“Upon that second reading, much of the book fell away in my mind, revealing a story that was a metaphor for American capitalism in the tale of a great king with three sons: the oldest was given his passion and aggressiveness, the second his sweet nature and childlike qualities, and the third his intelligence, cunning, and coldness.” ― Five time Academy Award winning film director, producer and author Francis Ford Coppola (4/7/1939) from "The Godfather Notebook" describing reading "The Godfather" book and seeing parallels to American capitalism.
Afflicted with polio as a child, Coppola's interest in theater started by producing homemade puppet productions while convalescing in bed. As he grew up, he made 8mm films on various subjects, leading much later to a degree from UCLA film school and his first feature-length film, 1963's "Dementia 13." Still an active director / producer, Coppola's latest work "Megalopolis" will be released next fall.
(photo: Arnold Jerocki / Getty Images)
