Talk:The Godfather (novel)

message: Since its release on March 15, 1972, The Godfather has been accused of glorifying the image of the Mafia, although this word is never spoken in the film, or written in the book (although the word is spoken in the first sequel film)
This is silly, and factually wrong.  See:  http://people.freenet.de/kvlampe/PUZOGODF.htm#mafia.  The word "mafia" is used through out the book, and probably the movie, which only makes sense. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.57.233.74 (talk) 01:42, 17 December 2004 (UTC)
thread_title: Initial text

message: Over on the Mario Puzo Wikipedia page, it says this was on the NYT best-seller list for several weeks.  That ought to be worth mentioning, but I don't feel like I should be citing another Wikipedia page as a source - I didn't find the source over there, anyone know one?Alexgriz (talk) 12:23, 14 March 2012 (UTC)
thread_title:  Sales 

message: The word Mafia does not appear anywhere in the first film, neither does the term 'Cosa Nostra' or 'Our Thing' due to pressure from an Italian American Civil Rights group that had been formed by mobster Joe Colombo. The aim of the group was to improve Italian reputations by removing any hints of Italian links to crime in TV or Film, along with Italian terminology in Radio adverts. However the real purpose of the group was to get the police off their backs by making the police look discriminatory whenever an Italian was arressted or interogated for mafia related crimes.
My response to the previous unsigned, undated blather is "So what?" This Wiki page is for the novel after all, not the movie.John Simpson54 (talk) 02:57, 2 June 2021 (UTC)
thread_title:  Mafia 

message: In the following two paragraphs I think that "Don" on it's own isn't used properly. I don't know Italian, but in Spanish it's not a title but just a particle you put in front of someone's name to indicate respect, hence "Don" alone would be like "Mister" in English. Can someone confirm this?
 The role of Don Vito Corleone was memorably acted by Marlon Brando, and Brando won an Academy Award for his portrayal of the aging Don. Many of the actors playing the supporting roles were largely unknown or minor actors; however, they rocketed into the limelight with the success of The Godfather. In particular, Pacino and Robert Duvall enjoyed long, successful, highly acclaimed careers.
Since its release on March 15, 1972, The Godfather has been accused of glorifying the image of the Mafia. Don Vito Corleone was portrayed by Brando as a Mafia Don whom people could actually respect (although the actions of Don Michael Corleone in The Godfather Part II worked to tear down this image).
:I also don't know any Italian, but I read the novel a couple weeks ago, and the usage in the paragraphs you've mentioned is accurate insofar and the usage in the book.  74.110.71.97 01:57, 5 January 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Don 

message: I'm going to furnish, clean up and add much more information to this entry, and have already started, adding an infobox, links and furnishing the introduction, as well as including this entry into WikiProject Novels. A detailed plot summary, character information and critical acclaim sections will follow soon. - Ganryuu 08:08, 4 May 2006 (UTC)
thread_title: Re-furnished this entry

message: Discussing the EA video game adaptation of the Godfather movie is probably not necessary here since it is, after all, an adaptation of the movie, and not the book.  (If retained, some mention should also be made of the earlier 1991 Godfather video game -- but more likely the section here should be axed and mention of the board game shipped on over to the movie page.) Pseudo Intellectual 10:21, 7 January 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Video Games? 

