Mario Gianluigi Puzo (1920–99) was an American author and screenwriter. He is known for his crime novels on the Italian-American mafia, most prominently his masterpiece The Godfather (1969,) which he co-adapted into a trilogy directed by Francis Ford Coppola.
Born in New York City and educated at Columbia University, Puzo served in the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II. He later served for 20 years as a civil servant.
Puzo began writing pulp stories for men’s magazines. His first two novels, The Dark Arena (1955) and The Fortunate Pilgrim (1964,) attracted good reviews but few buyers.
Puzo’s breakthrough came with his novel about the Mafia, The Godfather (1969.) This epic story of Don Corleone and his extended ‘family’ of Sicilian immigrants became one of the most successful novels ever, selling some 21 million copies worldwide.
Godfather spawned three critically and financially successful motion pictures by Francis Ford Coppola, starting in 1972 with Marlon Brando playing Corleone. Puzo received the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay in 1972 and 1974.
Puzo also contributed to the first two Superman movies (1978, 1980) and Christopher Columbus: The Discovery (1992.) His final novel, The Family (2001,) was released posthumously. His essay collection is The Godfather Papers and Other Confessions (1972.)
More: Wikipedia • READ: Works by Mario Puzo
The strength of a family, like the strength of an army, is in its loyalty to each other.
—Mario Puzo
Topics: Loyalty
He was a degenerate gambler. That is, a man who gambled simply to gamble and must lose. As a hero who goes to war must die. Show me a gambler and I’ll show you a loser, show me a hero and I’ll show you a corpse.
—Mario Puzo
Topics: Gambling
Friendship and money: oil and water.
—Mario Puzo
I have always believed helping your fellow man is profitable in every sense, personally and bottom line.
—Mario Puzo
Topics: Helping
What we think of as our sensitivity is only the higher evolution of terror in a poor dumb beast. We suffer for nothing. Our own death wish is our only real tragedy.
—Mario Puzo
Topics: Kindness
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