Married to the Mob

Summary

Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli: Episode Summary - "Married to the Mob"

Episode Release Date: March 26, 2025

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Introduction

In the episode titled "Married to the Mob," Mark Seal and Nathan King delve deep into the tumultuous journey behind the making of Francis Ford Coppola's iconic film, The Godfather. Drawing from new and archival interviews, the hosts uncover the intense opposition the film faced from both studio executives and real-life mafiosi, painting a vivid picture of the challenges that nearly prevented this cinematic masterpiece from coming to fruition.

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The Italian American Civil Rights League and Joe Colombo

The episode begins by introducing Joe Colombo, the founder of the Italian American Civil Rights League (IACRL), established in 1970. Colombo aimed to combat the pervasive stereotypes of Italian Americans as inherently linked to organized crime. Anthony Colombo Jr., Joe's grandson, provides insights into Joe's motivations:

"There are Italian American organized criminals, but there are organized criminals in every ethnicity. And so the Justice Department has only labeled and stigmatized one ethnic community, an Italian American community, and it's unfair."
— Anthony Colombo Jr., [05:35]

Joe Colombo further explains the personal impetus behind forming the league:

"April of 1970, the FBI arrested his son and charged him with a scam to melt down coins and sell the silver. Colombo thought this was harassment, so he decided to get a group together and protest it outside FBI headquarters."
— Joe Colombo, [06:11]

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Opposition to The Godfather

As The Godfather entered production, resistance emerged almost immediately. Al Ruddy, the film's producer, recounts early threats aimed at halting the project:

"A mysterious man shows up in the office of Paramount, supposedly with a check for $1 million, which he would give them in exchange for dropping the picture. Death threats became routine. Ruddy began keeping a .45 pistol in his desk."
— Joe Colombo, [04:17]

The IACRL became the most vocal opponent, fearing that the film would perpetuate negative stereotypes about Italian Americans. Anthony Colombo Jr. highlights the league's concerns:

"When Mario Puzo's book became a bestseller and was going to be made into a movie, there were efforts to combat that by my grandfather in the League."
— Anthony Colombo Jr., [08:44]

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Intimidation and Threats

The threats escalated beyond verbal warnings to tangible intimidation. Joe Colombo details incidents that heightened tensions:

"Al Ruddy became so paranoid that he and Betty would routinely swap cars to throw off any would-be trackers. And one night while driving Ruddy's Fassel Vega convertible, Betty saw a car following her all the way home. Shots rang out over the neighborhood, and all the windows had been shot out of the Fazel Vega—a clear warning."
— Joe Colombo, [10:43]

Despite these threats, Ruddy and his team persisted, moving production to New York but encountering constant disruptions orchestrated by the mob.

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Negotiating with Joe Colombo

Faced with increasing obstacles, Al Ruddy sought a resolution by arranging a meeting with Joe Colombo. Facilitated by Eddie Goldstone, a talent agent with influential connections, the meeting aimed to negotiate terms that would allow the film's completion.

Upon their first face-to-face interaction, Joe Colombo set forth three conditions:

1. Removal of Specific Terms: Delete the words "Mafia" and "Cosa Nostra" from the script.
2. Script Review: Allow the IACRL to review and revise any content deemed damaging to Italian American image.
3. Charitable Contribution: Donate proceeds from the film's New York premiere to the league's hospital fund.

Al Ruddy agreed to all terms, marking an unprecedented concession in Hollywood:

"He agrees to all of it, which is a pretty unprecedented deal for a Hollywood producer to make."
— Joe Colombo, [17:18]

Despite initial skepticism, Ruddy moved forward, believing that cooperation was essential to overcome the production hurdles.

