Editing The Godfather (novel) (section)

==Main characters==
The Corleone family patriarch is [[Vito Corleone]] (the Don), whose surname represents the Sicilian town of his birth, [[Corleone]]. His birth name is Vittorio Andolini, but after immigrating to the United States following the deaths of his parents and brother, he changed it to the name of his home village as one of his few acts of sentimentality. Vito fathered four children: [[Santino "Sonny" Corleone|Sonny Corleone]], [[Fredo Corleone]], [[Michael Corleone]], and [[Connie Corleone]]. He also has an informally adopted Irish son, [[Tom Hagen]], who became the Corleone family's ''[[consigliere]]'' (counselor). Vito Corleone is also godfather to the famous singer and movie star [[Johnny Fontane]]. The godfather referred to in the title is Vito, but the story's main character becomes Michael. The novel's central storyline details Michael's destiny to succeed his father as the head of the family empire, despite his desire to lead an Americanized life with his girlfriend (and eventual wife) [[Kay Adams-Corleone|Kay Adams]].

The Corleone family is a criminal organization with national influence, notably protection, gambling, and union racketeering. Serving as the Don's [[underboss]] is his oldest son, Sonny. The operational side of the organization is headed by two ''caporegimes'', [[Peter Clemenza]] and [[Salvatore Tessio]]. Other significant [[List of The Godfather characters|members of the organization]] include Connie's abusive husband [[Carlo Rizzi (The Godfather)|Carlo Rizzi]] and enforcers [[Luca Brasi]] and [[Al Neri]].