Thoughts on "The Godfather" for Mario Puzo's birthday

Today is author Mario Puzo's birthday.

And while it's probably true that his work gained more fame once it was on screen instead of the page, there's no denying the influence of his Godfather trilogy has had on pop culture ... and politics. 

The Guardian's Jonathan Freedland reflected, last year around this time, on how The Godfather has become a political playbook in both the US and Britain.

But if the studio had had its way, we'd be seeing a totally different face when people made references to Don Vito Corleone.

That's according to Mark Seal, author of Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli: The Epic Story of the Making of The Godfather.

NPR spoke with Seal about some of the casting requests that weren't fulfilled for The Godfather earlier this year.

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