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Public Backlash and Paramount's Dilemma

To solidify their newfound alliance, Joe Colombo organized a press conference to announce the partnership between the IACRL and the film's production team. However, the media's reception was overwhelmingly negative:

"The Times called the deal a hypocritical, craven act of voluntary self-censorship. And the Village Voice wrote, if you want to produce a film on the Mafia, please ask their permission first."
— Joe Colombo, [21:55]

The unfavorable press caused Gulf and Western, the parent company, to experience a stock drop of two and a half points. Al Ruddy found himself facing termination:

"Ruddy goes into Bludorn's office the next day. Charlie Bludorn is livid, saying, 'You wreck my company.' But Francis Coppola intervened, convincing Bludorn that Ruddy was essential to completing the film, leading to Ruddy's reinstatement."
— Joe Colombo, [23:02]

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Overcoming the Odds

With Al Ruddy back on board, the production gained newfound momentum. Joe Colombo leveraged his influence to facilitate smooth operations:

"Any problem the movie had, all they had to do was call Joe Colombo."
— Joe Colombo, [23:02]

The collaborative effort between the filmmakers and the IACRL overcame the initial resistance, leading to the successful completion of The Godfather. The episode highlights how external pressures and internal negotiations shaped the film's legacy, ultimately contributing to its portrayal of Italian American culture in a nuanced light.

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Conclusion

"Married to the Mob" offers an intricate look into the behind-the-scenes battles that defined the making of The Godfather. Through candid interviews and detailed narratives, Mark Seal and Nathan King illuminate the delicate balance between preserving cultural identity and achieving cinematic greatness. The episode underscores the profound impact of The Godfather on both Hollywood and the perception of Italian Americans in society.

---

Notable Quotes

• Joe Colombo, discussing early threats:
  "Death threats became routine. Ruddy began keeping a .45 pistol in his desk."
  [04:17]

• Anthony Colombo Jr., on stereotypes:
  "There are Italian American organized criminals, but there are organized criminals in every ethnicity... it's unfair."
  [05:45]

• Joe Colombo, on the press conference backlash:
  "The Times called the deal a hypocritical, craven act of voluntary self-censorship."
  [21:55]

---

Further Information

For a more comprehensive understanding, listeners are encouraged to refer to Mark Seal's book, Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli, published by Gallery Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. The book provides an in-depth exploration of the events and individuals discussed in this episode.

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Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli is a production of AIR MAIL and iHeartMedia, offering listeners an engaging exploration of cinematic history and its real-world implications.

Transcript

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[Reporter 1]

For several weeks now, small groups of Italian Americans have been picketing FBI headquarters in Manhattan to protest the use of terms like mafia and gangster, which they regard as ethnic slurs. Today, the protest took on all the appearances of a full fledged movement as thousands of demonstrators gathered near Central park to celebrate Italian American unity Day.

[Joe Colombo]

In 1970, Joseph Colombo founded the Italian American Civil Rights League.

[Reporter 1]

You are organized. You are one. Nobody could take you apart anymore.

[Joe Colombo]

The group was formed to stamp out the stereotyping of Italian Americans in motion pictures, television and the government. Colombo had cast himself as an outspoken watchdog on behalf of his fellow Italian Americans.

[Reporter 1]

Italian Americans face an insidious bias that comes from a mythical association with crime. The fact is that our more than 22 million Italian Americans, only 5,000, a mere 1/50 of 1%, not a half, not a quarter, 1/50 of 1%, are involved in organized crime.

[Joe Colombo]

Joe Colombo also happened to be allegedly the head of one of New York's most formidable mob families. And he had his sights set on shutting down the Godfather. Marc? I'm Mark Seale.

[Nathan King]

And I'm Nathan King.

[Joe Colombo]

And this is Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli.

[Nathan King]

This episode takes us to the streets of New York City, where the powers of the mob come head to head with Paramount movie makers. Mark, do you think anyone involved in the making of the Godfather expected the actual Mafia to oppose the film?

[Joe Colombo]

No, never. You know, nobody thought that anybody would care about the movie, much less object to it. I mean, this was a fictional story about a fictional family, so who's gonna care?

[Nathan King]

But as it turns out, people really did object to it. And when did that start, that pressure campaign?

