Originally posted by Turnbull: Don Jasani is right! Puzo had no connection with the Mafia. He said that the only two incidents in the novel that were based on his real-life observations were guns being passed between apartments, and a woman evicted because of a dog.
"Coach" and "Sally Rags", the two bookmakers who worked with Carlo, were based on real people Puzo knew (see "The Godfather Papers" by MP). Apparently, Puzo was quite a gambler himself.
