James Gandolfini James Gandolfini James Joseph Gandolfini Jr. (September 18, 1961 – June 19, 2013) was an American actor best known for his role as Tony Soprano, the Italian-American crime boss in HBO's television series "The Sopranos". He was widely hailed for his performance, winning three Emmy Awards, three Screen Actors Guild Awards, and one Golden Globe Award. His notable film roles include mob henchman Virgil in "True Romance" (1993), Lt. Bobby Dougherty in "Crimson Tide" (1995), and Mayor of New York in "The Taking of Pelham 123" (2009). Other roles are enforcer and stuntman Bear in "Get Shorty" (1995) and impulsive
The Sopranos Sopranos" is credited for creating a new era in the mafia genre deviating from the traditional dramatized image of the gangster in favor of a simpler, more accurate reflection of ordinary day-to-day mob life in a suburb. The series sheds light on Italian family dynamics through the depiction of Tony's tumultuous relationship with his mother. Edie Falco's character Carmela Soprano is praised in Kristyn Gorton's essay "Why I Love Carmela Soprano" for challenging Italian-American gender roles. "New Yorker" editor David Remnick described "The Sopranos" as mirroring the "mindless commerce and consumption" of modern America. "The Sopranos" has been called "perhaps