[Joe Colombo]

It started almost from the beginning. You know, Al Ruddy tells the story of. He met with Mickey Cohen in the beginning, who was the former associate of Bugsy Siegel, no less. And he invited Al Ruddy to lunch. And according to Al, he said, the guys are watching you. And Al Ruddy must have thought, what guys? You know, and he said, mickey, call off your dogs. This is a movie. Who's going to care about it? But then strange things start happening. A mysterious man shows up in the office of Paramount, supposedly with a check for $1 million, which he would give them in exchange for dropping the picture. Death threats became routine. Ruddy began keeping a.45 pistol in his desk. He said he didn't know who the calls were from, but they were threatening him. And so people were getting paranoid.

[Nathan King]

But the most opposed group was the league. Can you tell us a bit about that?

[Joe Colombo]

So in 1970, Joe Colombo founded the Italian American Civil Rights League. It was a revival of the defunct Italian American Anti Defamation League, but he wanted it to be bigger and more powerful.

[Nathan King]

We got the opportunity to speak with Joe Colombo's grandson, Anthony Colombo, Jr. Who gave us some insights into what his grandfather's motivations may have been.

[Anthony Colombo Jr.]

He says there are Italian American organized criminals, but there are organized criminals in every ethnicity. And so the Justice Department has only labeled and stigmatized one ethnic community, an Italian American community, and it's unfair. And his goal was to largely help the Italian American community by eliminating these stereotypes.

[Joe Colombo]

It's interesting to hear from his grandson about the lasting legacy of the league. But I do think it was about more than combating stereotypes. For Joe Colombo, this was personal. April of 1970, the FBI arrested his son and charged him with a scam to melt down coins and sell the silver. Colombo thought this was harassment, so he decided to get a group together and pick it outside of FBI headquarters. And he accused the FBI of unfairly targeting not only his son, but all Italian Americans. And within a week, this new league was born.

[Reporter 1]

We welcome, please, Mr. Joseph Colombo.

[Joe Colombo]

In June of 1970, he hosted the first annual Unity Day, which was a rally of 50,000 Italian Americans stretched from Columbus Circle deep into Central Park.

[Reporter 1]

God, I was born of Italian birthday.

[Nathan King]

It seems like a really unusual position for a Mafia boss to take. What made him decide to put himself in the public eye in that way?

[Joe Colombo]

It was very unusual. But Colombo was amassing political power while denying any affiliation to organized crime. And it seemed like the sky was the limit.

[Anthony Colombo Jr.]

My grandfather met with Abe Rosenthal and told him, if you don't eliminate the word Mafia, la Cosa Nostra out of the New York Times, the papers aren't rolling because they remember they had control of the unions, and so they had a stranglehold on New York. And that was the power with which my grandfather influenced.

[Joe Colombo]

Joe Colombo's league was suddenly rich with cash from donations and members across the city. They decided to host this big benefit at Madison Square Garden, which was headlined by no less than Frank Sinatra.

[Nathan King]

And what happened to Columbo's son, who was arrested?

[Joe Colombo]

He was acquitted after the chief witness suddenly recanted his statement.

[Nathan King]

How convenient.

[Joe Colombo]

And now, emboldened by his success, he sets his sights on a more ambitious and far reaching mission. He's going to shape the way Italian Americans are viewed in popular culture. Here's Anthony Colombo Jr. Again.

[Anthony Colombo Jr.]

When Mario Puzo's book became a bestseller and was going to be made into a movie, there were efforts to combat that by my grandfather in the League.

[Nathan King]

It's interesting that the very thing that ultimately made the Godfather a success, which is the interest of Italian American audiences, is precisely what worked against it in the first place.

[Joe Colombo]

But, you know, nobody really understood what the movie was gonna be except the people that were making the movie. So from the outside looking in, I'm sure that they felt it might be bad for the image of Italian Americans. It was a movie about a Mafia.

[Nathan King]

Family and they didn't realize that ultimately it was gonna glorify you know, if anything. So what efforts did the league take to put a stop to the movie?

[Joe Colombo]

Well, it depends on who you ask, but Al Ruddy's assistant, Betty McCart, told me that the studio started getting threats. How would the threats come in? In the beginning? In the beginning, mostly by phone. And there was a man at Paramount who was the head of security and he told Al that Al should be very careful because they were really after him.

