I don't know if this is considered etiquette or not, but I thought I'd "re-post" this and see what some of the newer members think. This came up in another thread today, and got me thinking...
-------------------------------------------------

I'm new to this BB, so maybe this has been discussed before, I don't know. Anyway...

Who killed the assasins (the guys found in the ditch) after the attempt on Michael's life in Tahoe? Obviously, it could not have been Fredo. The only possibilities I can think of would be Johnny Ola's men who were there earlier. But if so, how did they hide on the estate until it was time to kill the killers, or why didn't they just attempt the assasination on Michael themselves?
And if it was them, how did THEY escape? It looks like more than just Fredo had to be in on the plot against Michael.

Remember after the assasination attempt Michael says to Tom (talking about the assasins) something like "Unless I'm mistaken, they're dead already...killed by someone inside, close to us"
Who did Michael think it was?

Personally, I've come to the conclusion that it was Anthony who killed the 'would-be' assasins at the Tahoe compound.

Remember how, only moments earlier he says, "Maybe I can help you...", while Michael visits him in his bedroom. Upon hearing the shots and realizing they were aimed at his parents, Anthony then decided this was his big chance to prove himself. So he ran to his closet, grabbed the rifle Neri had secretely given him for his birthday, blew the culprits away from his own window, then slipped innocently back under the covers. Notice how withdrawn Anthony appears throughout the remainder of the film. He is obviously suffering from guilt at having murdered for the first time, but also a little dejected, because here he's made his bones and can't tell anyone about it!!

This also helps to explains how, in GFIII the adult Anthony wants no part of the Corleone Family business, and is drawn instead toward a career in the Fine Arts.

Apple

-Apple

Now that is a new twist, in the summer rerun season!

Hope NJ is cooler then upstate NY...96 yesterday and 91 right now.... They say 98 or more on Wednesday...What happen to that great summer weather. At least it is dry and not raining...it pays to look at the good side I guess!

all that money I saved on the heating bills during that light winter is now being used to cool us off...you just can't win.

Nope, it's about the same, mid-90's and humid. As mentioned previously, I really don't mind it during the day. But I'll admit it's pretty tough to sleep nights (no air-conditioner)!!

Apple

An innocent kid like anthony doing something like that? I doubt it. Anyway I don't have any proof but I am certain that the assassins were caught in a crossfire and killed the Corleone Button Men who were searching the entire dark property in the woods

Thank God for the AC...I wouldn't be able to sleep without it. A fan blowing warm air just doesn't cut it for me. After a few nights of bad sleep I get really mean ...so it was air or living alone

Like this morning..8:30am and its 81 already. This will be a record breaking day in Central New York. Even with the lakes and mountains, trees and all the other of natures helpers it still is going to soak near 100.

Add that to the down stock market, slow business weeks and bad news around ever corner and people are going nuts. Parents doing back to school shopping alone is tuff, add this and a couple of kids that hate the thought of going back to school and trying on clothes and you have a bomb waiting to happen.
I can't understand what my 16 year old daughter wants to wear now a days... Call me an old crow, I never thought this would happen to me! I am turning into my Father!

I like this theory, I think I join up with this marvelous one.

I think Fredo was to weak, but I couldn't think of anyone else. And this theory is maybe a very good explanation.

No Guineapig, it did not.

Because I never opened the thread, in part because it was running the same time as this one and frankly, I'm tired of the question and all the possible theories. Therefore, I never had the pleasure of reading your opinion.

I guess great minds think alike.

Apple

Who Killed the Assassins?

Fred Savage.

Next topic!

-Lucky

I am laughing because everybody KNOWS who did it!!!

It was obviously Kay. I think that she arranged it all, even to have Fredo set up, then killed the people who fired because they did it while she was in the room and that was not how it was meant to be done.

Anthony? No. He DID help Roth though, convincing Fredo into...stuff, then fooling Mike so he has Fredo killed and not Kay or Anthony.

Kay had the miscarriage because the baby she was having had 2 penises and she didn't want that...

Something like that!

You gusty are a funny bunch. I don't think Fred Savage was alivwe in 1974 though, MAYBE in 1975!

Hope you liked yesterday's rain, i was stuck on an Island ina an open boat ina thunder and lightning storm with piercing rain!

I KNEW it, If Anthony REALLY wanted to ride with Mike in the car, why didn't he knock off Bussetta too!? Was it Bussetta who killed Moe Greene?

OH WEll, I guess Cam, and Apple forgot!

A coupel months ago, i came up with a new theory that was readily agreed upon!

The assassins were killed off the compund by Rocco and were placed in the ditch by Rocco and Fredo, Rocco did the shooting but purposely missed (I don't know how!) He gave Mike a chance to duck (Why are the drapes open!). Mike tells Rocco he wants them alive! Rocco knows they are already dead and says "We'll try!". Rocco finds them outside of Fredo's window (Deanna hears him first and has a tantrum), Tom appears and Rocco asks where Miek is, but he's already gone.

Fredo and Rocco agreed to participate knowing thatit WOULDN't be a hit! (I didn't know it was a hit Mikey!)

Roth or Ola was behind it!

Fredo screwed himself over in Havana (Old man Roth would never come here, but Ola knows this place like the back of his hand!)

He should have said (YEah, i know Ola and Roth), Mike knew they were firend sof Greene's and probably visited him whiel Fedo was out in Vegas! After all, Fredo was the Son of another Roth friedn, Vito!

