Download Hollywood Godfather My Life in the Movies and the Mob Gianni Russo Patrick Picciarelli 9781250319081 Books
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Download As PDF : Hollywood Godfather My Life in the Movies and the Mob Gianni Russo Patrick Picciarelli 9781250319081 Books
"Gianni Russo walks the walk and talks the talk. What a life. Fascinating. A worthy read." ― Robert De Niro
This program is read by the author and includes a bonus conversation.
The over-the-top memoir of a real-life mobster-turned-actor who helped make The Godfather a reality, and his story of life on the edge between danger and glamour.
Gianni Russo was a handsome 25-year-old mobster with no acting experience when he walked onto the set of The Godfather and entered Hollywood history. He played Carlo Rizzi, the husband of Connie Corleone, who set her brother Sonny―played by James Caan―up for a hit. Russo didn't have to act―he knew the mob inside and out from his childhood in Little Italy, where Mafia legend Frank Costello took him under his wing, to acting as a messenger for New Orleans mob boss Carlos Marcello during the Kennedy assassination, to having to go on the lam after shooting and killing a member of the Colombian drug cartel in his Vegas club.
Along the way, Russo befriended Frank Sinatra, who became his son's godfather, and Marlon Brando, who mentored his career as an actor after trying to get Francis Ford Coppola to fire him from The Godfather. Russo had passionate affairs with Marilyn Monroe, Liza Minelli, and scores of other celebrities. He went on to star in The Godfather Parts I and II, Seabiscuit, Any Given Sunday and Rush Hour 2, among many other films, and also acted as producer on several. Hollywood Godfather is his no-holds-barred account of a life lived on the edge. It is a story filled with violence, glamour, sex―and fun.
Download Hollywood Godfather My Life in the Movies and the Mob Gianni Russo Patrick Picciarelli 9781250319081 Books
"To be perfectly honest this reviewer had doubts about whether he would like this autobiography. There is just something odd about paying money to read about a confessed mobster. And the fact that the same mobster was able to threaten and then make friends with some of this reviewer’s favorite actors was also unsettling.
However, once I started reading I couldn’t stop. The book is a slam-dunk page-turner. I’m so glad the author Gianni Russo survived to share his life-adventures with the readers of this volume.
And survival was not assured for Russo. He had a very close call with death when he went to Columbia to see Pablo Escobar after he had shot and killed one of Escobar’s hoods sent to set up his Las Vegas cocaine network. That was one close call for Russo. What finally saved Russo was the fact that Escobar loved the movie “Godfather†including the character Russo had played as Carlo Rizzi, who married Michael Corleone’s sister. Escobar even acted out Rizzi’s confession scenes with Michael Corleone. Russo was afraid that Escobar would even recreate Rizzi’s strangulation scene in the car where he kicked out the windshield.
I’d wanted to read the book for the information Russo had written about Marilyn Monroe, whom he dated and confided in for years in NYC. I have to agree with his theory about who killed Marilyn and how.
Russo was also shipped out of the USA for almost two years because he felt that he had played a minor messenger role in the killing of JFK. Most of the people connected with that event were killed shortly after the event and Russo felt he’d seen Lee Harvey Oswald with New Orleans
Mob boss Carlos Marcello just prior to the Dallas Assassination of JFK. Russo’s boss Frank Costello had chosen to protect his long-time delivery boy from both the police and rest of the mob by sending him to Europe.
The book is filled with Russo’s friendships with Marlon Brando, Frank Sinatra, Elvis, Sammy Davis, Jr. etc, etc. He had affairs with Liza Minelli and dozens of other movie stars in addition to Marilyn Monroe.
There are some great experiences detailed in this autobiography. It’s difficult to put aside once started. And as Russo admits, “I’ve never physically hurt anyone unless it meant my survival.""