message: I consider myself the world’s foremost authority <er, VBG?> on The Godfather, the novel.  I sometimes thought that I knew the book better than Mario Puzo had himself.  Before he passed away, I often wished that I could have met him so that I could have scolded him on what a sloppy effort it was, notwithstanding it being a true masterpiece rivaling the works of the immortal bard.  When I say what a sloppy book it is, I am not referring to Mr. Puzo’s lamentable (or perhaps laudable) lack of knowledge regarding the true nature of organized crime.  Nobody takes the book seriously on that count.  Even FFC called it a "fairy tale."
What I am referring to is that I once noted several different consistency mistakes within it.  It is almost as if that since the editorship knew it was going to be a runaway bestseller upon the first read, no one bothered to proofread it.  Why bother? Just rush to print!
(Why bother?  Because one should take pride in one’s work!) 
Probably the most egregious example is where in one chapter Don Corleone (in bed) hears cars coming to the house at midnight and knows instantly something is amiss.  He then rises from his sick bed to confront Hagen downstairs who gives him the news about Sonny.  According to the narrative, it was then (after the impromptu meeting with the capos) that Hagen called Bonoasera per the don's directive.  Yet, in another chapter, the undertaker receives the very same call and it is dinner time.
Another example would be that Clemenza is chosen to kill Carlo Rizzi to avenge Sonny’s murder because he was Sonny’s godfather.  Yet, in Book III, it is stated that Clemenza doesn’t even meet Vito Corleone until after Fredo, the second son and child, is born.  (Besides, why would Corleone have chosen Clemenza for such a high honor (especially for Italian people) in regard to his firstborn son and not Genco Abbandando, his best friend and future consigliere?)
What makes the book a masterpiece is Mr. Puzo’s profound grasp of human nature and his ability to translate such into the written word.  The characterizations are superb and rival Shakespeare’s.  Mr. Puzo had an almost feminine perception and intuition.  Few writers had his or her hand on the pulse of human nature as solidly as had Mr. Puzo.
Nevertheless, just as the book is so sloppy, I’ve noticed a tendency towards the same carelessness when it comes to many of The Godfather related Wikipedia articles.  To that effect, I intend to clean up these articles and expunge all inaccuracies that I find.  I have already begun with the Clemenza article where the article had Clemenza personally killing Paulie Gatto (it had been, of course, Lampone in both the novel and the movie) and beating up the two punks who had attacked Bonoasera’s daughter. (It had been Gatto along with two ex-boxers who are now Corleone Family loan shark associates.)
As my time is limited right now, this will be a slow and gradual process as an ongoing effort to purify all entries concerning our beloved novel.  Please think twice about undoing any edits I make as I know the book as Fundamentalists know the Bible.  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 146.145.75.114 (talk) 19:18, 1 October 2009 (UTC)
thread_title:  Cleaning up ''The Godfather'' articles 

message: I seem to remember hearing some time ago that this was a novel written for the specific purpose of providing a source for a later film adaptation.  If I remember correctly Paramount was involved with the novel right from the start and may even have funded it.  Is there any substance at all or am I completely on the wrong track? Oliver9184 (talk) 16:54, 29 November 2009 (UTC)
thread_title:  Was this book written with an adaptation in mind? 

message: The article says very little about The Godfather's literary value, the ideas discussed within the book, the major themes, etc. An addition of those is definitely needed. LaughingSkull (talk) 18:56, 5 March 2010 (UTC)
thread_title:  Article needs to say more about the book's worth 

message: Why is there no plot summary? I would do it but I have never read the book. Disc Wheel (Malk + Montributions)  02:34, 23 July 2013 (UTC)
replies: text: Hi Disc Wheel (Malk + Montributions)How about this?  –  – Gareth Griffith-Jones |The Welsh Buzzard|— 10:09, 23 July 2013 (UTC)
replies: text: ? Disc Wheel (Talk + Tontributions)  20:50, 30 July 2013 (UTC)
replies: text: @ Disc Wheel (talk) Try the link again! –  – Gareth Griffith-Jones |The Welsh Buzzard|— 21:00, 30 July 2013 (UTC)
replies: text: Well like I said, I haven't read the novel but from just by looking at it, it seems that it was taken from the movie page since it has the actors names in parenthesis? Also is there a reason why I can't make some changes to the plot summary on the movie page? Because there are a couple poorly constructed sentences that stick out... Disc Wheel (Talk + Tontributions)  21:05, 30 July 2013 (UTC)
replies: text: @ Disc Wheel (talk)First make your criticism clear on the film's Talk, together with how you would write these couple of sentences, please. Cheers!  –  – Gareth Griffith-Jones |The Welsh Buzzard|— 21:11, 30 July 2013 (UTC)
thread_title:  No plot summary 

