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New Poster that was shown on Check out the Cover Story of the issue of Entertainment Weekly
The Sopranos -- Farewell Image Spot -- HBO
Video Clip
Sopranos' Swan Song Comes To South Florida --
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Finally! Your official Emmy episode cheat sheet!
LA Times -- July 25, 2007 Lorraine Bracco fans can come in off the window ledge. She really does have hope to win an Emmy in the final season of "The Sopranos"! Turns out she submitted "The Blue Comet" episode to Emmy judges, not "The Second Coming," as initially planned. There's been a lot of confusion over Emmy episode selection. The reason: The TV academy had a series of deadlines for episode declaration — the first back in April, more than a whole month before the TV season was over and Emmy eligibility ended. Contenders could switch their episode later, but the academy wanted to get an early head start on record-keeping. However, sometimes networks or celeb reps forgot to update The Envelope about later switcheroos, like Bracco's. Well, finally, hooray, ATAS gave us the official, final list of episode entries. These are the acting samples to be evaluated by voters screening DVDs at home while deciding who wins in each category. These submissions are crucial to know when trying to predict ultimate winners. Note: No changes were permitted after episode declarations were made at the end of May. Initially, ATAS said contenders could switch after nominations were announced, but the academy ended up having the change of heart. Too complicated, no doubt. Our thanks to ATAS for providing The Envelope with this info: LEAD ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES
James Gandolfini, "The Sopranos" ("The Second
Coming"), HBO LEAD ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES
Patricia Arquette, "Medium" ("Be Kind,
Rewind"), NBC LEAD ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
Alec Baldwin, "30 Rock" ("Hiatus"), NBC LEAD ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES
America Ferrera, "Ugly Betty" ("Pilot"), ABC
SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES
Michael Imperioli, "The Sopranos" ("Walk Like
a Man"), HBO SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES
Lorraine Bracco,
"The Sopranos" ("The Blue Comet"), HBO SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
Kevin Dillon, "Entourage" ("The
Resurrection"), HBO SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES
Jaime Pressly, "My Name Is Earl" ("Jump for
Joy"), NBC
'Sopranos' picks up 15 Emmy nominationsStory Highlights (CNN) -- Bada bing, indeed. July 19, 2007 "The Sopranos," the much-hailed HBO series that concluded its run in June, received 15 Emmy nominations Thursday to lead all series for the television awards. The final episode ended with a sudden cut to black that deliberately left viewers in the dark -- and more than a few upset -- regarding the fate of its lead character, mob boss Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), who had been buffeted by waves of trouble throughout the series' seven-season run. Five "Sopranos" regulars were nominated for acting honors, including Gandolfini, Edie Falco, Aida Turturro, Lorraine Bracco and Michael Imperioli. The show also was nominated for best drama, an award it won in 2004. Emmy was even more generous to the HBO movie "Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee," which received 17 nods to lead all programs. Watch Kyra Sedgwick and Jon Cryer announce the nominations » But the awards did have its snubs, some of them surprising. "Lost," which won best drama two years ago, was left out of that category entirely, as was last year's winner, "24." "Friday Night Lights," a critics' favorite that has suffered from low ratings, received two minor nominations. And "The Wire," which has been hailed by some as even better than "The Sopranos," received zero recognition from the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. For best drama, "The Sopranos" will be competing against "Grey's Anatomy," "Boston Legal," "House" and "Heroes." "Grey's Anatomy" had 10 nominations, including four for its regular actors and two for guest stars. One of the "Grey's" nods went to T.R. Knight, who was caught in controversy last year when co-star Isaiah Washington made an anti-gay slur, allegedly directed at Knight. Washington was let go from the show at the end of the season. Though last year's winner, "24," didn't get a best drama nod, its star, Kiefer Sutherland, is up for best actor in a drama. He and Gandolofini compete against Hugh Laurie ("House"), Denis Leary ("Rescue Me") and James Spader ("Boston Legal"). Best actress in a drama nominees are Falco, Patricia Arquette ("Medium"), Minnie Driver ("The Riches"), Sally Field ("Brothers & Sisters"), Sedgwick ("The Closer") and Mariska Hargitay ("Law & Order: Special Victims Unit"). On the comedy side, "Ugly Betty" topped nominees with 11 nods, including best comedy and a pick for star America Ferrera. The show will go against "Entourage," "30 Rock," "Two and a Half Men" and last year's winner, "The Office." "Entourage" creator Doug Ellin was pleased with his show's recognition, since the show often pokes fun at Hollywood itself. "It may seem sometimes like we're making fun of Hollywood, but really we're just trying to take a comedic look at how things are done here, because this is how it really is for people sometimes," Ellin told The Associated Press. Ferrera's competition includes Felicity Huffman ("Desperate Housewives"), Tina Fey ("30 Rock"), Mary-Louise Parker ("Weeds") and Julia Louis-Dreyfus ("The New Adventures of Old Christine"). Best actor in a comedy nominees are Tony Shalhoub ("Monk"), Ricky Gervais ("Extras"), Steve Carell ("The Office"), Charlie Sheen ("Two and a Half Men") and Alec Baldwin ("30 Rock"). "Dancing With the Stars" earned eight nominations, the most among reality shows. "American Idol" received seven. "Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee" was adapted from Dee Brown's 1970 best-seller about the Sioux nation and its massacre in 1890 at Wounded Knee Creek in South Dakota. Executive producer Dick Wolf, better known for his "Law & Order" shows, told the AP that he couldn't have been more pleased with the recognition. "Anybody who says it's not nice or it doesn't mean anything to get this many nominations, it's the ultimate sour grapes because it sure feels great," he said. HBO received the most nominations of any network, with 86 bids. ABC earned the most among the commercial broadcast networks with 70, one more than NBC's 69. The 59th annual Primetime Emmy Awards are scheduled for September 16 from Los Angeles' Shrine Auditorium. The show will air on Fox.
Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series Nominations: Supporting Actress in a Drama Series: Rachel Griffiths, Brothers & Sisters, ABC; Katherine Heigl, Grey's Anatomy, ABC; Chandra Wilson, Grey's Anatomy, ABC; Sandra Oh, Grey's Anatomy, ABC; Aida Turturro, The Sopranos, HBO; Lorraine Bracco, The Sopranos, HBO.
HBO's 86 Emmy Nomination Listing YouTube Video Clip of the Major Nomination Announcements
1. Outstanding Cinematography For A Single-camera Series
The Sopranos • Soprano Home Movies
• HBO • Chase Films and Brad Grey Television in association with
HBO Entertainment 2. Outstanding Directing For A Drama Series
The Sopranos • Kennedy And Heidi
• HBO • Chase Films and Brad Grey Television in association with
HBO Entertainment 3. Outstanding Drama Series
The Sopranos • HBO • Chase
Films and Brad Grey Television in association with HBO Entertainment 4. Outstanding Guest Actor In A Drama Series
The Sopranos • HBO • Chase
Films and Brad Grey Television in association with HBO Entertainment 5. Outstanding Lead Actor In A Drama Series
The Sopranos • HBO • Chase
Films and Brad Grey Television in association with HBO Entertainment 6. Outstanding Lead Actress In A Drama Series
The Sopranos • HBO • Chase
Films and Brad Grey Television in association with HBO Entertainment 7 - 8. Outstanding Single-camera Picture Editing For A Drama Series
The Sopranos • Soprano Home Movies
• HBO • Chase Films and Brad Grey Television in association with
HBO Entertainment
The Sopranos • The Second Coming
• HBO • Chase Films and Brad Grey Television in association with
HBO Entertainment 9. Outstanding Sound Mixing For A Comedy Or Drama Series (one-hour)
The Sopranos • Stage 5 • HBO
• Chase Films and Brad Grey Television in association with HBO
Entertainment 10. Outstanding Supporting Actor In A Drama Series
The Sopranos • HBO • Chase
Films and Brad Grey Television in association with HBO Entertainment 11 - 12. Outstanding Supporting Actress In A Drama Series
The Sopranos • HBO • Chase
Films and Brad Grey Television in association with HBO Entertainment
The Sopranos • HBO • Chase
Films and Brad Grey Television in association with HBO Entertainment 13 - 14 - 15. Outstanding Writing For A Drama Series
The Sopranos • Kennedy And Heidi
• HBO • Chase Films and Brad Grey Television in association with
HBO Entertainment
The Sopranos • The Second Coming
• HBO • Chase Films and Brad Grey Television in association with
HBO Entertainment
The Sopranos • Made In America
• HBO • Chase Films and Brad Grey Television in association with
HBO Entertainment
Click here to view the complete list of nominations
WMGK Radio Podcast -- The John DeBella Show Guest: Lorraine Bracco Date 6/14/2007 Category John DeBella Description: Lorraine Bracco from "The Soprano's" Click on the link above and then click on the Download button to listen to this Audio Clip
Think Tony Soprano's dead? You may be right June 15, 2007 -- CNN Entertainment News Online Article Story Highlights • "Sopranos" creator David Chase has said, "It's all there" • HBO notes that some theories have come close • Key clue may be in Bobby Bacala dialogue LOS ANGELES, California (Reuters) -- Fans of "The Sopranos" are seizing on clues suggesting the controversial blackout which abruptly ended the TV mob drama meant that Tony Soprano was rubbed out, and HBO said Thursday they may be on to something. One clue in particular, a flashback in the penultimate episode to a conversation between Tony and his brother-in-law about death, gained credence as an HBO spokesman called it a "legitimate" hint and confirmed that series creator David Chase had a definite ending in mind. "While he won't say to me 100 percent what it all means, he says some people who've guessed have come closer than others," HBO spokesman Quentin Schaffer told Reuters after speaking to Chase. "There are definitely things there that he intended for people to pick up on," Schaffer said. (Watch viewers try to make sense of the end ) Chase himself suggested as much in an interview Tuesday with The Star-Ledger newspaper of New Jersey when he said of his end to the HBO series, "Anyone who wants to watch it, it's all there." In the final moments of Sunday's concluding episode, Tony, the conflicted mob boss who has just survived a round of gangland warfare, sits in a diner with his family munching on onion rings as the 1980s song by rock band Journey, "Don't Stop Believin'," blares from a juke box. Tension builds as a suspicious man wearing a "Members Only" jacket eyes Tony from a nearby counter before slipping into a restroom. Then, as Tony looks toward the restaurant's entrance, the screen abruptly goes blank in mid-scene -- with no picture or sound for 10 seconds -- until the credits roll silently. Stunned viewers, many initially believing something had gone wrong with their cable TV reception, were left wondering whether Tony ended up "whacked" or whether his sordid life went on as usual. Even star James Gandolfini wasn't sure. "You have to ask ('The Sopranos' creator) David Chase that. Smarter minds than mine know the answer to that," Gandolfini told the New York Daily News. "I thought it was a great ending. You decide." The jarring, fill-in-the-blank finale, concluding a show widely hailed as America's greatest television drama, sparked a furious debate about whether Chase had conceived of an actual ending and whether he left the audience any clues. The biggest hint, according to a consensus taking shape on the Web, is a scene from an earlier episode in which Tony and his brother-in-law, Bobby "Bacala" Baccalieri, muse about what it feels like to die. "You probably don't even hear it when it happens," Bobby says while they sit fishing in a small boat on a lake. That scene is recalled briefly in a flashback played at the end of the penultimate "Sopranos" episode, as Tony is lying in the darkened room of a safehouse clutching a machine gun to his chest in the midst of a mob war. "I think that is one of the most legitimate things to look at," Schaffer said when asked about theories that the Bobby Bacala flashback was meant to foreshadow Tony's death. Moreover, he said the man in the "Members Only" jacket could be interpreted as a symbolic reference to membership in the mob. "Members Only" also was the title of the episode in which Tony's demented Uncle Junior shoots him in the gut. The "Members Only" guy was played by the owner of a real-life pizza parlor, Paolo Colandrea. Schaffer denied reports that Colandrea had appeared earlier in the series as the nephew of Tony's New York gang rival, or that there ever was such a character. He also dismissed reports that Chase had filmed more than one ending to the finale.
'Sopranos' Lorraine Bracco ... A bitter child custody battle threw her into bankruptcy Fame & Fortune: 'Sopranos' Lorraine Bracco By Bonnie Siegler • Bankrate.com -- June 10, 2007 Editor's note: As the smash HBO TV saga "The Sopranos" airs its final episode tonight, Bankrate marks the occasion with a series of Fame & Fortune interviews with three of its stars. Today: Lorraine Bracco. Previously: Steve Schirripa and Steven Van Zandt. Talk about getting into character. For her role as Delores del Ruby, the tough-talking, whip-cracking leader of the cowgirl rebellion in Gus Van Sant's "Even Cowgirls Get The Blues," Lorraine Bracco took bullwhipping lessons in her backyard. As Dr. Jennifer Melfi, the psychiatrist who listens and counsels mob leader Tony Soprano weekly on "The Sopranos," Bracco took a lot of characteristics from her own sessions of "talk therapy" and incorporated them into Melfi. In her tumultuous past, which includes three failed marriages and a custody battle that led to personal bankruptcy and depression, Bracco could have used some time with Dr. Melfi herself. The very public divorce and custody battle with actor Harvey Keitel finally gave Bracco sole custody of their daughter, Stella. Life was on the upswing but suddenly everything hit her like a ton of bricks when she was later diagnosed with clinical depression. That was 1999. Now, the 52-year-old actress -- who chronicles her story in the candid, best-selling book "On the Couch" -- feels alive again and passionate. Reveling in the last season of "The Sopranos," the Brooklyn-born actress is beaming with determined optimism. Despite a career spanning more than two decades, including an Oscar nomination for "Goodfellas," Bracco is not your stereotypical star. But her "Goodfellas" role led "Sopranos'" creator, David Chase, to remember Bracco for his HBO mobster hit. Along with her breakout role on "The Sopranos," Bracco has her own wine company. The bumps seem to have smoothed out in her life, though she still shows some true grit. Bankrate: It was 1999 that you noticed your life was joyless and you were diagnosed with depression? Lorraine Bracco: Yes, it was when "Sopranos" came out and was a huge success, my daughter had graduated NYU and it was then when I said, "Oh my God, I'm not really jumping for joy and why is that?" Bankrate: Do you know what triggered the depression or was it an accumulation of circumstances? Lorraine Bracco: We feel it was an accumulation of fighting and flight mode, so that when everything kind of settled down and was good, that's when I realized something was wrong. I do think I had depression before this point, though. I always said I lost a year in denial, basically, not believing my friend who said, "Lorraine, I think you should go talk to somebody." Bankrate: You've said that going through all this actually helped you form the character of Dr. Melfi. How do you think your depression mirrors that of Tony Soprano? Lorraine Bracco: I think it's different but I think a lot of the things that Dr. Melfi says to Tony are very amusing to me because I will be saying to myself. "Oh my God, this is so good." I get a good kick out of it. When I first started "talk therapy" with my therapist, I basically said I don't want my problems to lead my life -- I want my dreams to lead my life. I want that to happen for myself. I deserve that. Bankrate: You sure do deserve it. Can you talk about the lean times of your bankruptcy? Lorraine Bracco: It was a very embarrassing situation. I was getting foreclosure notices and everyone wanted their money. And I couldn't find any work at the time. I had mortgage, taxes, food and everything else to pay at the end of the month, including lawyers. I was never one of those top-paid actresses, but I was working steadily for a while. Bankrate: You went through a difficult time but you still have your sense of humor. What did you learn going through all this? Lorraine Bracco: That I won't spend a lot of money on lawyers and legal fees ever again. I now have a great bulls**t detector in me, which comes out of necessity. Bankrate: You have recovered financially, though, from your personal bankruptcy. Lorraine Bracco: Yes. And I worked hard, too. Right now I have a place in the Hamptons and if I could live anywhere in the world, it would be right where I am today. I shop for fresh fruit and vegetables there. I have my dog, a little Jack Russell, Chandler, and I'm very happy. My daughter named him after Chandler Bing on "Friends." And I'm a good companion right now. I've aged, I've mellowed and I think my core is very strong. I have forged a life that is warm and comfortable, loving and caring of others. Bankrate: And you have your own wine company, Bracco Wines, as well as a successful acting career? Lorraine Bracco: I'm not just another actress selling perfume or hair products. I lived in France for 10 years and I always had great food and great wine while living there (while a model in Paris). I feel that when you go into the wine stores, it can be very intimidating. I felt that I've been drinking wine for a while and it's not a snobby thing for me, so I thought that going to Italy and picking out wines would make it very easy for women to know that if they bought a bottle of Bracco wine that it would be a good glass of wine -- red or white -- and they wouldn't have to stress over it. And it's fun. It's something I enjoyed very much when I was younger living in France -- tasting new wines, new foods, traveling -- and I find that it's kind of come full circle for me. Bankrate: So what would you put your white wine with? Lorraine Bracco: Shrimp, any kind of fish, any kind of light dinner. Caesar salad would be good with it. And with red? Meats, cheeses, lamb. Bankrate: What are you thankful for? Lorraine Bracco: All the good and bad experiences I've been through. I'm thankful for my health. Bankrate: "The Sopranos" ends today. You know the ending already but where would you have liked Dr. Melfi to go out in this last season? Lorraine Bracco: Just hoping that Tony Soprano understands her dedication to her work and to him ... that she believed he could be a better person.
