History plans 'The Godfather' special

NEW YORK, June 26 (UPI) -- History channel says it will air a 2-hour special called "The Godfather Legacy," to observe the classic Hollywood mobster saga's 40th anniversary.

Michael Imperioli, former star of the HBO gangster drama "The Sopranos," narrates "Legacy," which is scheduled to premiere July 24.

It looks at how the 1972 film "The Godfather" and its two sequels "transcended Hollywood, transformed the American psyche, and even influenced real-life organized crime," said a synopsis released Tuesday.

"In 'The Godfather Legacy,' historians, scholars, law enforcement agents, and real-world Mafiosi explain how these powerful mobsters, with their moral ambiguity and human flaws, resonated with audiences and impacted popular culture," the synopsis said. "The film features interviews with screenwriter/director [Francis Ford] Coppola, Al Pacino, James Caan, Joe Mantegna, Talia Shire, and others, along with an abundance of memorable scenes from the Oscar-winning trilogy."

"The Godfather" and "The Godfather Part II" (1974) both won the Oscar for best picture. Coppola was nominated for best director for all three films in the trilogy, winning for "The Godfather Part II."