Gianni Russo, who played Carlo Rizzi in “The Godfather,” slammed CNN host Chris Cuomo in an interview with TMZ on Saturday over Cuomo’s public meltdown after a person called him “Fredo.”
Russo was asked if “Fredo” was an “Italian insult,” to which he responded: “I can’t believe that he would say that. First of all, I know the whole family. His father would smack him.”
The Free Beacon notes that “Fredo” was “a fictional character in The Godfather series and was known as the weakest and least intelligent brother of the Corleone crime family.”
Russo said that Cuomo’s father would be ashamed of him and that Cuomo hurt his career with his public outburst where he threatened to throw the person who called him “Fredo” down a flight of stairs.
Russo also slammed Cuomo’s job performance, noting that as an alleged news host Cuomo is supposed “to report news. It’s not about what [Cuomo] think[s].”
Russo said that if he were to say anything to Cuomo it would be: “You made a fool out of yourself.”
WATCH:
The video of Cuomo exploding after being called “Fredo” was first reported by Brandon from “THAT’S THE POINT” and contains strong language.
“I thought that’s who you were,” the man says to Cuomo.
“No, punk-a** b****es from the Right call me Fredo,” Cuomo says. “My name is Chris Cuomo, I’m an anchor on CNN.”
“Fredo is from ‘The Godfather,’ he was that weak brother and they’re using it as an Italian aspersion,” Cuomo continued. “It’s like the ‘n-word’ for us.”
The man responded to Cuomo’s intense words by saying, “You’re a much more reasonable guy in person than you seem to be on television.”
Cuomo later said, “You’re going to have a f***ing problem.”
“What are you going to do about it?” the man asked Cuomo.
“I’ll f***ing ruin your shit. I’ll f***ing throw you down these stairs like a f***ing punk,” Cuomo said as he exploded in a fit of rage.
WATCH:
CNN rushed to Cuomo’s defense, claiming that he was the victim of someone who used an “ethnic slur” against him.
No relevant Google results returned for the phrases “Fredo” and “ethnic slur.”
The New York Post interviewed members of the Italian community and asked them if the term was an “ethnic slur” like the “n-word.”
“If anything, when we call somebody ‘Fredo’ it’s like [to say they’re] stupid,” a woman named Angela told the Post. “If somebody were to call me ‘Fredo,’ I would be like, ‘OK, you too.’ … Not like the N-word. That’s another level.”
The Post even asked law enforcement officials who have investigated the mob and members of the mob what they thought of Cuomo’s meltdown.
“It took a page right out of Fredo’s book,” one law enforcement source said. “If he was more like Michael [Corleone] he would’ve dealt with it quietly later, and there would’ve been no fingerprints.”
A member of the mob told the Post: “That sounds like the rant of a 20-year-old hothead, not somebody who’s a professional and has his own family … It almost sounds like this guy hit a raw nerve.”
Major national figures, including President Donald Trump, mocked Cuomo over his meltdown.
“I thought Chris was Fredo also,” Trump tweeted. “The truth hurts. Totally lost it! Low ratings @CNN”