The final analysis
06/09/2007 -- Katherine Imbrie -- The Providence Journal Online Article Whacked, or not whacked? For legions of die-hard fans of The Sopranos, that’s the only question that matters this weekend. The HBO television series that has become a cultural benchmark in the eight years since it opened with a bang on Jan. 10, 1999 will conclude tomorrow night at 9 with a show that will answer that question — likely with an even bigger bang. At this point, the betting is that the series’ six-season, 86-episode run will end in a bloodbath and the demise of Tony (James Gandolfini) — but as any fan knows, The Sopranos always surprises. The final surprise has been kept top secret since the show’s last episode was filmed just a few weeks ago. Only then did many of the cast members find out what The End would be, and none of them has been doing any talking since. That would spoil the fun. Tonight, several members of the cast, including Gandolfini, Steven Schirripa (Bobby), Tony Sirico (Paulie), Steven Van Zandt (Silvio), and Michael Imperioli (Christopher), will appear in a special by-invitation-only event at Foxwoods marking the series’ conclusion. Tomorrow, they’ll all fly to Florida for another party celebrating the airing of the final episode. Hanging out “with all the boys” at these events will be just one woman star of the series: Lorraine Bracco. Ever since Episode One, when Tony walked into her office seeking treatment for his recurring panic attacks, Bracco has played his psychiatrist Dr. Jennifer Melfi, calmly steering him towards what she hoped were helpful insights into his family relationships while keeping clear of any overt references to his “family business” — the mob. But in recent episodes, the doctor has had cause to reexamine the remedial value of her “talk therapy” approach to treating the patient she has begun to describe as a sociopath. This happened after her own psychiatrist (played by Peter Bogdanovich) suggested to her that for criminals like Tony, talk therapy might be nothing more than a cheap way of validating their continued bad behavior. (And, it must be said, Tony’s behavior has been getting worse, the body count climbing in nearly every episode this season.) The point hit Dr. Melfi particularly hard when, at a dinner party of fellow psychiatrists, patient-client confidentiality was breached, and the consensus around the table was that she might only be making matters worse by continuing her sessions with the big, bad boss of New Jersey. So, she cut him off — gave the show’s hero a list of references to other doctors and sent him packing. Describing her character’s action in a phone interview earlier this week, Bracco said it’s one of the things she loved about playing Dr. Melfi: The woman is strong. Was it easy for Melfi to show the office door one final time to Tony, a man she had been treating for more than eight years and whom she had advised through a marital separation, various parental crises, and more than one close brush with death? “It was heartbreaking,” said Bracco. “But what I love about this character is that she had the strength to say that she’s not going to do that anymore. It’s what I love about what David (Chase) does: He always puts her in the moral issue. And she always takes the high road.” Melfi showed similar strength of character in an episode several seasons back in which she passed on an opportunity to use Tony’s stature as boss to avenge a painful personal experience of her own. In that scene, Bracco’s face let viewers see the tug of her realization that, because of her special relationship with Tony, she had the power to use him to pull the trigger on the brute who raped her and was going to get away with it. She didn’t do it. So it’s a significant change that, in last week’s episode, Melfi’s stone face betrayed little but contempt for her long-time patient. Clearly, the doctor has had enough of Tony. So has Gandolfini, who has said in interviews that although he’ll miss working with the cast and crew, he’ll feel relieved of a burden when the series ends. (He alone has been in every single episode.) And so also has the show’s creator, David Chase, who wanted to end the show after the fifth season but was persuaded by HBO to do a sixth and final one. As for Bracco, she said she isn’t sure what her next project will be — “It depends on whether I get another great script” — but she certainly values her experience on The Sopranos, both professionally and personally. Having suffered from depression herself (a subject which she explored in an autobiography, On The Couch, published last year), Bracco said she learned a lot by playing a psychiatrist on TV: “For one thing, I’ve become a better listener.” But, she was asked, wouldn’t it be depressing for Dr. Melfi to realize that with all those years of talk therapy, she might only have been enabling Tony to be an even badder guy than he was to begin with? “No, I don’t think so,” said Bracco. “I’ve always believed in therapy as a good tool to help him. I think she (Melfi) made his marriage better. She was helpful to him.” The revelatory idea that therapy might actually worsen a sociopath’s criminal behavior was not new to Bracco when it came up in the script: “Four or five years ago, David (Chase) and I were at a psychiatric conference where he received an award for the show. The sociopath study was discussed there, and I think it’s fascinating that he remembered all that we learned at that conference and used it this way.” Bracco spoke in glowing terms of her personal relationships with Chase and Gandolfini. “My bond has really been with David and Jimmy, because I don’t really have on-screen time with many of the other cast members.” Most of her scenes are one-on-one with Gandolfini in her office. So, she said, she welcomes this final weekend of celebration and nostalgia with the rest of the cast as the show comes to its end, whatever it is. Will all the loose ends in the series be wrapped up in the final show? The wild Russian last seen escaping in the snowy Pine Barrens of New Jersey? Lustful Furio, banished to Italy? And what of the Soprano kids? Baleful A.J.: Hope for a turnaround, or not? And Meadow’s once-promising career — at a full stop? It’s likely we will never know the answers, never see all the ends tied up in a neat package. “That’s David’s brilliance as a writer, his big vision,” said Bracco. “The show doesn’t follow the path of regular TV scriptwriting. It’s true to life, and so you don’t know how it will all turn out.” And so, fans will have to be content to find out what they can tomorrow night about the fate of the Sopranos. Whacked? Or not whacked. That is the question.
A conversation with Dr. Melfi See Kate Imbrie’s story on the finale of The Sopranos above Ten minutes to 9, Monday night. My guy, Phil, and I have stumbled upon a surprisingly good movie about Beethoven — no, NOT the one about the St. Bernard, the one about the composer and his tragic life and lost love. Looks like we’re going to watch Gary Oldman in Immortal Beloved till 9, when the penultimate Sopranos episode will be repeated. (Of course, we had seen Episode 85 when it first aired the night before, and like everyone else who loves the show, can hardly bear to wait to find out what happens in the ultimate episode, The End, tomorrow night.) My cell phone rings in the kitchen, and away I go to see who it is, not wanting to miss the twist that sealed poor Ludwig’s fate. I didn’t recognize the area code, but answered it anyway. It was Lorraine Bracco. LORRAINE BRACCO! my brain said, taking awhile to jumpstart from 18th century Germany and its most famous musician to 21st century New Jersey and its most famous family show. Bracco is, of course, the 51-year-old actress who plays Tony Soprano’s psychiatrist Dr. Melfi on the Sopranos. (Besides his late mother, you notice, only she calls him "Anthony," which gives you some idea of the kind of relationship they have.) It wasn’t a total surprise to get this night-time phone call from this particular star: My editor had been working to arrange a phone interview for the last couple of days. But we hadn’t been able to connect with the publicist, and so I had sort of given up on it. But here was Bracco on my phone, and me without a pen or paper handy, and the Mac screen in the other room in its usual E-mail mode. I raced in there, opened up a Compose Mail screen and tried to compose myself so that I might sound like a responsible reporter and not a starstruck geek. It didn’t help that with the cell phone in speaker mode (so that I could type while talking), the sound is kind of tinny. We got going. About 10 minutes along, Phil pushes the door open and sticks his head in. I could tell he was a little perplexed that I had abandoned him and Beethoven so abruptly to take a phone call. "Hey honey," he said, "It’s on. The Sopranos is starting. Didn’t you want to see it again?" In mid-sentence with Dr. Melfi, I could think of nothing to do except wave him away furiously, mouthing, "Go away!" I felt badly about it, but what could I do? My brain was already on overload. We finished the interview soon after that, when Bracco announced she had to go. She was calling from California. I strolled into the TV room just in time to see Dr. Melfi kissing Tony off in her office. "GUESS WHO I WAS TALKING TO ON THE PHONE?" I said. It felt good to be able to drop the "real reporter" bit and let out the starstruck geek, at least in the privacy of my home. And I got the reaction I knew I’d get: "Lorraine Bracco! HOLY SMOKES!"
Can't Miss Television -- MSNBC -- June 3, 2007
“The Sopranos” ends its magnificent run next Sunday night with the finale of the acclaimed series. Almost from the opening frames of the pilot, fans latched onto this show and made it a cultural phenomenon. Yet as much as diehards are grateful to creator David Chase and his colleagues for treating us all to some of the best television ever, he’s not completely off the hook, because there’s a lot of pressure to end on the perfect note. But Chase is known as a guy with a taste for the unconventional, who likes to leave the occasional loose end hanging. Boy, mob life is a killer. (HBO, Sunday, 9 p.m.)
Forget dangling
chads!
Gold Derby by Tom O'Neil -- LA Times -- June 2, 2007 TV academy leaders have just enacted one of the craziest changes ever to Emmy voting — a bizarre accommodation to "dangling" TV episodes . . . and to TV's top hoodlums. In effect, it's a big smooch and a hard shove forward for two thugs who don't need it: Tony Soprano and Henry VIII. HBO and Showtime exec made an extra-sneaky sacrifice this year while plotting their grand Emmy strategy. They decided to air the last few episodes of this season's "The Sopranos" and "The Tudors" after the cut-off date for awards eligibility in exchange for having fresh new episodes on TV just when voters are checking off their ballots. Unfortunately, that meant that the big, grand series finale of "The Sopranos" wouldn't be eligible for Emmys, but, hey, HBO chiefs gambled that the tradeoff would be worth it. Ditto for "The Tudors," which arrives just as "Sopranos" takes its final bow. These after-deadline episodes would not be eligible for ANY Emmys — even next year — under recent rule changes. Here's what the TV academy says, "If episodes associated with a series are fewer than the minimum number needed to qualify them as a stand-alone series in any given awards year (six for drama and comedy, three for all other series), those 'dangling' episodes are not eligible in any awards year." "The Sopranos" and "The Tudors" have two episodes "dangling" after the cut-off so they wouldn't qualify for next year. But, wait, now, ah, things have changed! On May 16, the academy's Board of Governors voted to permit dangling episodes to compete within the current year. That means that ATAS just OK'd giving those shows an unfair advantage over competitors. Do you think it's not a big deal? Think again. In years past, HBO shrewdly marketed "Sex and the City" at the Emmys by launching new seasons precisely at the start of every new voting period — early June. The result was rather confusing to voters. While they watched a new season on TV they were voting on the last one, but such a quibble was just a quibble. "Sex and the City" ended up with gads of nominations (56) and a few top wins, including best comedy series, actress (Sarah Jessica Parker) and supporting actress (Cynthia Nixon). "It's quite obvious that this is for pro-Sopranos," says our forums poster iskolar. Other poster Paul Han agrees: "I think this tells you all you need to know about who's going to sweep the drama categories this year. Talk about your all-time two headed coins. Heads 'Sopranos' wins, tails the field loses."
Fuhgetabout 'The Sopranos'? No Way By Linda Moss -- Multichannel News, 6/4/2007 In The Sopranos, Home Box Office gave viewers a pot-bellied antihero who was a merciless murderer, petty thief, unfaithful husband, unloved son — and a neurotic basket case. Nonetheless, Tony Soprano became a role model for broadcast and cable networks alike, blazing the trail for a series of unconventional TV characters to follow. Small screens have been populated by flawed protagonists, once found almost exclusively in literature and movies, ever since Soprano first started meeting with his shrink in 1999. On Fox's big hit House, acerbic Dr. Gregory House is a pill-popper with a cane — no Marcus Welby. Fox's Jack Bauer on 24 isn't above almost gleefully torturing his enemies, including his own brother. On FX's The Shield, Vic Mackey is a bald, squat Los Angeles cop who committed a murder in the show's premiere episode. Also on FX, Rescue Me's Tommy Gavin is a crude, brawling alcoholic New York firefighter who gives the FDNY a bad name. Blame sociopathic crime boss “T” for that rogues' gallery. GROUND BREAKER The last original episode of The Sopranos airs Sunday (June 10), and the Emmy Award-winning series leaves a legacy of stretching boundaries, for HBO, cable and TV in general. The series made a mark, breaking new ground in terms of the types of characters now being portrayed, warts and all, on the boob tube. And more widely, its success prodded broadcast and cable networks alike to be more daring and creative with their scripted dramas. “The Sopranos has moved the bar for quality, and it's moved the bar for depth and insightfulness,” said FX Networks president John Landgraf. “The Sopranos is just a beautiful towering piece of art. I really adore it. I'm really going to miss it … [it] opened the door that a lot of us have gone through, and done really memorable work on the other side of that door.” But HBO must now move on and overcome two big losses: not only of The Sopranos, its biggest hit show and a one-time cultural phenomenon, but also the departure of the brilliant executive who helped shepherd that property, Chris Albrecht. Albrecht, HBO's CEO, was abruptly ousted last month after being arrested for allegedly assaulting his girlfriend in Las Vegas. HBO's strategy is to replace The Sopranos, which garnered 18 Emmys and 96 Emmy nominations since its 1999 debut, with a handful of shows. The goal is for those series, in combination, to attract the broad viewership The Sopranos drew. As a subscription service that doesn't sell ads, HBO doesn't have to fret about ratings per se. But it does have to produce programming that satisfies each segment of its subscriber base, so they feel they're getting their money's worth from their HBO subscription and don't cancel it. But it's not easy to produce hit TV shows — or outsized characters such as Tony Soprano, played with fine-tuned brooding by hulking James Gandolfini. At the height of its popularity, The Sopranos, set in the gritty blue-collar suburbs of northern New Jersey, resonated with audiences in a way that some TV writers and programmers predict can't be repeated. “It can never happen again,” said Landgraf, because of today's audience fragmentation and abundance of high-quality, hour-long dramas. PETTINESS, WITH A TWIST Even the premium service concedes that another Sopranos isn't likely to emerge anytime soon, and it's planning accordingly. “I don't think anybody in cable has ever had, or probably ever will, a series of that magnitude,” said HBO vice president of program planning Dave Baldwin. “These don't come along very often. It's not a factory where you can churn these shows out.” TV historians and critics attribute The Sopranos' success to the genius of writer/creator David Chase, who served up one of America's favorite movie subjects, the Mafia and organized crime, for TV. But Chase thumbed his nose at the epic gravitas of movies like The Godfather, instead presenting an uncourtly mob boss, who does deals in a strip joint and outside a butcher shop, and has the kind of family issues that viewers could relate to. In Tony's case, that included a Machiavellian mother, a nagging wife, a ne'er-do-well son and panic attacks that lead him to a shrink's couch. “The mob has always been a popular American dramatic topic,” USA Today TV critic Robert Bianco said. “And it was such an original twist on that, the idea of a mobster as this kind of mundane petty punk with mother problems. “That central dynamic — that battle between Tony and his family, in particular his mother — really is what drove the show to the heights that it reached in the second season when it came back, which is when people really caught on to it.” There was humor as well, with Tony “more like Homer Simpson than Don Corleone,” according to Robert Thompson, professor and director of the Bleier Center for Television and Popular Culture at Syracuse University. Chase served it all up with plenty of flashes of shocking violence, nudity and tough language, and avoided the tidy, traditional storytelling arcs of network TV — as only could be done on a non-ad-supported service. “Every episode is its own little world,” TV Guide critic Matt Roush said. “Sometimes you follow through, and sometimes you don't. It's messy, like life is messy.” TV historian Tim Brooks, Lifetime Television's executive vice president of research, said that HBO, “in that rarefied environment protected from advertiser pressure … after many false starts and many shows that didn't make it, came up with a show that combined character study, violence and intensity that was unmatched.” And, according to Brooks, “The broadcast networks, and cable for that matter, were very envious of that.” In fact, in 2001 then NBC-president Bob Wright wrote a sour-grapes letter to his network executives and TV studios, asking whether the Peacock Network could learn any lessons from The Sopranos. Wright groused that broadcasters