Godfather Saga 1977

Igoryek: I can't account for the 420 vs. 434 minute discrepancy. However, the difference between those two lengths and 540 minutes is attributable to television commercials. The Godfather Saga was indeed shown on NBC in episodes of 2 hours, 2 hours, 2 hours, and 3 hours in November 1977, but those lengths include commercials.

1981 - The Godfather 1902-1959, The Complete Epic (386 minutes) another edit\cut was released on VHS and Betamax. "NBC still owned exclusive broadcast rights to The Saga, so if a chronological cut was to appear on home video, it needed to be a new edit that didn't infringe on their contract. Thus was born the 386 minute Complete Epic, clocking in at nearly 45 minutes shorter than the Saga. Much of the bonus footage that appeared in the Saga was missing, although new footage that wasn't included in The Saga was used for The Complete Epic. Again, this version was whittled down from the Master Print and reassembled in a slightly different order for home video. The alternate longshots and redubbed profanity were jettisoned and the violence, sex and swearing were thrown back into the mix." "the title was wrong: the story spanned the years 1901-1959 and not 1902-1959." in 1990 was reprinted as The Godfather 1901-1959 The Epic.

1997 - Mario Puzo's The Godfather Saga (??? minutes) another edit\cut made by USA Networks. "USA Networks shows The Saga on television for the first time in ten years. The USA Cut is is not quite the same cut as the original Saga. Certain sequences that had been deemed too violent in years past were allowed to air uncut, which meant that the alternate longshots unique to The Saga were gone. Also, since it was shown in 2 parts instead of 4, the second and fourth title sequences were excised. Overall, the film was about 15 minutes shorter than the original Saga." "Though it was missing some of the added footage of The Saga, the USA Cut did contain some unique scenes. First, the title card finally reads "Mario Puzo's The Godfather Saga" instead of the previous "The Complete Novel For Television." Second, the party sequence for Part II was recut and some long shots of the partygoers that had never been exhibited before were thrown in." can't find its duration... in 2002 Spike TV aired this version in two parts with approximately five minutes of footage deleted in order to fit in more commercials. in 2007 Bravo Networks aired it in two parts but going even further than Spike TV went, Bravo cuts 22 minutes from the run time in order to fit in as many commercials as possible.

2012 - Mario Puzo's The Godfather: A Novel For Television (01:33+01:33+01:33+02:20=~420 minutes) AMC aired "saga" in HD for first time. "To celebrate the 40th anniversary of The Godfather films, AMC airs their version of The Saga. The AMC Cut is notable for being the first time any of the chronological edits have appeared in a widescreen format. It was also broadcast in HD, another first." "In 2008, while sourcing footage for the Coppola Restoration, Dreamworks came across a pristine copy of the original 1977 NBC print for The Godfather Saga. This was then matted to a widescreen ratio and the footage was synched up with the 2.0 Stereo mix from The Trilogy². (For scenes that were in the Saga but not the Trilogy², the soundtrack reverts back to its original mono). Some of the scenes that were unique to the Trilogy² were also flown in for this cut."

2016 - Godfather Epic / Mario Puzo’s The Godfather: The Complete Epic 1901-1959 (423 minutes) HBO premiered "The Godfather Epic" titled "Mario Puzo's The Godfather: The Complete Epic 1901-1959", which marks the first time an uncensored, commercial-free version with 5.1 audio and full HD.

so in conclusion: - 1977 NBC "The Godfather Saga / Mario Puzo's The Godfather: The Complete Novel For Television" (9h=~540 min); - 1981 VHS "The Godfather 1902-1959, The Complete Epic" (386 min); - 1997 USA Network "Mario Puzo's The Godfather Saga" (??? 15 min shorter); - 2012 AMC "Mario Puzo's The Godfather: A Novel For Television" (420 min); - 2016 HBO "Godfather Epic / Mario Puzo’s The Godfather: The Complete Epic 1901-1959" (423 min). -------------------------------------------------------------------- what if... this imdb page was edited to fit AMC cut\edit and not the original 1977 9-hour "Saga"? look at the poster with AMC logo, original title and structure of 4 episodes (01:33+01:33+01:33+02:20=~420 minutes). but why 434 minutes? where did this number come from?