[Nathan King]

And did it ever go beyond threats?

[Joe Colombo]

Well, Al Ruddy became so paranoid that he and Betty would routinely swap cars to throw off any would be trackers. And one night while driving Ruddy's Fassel Vega convertible, Betty sees a car following her all the way home. She runs inside to call the police. And later that night, shots ring out over the neighborhood. And my kids came in all hysterical. They'd heard gunshots and they went outside and all the windows had been shot out of the Fazel Vega, which was a warning, you know, to to Al.

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[Nathan King]

So these are a bit stronger than threats. They're actually taking action.

[Joe Colombo]

Well, yeah, but you know, Ruddy apparently wasn't fazed by it. He and the rest of the crew moved to New York where they started setting up production. And that's when the trouble really started.

[Nathan King]

Everywhere the production went, it seemed like Columbo had gotten there first. Here's Robert Evans.

[Joe Colombo]

We go to Long island for locations.

[Reporter 1]

The next day it was closed down. Went to Staten island, closed down the Bronx. The five families did not want us to shoot that picture in New York.

[Nathan King]

And it got worse before it got better.

[Joe Colombo]

Far worse. One day, Robert Evans is in his hotel suite with his wife, Allie McGraw and their newborn baby when a call comes in.

[Reporter 1]

He threatened my life. Columbia. What did he say? My wife had just had a baby and he wants your baby to be all right.

[Joe Colombo]

Get out of town.

[Reporter 1]

Why don't you call Al Ruddy? He's a producer. He says, because when we kill the snake, we cut the fucking head off.

[Nathan King]

And how did Evans react to that?

[Joe Colombo]

Well, as you can imagine, not well. I think he was really scared. It's one thing to make a movie about mobsters. It's another to be confronted by them in real Time. Of course, there's a question as to whether or not this call ever happened. Joe Colombo's grandson Anthony, insisted to me that his grandfather never said or sanctioned such threats, especially not over the telephone, which was probably bugged by the feds.

[Anthony Colombo Jr.]

I do think that there was a call between Bob Evans and my grandfather, but my grandfather didn't have to make those threats like that. You know, he was a subtle man. He wielded power in a way that that few in New York could. And. And did it through, you know, exercise power in other ways.

[Joe Colombo]

The Teamsters threatened to freeze all transportation involving the Godfather.

[Nathan King]

Well, that's it. No Teamsters, and you can't make a movie.

[Joe Colombo]

Ruddy and Evans had to do something fast. They realized that the only way to get the movie made was to arrange a sit down with Joe Colombo.

[Nathan King]

And how did they plan to get this meeting?

[Joe Colombo]

Well, in true Hollywood fashion, Ruddy and Evans called their own version of a fixer. They called an agent to arrange a.

[Nathan King]

Meeting with a mob boss. Who did they get?

[Joe Colombo]

Well, they got a pretty great agent, Eddie Goldstone from Creative Management Associates, which represented many of the actors on the film. He was a talent agent to the stars and tasked with brokering a meeting between Al Ruddy and Joe Colombo.

[Nathan King]

And how does he go about doing this?

[Joe Colombo]

Well, apparently, James Caan had all the right connections and set a meeting between Colombo and Goldstone. And on the day of the meeting, Goldstone took a cab to an address on Mott Street.

[Nathan King]

Do you think he was nervous?

[Joe Colombo]

I believe he was nervous. He said he had a lump in his stomach, but he had a job to do. So in his nice suit, he knocked with a big smile on his face. The address turned out to be an Italian American social club. He told me that the air was full of smoke and about a dozen men were speaking Italian with their leader clearly at the center. He was ushered in and he shook hands with none other than Joe Colombo.

[Nathan King]

And what do these two men talk about?

[Joe Colombo]

Well, Eddie goes into his spiel about the trouble they're having with the Teamsters and how great the movie's going to be, and maybe they can come to some sort of arrangement, a deal.

[Nathan King]

And what did they say?

[Joe Colombo]

Well, according to Goldstone, apparently they wanted to talk about Marlon Brando. 20 minutes of pretending he's good friends with Marlon and Eddie Goldstone has the meeting set between Ruddy and Columbo.