were at a programming disadvantage, compared with cable, because of strictures on depicting violence and sex. “It [The Sopranos] forced broadcast television to improve the quality of its dramas,” Bianco said. Brooks said that he considered The Sopranos so influential that he broke his rule and included it in the eighth edition of his The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, where he normally only included shows “seen by most Americans.” HBO is only in about one-third of U.S. TV homes. “It has been a beacon for development of serious drama, of testing boundaries,” Brooks said. Tony Soprano set the stage for the cutting-edge scripted dramas, like The Shield, that FX has built its brand on. And it laid the groundwork for Fox's House, according to Alan Sepinwall, TV critic for The Star-Ledger in Newark, N.J. “I don't think you'd see a show like House without The Sopranos, because one of the things it proved is that if the writing is good enough, and the acting is good enough, the traditional rules about likeable characters and relatability don't necessarily apply,” Sepinwall said. The mob show's impact on HBO was immeasurable. “It brought us a great scripted drama at the time when scripted drama was dying on the networks,” Baldwin said. A huge plus was that The Sopranos' audience was so broad, reaching “many, many different demos,” that HBO used it to establish a beachhead on Sunday evenings, going head-to-head with the broadcasters “on the biggest night in television,” according to Baldwin. “Practically every important audience segment that purchases HBO is represented in a big way in The Sopranos audience,” he said. “And that's how you build to an overall large audience.” HBO's strategy going forward is to satisfy those varied audience segments with several shows, rather than one hit like The Sopranos. “Losing this show means that we have to work a little bit harder to get back good programming for all of those audience segments … that were so easy to get with one show,” Baldwin said. “We have to do that with multiple shows. Not that it's an impossible task, but it's a matter of planning and timing.” That tack makes sense, but may not be so easy to pull off, according to Thompson. “What you're essentially saying is, 'Can we survive with five modest hits, as opposed to one monster hit?' ” Thompson said. “Yes, that model would work. The question is that [getting] five modest hits is easier said than done.” It's true that The Sopranos viewership has been trending down. The first seven episodes of the second part of the sixth season, the show has averaged 7.5 million viewers, with a total of 10.9 million viewers for its plays across the week. The season's first half last year averaged 8.9 million viewers on its premiere play on Sunday nights, and 13.1 million for the full week. Still, Thompson raised the issue of how many HBO customers will churn out this year, in the aftermath of the end of The Sopranos, since he believes the show was “an anchor” that drew viewers to the premium service. “Is there going to be a subscription Armageddon the day after this thing plays?” he asked. “That's a big question.” HBO officials deny that there will be subscriber defection, citing past history. They pointed out that HBO's distribution has been on an upswing since The Sopranos debuted, making overall year-to-year gains even during the period, more than a year, from June 2004 to March 2006 when the show wasn't on. HBO has 28.7 million subscribers now, according to SNL Kagan, versus 23.7 million in 1998 just before the show started. Even though The Sopranos' popularity may never be duplicated observers say not to count HBO out, even without Albrecht. “HBO does have an aura and should be able to exploit that in the future,” Roush said. “If they keep taking risks, the risks will eventually pay off … They'll get attention, whatever they do.” At least one TV critic, Sepinwall, doesn't think that HBO's newest series, John From Cincinnati, has the potential to be a broad hit. The show is a surreal tale about a seemingly jinxed multigenerational family of champion surfers whose lives are changed by a mysterious visitor. Sepinwall described it as “very obtuse, more like an art film.” In the meantime, Tony and his crew will live on, in syndication on A&E Network, and in their influence on the TV landscape. “The whole season is about Tony trying to come to grips with his legacy,” Roush said. “I do think this is one of the cultural benchmarks for dramatic television, much like Hill Street Blues helped TV grow up back in the '80s. … The Sopranos took it to a new level.” NEXT WEEK: A Sopranos Scrapbook
Post from Ben S. on the IMDb Message Board
... very interesting Here is some information I found: Sociopath --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Of the more distinguishing traits, some argue
the sociopath to be less organized in his or her demeanor, nervous and
easily agitated – someone likely living on the fringes of society, without
solid or consistent economic support. A sociopath is more likely to
spontaneously act out in inappropriate ways without -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Psychopath -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Conversely, the psychopath tends to be extremely organized, secretive and manipulative. The outer personality is often charismatic and charming, hiding the real person beneath. Though psychopaths do not feel for others, they can mimic behaviors that make them appear normal. Upon meeting, one would have more of a tendency to trust a psychopath than a sociopath. Because of the organized personality of the psychopath, he or she might have a tendency to be better educated than the average sociopath, who probably lacks the attentive skills to excel in school. While psychopaths can fly under the radar of society, many maintaining families and steady work, a sociopath more often lacks the skills and drive for mimicking normal behavior, making “seemingly healthy” relationships and a stable home less likely. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Criminal perspective -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From a criminal standpoint, a sociopath’s crimes are typically disorganized and spontaneous, while the psychopath’s crimes are well planned out. For this reason, psychopaths are harder to catch than sociopaths, as the sociopath is more apt to leave ample evidence in his or her explosions of violence. Hence, while similar psychological traits might fall under the antisocial personality heading, from a social and criminalist point of view, the differences between a psychopath and a sociopath may be significant. According to experts, persons with a non-criminal history can also display lesser or varying degrees of either personality type. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Source: http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-the-difference-between-a-psychopath-and-a-sociopath.htm
Meet Cast Of The Sopranos At End Of Series Party Final Episode Viewing Party June 10 -- Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Win Tickets To Meet Cast Members (CBS4) HOLLYWOOD If you’ve ever wanted to rub elbows with Tony Soprano or even Paulie Walnuts, fuggedaboutit. But you can rub elbows with the actors who play these popular HBO mobsters at a “Sopranos” series finale party which will take place right here in South Florida. Every Sunday in May (6, 13, 20, and 27th), the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino will hold a drawing in which the winner receives tickets to the final episode viewing party on June 10th. It’s called “Tony’s Swan Song Giveaway”. Those drawings will take place at 7:00 p.m. but you must be a Seminole Players Club Cardholder which are free to all visitors. Each week, someone will win three “Tony’s Swan Song Prize Packages” which include two tickets to watch the last episode of ‘The Sopranos” at Hard Rock Live at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. The package also includes dinner for two with pre-selected cast members from the show. Scheduled cast members attending include: James Gandolfini (Tony Soprano), Lorraine Bracco (Dr. Jennifer Melfi), Michael Imperioli (Christopher Moltisanti), Tony Sirico (Paulie Walnuts) Steve Van Zandt (Silvio Dante), Steve Schirripa (Bobby Bacala), John Ventimiglia (Artie Bucco), Vincent Curatola (Johnny “Sack” Sacramonti) and Arthur Nascarella (Carlo Gervasi).
Ring of Fire -- Air America Radio -- Interview -- April 21, 2007
Click here to listen
to Lorraine being interviewed by Robert F. Kennedy
Actress Lorraine Bracco, who plays psychiatrist Dr. Jennifer Melfi on "The Sopranos", celebrates the show's final season, now under way on HBO. Bracco is also the author of a how-to book on emergency preparedness and an importer of fine Italian wines.
The Power of the Sopranos Women
They may not be Mob Bosses but the women of "The Sopranos" make the show April 13, 2007 — If you are going to have coffee at an Italian restaurant, who better to have it with than the women of "The Sopranos"? At Fiamma, a chic Italian eatery in downtown New York City, I sat down with Carmela, Meadow and Dr. Melfi — or more specifically, Edie Falco, Jamie-Lynn Sigler and Lorraine Bracco. Click here to go to the ABC's Nightline Page ... includes a WMP Video Clip and Screen Captures
Final-season therapy with Soprano's shrink
By Florangela Davila -- Seattle Times TV writer -- April 8, 2007 When "The Sopranos" signs off the airwaves June 10, it's arrivederci to Dr. Jennifer Melfi, the leggy, bespectacled, dusky-voiced shrink. Eight years ago, Tony Soprano took one look at her and thought, Bada bing! Without a Melfi, we'd have never, literally, gotten inside Tony's head. Without a Melfi, "The Sopranos" might have been just OK. So as the HBO series' final nine episodes approached (they begin airing tonight), we put Dr. Melfi actor Lorraine Bracco, 52, on the couch. She was interviewed over the telephone at the end of March, having just arrived in Las Vegas for some R-and-R. Q: It's only been a short while since you filmed the last episode. How are you feeling? A: We're still in it. We're not done yet. One more day. Q: Are you getting sad? A: Yeah, I am. I don't really want it to end. In my world, if I was the ruler of the universe, we'd be doing this for a much longer time. But I'm not the ruler of the universe. Q: So you haven't yet had a chance to steal anything from the set. Melfi's chair, maybe? A: (Laughs.) I really do want my chair! Q: And these final episodes? Did the story turn out how you expected? A: I think that's one of the reasons why it's been so interesting a show, because it's never been what we expected. Q: Why do you think the public has fallen so hard for "The Sopranos?" A: It's great writing. Great acting. No commercials. To me, that's a win-win situation. Q: I've read that after "Goodfellas" (for which Bracco was nominated for an Oscar), you wanted to try something different. That you didn't want to be Carmela? A: Correct. Q: And what was so appealing to you about the Jennifer Melfi character (she's been nominated three times for an Emmy, four times for a Golden Globe)? A: I loved that she was a character against him (Tony). A female character that was very strong. That was very smart. And I knew that she would always be a great addiction for him. Q: And have there been moments when the words on the page just made you cheer or made you flinch? A: All the time. Those politically incorrect moments. You know the show crossed religion, color, ethnic groups. No one's been spared. Q: You've been very open about your own struggles in your book, "On the Couch." Personal, financial, emotional struggles. (A turbulent marriage to Harvey Keitel; an affair with Edward James Olmos). Can you talk a little bit about how your experiences helped you for this role? A: I'm curious to look at it, as a whole. But I don't think I can really see it clearly right now. I need some time to look back in retrospect. Q: We've seen the attraction between Melfi and Tony. His kiss. His fixing her car. But when she could have really used his talents for snuffing people — to go after her rapist — she declined. What are we to make of this relationship? A: We've grown together. I think he's made progress. He acknowledges that, and that was very nice for me. I could have told him about the rapist, but what would that have made me? That would have made me a gangster, and that episode (in Season Three) was all about Melfi's morality. And she wasn't going to cross that patient/doctor line. That boundary. She was going to stay true to the oath she took when she became a psychiatrist. Q: For the most part, except for that bit when we saw Melfi with her son and ex having dinner, and when she was with her own shrink, we just see you in your office. In your chair. Did you ever get jealous that you didn't get to kill anyone on the show? Or have more scenes in which you're stuffing your face? A: (Laughs.) It would have been good to eat. When I first met David (Chase, creator of the show), I said, "Listen. If you're going to make a mockery of therapy and if you make her some sort of psychosexual man-killer, I'm really not interested in that." And he agreed. And so I knew that that was not in the stars. Q: But if you could have been any other character, who would it have been? A: I would have liked to have been Uncle Junior. I just thought he had the greatest lines. And he was written so unbelievably well. Such an incredible character. And I've fallen in love with Dominic Chianese. Q: There are a couple of books psychoanalyzing the show. Have you ever read any of them? A: I've seen them. Q: Can we play a little word association with some of the characters? A: I'll try. Q: Carmela. A: Forceful. Q: Christopher. A: Weak. Q: Meadow. A: Young. Q: A.J. A: Confused. Q: Janice. A: Certifiable. Q: Junior. A : Great! (Laughs.) I love him. Q: Did you ever wonder if your character would actually last through the duration of the series? A: I don't think anyone really knew until David sat down and wrote out the arc for the season. Q: Those of us who have fallen hard for the show have had to endure some long breaks in between seasons. A: It's like Livia would say. Poor you! (Laughs). Q: How did you spend your time during breaks? A: I traveled. I have children (two: daughters Margaux Guerard and Stella Keitel). It was easy to do things or not to do anything. It was great. Q: Is your character's legacy going to be that you've prompted more men to get into therapy? A: That's true. So that would be kind of cool. Q: Not to make light of depression, but how are we to cope when this is all over?
A: I've said that we all need to do group
therapy. That we need one final session in Melfi's office. That Q: Do you know yet with whom/where you'll watch the finale? A: I don't know. Q: But it'll be with a bottle of Bracco wine? (She launched her own line in 2005.) A: Absolutely. A nice barolo.
The long goodbye
Amid filming the final episode, Lorraine Bracco gets sentimental The Toronto Star Online Interview -- Apr 08, 2007 You can forgive Lorraine Bracco if she seems a bit distracted over the phone. This can't be easy for her. "It is an emotional time," she allows, taking a break from production on what I very quickly gather is the last Sopranos ever – written and, for the first time since the pilot, also directed by David Chase. "You know, every day, there's like this little hit ... This is our last day in the studio at Silvercup. This is the last scene at the Bada-Bing. This is Little Stevie's last scene. This is the last thing I'll ever say as this character ... "Every day now, it's always `This is the last something.'" We still have another nine episodes to look forward to. For the Sopranos themselves, it's all about to end – not with a bang, but with a whimper. "It's not like this big explosion at the end of the day," Bracco confirms. "It's more like, `Oh my God, I can't believe it!' And it's not just me. It's (the people in) makeup, and hair, and sound ... you know, everybody." Indeed, there are maybe only two people on the planet who are actually happy to see the show go – Chase and his burly, bear-like lead actor, James Gandolfini. "I think Jimmy is tired, and David is tired. You have to understand, they work 16, 18 hours a day on this thing. I mean, they're tired." As far as Bracco is concerned, she could keep on going forever – but then, as Soprano shrink Dr. Jennifer Melfi, she's been in an average of maybe one scene per episode, tops. And virtually all of them opposite Gandolfini. Understandably, then, she says she'll miss him the most. "I really only worked with him, so he was always my key ingredient. "You know, going to the psychiatrist is not about the psychiatrist; it's about the patient. So, you know, translating that into acting ... there was also the thing of being an Italian woman up against (Tony), which was always a very interesting dynamic. "I mean, I love the show, I love the characters, I love the actors ... it's been incredible. I'm just so lucky." Her favourite story, as it is for so many, is the Steve Buscemi-directed comedic third-season episode, "Pine Barrens," which has Christopher and Paulie wandering lost in the woods, trying to find and finish off an injured Russian. On the dramatic side, I suggest, there has rarely been a more powerful hour of television than the earlier episode, three weeks prior, called "Employee of the Month," in which her character is brutally raped in a parking garage, and she wrestles with the temptation to turn to Tony for revenge. "Why, thank you very much," she gratefully responds. "That was a hard one for everyone, I think. I remember the guy who played the rapist was really a fireman. But he wanted to be on the show, he loved the show so much that he took the part. "But he's a fireman, and what do firemen do? He risks his life ... whenever there's danger he risks his life to go in and save someone. But here he is, hurting me, and at one point he did finally break down and go, `Oh my God, I save people. I don't do this.' It was very emotional." More intense, perhaps, but no less impactful than the separation anxiety she's going through now. Bracco admits she hasn't really yet had a chance to think it all through in the long term. "I don't know, really, what I'm going to do. I'm going to regroup in my life. I mean, I've been very spoiled. The thing with that is, I've just been offered a bunch of pilots, which was very flattering, and, you know, always makes a girl feel good ..." As does the public recognition. "People are always yelling out to me on the street, `Hey Doc!,' which I think is just adorable."
