The Godfather Was Real

Here is something I'll bet you didn't know:

A lot of the characters in Francis Ford Coppola's 'The Godfather' were made members of the crime syndicate.

I am talking about the Mafia - La Cosa Nostra.

Marlon Brando, James Caan, and a couple of other good actors starred in 'The Godfather.' But Mafia bosses who originally opposed the making of the blockbuster film decided to control it by pushing some of their members into supporting roles.

Life becomes art and art becomes life -- that sort of thing.

I discovered this information after picking up a copy of 'Men's Journal', a magazine for me that told about the making of the movie on the streets of New York.

Now:

I had met James Caan at a rodeo in Phoenix, AZ. some years ago. Caan was a calf roper and a poker player who was competing in the Rodeo of Rodeos, a major event that attracts thousands of rodeo fans to watch the bull riding, bronco riding, roping and clown events that make up the sport of rodeo.

Caan was a tough guy who loved anything that had to do with physical activity. We had our boots shined together. He admired my hat, I admired him, and I offered to swap hats with him as we had our boots shined. He politely declined the offer.

From the 'Men's Journal' article, I learned that Caan had a run-in with one of the actual Mafia guys on the set. Caan had played a joke on him and the guy didn't like it.

You don't play jokes on made guys. If you do, you have placed yourself on a path fraught with danger.

While Caan didn't exactly back down from the dangerous situation he had gotten himself into, let's say he took the wiser path and the issue was settled without bloodshed. Barely.

I mean, Caan and Brando can win all those fights you see on the screen. But when it comes to confrontations with the people who make up an organized crime, the results can be a little different.

Brando also ran into trouble on the set when he tried to get one of the Cosa Nostra guys replaced. He complained that the guy had no acting experience. The next thing Brando knew...

...he was pinned against the wall and the guy was snarling in his face, "You trying to get me knocked off this picture? Who do you think you are, you m-----f-----!'

Laughing, Brando backed off:

"That's good," he said. "That's good. You got your acting chops.''

It wasn't acting chops, but Brando didn't know it.

After our boots were shined, I invited Caan to accompany me to one of the casinos in the Phoenix area where poker is legal. He said he was busy but would consider it.

'Come on," I urged him. "I want to be able to tell my grandchildren I beat James Caan in a poker hand."

Caan smiled at me. "If you told them that, it would be a lie," he said.