[Nathan King]

That's amazing. Hollywood charm really works anywhere, huh?

[Joe Colombo]

It sure does.

[Nathan King]

So Ruddy got his meeting with Columbo?

[Joe Colombo]

Yes. So first he has to have a preliminary meeting with Colombo's son Anthony and the League's president, Nat Marconi. They hammer out a tentative deal with three conditions. Number one, they have to delete the word Mafia in Cosa Nostra from the script. Number two, they have to allow the league to review the script and change anything they deem damaging to the Italian American image. And finally, number three, they have to donate the proceeds from the film's New York premiere to the League's hospital fund.

[Nathan King]

And what does Ruddy say?

[Joe Colombo]

He agrees to all of it, which is pretty unprecedented deal for a Hollywood producer to make.

[Nathan King]

He's essentially handing over the rights to.

[Joe Colombo]

Script revisions and turning over a portion of the profits to a group allegedly founded by one of the country's most powerful mobsters.

[Nathan King]

But he gets his meeting.

[Joe Colombo]

Yes. In February of 1971, Al Ruddy walks into the Park Sheridan Hotel and is in for a surprise. 600 Italian American members of the league greet him with boos and cheers. Joe Colombo was testing him. He wanted to see if Ruddy could win over the members. And Ruddy has to address this crowd. I mean, you know, that's a pretty incredible thing.

[Nathan King]

So what does he say to them?

[Joe Colombo]

He said, this is not going to be a movie that's going to demean or stereotype anybody. This is an equal opportunity thing. I mean, we have an Irish cop, we have, you know, all these different ethnic groups, not just Italian Americans. He calmed down the crowd, they asked him questions and there was some back and forth. And Ruddy apparently did an admirable job talking to this crowd and making them understand that the Godfather movie was not out to upset or demean anyone. That it was going to be a story about an Italian American family.

[Reporter 1]

And I meet Joe. After that I said, look, Joe, I'll tell you what I'll do. You come to my office tomorrow and I'll let you look a script. You can see Mafia, whatever's in it, and you like the donut and you read it and we'll see if we can make a deal. Said, okay, I'll be there at 3:00.

[Joe Colombo]

The next day, Colombo showed up at the Gulf and Western building with two associates to read the script.

[Reporter 1]

Joe sits opposite me. One guy's on the couch and one guy's sitting at the window where the hot air comes up. I take a 155 page script mark, you can imagine. I give this guy 155 page screenplay. He puts on his little Ben Franklin glasses and looks at it for about two minutes. What does this mean fade in? I realized there's no way Joe was going to turn to page two.

[Nathan King]

They didn't read it?

[Joe Colombo]

Well, they supposedly, according to Ruddy, at least, only got past page one before getting bored and giving Al their blessing.

[Reporter 1]

Finally, Joe Tayson slammed it on the table. Hey, Wednesday, do we like this guy? Do we trust him? Yeah, we like this guy. So what the fuck? We have to read the script for let's Just Make a Deal. We're just going to take the word Mafia out of the script. And I said, that's okay with me, guys. Now, I shook a hand. That was the deal.

[Nathan King]

And all he would have to do is take the word Mafia out of.

[Joe Colombo]

The script, which only appeared once, by the way.

[Nathan King]

So Al Ruddy and Joe Colombo strike a deal. Is it time to make a movie?

[Joe Colombo]

Well, not so fast. Columbo thought it'd be a good idea to hold a press conference to announce the new partnership.

[Reporter 1]

Joe calls me two days later and he said, look, we should get the word out to our people that we're now behind the movie. Which I thought was a grand idea because we were having trouble signing locations in Staten Island. He says, can you come to the league office tomorrow to a Clyde river press conference?

[Joe Colombo]

Ruddy thinks, what the hell, it'll just be a few Italian American newspapers. And he agrees.

[Reporter 1]

I get in the elevator. It was a Park Avenue in those days, like 58th Street. I could hardly get in the elevator. I didn't know everyone was going up to, like, 20th floor. Sun guns and video cameras and lights. What the fuck's going on? They all get out of the safe floor and they follow me. It's this huge waiting room.

