Freddy/Fredo really got screwed. It's occurred to me recently that by the end of the novel, he was not just competent, but legitimate - Vito's presentable son. When Mike went to Las Vegas in the novel:

[list]
[*]Johnny was put in charge of recruiting entertainment for all four Corleone hotels.
[*]Dr. Jules was put in charge of medicine at all four hotels.
[*]Lucy was told she'd run the shops or hire girls at all four hotels.
[list]
[*]


Vito was supposed to tell Freddy his new job, but since Freddy had shown a genius for running a hotel it could only be that he would run the hospitality side at all four hotels. Instead, we get the slimy pimp/blackmailer of GF2, living off Michael's oily crumbs.

I've often thought that a movie similar to Casino would have been a good GF3. Such a film could have been built around Freddy.