Tony's shrink off the couch, into vineyard
JOSHUA PREZANT/FOR THE MIAMI HERALD There is a certain reserve to Dr. Melfi, the shrink Tony Soprano tells all his deep, dark stuff to while she sits there in her short skirts, coolly aware that the crime boss is a hair trigger away from a lustful lunge. You might say Melfi is one of TV's best ice queens. Lorraine Bracco, the woman who plays her, is another story. Reserved she is not. Here she comes, running out of Giorgio's Bistro in Hollywood in a white button-down and capris and waving you toward a parking space. You were supposed to meet her at her beachfront condo just down the street, but at the last minute she decides she's famished, and there's not enough to eat at home. She wants you to taste her new Bracco-label wines, but you can't just walk into a restaurant with your own bottles. So you wait in the car while she bursts into Giorgio's and convinces the manager to let her uncork the Bracco Pinot Grigio and Bracco Primitivo she's toting. ''I named my daughter Margaux after the first Chateau Margaux I ever tasted,'' Bracco says in that unadorned Brooklyn way, once you're finally seated at an outdoor table. 'That's how good it was. I was like, 'Holy s- - -!' I almost licked the bottle.'' As far as Bracco is concerned, pretentious language only gets in the way of wine enjoyment. "Wine is such a personal thing. Everybody has their own -- palate. I was gonna say everybody has their own a- - - - - -. But you know what I mean. Some people think they need to have all the verbiage. I lived in France for 10 years when I was modeling. And people there would open up bottles of incredible wines all the time. I don't remember hearing a lot of verbiage. They'd go, 'This is a f- - - - - - great glass of wine!' '' She'll go on and on about Bracco wines (there are eight, all from Italy, all part of a branding deal that pays her to lend her name), but if you want the goods on how The Sopranos is going to end, fuhgetaboutit. ''It's almost done. It's really sad. But you know I can't tell you a single thing about it,'' Bracco says about the final nine episodes, kicking off tonight at 9 on HBO. OK, fine. But doesn't she think Dr. Melfi always sort of had the hots for Tony? ''He has the hots for her. Is she returning the emotion? I really try not to,'' she says and laughs. "I think it would be very unprofessional of me. And yet they keep writing these scenes for us.'' Bracco is bound by contract not to let any of the story line slip. But she'll tell you she's going to miss her main scene partner. "Jimmy [James Gandolfini] and I have a great relationship. We worked together 10 years. I basically saw the rest of the cast at read-throughs and dinners. But my real relationship is with Jimmy. And of course [Sopranos creator] David Chase. I mean, I basically play David Chase in The Sopranos. I really do think I was David.'' With the successful mob drama almost behind her, Bracco is flipping through scripts for new TV shows, she says. But not much is catching her eye. ''I've got a whole bunch of pilots sitting on my bed that I have to make choices on. There is one that I think is pretty interesting. But I can't talk about it yet,'' says the woman who scored an Oscar nomination for her role as a mobster's wife in 1990's Goodfellas and later turned down the role of Tony Soprano's wife because she had already gone there. "What I can tell you is that I'd rather fail creatively than take a police drama, if that makes sense.'' She had also turned down several offers to attach her name to hair products, makeup and perfume, she says, before she finally said yes to Bracco wines, developed and marketed by Straight Up Brands, which uses Ja Rule to sell something called MoMo Mojito and Foxy Brown to sell a sparkling wine called Wave Frutti di Vino. Still, the wines Bracco brings to lunch are quite drinkable. You polish off half a bottle of the pinot grigio ($12.99) with salads and bruschetta before moving on to the rich, red primitivo ($27.99) for which Bracco orders a cheese pizza. ''The pinot grigio is from Venezie, and it's the only white wine I took,'' Bracco says. She presented it, and several others from the Bracco line, in February at the South Beach Wine & Food Festival's grand tasting pavilion and at a private dinner sponsored by American Express at David Bouley Evolution. "I'm a picky white-wine drinker. I refuse to drink anything that's too acidy or too sweet. I'm a Bordeaux girl. I love the big reds. The commitment I made about the Bracco wines was that if I didn't love it, I was not gonna sell it. I went to all the vineyards. I said, `Teach me about the soil; teach me about how the sun is gonna hit it.' Wine is something I always loved and something I knew I could do well.'' Bracco grew up in Brooklyn, where Mom and Dad occasionally drank with dinner. "But what I remember was the straw bottle and the Bolla Suave. Then I went to Paris when I was 18 or 19. I was a kid. I didn't realize what a fantastic education I was getting. You took it for granted that you were having great wines with every meal. Friends took me to Bordeaux. They took me to Provence. What you ate and drank was very important.'' After a decade, she came back to the States, where things weren't quite as romantic. "I would go out with my girlfriends, and they would order Diet Coke with dinner. And I would say, 'We are not drinking Diet Coke at the meal!' I would order wine, and they would go, 'Ugh, you're gonna make us spend $120 on a bottle of wine?' I would order a Montepulciano, and they would go crazy because they couldn't pronounce it. I'd say, 'Relax girls. Let's do it by syllables.' I always thought the success of merlot is that people can pronounce it.'' It isn't that Bracco wants to come off as a wine expert. You're not going to catch her fronting like she has a more sophisticated palate than anyone else. "I never went to school about it. I have only now picked up a couple of books. I like to eat. I like to drink. I'm a simple girl. I'm not gonna sit here and tell you this wine has a hint of this or that. You either like it, or you don't. It either works with what you're eating, or it doesn't. There is no reason to intimidate people about something like drinking wine.'' Then again, at 52, she is way beyond putting on airs. "I always called 50 the F word. I've made a lot of f- - - - - - mistakes in my life. I am so not perfect. But I'm a true believer you can make lemons into lemonade.'' Does she have any wine-drinking tips? "Yeah. If you're gonna have a 1938 Chateau Margaux, drink it in a nice big glass so you can get air in there. If it's a bottle of something that's $11.99, drink it out of any cup. And be happy.''
'The Sopranos,' 1999-2007 -- This Thing of Ours, It’s Over
In the opening episode of the final season of “The Sopranos,” Tony celebrates his birthday at a lake house. The first two new episodes are mostly solemn. New York Times -- BY ALESSANDRA STANLEY -- April 8, 2007 I’M old, Carm,” Tony Soprano says at the beginning of the end on Sunday. This New Jersey mob boss has recovered from last season’s shooting but tells Carmela he feels changed: “My body has suffered a trauma it will probably never recover from.” Death was never the most dreaded thing in “The Sopranos” — decline was. Long before any rival mobsters were beaten, knee-capped or killed, there were wistful intimations of decay. In the opening scene of the premiere episode in 1999, Tony confided to his psychiatrist that he no longer found much satisfaction from work: “Things are trending downward.” Now they are bottoming out, and as Tony and his people grapple with their sense of impending loss, so are viewers. There are nine episodes left, a coda to put the Soprano saga to rest. It’s high time of course because even before last season the series had started to sag in places, a creative fatigue that matched the main characters’ weariness and also the audience’s. Now the long-awaited seventh and final season has arrived, and trouble is closing in. Melancholia is spreading just as inexorably as the aches and fatal illnesses that keep knocking down Tony’s friends and foes. After his own brush with mortality last season a chastened Tony crashed through spiny thickets of Cosa Nostra ill will to share with a longtime rival the bromide about how people on their deathbed never ask themselves why they didn’t put in more hours at work, though he phrased it the Soprano way. “Believe me,” Tony told Phil Leotardo, lying prone and barely conscious after a heart attack. “Nobody lays on their deathbed wishing they had saved more no-show jobs.” This season opens with the police at the door, a rapping that prompts Carmela to exclaim, “Is this it?” It isn’t, at least not yet. It’s a gun possession charge that Tony’s lawyer easily sets aside. The arrest doesn’t even prevent Tony and Carmela from driving to his sister Janice and brother-in-law Bobby’s lake house in upstate New York to celebrate Tony’s 47th birthday, and to do some business on the other side of the Canadian border. Christopher, meanwhile, is pursuing show business by producing a gangster-slasher film, “Cleaver,” that he made with Tony’s money. And Johnny Sack, still in prison, has a new set of problems behind bars. Sunday’s premiere marks the start of the show’s valedictory tour, a chance for the actors and the series’s creator, David Chase, to show off one last time and for viewers to pay their respects to the family that changed television, mostly for the better. It’s not that “The Sopranos” was the only good thing on television, though plenty of fans would say so. But Mr. Chase’s take on New Jersey mobsters was certainly groundbreaking — in opposing directions. The series lowered the bar on permissible violence, sex and profanity at the same time that it elevated viewers’ taste, cultivating an appetite for complexity, wit and cinematic stylishness on a serial drama in which psychological themes flickered and built and faded and reappeared. The best episodes had equal amounts of high and low appeal, an alchemy of artistry and gutter-level blood and gore, all of it leavened with humor. Carmela, the most earnest character of all, was often the funniest. At one point she became infatuated with Tony’s Italian henchman Furio, and the two shared a lovestruck moment while inspecting the construction work on Furio’s new house. “You are a very special woman,” Furio told Carmela in a husky undertone. She held his gaze, then broke the spell, saying in her trademark nasal whine, “Have you thought about flooring yet?” “The Sopranos,” is often praised as the series that definitively bridged pop culture and art. Maybe. It was certainly a gateway drug to television for the elitists who just said no. Some of the same people who used to say they have no time for television can now be heard complaining that they don’t have time to watch everything they recorded on DVR. But “The Sopranos” was a revelation only to people who did not realize there was already a lot of very good television available. And not only reruns of “The Honeymooners” or “Saturday Night Live” and Masterpiece Theater. Network dramas had already laid the groundwork for HBO almost two decades earlier. “Hill Street Blues” reinvented the cop show much as “St. Elsewhere” transformed the hospital drama in 1982. The first actor brilliantly to portray a charismatic gangster and sociopath on television wasn’t James Gandolfini; it was Kevin Spacey in 1987 on the CBS series “Wiseguy.” David Lynch’s surrealistic soap opera, “Twin Peaks,” peaked in its first season in 1991, but Mr. Chase has said that show opened his eyes to the medium’s potential. And the cable revolution was already in its primacy by the time “The Sopranos” went on the air. “Oz,” the HBO series set in a maximum-security prison, began in 1997, while “Sex and the City” made its debut a year later. From the beginning the greatest appeal of “The Sopranos” was its context — organized crime as a low-life milieu that attracts high-minded people. Television had never before produced a crime show in which the criminals were the main protagonists, and law-enforcement officials minor characters at the margins of the story. But before Mr. Chase mined his memories of Italian-American New Jersey, Francis Ford Coppola had made the three “Godfather” movies, and Martin Scorsese, with “Goodfellas,” had built on a foundation laid by old James Cagney gangster movies. Mr. Chase never forgot that debt. Christopher and his pals referred to Mr. Scorsese as “Marty” and went wild when they spied him going into a gala movie premiere in the first season. A running joke that never failed to crack Tony up was Silvio Dante’s impersonation of Al Pacino in “The Godfather: Part III.” And when Tony’s mother, Livia, died, he ended up in his den watching “Public Enemy.” Mr. Chase chose to explore the waning days of organized crime, focusing on a lost generation of mobsters who had surrendered territory and influence to newer criminal gangs, been decimated by RICO laws and abandoned the old code of Omerta. Mob malaise was so bad, the boss consulted a psychiatrist who put him on Prozac. Early on, the conceit of Italian-American crime families in the twilight of their power was played for mostly for comic effect. The saga stood out in the way it humbled the mafia, even as it exalted its lawlessness, contrasting feral street violence and collapsing crime family values with the most prosaic suburban concerns: — parent-teachers conferences, baked ziti casseroles and shopping at Color Tile. Tony’s business pursuits seesawed from high crime — insurance and public-housing fraud — to the ridiculous, like a stolen shipment of provolone. Some of the funnier moments, and some of the most shocking, arose from those incongruities. In one of the best episodes Tony took Meadow to Maine for a college tour, and while there discovered an ex-mobster who had entered the witness-protection program after informing on some of Tony’s friends. Tony stalked the man and killed him in between father-daughter Kodak moments. In another episode Paulie Walnuts took his aged mother and two of her elderly friends to a restaurant and grew indignant when one of the women slipped into her doggie bag a Parker House roll he felt belonged rightfully to his mother. Later he slipped into the old woman’s house to steal the savings she stored under her mattress, and when she discovered him, smothered her to death with a pillow. Yet no matter how crass or grotesque the context, the strains and strange bonds between mother and son, sister and brother, and husband and wife, were deeply yet delicately mined. “The Sopranos” was reliably unpredictable, with subplots that seemed destined to resurface and instead disappeared, like the Russian veteran of the Chechnya war who escaped his would-be killers and ran through the snowy woods. And throw-away jokes turned out to have hidden portent. Carmela refused to believe Meadow, her boyfriend Finn and her roommates at Columbia when they tell Carmela that the bullied hero of Melville’s “Billy Bud,” a class assignment for A. J., has a homosexual subtext. Much later Tony gives Finn a construction job, and the young man ends up being tormented by Vito Spatafore, the closeted gay mobster. After a while — certainly after the third season, which included the long and graphic scene of the rape of Tony’s psychiatrist, Dr. Melfi — violence lost some of its shock value. For one thing “The Sopranos” emboldened other series to lose their inhibitions. HBO prodded networks to push the limits of sex and violence, though most efforts to create a network “Sopranos” failed. Showtime, however, took more imaginative riffs on the HBO example, with smart, provocative fare like “Weeds” and “Sleeper Cell.” Not all of the show’s influence was to the good. “The Sopranos” can be partly blamed for emboldening ABC to allow so many plotting excesses and drawn-out detours on "Lost," which in turn prompted a surfeit of copycat series, all with huge casts of characters and complicated interlocking story lines that required nothing short of maniacal commitment on the part of viewers. (“Heroes” was the only one to become a bona fide hit.) But the main difference between “The Sopranos” and its spawn wasn’t prurience, it was ambition. Most shows overreach, or “jump the shark,” when they pile on too much melodrama and too many dead bodies. On “The Sopranos” it was the opposite: The show lost its way when it put murders and mischief aside and weighed itself down in ponderous character sketches and too many Bergmanesque dream sequences. Those flights of fancy were not surprising given how often the series was hailed as Shakespearian or Dickensian. Norman Mailer recently called “The Sopranos” the closest thing to the Great American Novel in today’s culture. Last season was particularly low on whimsy and the playful black humor that was so much a part of the series’s charm, and the first two episodes of the final season are mostly solemn and self-serious. It’s just as well. Way back in the fourth season, when Tony resisted Carmela’s pleas that he protect his loved ones’ future with some estate planning, she told him to grow up. “Let me tell you something,” Carmela snapped. “Everything comes to an end.”
Click here to listen to the MP3 Format of Lorraine's Segment ( 8:49 Minutes ) Joan Hamburg - April 6, 2007 - Hour 2 (full length broadcast)
WOR 710HD-
Joan Hamburg explores the topic of "Can you have a friendly divorce ?" and
talks with Sopranos star Lorraine Bracco!
NBC's Nightly News with Brian Williams
-- Getting Cozy with The Sopranos An offer Bracco couldn't refuse
By MARISA GUTHRIE -- DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER -- Thursday, April 5th 2007 Lorraine Bracco - who played Ray Liotta's long-suffering wife in Martin Scorsese's genre-defining "GoodFellas" - is well-acquainted with the Mafia parable. So when she got yet another script about an Italian-American family in the waste management business some 10 years ago, her first impulse was to chuck it on the scrap heap with the umpteen others she'd been sent. "I felt that I'd been offered every Mafia script," she says. "I was at the point where I didn't even want to read anything more dealing with the subject." But she did read David Chase's script for "The Sopranos." "It was such a different take on it," Bracco says. "It was a new way to look at the mob." As Dr. Jennifer Melfi, Bracco was the conduit for Tony Soprano's deep-seated rage. And on more than one occasion, it was directed at her. "It was a fascinating relationship," she says, adding that Chase wanted Dr. Melfi to be "gentle and truthful and yet unbelievably strong against Tony." Several years later, Tony may not exactly be the picture of mental health, but as the show heads into its final nine episodes (beginning Sunday at 10 p.m. on HBO), he does exhibit a new level of self-awareness as he begins to make an effort to get out of a life that he now feels can only end badly. Dr. Melfi was always the show's moral compass, the arbiter of socially appropriate behavior. But her purity, despite a somewhat disheveled personal life, did not make her immune from violence. When Chase informed her that Dr. Melfi would be raped in a parking garage stairwell, Bracco says, "I told him, 'I don't understand. Why do you want to hurt Melfi?' Because at the time [she] was the only decent person there, except for maybe the kids [Meadow and Anthony Jr.]." "It wasn't until I read the script that I got it," she says. "It was a moral issue." Was Dr. Melfi going to succumb to a dark impulse for revenge? "Was she going to become like [Tony]?" But understanding the moral nuances of the episode "Employee of the Month," which occurred in season three, didn't make it easier to explain to her daughters, Stella, 21, and Margeaux, 28. "They were younger at the time," Bracco says. "And it's nothing you want anybody, especially children, to see. I think the worst part was the morning [after the episode aired] when I drove Stella to school and all the radio shows were talking about it." Bracco already has filmed her final scene, which she says is the worst feeling of all. "It feels s----y," she says. But like everyone else connected to the show, she is tight-lipped about the end. All she will say is, "It's great. And it's nothing you will expect."
The end is near for 'The Sopranos' Tony Soprano looks inward on the concluding episodes of the long-running HBO series.