[Joe Colombo]

There were reporters from every major news and crews from all three television networks to chronicle Paramount's historic deal with the League.

[Reporter 1]

There's articles on the front page of the New York Times with pictures of me with Nat Marcone, Joe Cullen. Now where the league says we're behind the movie and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. Unfortunately, it wasn't interpreted that way by the press.

[Nathan King]

Ruddy definitely underestimated how big of a deal this was. What was the press coverage like?

[Joe Colombo]

It was horrible. The Times called the deal a hypocritical, craven act of voluntary self censorship. And the Village Voice wrote, if you want to produce a film on the Mafia, please ask their permission first.

[Nathan King]

How did Paramount react? Does anyone else know about the deal Ruddy made?

[Joe Colombo]

Apparently not. Evans was in Europe, Stanley Jappy was in the Caribbean, and Puzo was at a weight loss clinic. A spokesman For Paramount told Variety that the deal was completely unauthorized.

[Reporter 1]

The front page of the Wall Street Journal the next morning as Mafia moves in on Gulf and Western. Right. That we've compromised the book.

[Joe Colombo]

But worse than the bad press, Gulf and Western stock had dropped two and a half points. And Charlie Bludorn is pissed.

[Nathan King]

What happens to Ruddy?

[Joe Colombo]

Well, Ruddy goes into Bludorn's office the next day. Or he was called into Bludorn's office the next day and he was fire.

[Reporter 1]

I walk in there and I swear to God, Charlie Bluton is living. You wreck my company. All these years I try to go and shit. One day I got the mom moving in and my shit freaking the fuck out, right?

[Joe Colombo]

But he had one saving grace. Apparently Francis Coppola told Charlie Bludorn that Al Ruddy is the only one who can get this picture made.

[Reporter 1]

Charlie stops the shoot and he calls Francis up and brings Francis down there and tells Francis he. He's fired now. Ready? He's a fucking maniac. And Francis Culpel literally saved my job. So Charlie, he's the only man who can keep this movie going, you understand? So now they call me back again.

[Joe Colombo]

Because of the mob.

[Reporter 1]

I come back to see Charlie and he almost has spittle in his mouth as well. Putting you back in the fucking mouth. If this must have started that with the press, I would show you that that was my ass. I mean, the man was crazy. Probably for good reason, because I'm not the carpenter type.

[Joe Colombo]

So Bludhorn took him back.

[Nathan King]

It's always hard to make a movie, Mark, but never quite this hard.

[Joe Colombo]

No, it definitely tested the production's mettle, you know. But now the red carpet is rolled out. Deals are made left and right for locations. Vendors start working with them. Homeowners open their homes. Any problem the movie had, all they had to do is call Joe Colombo. Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli is a production of Airmail and iHeartMedia.

[Nathan King]

The podcast is based on the book of the same name written by our very own Mark Seale.

[Joe Colombo]

Our producer is Tina Mullen.

[Nathan King]

Research assistants by Jack Sullivan.

[Joe Colombo]

Jonathan Dressler was our development producer.

[Nathan King]

Our music supervisor is Randall Poster. Our executive producers are me, Nathan King, Mark Seale, Dylan Fagan and Graydon Carter.

[Joe Colombo]

Special thanks to Bridget Arceneaux and everyone at CDM Studios.

[Nathan King]

A comprehensive list of sources and acknowledgments can be found in Mark Seal's book, Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli, published by Gallery Books, an imprint of Scottish Simon and Schuster.

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[Joe Colombo]

Hey, Jenice Torres here and I'm Austin Hankwitz. We're the hosts of Mind the Business.

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Small Business Success Stories produced by Ruby.

[Joe Colombo]

Studio and Intuit QuickBooks.

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Catch up on seasons one and two.

[Joe Colombo]

And join us for a brand new season of the podcast as we talk to small business owners about how they.

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Manage and grow their businesses with the.

[Joe Colombo]

Help of platforms like Intuit QuickBooks.

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