Hyman Roth
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Hyman Roth (born Hyman Suchowsky) is a fictional character and the main antagonist in the 1974 film ''
The Godfather Part II ''The Godfather Part II'' is a 1974 American epic crime film produced and directed by Francis Ford Coppola. The film is partially based on the 1969 novel ''The Godfather'' by Mario Puzo, who co-wrote the screenplay with Coppola. ''Part II'' s ...
''. He is also a minor character in the 2004 novel '' The Godfather Returns''. Roth is a
Jewish mob Jewish-American organized crime initially emerged within the American Jewish community during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It has been referred to variously in media and popular culture as the Jewish Mob, Jewish Mafia, Kosher Mob, K ...
ster, investor and a business partner of
Vito Corleone Vito Corleone (born Vito Andolini) is a fictional character in Mario Puzo's 1969 novel ''The Godfather'' and in the first two of Francis Ford Coppola's film trilogy. Vito is originally portrayed by Marlon Brando in the 1972 film ''The Godfather ...
, and later his son
Michael Corleone Michael Corleone is a fictional character and the protagonist of Mario Puzo's 1969 novel ''The Godfather (novel), The Godfather''. In the The Godfather (film series), three ''Godfather'' films, directed by Francis Ford Coppola, Michael was portr ...
. He is based on notorious mobster and gambling kingpin
Meyer Lansky Meyer Lansky (born Maier Suchowljansky; July 4, 1902 – January 15, 1983), known as the "Mob's Accountant", was an American organized crime figure who, along with his associate Charles "Lucky" Luciano, was instrumental in the development of the ...
. It was
Al Pacino Alfredo James Pacino (; ; born April 25, 1940) is an American actor. Considered one of the most influential actors of the 20th century, he has received numerous accolades: including an Academy Award, two Tony Awards, and two Primetime Emmy ...
who suggested
Lee Strasberg Lee Strasberg (born Israel Strassberg; November 17, 1901 – February 17, 1982) was an American theatre director, actor and acting teacher. He co-founded, with theatre directors Harold Clurman and Cheryl Crawford, the Group Theatre in 1931 ...
, his former acting teacher, for the role.


Character overview

Roth's background is supplied in a deleted scene in ''The Godfather Part II''. In this scene, set in Little Italy, New York in the early 1920s, he is working as a car mechanic. He is noticed by
Peter Clemenza Peter Clemenza is a fictional character who first appeared in Mario Puzo's 1969 novel ''The Godfather''. He is played by Academy Award-nominee Richard Castellano in Francis Ford Coppola's 1972 film adaptation of the novel, and by Bruno Kirby (as ...
, who has been calling him "Johnny Lips". Clemenza introduces him to his friend Vito Corleone, who suggests that he change his name, which was originally Hyman Suchowsky. When Vito asks him whom he admires, Suchowsky says
Arnold Rothstein Arnold Rothstein (January 17, 1882 – November 4, 1928), nicknamed "The Brain", was an American racketeer, crime boss, businessman, and gambler in New York City. Rothstein was widely reputed to have organized corruption in professional athleti ...
, for having fixed the
1919 World Series The 1919 World Series was the championship series in Major League Baseball for the 1919 season. The 16th edition of the World Series, it matched the American League champion Chicago White Sox against the National League champion Cincinnati Reds. ...
; accordingly, he changes his last name to Roth. Dialogue later in the film explains that Roth worked diligently with the Corleone family during
Prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic ...
, helping them enter the bootlegging trade by setting up a
molasses Molasses () is a viscous substance resulting from refining sugarcane or sugar beets into sugar. Molasses varies in the amount of sugar, method of extraction and age of the plant. Sugarcane molasses is primarily used to sweeten and flavour foods ...
-smuggling operation between
Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.
and Canada. He was also a close friend and ally of fellow Jewish gangster
Moe Greene Morris "Moe" Greene is a fictional character appearing in Mario Puzo's 1969 novel ''The Godfather'' and the 1972 film of the same name. Both Greene's character and personality are based on Bugsy Siegel: his affiliation with the mob in Los Ang ...
, the "inventor" of
Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...
. While Roth admits it would have been wrong to show anger and vengenace after Greene's death, as well as admitting that Greene pushed the limit too often, he is disappointed the famous city has nothing to remember him by. Frank Pentangeli later admits that while Vito Corleone had had a long history with Roth, to include doing business with the man, liking him, and respecting him, the elder Corleone never trusted Hyman Roth.


''The Godfather Part II''

