Mario Puzo
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About
Italian-American novelist and screenwriter whose Mafia novel, The Godfather, was adapted into Francis Ford Coppola's legendary film trilogy. He also wrote screenplays for the Superman movies, as well as novels titled Fools Die and The Dark Arena. He won two Oscars for writing the Godfather films.
Before Fame
He served in the US Army Air Forces during World War II and graduated from the City College of New York. He published his first short story, The Last Christmas, in 1950.
Trivia
He was greatly influenced by Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoevsky, using quotes from Dostoyevsky's The Brothers Karamazov and other works in multiple publications including The Fourth K, The Family, and The Dark Arena.
Family Life
He grew up in New York City's Hell's Kitchen neighborhood. In 1921, he married Erika Puzo, with whom he went on to have three sons and two daughters.
Associated With
The Godfather became a widely successful film starring Al Pacino and Marlon Brando.