By Paul Brownfield, LA Times Staff Writer -- April 3, 2007 "The Sopranos" begins its final run of nine installments this Sunday on HBO with the sound of law enforcement banging at Tony Soprano's door. "Is this it?" Carmela says, sitting up in bed. I took that line as a poke at the audience, mocking the otherworldly hype and expectation about the conclusion of the series, which is to say who gets to live and who gets to die. Some of what makes "The Sopranos" great is unforeseen magic, inexorably tied to the freedom success on HBO has granted — the way Robert Iler, for instance, who plays AJ Soprano, has gone in real time from chubby kid to the sullen, direction-less twentysomething that perfectly embodies the questionable citizen Tony (James Gandolfini) and Carmela (Edie Falco) have produced. Perhaps, over the course of its eight years and 86 hours, the show's ultimate sleight-of-hand is the way in which the gruesome acts of violence these guys commit invites our repulsion even as these same crimes are quickly forgiven (and/or forgotten). Part of this, true, involves the romanticizing of the mob in popular culture, but all the buzzing about who will get bumped off as the series wraps up — Paulie? Syl? Christopher? — belies the fact that what makes "The Sopranos" meaningful is the way it observes (grouses about, really) the texture of contemporary life. "The Sopranos" is a bitter comedy about family, the clash of the old world and the new, of parent and child, the violence and criminal behavior set off by the fact that the very same week Tony sits opposite a therapist whose job is to ask, "So, where are you?" This article was copied from lbracco.com So where were we? "The Sopranos" began last season with a plot event — Tony shot by his demented Uncle Junior (Dominic Chianese) — which set in motion a season that was, in retrospect, kind of baroque: A comatose mob boss has a near-death experience in which he's being hounded by Buddhist monks, who mistake him for a salesman of a faulty heating system. There was also the outing of the gay mob lieutenant Vito, played as a tragedy of identity, and Tony's nephew Christopher's trip to Hollywood to woo Sir Ben Kingsley ("Sir Kingsley!" as Christopher saluted him) for his mob-themed slasher movie "Cleaver." In the brief flush of action that propels us back into the series' final season, Tony is arrested on a gun charge, a flashback reminding us that he tossed the weapon in question into the snow back in 2004, while fleeing a raid on New York crime boss Johnny Sack's house. The gun arrest (a nuisance charge by the Essex County sheriff's office) turns out to be a palate teaser, for various bills will finally come due now, RICO cases being brought to fruition and the Cosa Nostra gasping into the 21st century without viable successors, white-haired men meting out justice and jockeying for position with other white hairs, the larger "war on terror" making them seem quaint by comparison. The first two episodes feature ripples of the attrition: Johnny Sack is dying of cancer in prison (given counsel and comfort by an orderly played by director Sydney Pollack, in a pretty hilarious turn as an oncologist who shot his wife), while a wise guy is arrested at the after-party for the "Cleaver" screening, a movie on which Tony is the silent investor and other mobsters are the producers, including Christopher (Michael Imperioli). This is all a continuation of last season's thematics of a changing world — Tony selling out a property in the old neighborhood to Jamba Juice, his lieutenants unable to shake down a Starbucks-like barista impervious to their muscle. "My estimate? Historically?" Tony says Sunday of the fate awaiting mob bosses. "Eighty percent of the time it ends in the can like Johnny Sack, or on the embalming table at Cozarelli's." He says this while sitting in a boat in upstate New York near the Canadian border with his doormat brother-in-law Bobby Bacala (Steven R. Schirripa), on a weekend getaway where Bobby and Tony's voluble sister Janice (Aida Turturro) have invited Tony and Carmela up to celebrate his birthday. It comes as something of a shock that Tony's only turning 47: He's noticeably slower, weaker and more engrossed in his legacy. There is about this taut, superbly written lake episode (by Diane Frolov, Andrew Schneider, series creator David Chase and Matthew Weiner) an idyllic quiet that slowly becomes unnerving. We're reminded, once again, that we're in the presence of nouveau riche conservatives — the offspring of immigrants relaxing as the Caribbean nanny watches the kid, everyone in agreement that they oughta build a wall around the country to keep the illegals out. In a mob story, a secluded lake portends bad things; on "The Sopranos," that bad thing turns out to be family members in close proximity to each other over a long boozy night of karaoke and Monopoly. The Janice character arrived on the show at the beginning of Season 2 — a hippie returning from Seattle with a Rolling Stones tongue tattooed on her breast — and since then she's been nothing but a headache. "Janice only commits acts of Janice," is how Tony described his big sister to his psychiatrist Dr. Melfi (Lorraine Bracco) last year, and at the lake the two begin laying into each other, hovering and jabbing until the replayed dynamic inevitably spills over into violence. The ensuing brawl, sumo in nature, upsets the order of things briefly; it reaffirms that Tony is ever-dependent on guile to emerge victorious. But they are his pyrrhic victories. The years have helped make Tony Soprano a tragic figure — he's aged in his eight TV years like a president, so that the guy you see getting out his SUV at the close of the opening credits is a shadow. Gandolfini, in his performance, has by increments become more lumbering — slower, softer and wiser, but still, if he can summon the energy, that brute. Interviewed several years ago on National Public Radio, Chase said that he had an ending for the character in mind. "The gangster movie is a long American tradition," he said. "But they've all been, except for 'The Godfather' trilogy ... it's usually the rise and fall. It's been that way since the beginning. The criminal rises from the gutter, has his moment of glory, and then goes down and pays for his crime in a hail of bullets. That's usually the template. "As Tony has his rise," Chase added of his protagonist, "he's always having his fall every day. His rise and his fall seem to be happening all the time together." You feel in the two episodes HBO sent out the bitter comedy unable to keep pace with what is mournful and sad — the show's final parlor trick toward absolute empathy with a sociopath examining his inner life. The full circle arrives, glaringly, in the one place that Tony has been a constant — the therapy room. So that, as the curtain begins to close, you get the scene in which the mob guy, teary-eyed over a betrayal, is going deeper than the therapist. "Without invalidating your feelings," she says, "is it possible that on some level you're reading into all this?" "I've been coming here for years," Tony Soprano responds. "I know too much about the subconscious now."
TV Guide Cover Story -- April 2, 2007 Issue
TV Guide Mini-review of the first two episodes A melancholy tone haunts these final episodes of The Sopranos. "Is this it?" Carmela wonders aloud as the story resumes. I'm afraid it is, but if the first two episodes are any indication, what a way to go out. Issues of mortality and legacy loom large. In the opener, Tony celebrates his 47th birthday at Bobby and Janice's lake house, where family tensions build and ultimately explode over a drunken game of Monopoly that's riotously funny and sadly horrific. It's no surprise that Tony plays by his own rules. The Sopranos has always followed a defiantly different beat, rarely delivering traditional payoffs. The mood deepens in the second episode, as one mobster dies without being whacked, and another is whacked in a way you'll never see coming. Tony, however, is distracted by how he comes off in Christopher's hilarious parody of a slasher/mob movie. "This is the image of me he leaves to the world," Tony mutters, feeling betrayed. Not to worry. In David Chase's hands, the legacy of Tony and The Sopranos among the all-time greats in TV history is assured.
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THE SOPRANOS SEASON 1-6A RECAP -- The Sitdown
Check your local listings for date and time
-- it may vary
This retrospective chronicles the events from
the previous seasons of HBO's hit drama series The Sopranos. HBO -- The Sopranos -- HD On Demand Check your local listings for availability A Gift For Tony ... a special Promo
The Set ... a special Promo
Fox News Video Clip from the Premiere
'The Sopranos' Cast Speak About The End
Access Hollywood -- NEW YORK, NY (March 28, 2007) With a rabid fan-base, multiple Emmy awards under its belt and a solid place in history as a modern classic, "The Sopranos" comes to a close this year after ten years and six seasons. Access Hollywood was at the red carpet for the premiere of the final stretch of episodes, and got the scoop on how the stars feel about reaching the end of the show's journey (and just why did Vincent" Big Pussy" Pastore quit "Dancing With The Stars" anyway?). The actors told Access what the end means to them: Edie Falco (Carmela Soprano): "I am really sad - it's not even mixed emotions... I think we've really come to believe that it's over. You know we had these false endings a bunch of times and I think we're realizing, 'Oh wow, [series creator David Chase] really means it.' We're done." Lorraine Bracco (Dr. Jennifer Melfi): "I'm emotional. I just can't believe that this is all for a wonderful TV show that we've been working on for ten years. I just find it pretty great." (appears at the end of the clip) Aida Turturro (Janice Soprano): "Well, I came the second year. I mean I just fit right in. They wrote a great person and I'm so lucky that I got to be part of the family. Right from the start and I just felt like I was. Just by everybody being so wonderful, welcoming, and you know... I was nervous today, and I didn't realize I'm emotional. I'm kind of a little sad about it. I mean I'm pretty emotional but I'm everybody's sad about it." Robert Iler (Anthony 'A.J.' Soprano, Jr.): "Yeah, I mean it's really sad you know. We're finishing and we're starting to realize it day by day, and I mean, every time you read the last script and you turn the last page it gets sadder and sadder... It's sad that we're not going to be working together, but we're still going to see each other just as much, if not more, because we'll have time off!" Jamie-LynnSigler (Meadow Soprano): "I was 16 when we started, and it's been almost 10 years - all of my formative years were spent on this show." Vincent Pastore (Salvatore 'Big Pussy' Bonpensiero): "It's like the end of something you know? It's a really important night for everybody - I'm proud of everybody." Were any members of "The Sopranos" cast forthcoming about what to expect in the last episode? Not so much. Mum's the word on that one, especially when it comes to the question of who might not quite make it to the end credits. "Bloodshed on 'Sopranos?'" joked Steve Van Zandt. "You got us mixed up with 'Sex & The City.' I'll tell you this one thing, but keep it between us. At some point during the last show, some of us sit down and have Italian food. Between us." Despite the sadness, the stars kept things light, especially when Access asked: Why did Vincent Pastore quit "Dancing With the Stars" at the last minute? Tony Sirico joked that Vince was "too heavy in the belly." David Proval claimed that Vince didn't want to overshadow Fred Astaire, and Steve Van Zandt thought that the "Dancing" contestants were lucky he dropped out because "he would of won it all - he's good!" But Pastore himself decided to set the record straight: "The truth of the matter is I should've kinda "tested" before I said yes. It was really tough dancing. It was really tough on the legs. In fact, today is the first day I'm not walking with a cane. That's the truth of the matter. I wish everybody all of the success on ABC, it's a great show, but I wasn't up for it - I went to three or four rehearsals and that was it. I knew to get out before I made a fool out of myself."
It’s officially the beginning of the end for “The Sopranos.”
ExtraTV.com -- March 28, 2007 Tony, Carmela and Paulie Walnuts were all there as the whole gang hit the blood red carpet for the mob hit’s final premiere. “This is hard. I didn’t expect it to be as sort of heavy as it has turned out to be,” Edie Falco admitted. “I was crying,” added Aida Turturro. "I got a little sad just thinking about it being the end.” As usual, James Gandolfini was a man of few words as he arrived with his date. But we did spot him chatting with Daniel Baldwin, who will guest star as himself this season. Daniel also confirmed rumors that he reached out to Britney Spears during her recent stint in rehab; the actor has had his own drug problems. “I did speak with Britney a couple times. I’m so glad that she’s doing well and that she’s staying sober,” Baldwin confessed. “She was very gracious and very honest, and I think she was a little fearful. We should all pray for her.” As for the “Sopranos” final season, how will it all end? There were whispers that a key character gets whacked early on, but don’t ask creator David Chase. “Nobody gets whacked,” he insisted. Meanwhile, Tony Sirico revealed to “Extra” that he has shot his final “Sopranos” scene. “My last scene? Really big. I had 100 people hug me after the fact,” he dished. “Lot of people crying, you know. There were no tears coming out of my eyes.” And with only a few scenes left to shoot, it’s pretty much a wrap for “The Sopranos”…. Well, almost. “I have one more day; my last scene with Mr. Soprano, not done yet,” Lorraine Bracco, who plays Tony's shrink, confessed. As for life after the HBO show, would Uncle Junior ever consider “Dancing with the Stars?” “If they want to dance, they got to call me because I can do a mean tango,” he promised. “The Sopranos” are back with a bang, Sunday night on HBO.
'Sopranos' swan song hits emotional note NEW YORK — On screen: HBO's The Sopranos, which kicks off the second part of its sixth and final season April 8 (9 p.m. ET/PT), Tuesday night at Radio City Music Hall. The cast of the critically loved Mob hit turned out to mark the end of a show that turned unsavory New Jersey thugs into America's most dysfunctional yet dynamic family. On the carpet: The show's stars, including paterfamilias James Gandolfini (Tony Soprano), his small-screen wife, Edie Falco (Carmela), their kids, Jamie-Lynn Sigler (Meadow) and Robert Iler (A.J.), and Tony's long-suffering shrink, Lorraine Bracco (Dr. Jennifer Melfi). Plus, Tony's trigger-happy crew: Michael Imperioli (Christopher Moltisanti), Tony Sirico (Paulie Walnuts) and Steve Van Zandt (Silvio Dante). Hard to say goodbye: The Sopranos stars were more pensive than giddy on the red carpet. Saying arrivederci isn't easy. "There's definitely a dark cloud," Sigler said. "The show meant so much to me. I really grew up on it. It's so sad to know it's going to be gone." Falco said: "I recognize how much I love these people. Ten years, you know." Gandolfini bypassed the press line. Aida Turturro, who plays Tony's scheming sister, Janice, hugged on-screen niece Sigler. "There's my girl," Turturro said. The show has one more week of shooting left, but already, emotions are running high, so much so that Turturro had to touch up her makeup. "The last episodes have been really hard," she said. "It's very sentimental. We're a family. We get along. I've cried a few times on the red carpet already." Parting thoughts: Most of the cast members walked off with keepsakes from their set. "I took home a plaque that was hanging on the kitchen wall that is maybe the most hideous thing I've ever seen, but I've grown deeply fond of it," Falco said. "It's a wall hanging with shells and plastic fish." Sirico, meanwhile, helped himself to office furniture. "I took my chair with me. It's all scuffed, but it means more to me. It's what I've been sitting on for 10 years." The series is ending, but Sigler's closet might be growing thanks to Meadow's fashion panache. "I'm going to get the clothes, probably," she said. "I have my own pictures and my own mementos." Bracco treasures her memories of "working with Jimmy and walking into my office. That was always very special. I want Dr. Melfi's chair." 'The Sopranos': New season worth the wait For all you disaffected, embittered, remorseful and hugely disappointed fans of HBO's "The Sopranos" who complained endlessly last summer about a beloved old show where "nothing ever happens anymore," today we offer some words of encouragement. After viewing the first two episodes of the show's final season, your once-beloved show -- which comes back April 8 -- is at times brilliant and riveting. The first episode is at times a little ponderous and dull. Sorry, you can't have everything. But the second episode, entitled "Stage 5," which airs the following Sunday, ranks as one of the finest hours of "Sopranos" in recent years. It is searing and bleak, even uproariously funny (seriously). And violence? Let's just say "The Sopranos" goes places where it's never gone before -- to intensely dramatic effect, as well as to unexpected comic effect. You will laugh. (I promise.) But you will also wince. (That's a guarantee, too.) "The Sopranos" has but nine hours to wrap one of the richest storylines in TV history, which means producers have no choice but to quicken the pace, and tighten -- really tighten -- the noose around the necks of every major character on screen. Time is running out, and many themes, as well as a few complicated storylines, need to be resolved. A sense of urgency truly fills these two hours. Last June found Tony (James Gandolfini) and family gathered around a shimmering Christmas tree. While Tony had recovered from his shooting, Carmela's (Edie Falco) beloved spec house was built, AJ (Robert Iler) had a new girlfriend, though Christopher (Michael Imperioli) -- not at this happy little gathering -- was "using" again, and in flagrante delicto with real estate agent Julianna Skiff (Julianna Margulies). More background: Even with their various ailments, Tony and mob rival Phil Leotardo (Frank Vincent) were still circling each other like a pair of sharks, while John "Johnny Sack" Sacrimoni (Vincent Curatola) was dying of cancer in a maximum-security prison in Missouri. So on to the season opener: Tony and Carm head up to the Adirondacks to spend a few days with Janice (Aida Turturro) and Bobby (Steven R. Schirripa). Tony truly needs the break because he's just been busted on an illegal weapons charge. Meanwhile, he intends to draw Bobby closer into his orbit simply because Christopher has drifted further and further away. The episode, "Soprano Home Movies," is really a meditation on Soprano family dynamics -- the enduring theme of this show -- though it adds a few extra layers of details that tend to confirm that Tony really is his mother Livia (the late, great Nancy Marchand) after all. With "Stage 5," Chris finally sees an alluring glimpse of life beyond the "family," with the long-awaited arrival of his movie -- "Cleaver" -- and a new baby. But (you know the old line about wanting to get out but they keep dragging me back in) Chris learns that life and "art" mix, although the consequences of this can be perilous. All we can say is: Hang on for dear life. Believe me, it looks like it's gonna be worth it.
'Sopranos' Exclusive:
Gandolfini: '[I would have Tony] whacked and
fed to the ducks.' MILWAUKEE, March 26 / PRNewswire - FirstCall In an exclusive interview with DISH Entertainment Magazine, 10 main cast members of HBO's The Sopranos tell how they would end the series, which is coming to a close after a six-year run. The final nine episodes begin airing in April. James Gandolfini (Tony Soprano), Edie Falco (Carmela Soprano), Michael Imperioli (Christopher Moltisanti), Lorraine Bracco (Dr. Jennifer Melfi), Steve Van Zandt (Silvio Dante), Tony Sirico (Paulie "Walnuts" Gualtieri), Robert Iler (Anthony "A.J. Soprano Jr.), Jamie-Lynn Sigler (Meadow Soprano), Steve Schirripa (Bobby "Bacala" Baccalieri) and Dominic Chianese (Corrado "Junior" Soprano) were each asked how they would write the final episode, as well as which was their favorite episode and what was their fondest on-set memory.
In the interview, appearing in the April
issue of DISH Entertainment Magazine, several cast members refer Iler and Sigler also offer insights about growing up on one of the most popular shows in TV history. "I remember feeling like I didn't really know what I was doing," says Sigler. "I would memorize my lines and hope magic would happen -- and it did." Adds Iler, "The pilot [episode is my favorite] because it reminds me of when I was 12 years old and I met all of these great people." Highlights for other cast members include Bracco's recollection of Gandolfini mooning her, the fact that Falco would like to never have to cook again following the series, Gandolfini being amused by Imperioli's inability to drive a car and Chianese suggesting Uncle Junior should join a Buddhist monastery at series' end. Now that the series is officially over, Van Zandt jokes that he will never be able to get another reservation in a sold-out Italian restaurant, while Schirripa retorts that he would never "appear on The Surreal Life or Celebrity Fit Club, or sell merchandise out of the back of my car." The complete exclusive interview with cast members of The Sopranos appears in the April 2007 issue of DISH Entertainment Magazine.
