I assume that this is a dumb question...

...how do we know Mama's name is Carmela?

From the novel.

Is it there? I did text searches on Amazon for Carmela and Carmella. Nothing turned up.

The transcripts on the companion website here have the name Carmela in direction notes, but not dialogue. I've looked at one pdf script online that just says "Mama" in a couple of those places. Is there an official script that says Carmela?

Apparently, you are right Pete. I searched the novel and the name is not in there and I don't recall it stated during the movie.

Oli is correct: There's no mention of her first name in the novel or in the theatrical releases of GF and II. In a deleted scene from GF, Bonasera, after getting the call from Hagen to meet the Don at his funeral parlor, turns to his wife and says, "I curse-a the day when you and Commore Corleone became friends." I hear it as "Commore" (Godmother), but it could have been Carmela.

In III, at Michael's party, Mary presents a check for $100 million to Archbishop Gilday from, I believe, "the Vito and Carmela Corleone Foundation."

Thanks, TB. My DVD's are inconveniently packed away, but I'll take a look at those when I get a chance.

By the way, when researching the novel for carmela, I came across a passage about Kay's and Michael's two boys. Either I never noticed it or I forgot it.

You're right on with the "Commore Corleone" from the deleted scene. That's how I understood it.

I just watched the scene in Part 3 and Mary says "Here is 100 million dollars for the poor of Sicily in the name of Vito Corleone" No mention of Carmela.

Thanks for checking it.

No problem at all turnbull. Any excuse to watch some GF is a good excuse.

I looked at the wedding scene too when they pull her up to sing che la luna thinking they say her name but you can only hear a guy say senora corleone.

Yes, the little guy who calls her up to sing is Dano, who helped Vito with his coat when he was leaving his office just before he got shot.

Of course, Mama didn't want to sing; those two guys forced her. For penance, Vito made Dano do menial work around the office. The other guy ... well, he just disappeared.

From Wikipedia

Morgana King as Carmela Corleone, Vito's wife and mother of Sonny, Fredo, Michael, and Connie, and adoptive mother to Tom Hagen.

Okay, a search of the text of "The Godfather Returns," by Winegardner, includes a Cast of Characters that identifies Mama as Carmela. It looks like the book was published in 2004, and searching on here it looks like no one used the name until 2005.

I've never read any of the sequel or prequels, but it looks like that could be the source.

Edit: very strange they'd pick the same name as Mrs. Soprano, if the Winegardner book is, indeed, the source.

So, why did anyone come up with Carmela? It could have been any number of Italian type names. Why not Maria? or Constanzia? Adriana? Carlotta? Concetta? Izabella?

My grandmother's name (on my father's side) was Carmela.

It's a lot older than that. If you look online you'll see Mama referred to as Carmela in the screenplay and shooting script of GF and GFII.

My guess is that Puzo named her Carmela when he was developing the character. Even though it never made it into the novel or movie, it was her name in the script and, therefore, known to the cast and crew and eventually made its way into public view.

Not very considerate of Michael to leave his mother's name off the title of his foundation.

Thanks I never knew that was his name

In the scene just before Vito gets show, the little guy is helping him on with his coat and Vito says, "Merry Christmas, Dano."

That's probably true, Woltz. We know that Roth's wife's name is Marcia, and the bodyguard's name is Buscetta, only from the script. They weren't named in the movie.

It is interesting (odd) though that in the novel Puzo would fail to name her even while discussing Vito's marriage to her or otherwise discussing her role in the family. Seems like something a novelist would not fail to do.

End credits in The Coppola Restoration DVDs list Fay Spain as Marcia Roth in featured players

Does anyone know of a source that provides the GF script completely in Italian? I've searched the web endlessly to no avail.