years before in Sicily; no one suspected how he had carefully trained him...and how, while the don’s children claimed respectable careers in America, Astorre Viola waited for his time to come.
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Just brilliant!
- By Amazon Customer on 07-04-16
By: Mario Puzo
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The Last Don
- By: Mario Puzo
- Narrated by: Joe Barrett
- Length: 18 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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The last don is Domenico Clericuzio, a wise and ruthless man who is determined to see his heirs established in legitimate society but whose vision is threatened when secrets from the family's past spark a vicious war between two blood cousins. This is a mesmerizing tale that takes us inside the equally corrupt worlds of the mob, the movie industry and the casinos - where beautiful actresses and ruthless hit men are ruled by lust and violence.
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Daunte has a Bloody Mouth
- By Jim "The Impatient" on 06-06-13
By: Mario Puzo
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The Fortunate Pilgrim
- By: Mario Puzo
- Narrated by: John Kenneth
- Length: 9 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
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Lucia Santa has traveled 3,000 miles of dark ocean, from the mountain farms of Italy to the streets of New York, hoping for a better life. Instead, she finds herself in Hell's Kitchen, in a bad marriage, raising six children on her own. As Lucia struggles to hold her family together, her daughter confronts the adult world of work and romance while her eldest son is drawn into the Mafia. Meanwhile, her youngest son aspires to American pursuits she cannot understand.
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Puzo's Best
- By Amazon Customer on 02-19-13
By: Mario Puzo
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The Big Goodbye
- Chinatown and the Last Years of Hollywood
- By: Sam Wasson
- Narrated by: Sam Wasson
- Length: 11 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
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Chinatown is the Holy Grail of 1970s cinema. Its twist ending is the most notorious in American film and its closing line of dialogue the most haunting. Here for the first time is the incredible true story of its making. In Sam Wasson's telling, it becomes the defining story of the most colorful characters in the most colorful period of Hollywood history. Here is Jack Nicholson at the height of his powers, as compelling a movie star as there has ever been, embarking on his great, doomed love affair with Anjelica Huston.
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This book is cursed
- By Dobbs on 04-13-20
By: Sam Wasson
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Oscar Wars
- A History of Hollywood in Gold, Sweat, and Tears
- By: Michael Schulman
- Narrated by: Charlie Thurston
- Length: 21 hrs
- Unabridged
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In Oscar Wars, Michael Schulman chronicles the remarkable, sprawling history of the Academy Awards and the personal dramas—some iconic, others never-before-revealed—that have played out on the stage and off camera. Unlike other books on the subject, each chapter takes a deep dive into a particular year, conflict, or even category that tells a larger story of cultural change, from Louis B. Mayer to Moonlight. Schulman examines how the red carpet runs through contested turf, and the victors aren't always as clear as the names drawn from envelopes.
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Fascinating and FUN
- By Peter Riley on 06-11-23
By: Michael Schulman
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Pandora's Box
- How Guts, Guile, and Greed Upended TV
- By: Peter Biskind
- Narrated by: Robert Petkoff
- Length: 12 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
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Instead of focusing on one service, like HBO, Pandora’s Box asks, “What did HBO do, besides give us The Sopranos?” The answer: It gave us a revolution. Biskind bites off a big chunk of entertainment history, following HBO from its birth into maturity, moving on to the basic cablers like FX and AMC, and ending up with the streamers and their wars, pitting Netflix against Amazon Prime Video, Max, and the killer pluses—Disney, Apple TV, and Paramount.
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The rise and fall of peak TV
- By AlexBenBlock on 02-16-24
By: Peter Biskind
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Hits, Flops, and Other Illusions
- My Fortysomething Years in Hollywood
- By: Ed Zwick
- Narrated by: Ed Zwick
- Length: 10 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
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Though there are many factors behind such success, including luck and the contributions of his creative partner Marshall Herskovitz, he’s known to have a special talent for bringing out the best in the people he’s worked with, notably the actors. In those intense collaborations, he seeks to discover the small pieces of connective tissue, vulnerability, and fellowship that can help an actor realize their character in full.
