imdb says in the filming locations that the church in the baptism scene is the First United Methodist Church in Los Angeles. I checked the Church's website, but it doesn't seem to be the church in GF 1. Does anyone know where this church is? It is so beautiful, inside and out.

Welcome to the boards!


The exterior for the church scenes were shot on Staten Island at Mount Loretto.

The interior of the church was shot in Old St. Patricks, Mulberry Street, Manhatten.


Don Cardi

Janice,

Our don has provided us with the filming locations look here under the GF1 section and click on the filming locations

Thanks, I'll do that!!

I just checked out the Mt. Loretto site. How sad that the church burned down in 1973 and they only saved the facade. You can tell from the current pictures that only part of the facade was saved. How sad. It was such a beautiful building.

If you get a chance, you NEED to go to St. Paddys. I went this summer, and it is absolutely breathtaking. Its been in a lot of other films too(Mean Streets is the only one I can think of right now)and there is definatly something "holy" about it.I'm not a christian, but there really is a weird feeling you get inside that building.Plus you gotta read the names of the past Fathers on the back wall. All Irish until about '23 haha

Some of us BB'ers went to see a couple of the GF sites last year during the BB convention. We seen the Corleone Mall and Mt Loretto Church. It was great seeing some of the GF history.

When I was in the city this summer, we wandered around the Canal Street area looking for Little Italy. We stumbled upon the Barzini steps along the way, but unfortunatly the actual set Barzini tumbled down is blocked off.
Finally came across Mulberry St (At its very start in Chinatown. We hoofed its entire length)Followed that up to St. Paddys. There was some sort of Street Fair happening on Mulberry, so there were quite a few old ladys in the church praying on thier rosaries, and I think we might have pissed em off because our wet shoes were squeaking on the floor.
After that, we went looking for the Hotel Edison following SC's directions. My girlfriend turned the wrong way down Broadway, and we walked down past Trinity Chuch. by that time it was getting dark, and we figured it wouldnt be the safest thing to walk back up to Canal.
Sometime after leaveing Little Italy and getting to the Fin. District, my diections got ripped off so those were the only GF locations I got to see. But hopefully i'll get to see more when I live there

Way back when, I was visiting a friend in Manhattan and we went to dinner in Little Italy. We passed by a restaurant called Umberto's Clam House, the front window was boarded up and the restaurant was closed. I asked my friend what happened, she said that "Joey Gallo was offed there last week, shot to death." Wow. We went across the street to another restaurant, great food, great home made wine. Don't remember anything after the wine.

A little bit of trivia: My friend divorced and her ex-husband married Joey Gallo's widow. Isn't that a kick!!

p.s. Why am I an associate member? Am I on probation?? Just wondered. I love this site. I am in two other forums and people can be so back biting -- I think their moderators are half asleep.

It all has to do with post count. You post over 10 and you're no longer an associate(newbie)But please dont take that as "I have to spam to build up my posts" becuase then we'll hate you haha. Anyway welcome to the BB

As you can see many of us here have been with this site for many years. In my opinion, it is the best run site in cyberspace and these boards have the most respectful and educated memebrs than any other board that I've ever been a part of. Our Don Geoff and his trusted Consigliere SC do a fantastic job running and maintaining both the quality and the integrity of this site.

(that should get me a free drink from Geoff next week )

So have fun, enjoy, and PLEASE, don't be afraid or ashamed to ask any GF questions in this thread, even if they've been asked before, it doesn't matter.

You may want to check out the REAL LIFE ORGANIZED CRIME thread as there are some very interesting bios, news updates and historical posts that are very educational for anyone who is a mob afficianato.


Don Cardi

I'm sorry Janice I forget to welcome you to the BB family. I hope you enjoy your stay here. I know you will love the BB as much as I do. I am looking forward to read your thoughts and views on the GF and other subjects as well.

Thank you Mignon and everyone for your welcome.

One thing that I always noticed, especially in GF 1, was Al Pacino's height. If this has been mentioned before, please forgive me.

In all of the old movies, especially the movies that starred Humphrey Bogart, they dealt with the lack of height of their stars in several ways. One was with the size and height of their hats. I have a copy of Ingrid Berman's autobiography. One of the pictures in this book shows Bogart with 3-4 inch lifts, i.e., platform shoes, so that he would "film" taller than Ms. Berman. Ingrid Berman was my height, i.e., 5'10".

Diane Keaton, if I am not mistaken, was taller than Al Pacino. In the first GF movie, especially in the scene when Michael comes back from Italy and proposes to Kay, he's obviously a lot shorter than her. His hat makes him seem so much taller. But it is so obvious.

I'm not trying to take away from Pacino's performance but ever since I watched this movie, I keep looking at him and wondering this.

Okay, so what you say! Steve McQueen was 5'8", Paul Newman and Robert Redford the same. However, since I watch the old movies today, I have a tendency to check out how tall they are.

Hope I didn't stir up a hornet's nest here. I am so observant of this movie and I'll post more later.

Pacino is small, no doubt about it. I was at Christie's a couple of years ago when they were auctioning off movie memorabilia. One of the items was the suit Pacino wore in Sicily in GFIII--looked like it was bought in the Children's section of Barney's.
Another way Hollywood deals with short leading men is to find small leading ladies. Alan Ladd was short (5'5"), and before he became an actor, ran a restaurant called "Tiny's." So they found him a small leading lady: Veronica Lake.

I remember a movie Alan Ladd made with Sophia Loren, Boy on a Dolphin. Sophia Loren is taller than me. Every scene they shot together, he was sitting down.

According to imbd, Pacino is 5'7". In the scene with Diane Keaton when he comes back from Sicily, he looks like a kid. He wore that bowler hat, I guess to make him look taller than Keaton. It was awfully silly, in my humble opinion.

Ooh, now I'm a wiseguy member! Love it!

I am a huge Sopranos fan! I am wracking my brain here trying to remember a scene from the Sopranos where they were discussing Luke Abrasi! I think it was Tony and Big Pussy. Tony says no, it's Luca Brasi. Does anyone remember this?

Loved that scene at Connie's wedding when Luca is sitting outside talking to himself, rehearsing what he's going to say to the Godfather. And when Luca goes inside to talk to the Don. One of the funniest scenes in the movie.

"Don Corleone, I am honored and grateful that you have invited me to your home on the wedding day of your daughter. And may their first child be a masculine child."

"Don Corleone, I am honored and grateful that you have invited me to your daughter... 's wedding... on the day of your daughter's wedding. And I hope their first child be a masculine child. I pledge my ever-ending loyalty."


Actor Lenny Montana was actually trying to remember his lines for the part and fumbled them during the shooting of that scene with Brando. FFC decided to keep the fumbled lines in the scene feeling that it was more realistic as it portrayed the nervousness, fear and respect, described in the book, that Luca had for Vito.


Don Cardi

To repeat something I posted once before:
According to Harlan Lebo, Montana wrote "F**K YOU" in red ink on a piece of paper, and taped it to his tongue. At a critical moment in that scene, he stuck his tongue out at Brando. If you look closely at Brando while Lenny's talking, you can almost see him struggling not to break out into laughter. I can only imagine how many takes of that scene they had to do after the tongue bit.

I think he is 5'7" wearing really obvious elevator shoes.