Somehow Mike found out it was Rocco , perhaps the (we'll try, Mike. ALIVE!!!). Mike sends ROcco ona suicide mission vs. Roth

Pentangeli, Rocco, Roth, Ola, Fredo, are all out of the way!

***** Five Star theory??????

Or you can just say the reappearing Tessio did it, or Clemenza came back from the dead! (Fredo HEARD about Old Man Clemenza, they never did go to his funeral! We never saw Tessio get whacked!)

Oh my god, I want to correct my answer in this topic before! I totally disagree with it. I watched GF 2 again yesterday and everything links to Fredo. It was definetly Fredo who killed them.

The best link is the fact that Fredo's mistress runs out the house and says: " Two man.....before my window.....dead!!!!"

And Michael gives an other good link. He says it should be someone nearby who's very afraid when the two people survive and talk.

Gracias Diaz Paisans

Perhaps, Fredo had them killed not only to cover himself, but also to make sure they didn't try to get another shot at Mike, who he still loved as a brother, or killed them as punihsment for trying such a deed. I think the fact that Deanna saw them links their deaths with Fredo in some way.

This is really silly. The Corleone Button Men who were searching for them must have killed the assassins.

Whatever.

And Boss, your theory is not likely. When Corleone Button men kill them they would directly go to Michael and say it. And nobody did that. The found the persons dead and non of the button men had fired a single shot.

But it couldn't have been Fredo either. Cuzz he said simply," I didn't know it was going to be a hit Mike.

Mmmmm, that's true. But maybe that was a lie. There are simply no other clues about who killed the assasins.

Fredo wasn't lying. Johnny Ola called his home in the middle of the night and Fredo got scared after he realized what he had done. So no he didn't kill them

Nobody will ever convince me that it was Fredo who slit 2 guys throats. If they had been shot, maybe, but still unlikely.

It can't be Fredo. He never knew it was supposed to be a hit, so he couldn't have been prepared to find them and kill them. He also was too weak and ineffectual. He couldn't even defend his own father when he was shot. And Deanna is screaming about men outside her window, which makes sense if Michael's bodyguards were scouring the property.

There's also no way Anthony did it. He wasn't even sure what his father did for a living at that point. If he was withdrawn in the remainder of the film, it was because of the tensions building between his mother and father and their eventual separation.

There was probably a third person who killed the other two and got away.

Don't take everything you read here so seriously. I'm new myself, and I've already learned that there's a lot of fun and good humor. I don't think anyone is serious in suggesting it was Anthony who did it.

It's a mystery to me as to who killed the assasins, but I am convinced that Fredo was not involved in the "hit." I believe he didn't know that an attempt was going to be made on Michael's life.

Hiya - great board you got here.

"it would be good for the family / there was something in it for me" Fredo took in some Roth/Ola men who were then able to ease the entrance of the assassins onto the compound, and who also would be there to tie up loose ends if the hit failed.

"...killed by someone close to us" could easily have meant any of Fredo's men (even recent recruits) who were at the compound. It didn't necessarily refer to someone more intimate than that, even though it gave that impression.

Fredo realized all of this after the attempted assassination, hence his "you got me in deep enough already".

Whaddaya think?

Genovese

You're implicating that Fredo purposely led the assassins onto the Lake Tahoe estate, that he set up the hit. I doubt it. Fredo may be pretty stupid, and a ladies' man, but he's not a bad guy, he wouldn't have anybody killed, especially his own brother. But "killed by someone close to us" maybe means someone close to Fredo covering up Fredo. And welcome to the boards, Genovese!

Thanks for the welcome GodYankee.

What I had in mind with Fredo's taking in some of Roth's men was that Fredo had probably been led to believe that sharing forces, so to speak, with Roth although in a regular capacity rather than as assassins after MC might, in his weak mind, seem "good for the family" and also as if he was more involved with things, i.e. Roth.

No, I wouldn't give him credit for killing anybody, certainly not setting his brother up.

It would have been the "recent recruits" who opened the drapes for the assassins. Fredo wouldn't even have done that IMO.

???

So what your saying is I didn't get it? Well, I'm not like everybody thinks! Like Dumb! I'm Smart!!

Hey Sicilian Babe:
Your post about Anthony doing it was soooo SERIOUS. I guess maybe I'm the Fredo here.

plawrence

I always felt that my brother-in-law was a real Fredo - I have to be nice to him as long as my mother's alive!!

I was watching GF2 on TNN the other night and it honestly bugs the heck out of me about Michael's would-be killers!! You get that hint from Michael that it's somebody close, but it never materializes. Also, does anyone know why Rocco is limping in that scene as he runs around?

I want to get this topic re-posted, so I'm replying to get it to the top of the board. Hope this is OK; I've never seen it done here before

so you are still not confident with the general thoughts about it huh?

well, plawrence, after 2,5 months, what are you're ideas now?

I remember Turnbull arguing it was Roth who ordered the hit, and Fredo not knowing he wanted Michael dead from the beginning, and Pentangeli not being able to do such thing.

The one who killed the assasins could either be informed prior to the hit, or just 'acted' like a true bodyguard (therefore, it could be a bodyguard).

Tom and Mike speak a moment later, and say it's someone close who's betraying them. I always thought that it was Fredo who they eventually seem to be meaning, but I don't know.

the Rocco theory above seems likely, Ricardo's theory...

so basically there are two questions:

-who attempted to assasinate Mike (and who ordered it?)?
-who killed the hitmen?