Hello, my name is Mark Searby and I'm a film critic, broadcaster and author of Al Pacino

The Movies Behind the Man.

Thanks for Click and Play on episode 34 of All About Al, the Pacino podcast.

December 20th, 1974.

That's the day one of the greatest film sequels ever made was released in North America.

Here in the UK, we had to wait five more months before the Godfather Part 2 would open

on the big screen.

But Paramount wanted the sequel in US theatres before Christmas. And so it could be eligible for awards.

It did that and then some.

Seven wins out of 12 nominations for that year's Oscars,

and it went on to make nearly $50 million at the US box office.

A huge sequel that is still amongst the greatest ever made even now.

For this episode on The Godfather Part 2, actor Gianni Russo joins me.

Now Gianni only had a small flashback scene in part 2.

He's mainly known for appearing in the first godfather as Carlo Rezi,

the guy who marries Connie Corleone, and also gets the snot beaten out of him by Sonny Corleone.

A new Gianni would have plenty of stories about his time working on both films, and, boy, he did not disappoint.

As much as I wanted him to concentrate on the Godfather Part 2, he constantly went off and

was telling stories about fellow actors and his association with the real mob and especially

the Gambino family.

This guy has led some life and continues to do so. He is a proper raconteur. So here it is. All About Al,

the Pacino podcast. Episode 34 with Gianni Russo on The Godfather part two.

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