Product details - Audio CD
- Publisher Macmillan Audio; Unabridged edition (March 12, 2019)
- Language English
- ISBN-10 1250319080
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Hollywood Godfather My Life in the Movies and the Mob Gianni Russo Patrick Picciarelli 9781250319081 Books Reviews :
Hollywood Godfather My Life in the Movies and the Mob Gianni Russo Patrick Picciarelli 9781250319081 Books Reviews
- I have read quite a few interviews with Gianni Russo over the years and after reading this book I went back and reread quite a few to verify that I wasn't crazy. Mr. Russo is a great story teller. Over the years his assertions and accounts of his life have varied greatly and seemed to grow in scope and importance. The book appears to be a rehashing of his accomplished life with excessive embellishments. He now claims as part of his exploits to have been a courier for the Godfather of Godfathers, an intermediary for the mob who convinced Joey Gallo to allow the filming of the Godfather to take place; a conduit for a mob/Vatican money laundering scheme; a contact point (via his doctor's wife) for the Shah of Iran to get his money out of the country mere hours before his regime fell...Said money being once again laundered by his contacts in the Vatican Bank...a murderer not once but twice....(one killing is public record); and even been tortured by the one and only Pablo Escobar for the killing of one of his soldiers. This was all accomplished while bedding Marilyn Monroe, Liza Minelli and a bevy of other starlets. Gianni soft shoes topics of paternity and lawsuits. The book is a quick read and worthy of a cross country flight or perhaps a day on the beach. It suffers from poor editing and a confusing timeline or perhaps just a confused author as it jumps around with disparate events from various decades seemingly taking place at once. If his "history" is accurate...it is a pity that the editors couldn't organize the book in chronological order, provide a modicum of proof or backup to Gianni's claims. If he did half of what he claims it would make a great movie. I enjoyed it but found many similarities between his story and various plots or subplots of the mob movies that have been hits over the years. Wait for paperback or buy it used.
- To be perfectly honest this reviewer had doubts about whether he would like this autobiography. There is just something odd about paying money to read about a confessed mobster. And the fact that the same mobster was able to threaten and then make friends with some of this reviewer’s favorite actors was also unsettling.
However, once I started reading I couldn’t stop. The book is a slam-dunk page-turner. I’m so glad the author Gianni Russo survived to share his life-adventures with the readers of this volume.
And survival was not assured for Russo. He had a very close call with death when he went to Columbia to see Pablo Escobar after he had shot and killed one of Escobar’s hoods sent to set up his Las Vegas cocaine network. That was one close call for Russo. What finally saved Russo was the fact that Escobar loved the movie “Godfather†including the character Russo had played as Carlo Rizzi, who married Michael Corleone’s sister. Escobar even acted out Rizzi’s confession scenes with Michael Corleone. Russo was afraid that Escobar would even recreate Rizzi’s strangulation scene in the car where he kicked out the windshield.
I’d wanted to read the book for the information Russo had written about Marilyn Monroe, whom he dated and confided in for years in NYC. I have to agree with his theory about who killed Marilyn and how.
Russo was also shipped out of the USA for almost two years because he felt that he had played a minor messenger role in the killing of JFK. Most of the people connected with that event were killed shortly after the event and Russo felt he’d seen Lee Harvey Oswald with New Orleans
Mob boss Carlos Marcello just prior to the Dallas Assassination of JFK. Russo’s boss Frank Costello had chosen to protect his long-time delivery boy from both the police and rest of the mob by sending him to Europe.
The book is filled with Russo’s friendships with Marlon Brando, Frank Sinatra, Elvis, Sammy Davis, Jr. etc, etc. He had affairs with Liza Minelli and dozens of other movie stars in addition to Marilyn Monroe.
There are some great experiences detailed in this autobiography. It’s difficult to put aside once started. And as Russo admits, “I’ve never physically hurt anyone unless it meant my survival." - Mr. Russo has lived a dozen lives in one lifetime; successful club owner, mafia associate, actor in one of the most recognized and beloved films of all time, and more. He's rubbed elbows with the elite that the rest of us can only dream of, and yet, when you read this book, he still comes off as an every day Joe, never condescending nor forgetting his humble and rather heartbreaking roots. From the moment I downloaded this book into my , I was hooked. His descriptions and anecdotes made me feel as if I were right there, living each moment with him. I am now even more a fan of his work, and admire his strength in how much he's kept overcoming and keeping his chin up, never once losing his faith in himself nor his faith in God. I highly recommend this book.
Tracie Ivey - Interesting book, but hard to believe a so called person in "our thing" would write this. Must of needed money. Lots of bull and putting himself as a know it all. Being Sicilian myself no one in "our thing" would have written this.
