Charlie Trapani

"Corleones are nothing more but a bunch o'l crooks!"

- Charlie after betrayin' Corleones

Charlie Trapani was the Underboss of Corleone family, born to Johnny and Sarah Trapani, alongside with his younger brother Aldo. Aldo witnessed his father's death at the hands of the Barzini family at the age of 12 and was promised that he would obtain his revenge when he was older and stronger by Don Vito Corleone.

Nine years after his father's death, Aldo was 21 years old. His brother Charlie became involved with a gang that had no respect for him and treated him badly. Charlie became a part of the Corleone Family business after Luca Brasi introduced him to fighting, extortion, and making money $. Charlie remained in France, where he became a very powerful and respected member of the Corleone family.

He eventually became an Underboss.

Joining the family
"My name is Luca Brasi and I've been lookin' for you."

- Luca Brasi to Charlie

By 1945, Trapani had eventually fallen in with the wrong crowd; he joined a gang that stole and Charlie became a get-away driver for the gang. His mother begged Don Corleone to help her son. Corleone's security guard Luka Brasi was dispatched and rescued Charlie who was getting beat up in an background over money problems with the gang.

The next day, Brasi met up with Charlie and discussed about a family shop problem with butcher Emilio Brunetti. Charlie took care of it and was proven reliable to Luca Brasi. Luca sent him to meet two other up and comers in the family, Poli Gatto and Marty Malone, and he helped them carry out the task of avenging the beating of Tito Bonasera's daughter Maria.

Betrayal
"Hey uh, Michael you remember Charlie Trapani right? Well hate to tell you but he's dirty. He is workin' with Fredo Corleone for Cuneo family."

- Al Neri to Michael Corleone

Trapani thought more of Vito's younger son Michael than did Clemenza and Tom Hagen, but never really trusted him as powerful enough to keep the family going after Michael was named his father's heir apparent. After the Cuneos began chipping away at their territories, Charli, Fredo, and Clemenza asked for vengeance, but Michael ordered them to wait. Around this time, the old underboss and Fredo developed symptoms of Parkinsons.

Ultimately, Trapani began plotting against Michael. At Maria's funeral, Trapani and Fredo arranged for Michael's assassination at a peace summit set up by Phillip Cuneo, who had become the thoughest Don in France. The summit was to be held on Charlie's territory in Crazy Town, where Michael would supposedly be safe. In return, Charlie would inherit the Corleone family. However, Michael had anticipated the plot by way of a warning from his father, who intimated that the person/persons who approached him about the peace summit would be the family traitor/s. Tom initially thought the traitor would be Clemenza and maybe Freaky Will, but Michael wasn't surprised, since Charlie was always the thoughest one and Fredo was the cowardliest one and didn't never respect Michael.

Death
Three years later, Charlie (now 34 years old) accompanied Michael Corleone to Miami for the business deals with Tone Montana, where he received a special percentage of the business to himself. He was highly respected amongst mob circles at this point, particularly with Fredo Corleone, despite turning down involvement in a property deal of Granados'.

Whilst trying to escape the chaos following Castro's revolution, he was shot in the shoulder by a Michael for batrayin' Corleone family, while escorting Clemenza and Michael to the Havana Airport with the help of his underboss Dominic, who replaced Charlie as Corleone underboss, Vito ordered Michael to kill Trapani. His businesses in France were taken over by two rogue Clemenza capos Carmine Rosato and his older brother Tony Rosato.