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Authentic, Sobering & Full of Grace
- By David_Leah Wiley on 02-17-24
By: Ed Zwick
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The Last Action Heroes
- The Triumphs, Flops, and Feuds of Hollywood's Kings of Carnage
- By: Nick de Semlyen
- Narrated by: Bronson Pinchot
- Length: 9 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
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The Last Action Heroes opens in May 1990 in Cannes, with Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone waltzing together, cheered on by a crowd of famous faces. After years of bitter combat, the world’s biggest action stars have at last made peace. In this wildly entertaining account of the golden age of the action movie, Nick de Semlyen charts Stallone and Schwarzenegger’s carnage-packed journey from enmity to friendship against the backdrop of Reagan’s America and the Cold War.
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Fantastic!
- By Alan on 07-17-23
By: Nick de Semlyen
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Easy Riders, Raging Bulls
- How the Sex-Drugs-and-Rock 'N' Roll Generation Saved Hollywood
- By: Peter Biskind
- Narrated by: Dick Hill
- Length: 23 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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Easy Rider, Raging Bulls follows the wild ride that was Hollywood in the 70s - an unabashed celebration of sex, drugs, and rock 'n' roll (both on screen and off) and a climate where innovation and experimentation reigned supreme.
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Great Dish, Sketchy Analysis
- By Dubi on 12-14-13
By: Peter Biskind
What listeners say about Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli
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- CUSTOMERRRRRRRRR
- 09-19-22
Great telling of a great story
If you’re into behind the scenes doc-books, you can’t do much better than this. Incredible detail told I’m a whistful, thorough way. I couldn’t put it down. Great fun to read after just reading The Godfather as well!
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- Dave
- 04-30-23
The ONE book for every Godfather fan
Well researched, well told story of the making of the Godfather. I learned so much about the history of the film, Mario Puzo’s life as a writer, his inspirations, the casting process, the actors, the role of the Mafia, the conflict between Coppola and the studio, etc. It seems so improbable that the film was ever made. What a truly fantastic dive into the backstory of this legendary movie. Enjoy!
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1 person found this helpful
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- Steve FC
- 06-05-23
Brilliant
Nothing else to say. If you love The Godfather (or the insanity of filmmaking) this is the book for you.
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- James
- 10-16-23
Amazing audiobook
Whether you're a Godfather fan or just enjoy nonfiction, this is a work you won't want to stop listening to. Fascinating and compelling, and read by a great narrator that lets the story be the star. Excellent!
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- Jenny Jenkins
- 07-01-23
Riveting Multi-faceted Story
There have been so many books written by and about the principal creators of this amazing movie. Why do we need yet another? This book assembles all those viewpoints into one coherent whole — from the very inception in Mario Puzo’s head to the critical and popular acclaim it will continue to receive for a long time.
Some reviews have critiqued the male narrator’s way of generating female voices. True, it’s a little mincing. But as a woman, I didn’t mind because it didn’t interfere with the meaning and the narrator conveyed the ideas and actions of the book very well overall.
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- Amazon Customer
- 06-07-24
Incredible!!!
Having been only the second generation of an Italian family born in the United States on the West Coast, this story is so true and authentic. I loved every bit of it and brought me back to my childhood. Absolutely loved, loved, love every word.
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- KRC446
- 09-18-24
Excellent!
I nearly returned this book during the first two chapters. Had a difficult time engaging with the contents as it was not as expected,
However, by chapter 3, I was hooked. The book is well narrated, and very detailed. Every fan of the movie should listen to fully appreciate the challenges, as well as strategies and politics employed to create the Godfather movie.
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- Utah Writer/Filmmaker
- 12-07-24
If you're a filmmaker like me, you need to listen or read this.
I enjoyed this from beginning to end. I'm an independent filmmaker and I recognized and experienced, on a far far smaller level of course, the struggle and hardship experienced during the Film Production process. This book brought back some, not so fond memories of my last production. But as I finish that film, I hope against hope for even the slightest degree of success that The Godfather had and still has. And as I begin my next film, I hope to utilize the lessons learned from my last production in order to avoid the same horrible experiences. This book is both entertaining, informative, and hope inspiring. I highly recommend it!👍🎞️🎥🎬
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- SANTIAGO POZO
- 02-22-24
Fantastic
Love all of it fantastic insight into this masterpiece. Is entertaining and insanely funny. Bravo bravo bravo
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- Lisa
- 02-17-22
Informative and entertaining
I have learned a lot of stories about a movie I can share with my friends
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