PERHAPS A GIFT VOUCHER FOR MUM?: MOTHER'S DAY
Mark Seal joined Vanity Fair as a contributing editor in 2003, covering stories as varied as the Bernie Madoff scandal, Ghislaine Maxwell, Tiger Woods, the fall of Olympian Oscar Pistorius, the making of classic films such as Pulp Fiction, and many more. His 2016 Vanity Fair article The Over the Hill Gang, about a gang of retired thieves who pulled off the biggest jewel heist in British history, was the basis of the 2018 film, King of Thieves, starring Michael Caine. In addition to Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli, he is the author of the books Wildflower and The Man in the Rockefeller Suit. His website is Mark-Seal.com.
Mark Seal's seductive book about the making of The Godfather - often with help of the men it was about - could be a movie itself. He couldn't have gotten any closer and lived to type about it. - Nicholas Pileggi, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Wise Guy: Life in a Mafia Family and Casino: Love and Honor in Las Vegas As gloriously Homeric and entertaining as The Godfather itself. I learned something new on almost every page. - Graydon Carter, editor, Air Mail Rollicking and entertaining, Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli lays bare not only the massive executive egos at war during The Godfather's journey to the screen, and the artistic struggles of the young and despairing Francis Coppola who thought he had a failure on his hands, but also the fascinating tales of how the mob muscled in and protected its production. Mark Seal has chronicled a classic cinematic history that conjures all the alchemy of The Godfather's magic. - Maureen Orth, international bestselling author of Vulgar Favors: The Hunt for Andrew Cunanan, the Man Who Killed Gianni Versace If you love The Godfather, or American movies, or American gangsters, or just a truly great read, Mark Seal's Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli is the book for you. It's the rollicking inside story behind the making of what may be America's greatest movie - I couldn't put it down.'' - Bryan Burrough, #1 New York Times bestselling coauthor of Barbarians at the Gate and Forget the Alamo Absorbing and unforgettable. As sweeping and vivid as The Godfather itself, Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli captures moviemaking at its most tumultuous. Mark Seal is a master storyteller, bringing to life the embattled young director Coppola, the unpredictable Brando, and the upstart Pacino with made-for-Hollywood panache. - Robert Draper, New York Times bestselling author of To Start a War: How the Bush Administration Took America into Iraq A revealing and entertaining look at the behind-the-scenes machinations of Francis Ford Coppola's epic film. Masterpiece yields masterpiece with this exuberant page-turner. - Publishers Weekly, starred review If you think the 1972 movie The Godfather is dramatic, wait until you hear its backstory-from how Mario Puzo wrote his 1969 novel (the basis for the film) in a desperate frenzy to pay off his many debts, to the filmmakers' battles with real-life mobsters. It's a fitting tribute on the cusp of the great film's 50th anniversary in March. - Christina Ianzito, AARP The Magazine Combining extensive research with insightful new interviews, this chronicle of The Godfather could be the definitive look at the making of an American classic. - Library Journal, starred review [Seal] makes us an offer we can't refuse with this detailed, fascinating, and frequently surprising look at the origins and filming of The Godfather ... Few movies have had such tumultuous origins and turned out to be undisputed classics, and Seal does a superb job of telling us exactly how this happened. For fans of books about moviemaking, this is a definite must read. - David Pitt, Booklist
