Francis Ford Coppola Net Worth

Francis Ford Coppola's Quotes

• To me the great hope is that now that these little 8mm video recorder and stuff now, some - just people who normally wouldn't make movies are going to be making them. And, you know, suddenly one day some little fat girl in Ohio is going to be the new Mozart, and you know, and make a beautiful film with her father's little camera-corder and for once this whole professionalism about movies will be destroyed forever and it will become an art form. That's my opinion. ["Heart of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse", 1991]
• [on Apocalypse Now (1979)] My movie is not about Vietnam... my movie is Vietnam. [Cannes 1979]
• What the studios want now is "risk-free" films but with any sort of art you have to take risks. Not taking risks in art is like not having sex and then expecting there to be children.
• I just feel that at a certain point you have to go back to the beginning again. The best thing for me at this point in my life is to become a student again and make movies with the eyes I had when I was enthusiastic about it in the first place.
• In a sense, I think a movie is really a little like a question and when you make it, that's when you get the answer.

Interesting Facts about Francis Ford Coppola

1. Contracted polio when he was a child. During his quarantine, he practiced puppetry.
2. Some sources say he is the uncle of Alan Coppola, but Alan's name does not appear on any family tree authorized by the Coppola family.
3. Like Martin Scorsese, Coppola was a sickly youth, a case of polio which allowed him time to indulge in puppet theater and home movies.
4. Middle brother of Talia Shire and August Coppola.
5. Father of Sofia Coppola, Roman Coppola and Gian-Carlo Coppola.
6. Son of composer Carmine Coppola and Italia Coppola.
7. Received an M.F.A. in Film Production from the University of California in Los Angeles (1967).
8. Since 1978, owner and operator of a Rutherford, California vineyard making Rubicon wine.
9. Coppola began his winery enterprise by buying a portion of the historic Inglenook estate in 1975. His success in the field is explored in the book "A Sense of Place" by Steven Kolpan, 1999.
10. Brother-in-law of Bill Neil.
11. Was in the early stages of developing a script for a fourth Godfather film with Mario Puzo which was to tell the story of the early lives of Sonny, Fredo and Michael. After Puzo's death in July of 1999, Coppola abandoned the project, stating that he couldn't do it without his friend.
12. As of May 2002, the number of Coppola-family members appearing in or contributing to filmmaking stands at thirteen, spread over three generations.
13. Francis Ford Coppola has been in competition with Bob Fosse on several occasions. In 1972, Coppola was nominated for the Best Director Oscar (The Godfather (1972)), but lost to Fosse (Cabaret (1972)). In 1974, Fosse was nominated for Best Director (Lenny (1974)) but lost to Coppola (The Godfather: Part II (1974)). In 1979, both were nominated as directors (Apocalypse Now (1979) and All That Jazz (1979)), but both lost. When Fosse won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival (Coppola won the previous year), he tied with Akira Kurosawa, whose movie was produced by George Lucas and Francis Ford Coppola.
14. Grandfather of Gia Coppola. Great-uncle of Weston Cage Coppola.
15. Has released his own line of specialty foods.
16. As a child, his bedroom was covered with pictures of his favourite film star, Jane Powell. When he discovered she'd married Geary Anthony Steffen, Jr., he tore them all down.
17. His wife arranged for him to meet Jane Powell as a 40th birthday present.
18. Out of all his peers who rose to fame and power in the 1970s "Golden Age" era, he is perhaps the only filmmaker still married to his first wife.
19. Made a commercial for Suntory whiskey with legendary Japanese director Akira Kurosawa in the 1970s, an event which later influenced a salient plot point in his daughter Sofia's movie, Lost in Translation (2003).
20. Was voted the 21st Greatest Director of all time by Entertainment Weekly.