Credit for above quotes and information must
be given to DISH Entertainment Magazine. 'Sopranos’ Goes Out With a Bang Cross-Platform Push As Curtain Falls On HBO Megahit By Mike Reynolds 3/26/2007 As the final nine episodes of cable TV’s biggest series draw nigh, it’s only fitting that HBO is sending The Sopranos and its affiliates off with a big bang. And a cleaver. The premium programmer plans to spend millions on a multimedia promotional campaign. Plus, the network is collaborating with distributors on a host of video-on-demand, high-definition, broadband, Internet, interactive initiatives and consumer sweepstakes to build buzz before The Sopranos fires its final original shots, beginning April 8 at 9 p.m. Part of the plan: a behind-the-scenes look at the movie that Tony Soprano’s nephew has long wanted to make, called Cleaver. “Our affiliates have always done well with Sopranos-driven campaigns,” said vice president of affiliate marketing and product strategy Bernadette Aulestia. “This is certainly the biggest finale in HBO history, so we’re setting the promotional bar several steps higher on a cross-platform basis.” On air, HBO plans a free preview from April 6 to 10; has enlisted show talent for commercials with affiliate identifications that urge viewers to tune in; and will run interactive spots across different channels on distributors’ systems. Talent for tune-in spots includes: Michael Imperioli (Christopher Moltisanti), Lorraine Bracco (Dr. Melfi) www.lbracco.com, Tony Sirico (Paulie Walnuts) and Jamie-Lynn Sigler (Meadow Soprano). Online, there will be affiliate co-branded microsites, replete with gaming, video content and co-branded acquisition messages; 20 short-form content pieces providing weekly episodic previews, behind-the-scenes segments and cast interviews. A “Whack-A-Soprano: The Final Whack” sweepstakes game at HBO.com will offer a trip to see Dominic Chianese (Uncle Junior) perform with his New York Sidewalkers band in New York City. On the on-demand front, there is a recap of the first half of the sixth and final season of the David Chase series under the title of “Mob Minutes;” a death montage, which Comcast senior vice president and general manager of video services Page Thompson describes as “a memoriam for characters no longer with us;” and music from the series, among other features. If not quite providing the sustenance of a veal parm from the show’s Satriale’s Pork Store, Aulestia believes these three to five minute “snacking pieces” will whet the appetite of fans. “We wanted to offer unexpected things to help create a swell of excitement for the premiere and this final season,” she said. Not surprisingly, Comcast, the industry’s foremost proponent of on-demand video, is tapping these elements heavily, as well as a trio of HD On Demand components as part of its commitment to supplying 100 hours of free enhanced fare per month: an invitation to the set; a sneak preview of the final installments; and a short film about the making of Cleaver, which will appear on Fearnet on Demand. Cleaver is the film — billed in the show’s 72nd episode, “Luxury Lounge,” as a cross between slasher movies and The Godfather — developed by Christopher Moltisanti, the nephew of Tony Soprano played by Michael Imperioli. During the April 15 installment, “Stage 5,” the Sopranos crew attends its premiere. Plans call for the HBO-produced making of Cleaver and a scene from the faux film to appear on Comcast’s Fearnet.com “We started working with HBO on multiplatform marketing for Rome. This is a continuing evolution of that process with more content,” said Thompson. “For the last season of The Sopranos, we want to go out with all guns blazing.” To get the message out, Comcast is running a “Sopranos Heaven” spot, featuring former cast member Vincent Pastore (Big Pussy) in the operator’s top 10 markets. The spot shows Pastore walking past cannoli trees and scantily clad women gyrating on street poles. The message being: HBO on Demand is the place to catch up on all things Sopranos. Aulestia noted that given the breadth of fare HBO began working about six months earlier than normal with its partners: “We wanted to let our affiliates choose the promotions that work for them.” To that end, here’s how four other operators plan to help send New Jersey mob boss Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini) to the fishes: note: this article was copied from www.lbracco.com Charter.net will showcase short-form content during the promotional window for both The Sopranos and Hollywood buddy series Entourage, which is leading out of the mob series. Cablevision Systems’ Optimum Rewards loyalty program has worked with HBO to create a sweepstakes in which the grand prize includes a pair of tickets to the March 27 premiere of The Sopranos at Radio City Music Hall, passes to the after-party and limo service. Fifty runners-up will visit HBO’s offices for a screening, attended by cast member. As part of HBO’s role as Cox Communications Net of the Month partner in March and April, there are Sopranos video and offer pages on both Cox.com and Cox.net. Users can order the service online and receive a $25 American Express gift card. Note: If your area isn't serviced by Cox -- select a state that is and you can still view the video: Video # 01: About the Sopranos -- recap of the first 6 seasons (nothing new). Video # 02: Behind the Scenes -- first released at the beginning of Season 6 Part 1 -- already on the HBO Website (nothing new). Corporate sibling Time Warner Cable has leveraged a broadband trivia sweepstakes contest for the Radio City event, while its RoadRunner broadband service will deliver short-form content. Additionally, during the free preview, the operator will run impulse-upgrade acquisition spots enabling viewers to order HBO via their remote controls.
Hundreds gather for 'Sopranos' final shoot
Posted by The Star-Ledger March 22, 2007 Nobody got whacked. Nobody that we saw, anyway. Scenes for the final episode of "The Sopranos" are being shot at Holsten's Old-Fashioned Ice Cream Parlour in Bloomfield today, attracting hundreds of fans and onlookers straining for a glimpse of James Gandolfini and other members of Jersey's favorite mob family. Police kept traffic moving on Broad Street, which didn't keep motorists from snapping pictures on their digital cameras and cell phones. The filming was initially approved by the township council, which reversed itself after residents complained about the HBO show's negative portrayal of Italian-Americans. Finally, township Administrator Louise Palagano gave it the go-ahead, deciding the show met all requirements in the town's code for film crews. None of that mattered to adoring fans who gathered behind yellow police tape for the all-day - and much of the night - shoot. Fans like Linda Farrugia and Susan Steensen, who scouted out the street at 5:30 a.m., set up their lawn chairs several hours later, and promised to stay until 1 a.m. this morning, when shooting is expected to be wrapped up. "My husband's delivering dinner," Farrugia said, laughing. Over at Brookdale Buy Rite Liquors, bottles of Bracco wine - developed by Lorraine Bracco, who plays Dr. Melfi - were displayed in the window. "I think it's great for the town," said Brookdale Buy Rite employee Rosemary Preston, who has lived in Bloomfield for 35 years. "It sure is making Bloomfield exciting. Everyone who sees this, they're going to want to come here." More scenes will be filmed tomorrow at non-public locations in Essex and Bergen counties. This is the final year of "The Sopranos." The season premiere is Easter Sunday. "I'm sad to see it end, but happy New Jersey has sort of been made a character," said "Sopranos" location manager Regina Heyman. "I grew up with all that 'oh, you're from New Jersey' stuff. We put New Jersey back on the map. It makes me proud."
Fourteen Things We
Learned at Last Night's ‘Sopranos’
David Chase arriving at the MoMA last night. 1. The first two episodes are some of the most domestic we've seen. 2. Carmella still gives Tony blow jobs. 3. A.J.'s Puerto Rican girlfriend has him whipped. 4. Phil Leotardo's inferiority complex stretches back for generations. 5. Daniel Baldwin apparently "takes Ben Kingsley to acting school" as the lead in Christopher's movie. 6. It's possible for someone to get shot at your dinner table without you noticing. 7. Glenn Close is several seasons behind in her Sopranos viewing. 8. Gay Talese thinks both Tony and Christopher will die before the show ends. 9. No one else would dare speculate on the show's conclusion. 10. Sam Rockwell owns a 52-inch flat screen and takes his TV-watching "very seriously." 11. Sopranos writer Matt Weiner thinks Melinda is a more likely American Idol winner than LaKisha, and he thinks Blake needs to stop pretending he's not gay. 12. Sydney Pollack plays a prison-hospital orderly in this season's second episode. 13. Sydney Pollack cannot make a bed. 14. The Sopranos looks amazing on a movie screen.
'The Sopranos' Returns With Arresting Developments Fox News Online Review -- March 21, 2007 IF you REALLY want to know more detail about these first two Episodes -- click here. Good news: "The Sopranos" is back. Last night I had a chance to see the first episodes of the final season. Bad news: It's the final season. There are only nine episodes, and the first two, while terrific in every sense, only foreshadow a little of what may come before the last shot is heard. Next Tuesday night, about 2,500 people will jam into Radio City Music Hall to see these first two shows. But last night, HBO hosted a smallish affair at the Museum of Modern Art for movers and shakers to get the buzz going. None of the show's cast members were there, but Glenn Close, Sam Rockwell, Charlie Rose, New York Times editor Bill Keller, Time Inc. editorial director John Huey, Time Warner chief Jeff Bewkes Hearst Publications' Ellen Levine, writer Stanley Crouch, talk show host Donny Deutsch, Danny Bennett (who manages Dad, Tony) all were, along with show creator David Chase, executive producer Ilene Landress and writers Terry Winter and Matthew Weiner. So is it good? That's all anyone wants to know. The answer is: It's great. You can't do any better than "The Sopranos" on TV and often in film. And this time around, Chase and co. -- knowing the end is near -- do not disappoint. The first episode, as someone described it, is like "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" Tony and Carmela drive to sister Janice and brother-in-law Bobby's lake house in upstate New York for Tony's birthday weekend. The four characters are pretty much it for the show, but what transpires and what's revealed are major points that recall the past and should help write the future. And here's one little spoiler: Tony is arrested for something that seems minor. That's all I can say. Oh yes, and there's a bloody beating and a hit. The second episode brings in just about the entire cast as Christopher's horror movie, made with Tony's money, is finally unveiled. The premiere of "Cleaver" includes a rare moment when most of the ensemble (save Dr. Melfi) shows up for the premiere. Writer Winter described it last night as "like the cover of Sgt. Pepper" as the camera pans the "Cleaver" audience and we see people we haven't seen in a long time. The second part of Episode 2 concerns the tragic death of a main character. I won't say who it is, but it's not Uncle Junior. The surprise is that director-writer-producer-actor Sydney Pollack turns up in a decent-sized cameo and nearly steals the show in the process. Look out for another cameo by actor Christopher McDonald as Christopher's AA sponsor. In the end, though, what steals "The Sopranos" are the Sopranos. The writing is impeccable with lots of little gems including malapropisms from Ray Abruzzo as Carmine (he calls a beautiful box "mellifluous"), non-sequitor quotes from Blood, Sweat & Tears by "poet" Paulie Walnuts (Tony Sirico), and the earnest assertion from Carmela that "Tony is not a vindictive man." The acting in the show is also beyond anything else on TV. Obviously, the three main leads -- James Gandolfini, Lorraine Bracco and Edie Falco -- are a pleasure. But Episode 1 allows Aida Turturro and Steve Schirrippa to really shine. And Episode 2 is full of revelations, including stunning work by Vince Curatola and Frank Vincent. The latter gets a speech about his character's family name ("Leotardo") that is simply priceless. And Curatola has some magnificent elegant stuff as exiting New York boss Johnny Sack. So, stay tuned. The end of "The Sopranos" could turn out to be a bloody mess, particularly if hints of trouble between Tony and Christopher are played out. Personally, I would like to see the final scene of the show between Tony and Dr. Melfi, having yet another unfulfilling session in her office. But all the show's players are tight-lipped, even as the final episode is still being filmed, written and directed by Chase. Whatever the end brings, rest assured, that with syndication and DVDs, "The Sopranos" will never really be over.
CanMag.com Online Article -- March 20, 2007
Dr. Melfi ... from the MSN Photo Gallery With The Sopranos due to return on HBO April 8th, we have a lot to expect from the show. Considering that the sixth season spent most its twelve episodes paying tribute to Brokeback Mountain, the 'Final Season' should deliver, well, everything that was left out last time. That's right, war is upon us; in the most non-big-naked-man way. HBO's The Sopranos Warm-up To give viewers a welcome back to The Sopranos, we have been provided with a small collection of clips and, low and behold, a countdown clock for the return of the show. First up is a reflection piece seen through the Father of the family, Tony Soprano. A cool clip that shows the importance of close friends and family is now available at iFilm. For a little more excitement, check out a montage of all the deaths that occurred throughout the show. Do you remember all these characters? Death Montage The Final Season's official preview is also available over at HBO. The Sopranos will return to HBO on April 8th along with Entourage. The date gives a one-weekend break between them and the series finale of Rome - which is uber-excellent by the way.
Click on the link above to
view more ... includes a Countdown Clock for the new Trailer Cigar Aficionado -- April 2007 Issue
Click here to go to the separate page A Special Thank You to Mike A. for bringing this to my attention
Vanity Fair -- April 2007 Issue
The Family Portrait After 10 years of redefining the meaning of "family drama," The Sopranos returns to HBO on April 8 for a final nine-episode run. In this exclusive footage from the shoot for the April issue, Annie Leibovitz captures cast members past and present—from James Gandolfini and Edie Falco to Drea de Matteo and Steve Buscemi—as they reprise their roles from this extraordinary series.
See the April issue for Peter Biskind's
feature on how the greatest show in TV history got made—and how Click here to watch a Video Clip of the Photo Shoot ... very interesting !
Click here to go to the separate
Vanity Fair April 2007 Issue Page
A Special Thank You to Charles C. for bringing this to my attention
"The Sopranos" The Final Chapter
By Winnie Bonelli -- The Independent -- Hamptons, NY -- March 13, 2007 Tensions are mounting between the New York and New Jersey mob families. Will Big "T" survive the predictable blood bath when HBO rolls out the final eight episodes of "The Sopranos," starting April 8 at 9 p.m? Nobody's talking, but if creator/executive producer David Chase had his way Tony Soprano might have gotten whacked eight years ago. Despite a shelf-worth of Emmys, the 61-year-old scriptwriter remains adamant: "You have to remember, I didn't want to do this. Doing a TV series was never my main career focus. For 20-something years, I always wanted to do feature films." The story line that first season was actually a two-hour feature story stretched over 12 episodes. Even after getting the green light from HBO, Chase secretly hoped cable network executives would take one look at the pilot and discreetly pay him a half million to rescind the contract. That way he'd have the money to bankroll his big screen adaptation. It didn't happen. Instead, "The Sopranos" became an international phenomenon airing in Ireland, England, Spain, and Italy. A drastic departure from the annals of Mafia mythology, the storyline was anchored by weekly therapy sessions between Tony (James Gandolfini) and his psychiatrist Dr. Jennifer Melfi (Lorraine Bracco). Juggling domestic and professional responsibilities of two families, Soprano faces the same concerns as any high-powered corporate leader — keeping the family safe and the business profitable. In Tony's case, however, there were additional liabilities like a cantankerous mother, rebellious children, and deadly associates. Failure was never an option. "I learned a lot about the characters during the filming of the pilot, like a vulnerability that I didn't originally have in mind," stated the soft-spoken man, who majored in "English Lit and the Rolling Stones" at Stanford University. Another element that distinguishes the series from contemporary sagas like The Godfather and Goodfellas is the ingrained humor. Usually it's subtle, like the premiere episode back in January 1999, in which a bathrobe-clad Tony played nursemaid to a brood of ducks in the swimming pool of his palatial Essex County, New Jersey home. Occasionally, it's side-splittingly funny, like the sight of nephew Christopher (Michael Imperioli) and Paulie (Tony Sirico) rummaging through the snow-covered Pine Barrens after the escaped Russian in third season. Although Chase diplomatically sidesteps the whereabouts of the Russian, he's quick to dash any hopes regarding Adriana, Christopher's fiancée. "Honest to God, she's dead. It had to be and it was a big ratings boom, because Drea de Matteo added something to the show. But Adriana is lying in the rolling hills of Pennsylvania covered with garbage," he explained while filming one of the final scenes in Manhattan. Also ruled out was the possibility of Tony bedding Dr. Melfi. "I know, many fans wanted it to happen, but we've tried to depict the storyline as accurately as we can," said the former writer/producer of "The Rockford Files," who also lists "Almost Grown," "I'll Fly Away," and "Northern Exposure" on his resume. Chase added, "Our female audience is important and sizable. 'The Sopranos' is about a family — a wife and kids. It's not 'Eight is Enough,' but it blends all the elements together, bringing women more center stage." As an only child growing up in an Italian-American family in Clifton, N.J., Chase remembers the self-styled "social clubs" that dotted the neighborhood, but he's quick to point out, "No one really knows about that life. I heard that one of my cousin's husbands was connected, but no one ever talked about it." "William Wellman's The Public Enemy was the first gangster movie I ever saw. It was on a TV show called 'Million Dollar Movie.' I was probably eight or nine. Those last 15-20 minutes were very frightening. It shocked me, but I think that's the moment I decided I wanted to make movies," noted Chase, who was recently honored by the Director's Guild of America. In recent episodes, the acting roster has embraced names like Julianna Margulies, Frankie Valli, Ben Kingsley, and Ron Leibman. Chase has an astute knack for matching personalities with their characters. Chase cites Tony Sirico, who portrays Paulie Walnuts, as an example, "They are very much alike. Tony's germphobic, and has a very close relationship with his mother. When we started out, Tony only had two lines in the pilot." Like a real-life godfather, Chase also feels an obligation to nurture and encourage "his family." Two weeks after hearing Dominick Calanesse sing at a party hosted by Bracco, Chase gave Corrado "Junior" Soprano the opportunity to display his vocal talents on the show. The 75-year-old actor followed up with a CD titled "Ungrateful Heart." Reversing the order, Imperiolo, who has written several of "The Sopranos'" scripts, will see his alter ego's horror script get off the ground. The small screen future might not be as promising for Tony. Not with Tony's nemesis Phil Leotardo (Frank Vincent) back in the mix after surviving a heart attack. Although Chase acknowledges that pulling off the finale of a television series is "notoriously difficult," he has no regrets about ending the show. "Being with HBO gave me a lot of freedom. It was never like working for a network," he concluded.
