Paisan Con — “New Jersey’s first Italian pop culture convention” — is coming to Fairfield, NJ, next month. The two-day extravaganza — featuring the likes of “Sopranos” star Lorraine Bracco; Giants quarterback Tommy “Cutlets” DeVito, legendary Mets reliever John Franco, and “Godfather” actor Gianni Russo — will be held at the DoubleTree by Hilton on...

Gianni Russo was 26 years old, with a couple million dollars in cash from running errands for mob bosses and a pretty big ego, when he used his Mafia connections to get the plum role of Carlo Rizzi in the classic 1972 movie “The Godfather.” He had never acted in his life, which was a serious affront to co-star Marlon Brando, who considered acting a...