Tony Soprano glorified "old days" of the Mafia. Tony leaves out the violence associated with his criminal career. Tony tells Dr. Melfi a story about ducks landing in his pool. He describes his mother Livia, a cold, mean-spirited woman with whom he has an openly hostile relationship. By the end of the first session Tony has admitted that he feels depressed, but storms out when Dr. Melfi presses him further about the relationship between his symptoms and the ducks. When the family visits Green Grove, a Nursing Home where Tony is trying to place his mother, Livia's derisive outburst prompts a second
The Sopranos "apply [his own] family dynamic to mobsters." For instance, the tumultuous relationship between series protagonist Tony Soprano and his mother Livia is partially based on Chase's relationship with his own mother. He was also in psychotherapy at the time and modeled the character of Dr. Jennifer Melfi after his own psychiatrist. Chase had been fascinated by organized crime and the mafia from an early age, witnessing such people growing up. He also was raised on classic gangster films, such as "The Public Enemy", and the crime series "The Untouchables". The series is partly inspired by the Boiardo family, a prominent