Hi all,

interested to know... The black arm-bands that Clemenza and Tessio are wearing at the Don's funeral... are they wearing them:

a) as a mark of respect

b) as a mark of respect and because they're part of the mafia

c) because they're part of the mafia

Thanks,

Chaz.

I don't believe it has anything to do with them being part of The Mafia. Their Don, Godfather, mentor, father figure and the most important person in their life had just died and this was just one of those superficial yet necessary things (according to them) to show their respect and their grief. Also it is customary to wear something black at funerals to show that one is grieving. In fact in some cultures depending on how long the mourning period is (usually 6 months to a year) people wear black almost every day for the duration of it.

Soccer players also wear black armbands during matches when a FIFA official dies. It has nothing to do with being a member of the Mafia.

I know the whole Italian thing about wearing black. But I was confused because Tessio and Clemenza were already wearing black suits (I think).

Why wasn't Michael wearing one? If it's all about respect, Michael of all people would have worn one too?

I believe that the wearing of black arm bands was more of an old-fashioned generational thing. The fact that Tessio and Clemenza were wearing them denoted the "old", while Michael was the "new". If you notice, Frankie is wearing one in remembrance of Clemenza in GF2.

I guess it has something to do with the youth of many of our Board members, but some of the questions posed indicate a lack of knowledge about customs, etc. Black armbands have been part and parcel of many culture's as long as armbands have existed. One's choice to wear one would be out of respect and depends on the relationship that one had to the deceased or the deceased's survivors.

Clemenza died in New York. Pentangeli was one of his family. So it's entirely fitting that he would wear one. Again, it's a sign of respect, but is entirely up to the mourner.

Correct Olivant. It was not unusual a generation ago to see people wearing black arm bands as a sign of mourning. In Sicily and many Latin countries to this day a woman will wear black for at least a year after the death of her husband, and a man will wear a black tie for a year after the death of a wife.

maybe a year is too much nowadays, DT. People tend to shorten the black wearing time. Maybe in Sicily this custom survives in villages (where you still have the typical women constantly wearing black) but definitely not in the cities anymore. In larger cities you possibly wear black just for the funeral.

I don't think its a definate thing that it never happens in the cities. Of course it doesn't happen anywhere near the levels of years gone by, but people in all places , cities and villages may still do it.
It depends more on the the traditional values of the person, as well as how long they personally feel they need to mourn, and/or show their mourning.

Pippi

Although they're occassionally worn these days as well, only not nearly as frequently as in the time of 'The Godfather'.

Sometimes when a famous sports figure dies, you will see that person's team wear black armbands for the entire season. I've seen the NY Yankees do it several times over the years, with the death of Micky Mantle, and former mgrs. Billy Martin & Bob Lemmon.

I am sure they also wore the armbands the year DiMaggio died, but don't actually recall seeing it.

Apple

And we saw the equivalent of black armbands after September 11th, when many police wore black band around their badges.

As for the wearing of black, I have two relatives in Sicily that lost their husbands. They wear black every day, and plan on doing so until they die. It might be a generational thing, as these women are in their late 70's.

The actual wearing of black after the death of a loved one is DEFINITELY a generational thing. My grandmother wore black for about 5 years after the death of her son, my uncle, in a car accident - this was in the late 1950's.

After my grandfather died in 1973 my mother made the decision to wear black for at least a year. As far as I know, neither of her sisters did this and it was definitely my mother's choice out of respect for her father.

But these days, I never see anyone (of my own generation) continue to wear black clothing once the deceased is buried.

Apple

Heck, I barely see people wear black at funerals anymore. I went to a wake for the father of a colleague. My colleague's wife was dressed in beige pants and a burgundy sweater!! Maybe it's because I'm Italian, and the wearing of black at funerals is so deep in my family, but I still think that if you don't at least wear it to the funeral, it's a sign of disrespect. When my dad died, I was pregnant, and I went insane trying to find enough black maternity clothes, which you don't see very often.