Vito
- goes to see Bandleader with reasonable offer of $10,000
- bandleader refuses, offer gets knocked down to $1,000 and chance to meet his maker
- deal gets done. No one dies.


Michael
- pays Geary through Turnbull (similar to Vito's $10,000 offer)
- Geary tries to squeeze Michael and Insults him too.
- Michael doesnt come back with ultimatum offer - he outright rejects Geary and all of works lol (as opposed to Vito's certified check for $1,000)
- Michael/Tom(whomever) set Geary up via Bordello whacking

Now I have read where some say that Michael handled it wrong or Vito would never have done that. Well fine.

But Vito wasnt insulted. Michael(and family, could include Vito lol) was so was that enough for Michael not to counter offer? Would Michael have considered doing something differently sans the insults and false bravado of Geary?

Thoughts?

I've posted before that Michael should have borne the insult and told Geary that he would get back to him. By saying what he said, he tipped his hand. He thus informed Geary about what he was thinking.

The example you used shows one difference between Vito and Michael. Coercing the bandleader was a simple, personal favor Vito did for Johnny. Setting up Geary was a bigger deal--Michael was angling to avoid a big financial penalty ($250k plus 5% of the gross of all his hotels) payable to Geary. On one hand, Michael's method was justified by the stakes involved. On the other, it's an example of how he was constantly overreaching--and having to deal with the consequences.

Getting a bandleader to release Johnny for $1,000 with a gun to his head in the early forties and compromising a powerful United States Senator are two entirely different things. As it happens the story about the bandleader became common knowledge among show biz people ...Woltz knew the story... and I assume this word was spread by someone with ties to the Corleone family to enhance their reputation. We never hear back fom thi bandleader unlike Geary who remained in the public eye and may have been trying to get out from under Michael's thumb at the Senate hearing.