Those who follow movies or pop culture online are likely aware that 2022 is the 50th anniversary of The Godfather. Diehard fans and film buffs might have purchased the new 4K Blu-Ray or seen a restored version of the film in limited theatrical release.
To be more exact, Thursday (March 24) was the 50th anniversary of the classic film’s release. And to commemorate the occasion, Chris Russo had a special guest on his Mad Dog Unleashed SiriusXM show. As he teased it, many listeners anticipated one of the movie’s big stars talking to Russo. Al Pacino! Maybe James Caan or Robert Duvall.
As Jimmy Traina pointed out, Russo was very excited about his guest, who turned out to be… Gianni Russo. Russo played Carlo Rizzi, the husband of Connie Corleone.
(If you’re unfamiliar with The Godfather — which would make most sports radio hosts shake their collective heads — Connie, played by Talia Shire, is the daughter of mob boss Don Corleone and younger sister to Sonny, Michael and Fredo… You know what? Just watch the movie if you haven’t seen it.)
The point is that Carlo Rizzi wasn’t exactly a big role. But if The Godfather was a sci-fi or fantasy movie, Russo could sign autographs and pose for pictures at comic book conventions for the rest of his life.
On Friday, WFAN’s Gregg Giannotti and Jerry Recco had some fun with Russo’s underwhelming Godfather guest. That gave Gio the opportunity to break out his pretty solid Russo impersonation.
“Teddy Scarpacci is our guest. He was the key grip on Godfather III,” joked Giannotti with appropriate volume and accent. “Saw all the behind-the-scenes. Caton Jones, who brought out the bowl of spaghetti to Sonny in Godfather I, is with us for the next three hours. You remember that scene.”
What was intriguing about the reaction is how many directions it took. Traina took issue with Russo talking to an obscure actor from The Godfather when every other sports radio show was on topics of the day, like the NCAA Tournament, NFL transactions, or even Major League Baseball. Giannotti made fun of Russo’s obscure, trivial choice of guest, just to talk about The Godfather.
But passion and interests are what make a radio host compelling, right? Otherwise, every show could sound the same. Maybe Russo missed the mark here. But at least we got an entertaining impersonation and jokes out of it.
Ian Casselberry is a sports media columnist for BSM. He has previously written and edited for Awful Announcing, The Comeback, Sports Illustrated, Yahoo Sports, MLive, Bleacher Report, and SB Nation. You can find him on Twitter @iancass or reach him by email at iancass@gmail.com.