New Jersey Monthly Magazine -- March 2007 Issue The phrase is a hushed acknowledgment, a hedge against uninvited ears. In 1999, an invitation was extended, and people around the world began a tutorial on the inner workings of an alleged waste-management firm in northern New Jersey. Eight years later, millions of people salt their vocabularies with phrases from their weekly sit-down with The Sopranos. And it’s all because a Jersey guy’s mom was driving him nuts. “My mother was this kind of strange and ornery character,” says David Chase. “I was working as a television writer and producer, but I was always thinking about movie ideas and trying to move into becoming a film writer and director, yet I could never get that break. “My wife, Denise, would say, ‘You ought to write about your mother someday.’ I thought, What would be interesting about my mom and me? I mean, who wants to watch that? One day it hit me that it might be a commercial vehicle if it was about a Mafia guy and his difficult mother! I thought it would be funnier because here’s a real tough guy who’s cowed by his mother, as opposed to me, who isn’t a tough guy.” Chase, who had crafted memorable characters as a writer for The Rockford Files, Northern Exposure, and I’ll Fly Away, had enough credibility in TV circles to get some meetings about his teleplay. “Fox said ‘Yes’ [when it was to be called Made In Jersey] and then dropped it due to the realness of it,” he says. Chase vowed to “go to the mattresses” for what he renamed The Sopranos—he brought the show to HBO. The executives’ only concern was the title. They feared viewers would think the show was about opera. Chase wasn’t budging, so they had the logo designed to replace the “r” in Sopranos with the image of a gun. Many Emmy, Golden Globe, Peabody, and Screen Actors Guild awards later, the show widely regarded as cable’s best now averages about 11 million viewers per episode, is broadcast in 40 countries, and even has a cleaned-up version airing in syndication. “I never thought I’d be doing stuff like this,” Chase says. “My mother and father were from Newark. We moved to Clifton when I was five, then we moved to North Caldwell, and I grew up around Essex County. All of my Italian-American background”—his grandfather changed the family name from DeCaesare to assimilate in America—“came out [in the Sopranos scripts], all the words my uncles used to use, the way people spoke in the house, the holidays and the crazy things going on. “I had this basic knowledge about Mob involvement in the garbage industry; that wasn’t a secret. A large majority of that came from a gentleman by the name of Dan Castleton, who had prosecuted a case against the carting industry in the early 1990s. He ultimately became our technical consultant.” Chase has long knelt at the altar of Scorsese. The show is full of nods, subtle or otherwise, to his favorite Mafia movies, but he fought the urge to go for every star in his favorite, Goodfellas. He needed an infusion of Jersey edginess and was determined to assemble the right crew. Ray Liotta was considered to play Tony Soprano, but Chase and casting director Georgianne Walken selected James Gandolfini. Michael Imperioli and Lorraine Bracco had been featured in the saga of Mob turncoat Henry Hill, but The Sopranos took on a whole different feel. Actors with TV or film credits were often passed over for neophytes whose best credentials were, umm, life experiences. After all, you can’t have scenes in the Bada Bing with guys who don’t know how to stuff a dollar bill into a G-string. “What’s the point about a résumé?” Chase asks. “What difference does it make how much training they’ve had if they’re not right for the role? We’d wait and we’d cast and cast and cast—and then finally someone would come in who really got it. You just smell the truth coming out of it and you feel it in every pore and go, ‘That’s the guy!’ There’s nothing to discuss. The problem is, it always felt like that person would never show up.” But Gandolfini, Edie Falco, Nancy Marchand, Bracco, and Imperioli did. So did hey-I-know-that-guy actors such as Steven Van Zandt, Vince Curatola, Dominic Chianese, and Frank Vincent, followed by unknowns such as Steve Schirripa and Tony Sirico. “I don’t think there’s one of us who thinks that all of this is real,” says Vince Curatola. The Englewood native, who recently moved to Saddle River, plays John “Johnny Sack” Sacramoni, the head of the New York City Mob. “We still say to ourselves, ‘How did this happen?’ I got the part when I was 45,” he says. “I wasn’t a kid! It’s an out-of-body experience.” Curatola is among friends at Patsy’s Restaurant in Fairview, redolent of garlic and that local Jersey connection. He grew up down the street. His wife, Maureen, is from Englewood, too. Everyone knew him first from the family masonry business—it was his father’s before him, and Curatola’s son, Ryan, now runs it—not from the show, where he’s the New York don with the “Rubenesque” wife. Over the course of a five-hour food orgy, most diners walk by to pay their respects, but others pull up a chair to talk of front loaders, new construction jobs, and the demands of the business. “I remember what it was like to pour ten foundations a day,” Curatola says. “Once in Union City a woman calls me. She’s back from work and hysterical. She doesn’t like the color of the cement I poured. She’s screaming, threatening not to pay, gonna sue me, whatever. She won’t listen to reason, so I jump in the truck, go over to her house, pull out a folding chair, sit and wait. Of course, it’s the right color when it’s dry, and of course she doesn’t apologize. It’s the nature of the business.” Curatola got into acting at Maureen’s urging. “She heard it in my voice when I’d deal with customers on the phone, I guess. So I started auditing classes at Michael Moriarty’s workshop. It took me a long time to work up the nerve to do a monologue. But with Michael’s encouragement, I got some small parts on Law & Order. Then my agent got me the Sopranos audition. You know, I almost didn’t go. I am on the street, smoking a cigarette and just didn’t feel like it. I go up and they’re packing everything up. They look up at me, start unpacking, and say, ‘Let’s do this.’ It’s been an amazing run ever since.” Schirripa, who plays Bobby “Baccala” Baccalieri, Tony’s brother-in- law, had been a bouncer, sometime actor, comedy club host, and eventually a talent booker before he got snatched up for the role. “I had a nine-to-five job in Vegas, and I fly out to New York on my own dime. I didn’t want people to know I had a regular job. I didn’t want them to think, ‘Oh, this guy’s not a real actor.’ “So I get the job. I walk into my first scene and it’s with Stevie Van Zandt, Jim, and Tony Sirico. I mean, like two days ago I was watchin’ ’em on TV! “That’s where I think David is brilliant,” Schirripa says. “He wasn’t afraid to take a chance with someone like myself who didn’t have much experience.” “It’s an amazing dynamic,” says Curatola. “I don’t think anyone would believe the support we have. Tony ‘Paulie Walnuts’ Sirico and I were close for about six or seven years before the show started, and we all have these weird Jersey connections. When Dominic Chianese, who plays Uncle Junior, was a teenager, he did mason work with David’s dad. There are some spooky things that popped up in the cast. We call it ‘six degrees of David Chase.’ There isn’t anything we wouldn’t do, or haven’t done, for each other. When we go out together, we have too much fun to only talk shop.” “There’s a genuine love there, you know,” says Edie Falco, who plays Tony’s wife, Carmela. “It feels very much like family, with everything that entails. It makes for a fantastic vibe on the set. I hadn’t done enough of this to know how unusual that is, but I hear stories from other sets and think, Why do it then, for God’s sake?” And that’s where “this thing of ours” gives way to “this thing of theirs.” The cast and crew have taken their own blood oath: Mess with one, you mess with them all. Curatola admits that it could be daunting for their guest stars. “It’s like being the new boyfriend. You gonna act overly familiar when you don’t really know the family yet? Don’t even try it. We’re going to be real nice to you, but don’t think you’re one of us.” Falco may be the most acclaimed actor on the show besides Gandolfini, but she marvels at her on-screen husband’s ability to merge nuance, intelligence, and fury in a role that demands he be in virtually every scene. “I had no idea how great it would be when we started,” says Falco. “We work so similarly in that we don’t talk about it from an analytical standpoint and say, ‘Oh, I think this is what happens here.’ We’re both visceral actors. He helps make the reality more multidimensional, just because he’s so present as an actor. I can’t imagine doing all these scenes all these years with someone who doesn’t inspire me as an actor.” The hulking Gandolfini, born in Westwood and reared in Park Ridge, is a gentle soul who was reluctant to audition for the role of Tony because of the show’s violence. And he has long struggled with the emotional demands of playing the conflicted capo. During a photo shoot to coincide with a 2004 New Jersey Monthly interview, Gandolfini was happiest between setups just talking about watching SpongeBob SquarePants and playing with his young son. When asked to get into character for a particular shot, he demurred. “You know, I owe everything to Tony Soprano,” he said, “and I don’t want to sound ungrateful or anything, but I am pretty freakin’ sick of him. When we’re filming, just because we wrapped for the day, that doesn’t mean it’s easy to flip a switch and be ready to head home to the family.” But during a discussion about John Gotti, the late real-life Mob head, Gandolfini shed light on Tony Soprano and, by extension, the show’s appeal. “I know that macho stuff is a part of the Mafia thing,” he said, “and I think a lot of those gentlemen are like that, but human frailty and confusion are what interest me. The more sensitive the character and the more he’s in touch with things, the more confusion there is.” Over the years, some Italian-American groups have claimed that Chase created The Sopranos with a brush that paints all Italians as mobsters, and vice versa. “I thought that poetic license means you have freedom,” Curatola says. “I remember the Italian-American organizations coming out against us in public. I said, ‘Have any of you been to Arlington National Cemetery?’ And they responded by asking, ‘What does that have to do with it?’ ‘I’ll tell you!’ I said. ‘All of those markers, they’re all of those people who died so we can do what we do. Who are you to censor?’ You’d think they’d be happy that Italian-American actors are getting work, prosperity, and recognition.” Curatola gets especially emotional when he talks about the cast’s bond. In 2004, they all flew out to Los Angeles for the Screen Actors Guild awards. His father was ill. Just as he arrived in L.A., his son, Ryan, called to tell him that his father passed away. “So HBO is there, of course, and they got us a flight in two hours to go back home,” he says. “So Maureen and I flew right back. That Sunday night, after we’d made the arrangements for my father’s funeral, we turn on the TV to watch the SAG awards and there’s Jimmy being interviewed on the red carpet before the show, saying, ‘We miss Vince Curatola. He had to fly home quick because his dad passed. But if we get this tonight we’re going to dedicate it to his father.’ We didn’t get it that night and that’s all right, but you know what? TV time is precious, and the fact he said that and delivered that message all over the world across the airways... I will never forget it.” The last episodes are in the can. details are more closely guarded than the back room at Satriale’s. Omerta, the code of silence, is in full force. No matter which characters survive in the end, there will be a colossal, closed-door “whacking” party. After “Big Pussy” Bonpensiero was sent to sleep with the fishes (and before he came back in Tony’s dreams as a fish), the surviving actors congregated at a restaurant called Il Cortile in Manhattan’s Little Italy to toast their fallen comrade and secretly breathe a sigh of relief that they’re still around. They’ve celebrated the Mob life of everyone who’s been whacked ever since. So what happens when they all get downsized? “I think we’re all purposely focusing on the work right now,” Schirripa says. “No one is really talking about the end. It’s going to hit us eventually pretty hard, no question about it.” “I definitely don’t feel myself going there yet,” Falco says. “But I will. The truth is, I have thoroughly inhabited Carmela’s life.” “I believe the buildup is anticlimactic,” says Curatola. “Let’s hurry up and get this done, so we can walk away and say, ‘We did it.’ It feels like a funeral. Let’s hurry up and get to the church....Let’s get to the restaurant so we can go get drunk. Get it over with, and then we can just go on being friends.” “The entire cast,” Bracco jokes, “could keep Dr. Melfi very busy with this new void in their life.” The fate of Tony Soprano and his families have been in Chase’s mind for a long time, perhaps ever since he wrote the script for the pilot. “I wrote and directed the last episode,” he says. “I co-wrote the second-to-last episode, plus there’s all the interviews, publicity, the marketing and advertising... “When I was a kid back in Jersey, I wanted to be in a band,” Chase says. “I was in a few garage bands growing up. But I always liked movies—old movies, new movies. Ultimately, we tried to make each episode like it’s a movie. I guess as it turns out I was just born to do this.”
OUTTA JERSEY - 'SOPRANOS' BARRED FROM BLOOMFIELD By PATRICK GALLAHUE -- New York Post Online Article Update 03/09/07: The permit has now been approved March 7, 2007 -- A Garden State town council whacked "The Sopranos" Monday night, barring the Cosa Nostra drama from filming in suburban Bloomfield, N.J. Local lawmakers hit the wildly popular HBO series due to what it called "negative depictions of Italian-Americans," said the town's mayor, Raymond McCarthy, a leading opponent of the show. McCarthy - whose wife is Italian - said the show had intended to film the very last scene, for the very last episode, at a local Broad Street ice cream parlor, Holsten's Brookdale Confectionery. Holsten's owner is now complaining that the town's touchy politicians denied him a place in television history. "We were excited," said the historic parlor's co-owner, Chris Carley, 53. "If it's good for the area and businesses, your personal opinions shouldn't be mixed in." The council originally met in a closed-door conference last week and approved the shoot planned for later this month, following routine approvals from Bloomfield's traffic department. But after pressure from McCarthy and Italian-American organizations, the council flipped and refused to allow the show to be filmed just one week later during its bi-weekly meeting. Now, the county executive will try to step in to bring the matter back to a vote next Monday - and make the council an offer they can't refuse. " 'The Sopranos' will hopefully have their last episode here," said Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo. "Hey, I'm an Italian-American and to me it's about the arts, it's about TV." "The Sopranos" last made an appearance in Bloomfield five or six years ago, McCarthy said. Most of the filming takes place around other parts of Essex County. A representative for HBO simply said, "We want to film in Bloomfield, we think the town has a terrific look and we want to work it out."
Going out with a Bada Bing! Friday, February 2, 2007 -- By ED BEESON -- HERALD NEWS
Actors James Gandolfini and Stevie Van Zandt
in front of Satin Dolls during a location shoot LODI -- Dan Grimaldi, an actor on "The Sopranos," stood Thursday by a garbage-strewn gully outside the Bada Bing, the iconic faux strip club at the heart of this popular HBO series. With a spray of theatrical blood dashed on his face, the Brooklyn-born thespian gazed into the frigid, ankle-deep waters where, it appeared, he would soon make a splash. But first he had to wait for the production crew to ready the camera. "We're shooting a chase scene -- eventually," said one of the many bundled-up "Sopranos" crewmembers who stood by waiting for orders. Filming for the sixth and final season of "The Sopranos," which premieres on April 8, has been underway for months, but it is soon coming to an end. That means the show's camera crews and production trailers -- familiar sights in this neck of North Jersey -- will also soon disappear, and the era of "The Sopranos" will come to a close. The chase scene, for instance, will be one of the last "Sopranos" sequences ever filmed in or around Satin Dolls, the Route 17 go-go bar that has subbed for the infamous Bada Bing since the show's 1999 debut. On Thursday evening, crews wrapped a three-day shoot at the club, which gave "The Sopranos" so much of its distinctive grit. They are slated to return for two days later this month. Then the Bada Bing is gone for good. But it appears the show's legacy will persist. "The Sopranos" will always have a home at Kenny Tarasoff's Magic Touch Auto Spa, a carwash near Satin Dolls, where the show's trailers are parked on production days. "They were a pleasure to deal with. Everything with them was fair and square," Tarasoff, 51, said. In 2001, "The Sopranos" crew spent four hours filming at the carwash. The scene featured the character Christopher complaining, while having his SUV washed, to mob boss Tony that he had caught the capo Paulie Walnuts sniffing his girlfriend Adriana's underwear. Tarasoff got to play one of the four background extras who towel-dried his SUV. "The scene was probably 30 seconds. It was great," Tarasoff said. Thirty seconds of being blurred in the background: Enough for a memory that will last a lifetime. Large photos from the shoot sit framed by the Magic Touch cash register. For two years Tarasoff advertised his carwash as the "Sopranos" carwash. (He later changed the ad to promote his actual services. "You really want to advertise window cleaning," he said.) He speaks somewhat disappointedly about when "The Sopranos" canceled a planned return to the carwash, this time for a scene with an oil change. He is also sad to see the series finally come to a close. "I would love it if there was another season, and another after that, and if we did another carwash scene, and another oil change scene," Tarasoff said.
