A Mafia rank similar to “captain” that denotes a ranking “Made Man:” an official member of the Mafia who directs a crew of soldiers and usually exercises control of criminal rackets over a specific geographical territory. In the Mafia family hierarchy, a caporegime reports to, and executes orders from, the Boss, the underboss, and the consigliere. Peter Clemenza and Salvatore Tessio are the Corleone Family caporegimes in The Godfather.
Caporegime Quotes in The Godfather
The The Godfather quotes below are all either spoken by Caporegime or refer to Caporegime. For each quote, you can also see the other terms and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 8
Quotes
“Even the shooting of your father was business, not personal. You should know that by now.”
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Chapter 20
Quotes
Nothing was more calming, more conducive to pure reason, than the atmosphere of money.
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“We are all men who have refused to be fools, who have refused to be puppets dancing on a string pulled by the men on high. We have been fortunate here in this country […] Some of you have sons who are professors, scientists, musicians, and you are fortunate. Perhaps your grandchildren will become the new pezzonovanti.”
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Caporegime Term Timeline in The Godfather
The timeline below shows where the term Caporegime appears in The Godfather. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 1
...in the Corleone Family, also eyes the wedding envelopes while his boss, the fat Corleone caporegime (captain) Peter “Pete” Clemenza, dances and drinks copious amounts of wine.
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Chapter 2
Sonny calls Salvatore “Sal” Tessio, the Brooklyn-based Corleone Family caporegime and orders him to send guards to the hospital and to the mall. He also...
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Chapter 14
...the major hierarchies in his crime family by making Genco Consigliere, Tessio and Clemenza his caporegimes, and putting “layers of insulation between himself and any operational act” so as not to...
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...his offer. Corleone retaliates by using his political connections and the brute force of his caporegimes and their soldiers against Maranzano’s best men. When Maranzano allies with Chicago Mafia boss Al...
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Chapter 16
...Sally Rags reports the incident to Rocco Lampone, who then reports it to Clemenza. The caporegime curses “that goddamn Sonny and his temper” and reports the incident to Tom Hagen. The...
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Chapter 17
...bookmakers to switch their loyalties to the other families. These attacks force Sonny and the caporegimes to “go to the mattresses.”
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...war reveals the Corleones are unsuited for a protracted struggle. Tessio and Clemenza are competent caporegimes, but their age and mellowed ruthlessness hampers their fighting ability. Tom Hagen is also not...
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Chapter 19
...news, Don Corleone emerges fully dressed from his room. “Outside my window I saw my caporegimes coming to the house and it is midnight,” he says. “So, Consigliere of mine, I...
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Chapter 28
...York. Michael is now positioned to take over as the new Don, and though the caporegimes respect Michael, they are unsure of his leadership qualities. The Don, however, has “absolute faith”...
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Chapter 29
...Corleone’s funeral is a “royal” occasion. The Dons of the Five Families attend with their caporegimes and Consiglieres, and a small army of Don Corleone’s friends come to pay their respects....
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The morning after Don Corleone’s funeral, Michael tells the caporegimes that his plan for moving forward remains unaltered. Clemenza warns him that “the Barzinis and...
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Chapter 31
...Tessio and Hagen prepare to leave for the meeting, a group of bodyguards surround the caporegime and tell him that Michael will take a different car to the meeting. Tessio immediately...
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To dispose of any remaining traitors, Clemenza and new caporegime, Lampone take control of the remaining Barzini rackets and murder those men still loyal to...
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Chapter 32
...now leads his own New York Family, while Rocco Lampone is now the Corleone’s senior caporegime. Al Neri is in charge of security in the Corleone-owned Vegas hotels, while Tom Hagen...
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