message: The material about the book "The Godfather Effect" is an unusual insertion - it's also been injected into the article about the movie, and in separate articles about the book "The Godfather Effect" and its author. I think it should be removed, as its main intent seems to be to promote the "The Godfather Effect."Arnold Rothstein1921 (talk) 17:02, 26 December 2013 (UTC)
replies: text: I have always thought it does not belong in the film article. — | Gareth Griffith-Jones |The WelshBuzzard| — 21:07, 26 December 2013 (UTC)
thread_title: The Godfather Effect material

message: There is no page for Connie Corleone. She doesn't even get red links. What in the world is that about? This is 2014, people. I'm making it now. Daniel J. Hakimi (talk) 22:37, 22 January 2014 (UTC)
replies: text: In the novel she is not much featured. whereas her role in the first and third films is prominent — | Gareth Griffith-Jones |The WelshBuzzard| — 00:00, 23 January 2014 (UTC)
replies: text: Alright, I guess I'll go complain @ the film trilogy talk page. Daniel J. Hakimi (talk) 01:55, 23 January 2014 (UTC)
thread_title:  Connie Corleone Page Missing 

message: The link to crime novel makes no mention in that article of the book or puzo. Should it? As does the Italian American writers.SharpQuillPen (talk) 08:53, 28 January 2014 (UTC)
replies: text: @ If you are referring to the opening line, then "No". That is a link to clarify what is meant by the expression "crime novel" and leads you to this — | Gareth Griffith-Jones |The WelshBuzzard| — 10:29, 28 January 2014 (UTC)
thread_title:  Link to no mention of godfather or puzo 

message: Just removed the section about "Title" controversy. There was no citation or reference. I'm familiar with the subject, and can recall no such controversy. An investigation revealed this info was added in 2007 by an IP address editor with a history of disruptive editing and bans, inactive since 2009. Ergo removal. The section added only speculation to the article. Tapered (talk) 08:02, 21 November 2014 (UTC)
thread_title: Excision

message: Hello fellow Wikipedians,
I have just modified one external link on The Godfather (novel). Please take a moment to review my edit. If you have any questions, or need the bot to ignore the links, or the page altogether, please visit this simple FaQ for additional information. I made the following changes:
*Added archive https://web.archive.org/web/20060503045430/http://www3.isrl.uiuc.edu/~unsworth/courses/bestsellers/search.cgi?title=The+Godfather to http://www3.isrl.uiuc.edu/~unsworth/courses/bestsellers/search.cgi?title=The+Godfather
When you have finished reviewing my changes, you may follow the instructions on the template below to fix any issues with the URLs.
Cheers.—InternetArchiveBot (Report bug) 07:28, 3 December 2017 (UTC)
thread_title:  External links modified 

message: Adding comment in talk page because part of my edit note was lost. According to the wiki article on this character, his given name "Salvatore" is only provided in the film and not in the novel.  — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2600:1700:85C1:A60:F13B:73A5:EBA6:6594 (talk) 13:06, 2 January 2018 (UTC)
thread_title:  Removal of Salvatore as Tessio's given name 

message: The article states that "The Corleone family fights a mob war with the other four Mafia families in New York...," but all of the clear evidence is that the Corleones are fighting five opponents. The sole ambiguity is that Stracchi, Cuneo, Tattaglia, and Barzini, and their families, are described together in the peace conference chapter, but even there it overtly says says the five men arrived last (Vito had arrived first) and that five (not capitalized) Families were fighting the Corleones.Arnold Rothstein1921 (talk) 18:31, 18 February 2020 (UTC)
thread_title: Five Families