By the timeline of this film, Roth is based in Miami. Though in poor health, he is extremely wealthy, having made a fortune by running his own
organized crime Organized crime (or organised crime) is a category of transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally th ...
outfit, assisted by his right-hand man, Sicilian
Johnny Ola This is a list of characters from the film series ''The Godfather'' consisting of ''The Godfather'' (1972), ''The Godfather Part II'' (1974) and ''The Godfather Part III'' (1990), based on Mario Puzo's best-selling 1969 novel of the same name, as ...
. Roth forms a partnership with
Michael Corleone Michael Corleone is a fictional character and the protagonist of Mario Puzo's 1969 novel ''The Godfather (novel), The Godfather''. In the The Godfather (film series), three ''Godfather'' films, directed by Francis Ford Coppola, Michael was portr ...
for a profitable business enterprise with the corrupt Cuban government of
Fulgencio Batista Fulgencio Batista y Zaldívar (; ; born Rubén Zaldívar, January 16, 1901 – August 6, 1973) was a Cuban military officer and politician who served as the elected president of Cuba from 1940 to 1944 and as its U.S.-backed military dictator ...
and a number of major American corporations to take control of a casino in
Reno Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada-California border, about north from Lake Tahoe, known as "The Biggest Little City in the World". Known for its casino and tourism industry, Reno is the c ...
. Roth secretly plans to assassinate Michael, partly to avenge
Moe Greene Morris "Moe" Greene is a fictional character appearing in Mario Puzo's 1969 novel ''The Godfather'' and the 1972 film of the same name. Both Greene's character and personality are based on Bugsy Siegel: his affiliation with the mob in Los Ang ...
's murder (as depicted in ''
The Godfather ''The Godfather'' is a 1972 American crime film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, who co-wrote the screenplay with Mario Puzo, based on Puzo's best-selling 1969 novel of the same title. The film stars Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan, ...
''). Roth instructs Ola to befriend Michael's brother
Fredo Fredo is a masculine given name, and diminutive of Alfredo or Federico, which may refer to: People * Getúlio Fredo (born 1954), Brazilian football manager * Fredo Santana (1990–2018), stage name of American rapper Derrick Coleman (born 1990) * ...
, who provides Ola (and Roth) information about Michael that enables them to make an attempt on his life. Michael quickly realizes that Roth perpetrated the murder plot. Remembering his father's advice to "keep enemies close", he maintains a good business relationship with Roth. Michael also suspects a mole within the Corleone family aided Roth, and needs time to uncover his identity. On
New Year's Eve In the Gregorian calendar, New Year's Eve, also known as Old Year's Day or Saint Sylvester's Day in many countries, is the evening or the entire day of the last day of the year, on 31 December. The last day of the year is commonly referred to ...
1958, the last night of Batista's rule, Michael orders Roth killed, confiding to Fredo that Roth will not see the New Year. Michael's bodyguard Busetta attempts to assassinate Roth, who has been recuperating in a hospital, by smothering him with a pillow. However, this assassination attempt is thwarted by Cuban soldiers who enter the hospital ward and open fire on Busetta, killing him instead. Moments later,
Fidel Castro Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (; ; 13 August 1926 – 25 November 2016) was a Cuban revolutionary and politician who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, serving as the prime minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976 and president from 1976 to 200 ...
's army enters the city, overthrowing the Batista regime and further ruining Michael's plans, as well as those of Roth, who intended to pass ownership of his Cuban casinos to various Mafia heads, with Michael gaining control of the Capri. Shortly after the Cuban fiasco, the U.S. Senate begins hearings on organized crime. To eliminate Michael as a competitor, Roth manipulates Corleone family ''
caporegime A caporegime or capodecina, usually shortened to capo or informally referred to as "captain" or "skipper", is a rank used in the Mafia (both the Sicilian Mafia and Italian-American Mafia) for a ''made member'' of an Italian crime family who head ...
''
Frank Pentangeli Frank Pentangeli is a fictional character from the 1974 film ''The Godfather Part II'', portrayed by Michael V. Gazzo. Gazzo was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his performance, which he lost to Robert De Niro, his co-star from ...
into testifying against Michael by having the Rosato brothers, two small-time hoods, attempt to kill Pentangeli. He survives and, believing Michael ordered the attack, agrees to testify against the Corleone family at a Senate hearing. The hearing is really a set piece arranged by Roth in hopes of removing Michael from the scene; the Senate committee's chief counsel is on Roth's payroll. As a counter-move, Michael has Pentangeli's brother, Vincenzo, flown in from Sicily to coerce Pentangeli into silence, thus destroying the government's case against Michael. Roth is last seen at the Miami airport, where he publicly states that he wishes to retire and live in
Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
under the
Law of Return The Law of Return ( he, חֹוק הַשְׁבוּת, ''ḥok ha-shvūt'') is an Israeli law, passed on 5 July 1950, which gives Jews, people with one or more Jewish grandparent, and their spouses the right to relocate to Israel and acquire Isra ...
. His request (like that of the real-life
Meyer Lansky Meyer Lansky (born Maier Suchowljansky; July 4, 1902 – January 15, 1983), known as the "Mob's Accountant", was an American organized crime figure who, along with his associate Charles "Lucky" Luciano, was instrumental in the development of the ...
) is rejected by the Israeli High Court, reportedly due to his criminal ties. Michael arranges to have Roth killed at the airport where he is about to be taken into U.S. federal custody. Minutes after disembarking the plane, he is fatally shot by Michael's ''caporegime'' Rocco Lampone, posing as a reporter. Rocco himself is killed by federal agents as he tries to escape. Roth's quote ''"We're bigger than
U.S. Steel United States Steel Corporation, more commonly known as U.S. Steel, is an American integrated steel producer headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with production operations primarily in the United States of America and in severa ...
''", when boasting how much more successful organized crime is compared with this multinational, was based on a similar quote by gangster
Meyer Lansky Meyer Lansky (born Maier Suchowljansky; July 4, 1902 – January 15, 1983), known as the "Mob's Accountant", was an American organized crime figure who, along with his associate Charles "Lucky" Luciano, was instrumental in the development of the ...
.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Roth, Hyman The Godfather characters Fictional American Jews Fictional murdered people Fictional characters based on real people Fictional characters from Miami Fictional characters from New York City Film characters introduced in 1974 Fictional gangsters Male film villains Cultural depictions of the Mafia Fictional crime bosses Meyer Lansky