Boss of All Bosses
As The Sopranos approaches its final season, series creator David Chase invited us to the set to spill secrets about a possible sitcom, a movie and what he’d change if he could do it all over again. STUFF: How’s shooting going? DAVID: It’s going really well, actually. Is this definitely the last season? Yeah, this is it. Where in the story line does it pick up? It’s a continuation of last season; it picks up where that one left off. What is the atmosphere like on-set? Is everyone very emotional? No, not yet. I think it will get there. Actually, I’m sure it will get there. The last two episodes, I bet, will be hard. Did you always know how you wanted the show to end? No. I didn’t always know, but I’ve known for three or four years. How do you feel about the show ending? You know, we talk about this all the time, and when we don’t talk about it all the time, we know it’s on everyone’s mind. I’m sure I’m going to be very sad—there’s going to be a post-traumatic stress disorder. But it seems, with the story, like it’s time to go. Do you ever think about doing a spin-off? All the time. HBO has those moments, we have those moments, every actor thinks, Hey, maybe there could be a Little Paulie show. I’m being facetious; he never said that to me. Actually, one time we thought we could make a good sitcom called The Bacalas with Janice and Bobby Bacala. All those ideas occur to everybody all the time. But I think, actually, everyone is ready to move on. Do you have any George Lucas–style regrets about the series? You know, things you would like to redo? There are things I think about by myself at 5 o’clock in the morning. I was never really happy with the show when we went to Italy. People said they liked it and it wasn’t terrible, but I felt it could’ve been better. What about the possibility of a Sopranos feature film? We talked about that one time, but I think these last eight episodes would have been that. And the reason why I say “I think” is these are only the ideas, nothing is written down. So I really don’t know. The movie still exists as a possibility, I suppose, but I think it becomes less and less of a prospect because of technical challenges. Where would you come in on the story? Let’s suppose after all of this, there are characters who don’t make it through to the end; then how would you do the movie without them? Tony’s father seems like such a rich character. Have you ever thought of doing a prequel about Tony’s formative years? Yes, that has occurred to me. It’s difficult. One of the problems with that is getting someone to play Tony at a younger age. I mean, I guess it’s doable. But James Gandolfini is such a genius, frankly, and so powerful in what he does that I’m sure it would be a real challenge to find someone you could believe was him at a young age. Does anyone know how the show ends? No one knows except me and the writers. Do the actors ever butter you up so you don’t kill them off? [Laughs] Tony Sirico drives me everywhere, and he gets my clothes from the dry cleaners. But I don’t know that there’s a connection.
The Sopranos Entertainment Weekly -- Winter TV Preview -- January 5, 2007
HBO, April 8, 9 p.m. Since The Sopranos began in 1999, creator-writer David Chase has at different times declared that his gangster saga would go no longer than three, four, then five seasons, and each time, it was stated with the definitiveness of a Mob-ordered hit. So when he maintains that the latter half of the HBO show's sixth and final season (which resumes after a 10-month intermission) will be it, one can forgive the cast — and fans — for suspecting he may again show mercy and keep Tony in therapy forever, like a sociopathic Woody Allen. But this time it really is over, and the conclusion is even enough to drive Dr. Melfi to the couch. ''I'm not excited at all for the end,'' states Lorraine Bracco firmly. ''I think we're all going to need some kind of therapy.'' Chase has said that he's known for four years how he'd wrap up the series, but the notorious spoilerphobe will barely say how this nine-episode run begins, let alone finishes. What he will reveal is that the story picks up a year after the June 2005 finale. Tony (James Gandolfini) thought he calmed his feud with acting New York chief Phil Leotardo (Frank Vincent), who suffered a heart attack. Now Tony will see his nemesis emerge from semiretirement. ''Their long-simmering animosity really starts to fester,'' says Chase. He also teases that lazy seed AJ (Robert Iler) ''goes through what you might call serious growth pains. He has to grapple with or face up to his heritage, and changes somewhat.'' As for Michael Imperioli's Christopher? He gets his ''Saw meets The Godfather'' horror movie off the ground, although unlike last season's roundhouse to guest star Lauren Bacall, he doesn't have to clock any more grandes dames to do it. ''Who else [could we do]?'' jokes Imperioli. ''Maggie Smith, Judi Dench. I'm open to punching out the legends of cinema.'' However the series ends, it's unlikely to be tidy. Chase is uninterested in the traditional demand for TV closure; he's still perplexed that people keep asking him what happened to the Russian who escaped from Christopher and Paulie in the Pine Barrens way back in season 3. ''It's not in our interest to do a morality tale, which, of course, the gangster film has always lent itself to,'' he says. ''It is in our interest to show that there are certain ways that we all spend our lives, and that as adults, we decide our fate, we make our own bed, and we lie in it. That to me is not the same, hopefully, as saying crime doesn't pay, or bad people are punished. Free will exists.'' Oh, sure, that's easy for him to say: It's his free will that's ending the show. —Josh Wolk
by Josh Grossberg -- E! Online Article -- 20 Nov 2006 The Sopranos won't be sleeping with the fishes as soon as we thought. HBO will air an extra episode of the series after creator David Chase and his fellow producers decided that eight wasn't enough to tie up all the loose ends of the seminal mobster drama before it goes to the great Bada Bing in the sky, a network rep confirmed. "They going to give it a bonus episode, so fans are getting a bit of a holiday gift," HBO spokesman Quentin Schaffer tells E! Online. "They were originally going to do eight, but David Chase wanted the added episode to tell the story, and we obviously said, 'sure.' " The extra episode was green-lighted "several weeks ago," Schaffer says, adding that shooting is complete on the first six episodes. Cast member Steve Schirrippa, who plays Bobby "Bacala" Baccalleri, the husband of Tony's sister Janice, first broke the news about the surprise ninth episode to Celebrity Week at last weekend's Comedy Festival in Las Vegas. The actor, a Las Vegas native, also revealed that his character has so far avoided getting whacked. With The Sopranos' small-screen goombahs preparing for their swan song, Schirrippa isn't about to go quietly, telling the online magazine he's currently developing a late-night talk show pilot for Fox. Several other cast members have deals in the works, including mob boss James Gandolfini, who has inked a development deal with HBO. The Sopranos final season is slated to begin airing Apr. 8, with the extension meaning the series finale will air in early June.
And for those who can't get enough of The
Sopranos, Gandolfini and the rest of his crew have lent their voices to
Sopranos: The Road to Respect, a videogame for PlayStation 2 that hit
stores two weeks ago. A version for the Xbox 360 will be released early
next year.
Excerpt from a TV Guide interview with Peter
Bogdanovich TV Guide: Will you be reprising the role of Dr. Kupferberg on The Sopranos? Bogdanovich: Yes, Dr. Kupferberg is back for at least two or three episodes [when the HBO series returns with its final eight episodes in early 2007]. TV Guide: Can you talk about the new season? Bogdanovich: Just that there are only eight left, sorry to say. I have no idea what goes on except with regard to my character — and I'm not going to say.
Hazle twins ‘Sopranos’ stars
Sunday, 05 November 2006 -- By KELLY MONITZ -- Standard Speaker, Hazleston, PA Angela Lombardo sent her twin daughters’ photograph to a talent agency in October, but never expected they’d land a role on an Emmy Award-winning HBO series before month’s end. Sophia and Anna Lombardo, who turned a year old Oct. 11, became the latest members of “The Sopranos” television family two weeks ago when they shot five scenes for the second part of the show’s sixth season. They’ll appear in Episode Five, “Walk Like a Man,” sometime in March, mom said. The Twins Talent Agency in New York City keeps tabs on and offers roles to twins in the New York-New Jersey-Pennsylvania area, said Lombardo, who lives with her husband, Dino, in Hazle Township. Agencies look for identical twins because young children aren’t always cooperative on a television, commercial or movie set, she explained. When one of the twins gets tired, cranky or starts to cry, the other twin gets put in, she said. The girls share the role of Caitlin Moltisanti on the show, Lombardo said. Caitlin is the 6-month-old daughter of Christopher Moltisanti (played by Michael Imperioli) and his new bride, Kelli (played by Cara Buono). On the show, Christopher Moltisanti is the nephew and intended successor of mob boss Tony Soprano, the show’s lead character, played by James Gandolfini. Gandolfini is the only member of the main cast that the Lombardos didn’t meet when filming in northern New Jersey on Oct. 23 and 24, Angela said. And the family was surprised how down to earth and friendly the majority of the actors were, she said. A number of actors posed for photographs with the girls, and Lombardo said she was surprised at how many people in the neighborhood where they shot the scenes were out taking photos. The crew, numbering more than 100, shot the scenes in a housing development in Caldwell, N.J., and the Lombardos didn’t know exactly where they were going until the last minute. Even actors who signed on as extras were kept away from the location unless needed, Lombardo said. A nearby church served as a holding area until they were called. “Everything was very hush, hush,” she said. The Lombardos are avid fans of the critically acclaimed show, but couldn’t discern any of the new plot lines, she said. The scenes involving the girls revolve around a housewarming at the Moltisantis’ new home, Lombardo said, but that’s about all they learned. The only true giveaway is that the Moltisantis have a girl, instead of a boy. Christopher expected a son when he got married in the first part of the show’s sixth, and most likely final, season. The Lombardo girls and their parents, aunt and uncle got to see how the stars live with their own trailer on location. The star on the door read, “Babies.” Stars like Gandolfini and Edie Falco, who plays Tony’s wife, Carmela, get full-sized trailers to themselves, while lesser actors like Jamie-Lynn Sigler, who plays Tony’s daughter, Meadow, got smaller accommodations, Lombardo said. The girls’ trailer was actually a 10-by-10-foot section of a larger trailer with a bath and shower, refrigerator, sink and microwave, she said. Sophia and Anna also had their own wardrobe person and a child advocate, who made sure their needs were met amid the hustle and bustle. Lombardo was glad to have the advocate, she said, because the demands of the production can be overwhelming for the children and the parents. The girls worked from 2 to 6 p.m. the first day and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. the second day, and went to the trailer between scenes. They also went through several wardrobe changes, their mom said. “Sophia did better than Anna,” Lombardo said, noting that it’s usually the other way around. She was impressed by the attention to detail the crew puts into the production, like having more than one set of clothes for the girls, in case they spit up or needed a change, she said. They also had a doll dressed like the girls as a stand-in to set up the shots, she said. All the stars had stand-ins, Lombardo said. They only called in the stars for the actual shooting, and then the actors went back to their trailers, she said. The Lombardo girls could be called for additional scenes in future episodes, but they don’t know if it’ll be a reoccurring role or not, their mom said. They are under contract for additional appearances, if written into the script, she said. If they are called, Lombardo, a stay-at-home mom, knows she’ll be able to go. “You need to be flexible. You need to be ready at the drop of a hat,” she said. The girls’ appearance in “The Sopranos” is their first acting role, and Lombardo doesn’t know if it’s something that she would want to pursue as a career for them, because it wasn’t easy for them or mom and dad, she said. For now, the family looks forward to seeing Sophia and Anna on the show and hopes for an invite to the show’s premiere party. But it’d be OK if they didn’t get asked to go, she said. “We’re going to have our own party here,” Lombardo said.
A Farewell to Arms Bill Carter -- September 25, 2006 -- The Sydney Morning Herald Click here to read the entire article Excerpt ... But as Chase says, the show "has been engineered" around Tony's point of view. Nothing illustrated that more, and helped differentiate the series from previous gangster sagas, he says, than the scenes between Tony and his therapist, Dr Melfi (Lorraine Bracco). "They opened up this whole feminine side of Tony," Chase says. "The thing with his mother and the thing with the shrink. It had all been about men before. Here he had this other aspect to him." Gandolfini labels his scenes with Melfi "a Greek chorus", saying, "[Tony goes] to the therapist and he explains what is happening to him. And you see how it is affecting him. I'm not sure without that the show would have been successful."
HOME A MOB HIT Couple enjoys celeb status as 'Sopranos' make a house call
September 07, 2006 -- By JEFF THEODORE -- nj.com Online Article When John Spady saw the beige-and-brown home in Journal Square last month, he knew it was perfect for "The Sopranos." Spady, a location scout for the popular HBO show, asked the homeowners, Anjuara and Mahfuzer Rahman, if they could do some filming in the two-story, four-bedroom Garrison Avenue home. But Anjuara Rahman wasn't so sure. "It's big, but it's old," she said of her house yesterday. "But, John (Spady) really liked it. He was so happy when I said it was OK to use it." Likewise, Anjuara Rahman was excited about her new status as the toast of her neighborhood as James Gandolfini, the signature star of "The Sopranos," and others transformed her house into a Hollywood-like set. Cast and crew were mum about the nature of the scenes they were shooting, but they reportedly involved the search for a dead body. The filming went from 9 p.m. Tuesday to 3 p.m. yesterday, with police blocking off streets. Curious gawkers nonetheless showed up to soak up some celebrity limelight - including the glow cast by the Rahmans. "My friends and neighbors were all excited and now they say that I'm a celebrity, too," joked Anjuara Rahman, who said she and her husband were paid about $1,500 by the show's producers for use of the home - mostly the backyard and the basement, she said. Before the show's production staff arrived, Anjuara Rahman said she had taken initial steps to clean up her basement. "But they were like, 'No no no! We need it to be dirty!'" she said. The Rahmans, who have lived in the house about 10 years, are from Bangladesh, don't have HBO and aren't familiar with the show. But Anjuara Rahman got a clue after she told her daughters, Nadia, a fashion designer, and Novita, an engineer, what was going on at their house. "They were like, 'Oh, wow! 'Sopranos'!" she said.
Anjuara Rahman said the show's staff was very
courteous. "I offered to make them breakfast," the former caterer said,
"and they said, 'No, you can eat our food,' but I didn't." Holy 'Sopranos' BY MARK LA MONICA AND EILEEN FREDES -- Newsday Staff Writers August 22, 2006 Murder, crime and adultery. All the trimming necessary for a good fictional mobster plotline. And when that plotline crosses paths with the Catholic Church? "I was concerned," Rev. Philip J. Pizzo admitted last night when discussing the filming of HBO's "The Sopranos" at St. Rita's Church in Long Island City. "They let me see the script, the direction the storyline was going in." And what direction is that for the final season of the HBO hit? Pizzo, the pastor at St. Rita's, would say only that it was a baptism scene for the child of Christopher Moltisanti (Michael Imperioli), nephew of fictional New Jersey crime boss Tony Soprano. Tony is the godfather of the child, Pizzo said. Pizzo said the cast had been at St. Rita's for the past few days, but that most of the filming was done Monday. He had only good things to say about the actors he had the opportunity to meet. "I met all of them," he said. "It was very nice. They were very friendly, very respectful of the place."
First -- the Good Casting News ...
Margulies
unsure of 'Sopranos' future Now -- the Bad Casting News ...
Daniel Baldwin grabs
horror role in "Sopranos" Two storylines I have absolutely NO interest in whatsoever ...
Badda bing! Straus News Online Snippet -- August 3, 2006 The HBO hit series The Sopranos was filming in West Milford on Awosting Road on Tuesday. The scenes involved a car chase and something in the woods. The set was closed to the public, but James Gandolfini (who plays boss Tony Soprano) was visible through private property woods. We don’t know what the storyline is, but judging by the bruises on his face, it isn’t going to be portrayed as Tony’s best day.
North County News -- July 2006 The filming of the first episode of the last season of The Sopranos in Putnam Valley has been the talk of the town the last few weeks. The North County News gained exclusive access to the set, and while no interviews were permitted, there were plenty of opportunities to zoom in on Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), Bobby Bacala (Steven R. Schirripa) and Janice Soprano (Aida Turturro) as they shot what looked to be an intense scene near Lake Oscawana.
Breaking News -- HBO
To Sack Rome After Season 2 ... By Anne Becker -- Broadcasting & Cable, 7/12/2006 8:41:00 PM HBO is putting the kibosh on Rome after season two, considering a spring debut for The Sopranos’ final season and toying with its fall programming schedule by moving theatrical premieres from Saturday to Sunday, and premiering the entire new seasons of its fall lineup The Wire and Def Comedy on HBO On Demand six days before their HBO debut. Rome, the epic drama HBO produced with the BBC, will not return on the network after its second season, which will debut Jan. 7. The decision, according to HBO Chairman/CEO Chris Albrecht had to do with the fact that the notoriously expensive show was developed as a miniseries under a two-year contract with the BBC and it would have been difficult for the BBC to stay on for longer. “This was a big bite for them,” he said. After Rome runs its course, HBO is eyeing early March as the tentative premiere date for the final eight episodes of The Sopranos, which will run into new Entourage episodes, followed by the summer return of Big Love. Click here to read the rest of the article Excerpts from another article on SFGate ... For starters, "The Sopranos" is not, repeat not, coming back in January. James Gandolfini apparently had knee surgery and that set things back and everybody at HBO took a look at January and how crowded it was going to be and...how about March. That's more likely. Don't act like you're surprised. "It definitely won't be January," Albrecht said. "Most likely it will be in March." -------------------------------------------------------------- Someone actually asked Albrecht if he could tell us if Tony Soprano dies or not. "What? Are you high? I might as well shoot myself in the head if I told you." But of course Albrecht does know. He joked that all the critics had been clamoring for more people being killed on "The Sopranos" when the old battle cry used to be it was so violent. He also said the network was extremely pleased with the creative direction of the series this year and that "attitudinal testing" the channel uses to rate the appeal of its shows suggested that, from fans, this was the highest rated season of "The Sopranos." And then Albrecht said he had read the story arc for the final eight episodes and said he was confident "the vast, vast majority" of people will think, when the final curtain on the series comes down, that it was a great ending to one of the best series that has ever been on television. Of course they pay him to say that. Click here to read the entire article
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