The Sopranos is an American television drama series created by David Chase and originally broadcast on the HBO network. The show revolves around New Jersey mafia boss Tony Soprano and the difficulties he faces as he tries to balance the often conflicting requirements of his home life and the criminal organization he heads. The series stars, among others, James Gandolfini, Lorraine Bracco, Edie Falco, and Michael Imperioli.
The series aired on HBO from January 10, 1999 to June 10, 2007, spanning six seasons and 86 episodes. The show has also aired internationally.
It has been called "perhaps the greatest pop-culture masterpiece of its day" by Vanity Fair.[1] The show has been credited for bringing a greater level of artistry to the television medium and paving the way for many successful drama series that followed.[2] The show has won numerous awards including twenty-one Emmys and five Golden Globes, and has been the subject of much parody and analysis.
The Sopranos has spawned video games, books, high-charting soundtrack albums[3][4] and a large amount of assorted merchandise.
Contents [hide]
1 Characters
2 Plot synopsis and episode list
3 Themes and characteristics
3.1 Southern Italian culture and immigration
3.2 Dreams
3.3 Ineptitude of mobsters
3.4 References and allusions
3.4.1 Goodfellas
3.4.2 The Godfather
3.5 Depiction of brands
4 Criminality of cast members
5 Critical reception
5.1 Awards
6 References in television and other media
7 Production notes
7.1 Pre-production
7.2 Casting
7.3 Title sequence
7.4 Sets and locations
7.5 Series finale
7.6 Music
8 Broadcasting
8.1 HBO broadcasting history
8.2 International broadcasting
9 DVD release
10 Games and toys
10.1 PlayStation 2 game
10.2 Other games
10.3 Collectibles
11 Film
12 See also
13 References
14 External links
[edit] Characters
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Main article: List of characters from The Sopranos
Anthony "Tony" Soprano (James Gandolfini) is the quick tempered and fierce boss of the New Jersey-based DiMeo crime family and patriarch of the Soprano household.[5] Tony begins to have panic attacks after years of stress over his "business" and a difficult childhood. He seeks treatment from Dr. Jennifer Melfi, played by Lorraine Bracco.[6] Adding to Tony's complicated life is his strained relationship with his wife Carmela Soprano (Edie Falco)[7] and their two children, Meadow (Jamie-Lynn Sigler)[8] and AJ (Robert Iler).[9]
The starring cast encompassed members of Tony's extended family including his mother Livia (Nancy Marchand),[10] sister Janice (Aida Turturro),[11] uncle Corrado "Junior" Soprano (Dominic Chianese),[12] and cousins Tony Blundetto (Steve Buscemi)[13] and Christopher Moltisanti (Michael Imperioli).[14] Both Livia and Janice are shrewd manipulators with emotional problems of their own. Tony's Uncle Junior and both of his cousins are involved in his criminal organization and their family bond vies with their criminal ambitions.
Tony's close circle within the DiMeo crime family includes Silvio Dante (Steven Van Zandt), Paul "Paulie Walnuts" Gualtieri (Tony Sirico) and Salvatore "Big Pussy" Bonpensiero (Vincent Pastore). Silvio is Tony's consigliere and best friend. Paulie and Big Pussy are longtime soldiers who have worked with Tony and his father. Also in Tony's criminal organization are Patsy Parisi (Dan Grimaldi) and Furio Giunta (Federico Castelluccio).
Season 6 promotional photoOther significant characters in the DiMeo family include Bobby "Bacala" Baccalieri (Steven R. Schirripa), Richie Aprile (David Proval), Ralph Cifaretto (Joe Pantoliano), Eugene Pontecorvo (Robert Funaro) and Vito Spatafore (Joseph R. Gannascoli). Bobby is a subordinate of Junior's whom Tony initially bullies but later accepts into his inner circle. Cifaretto is a clever, ambitious top-earner but his arrogance and tendency to be obnoxious and disrespectful make Tony resentful. Richie Aprile is released from prison in season two. Pontecorvo is a young soldier who becomes a made man alongside Christopher. Spatafore works his way up through the ranks to become top earner of the Aprile Crew but has a secret in his personal life.
Friends of the Soprano family include Herman "Hesh" Rabkin (Jerry Adler), Adriana La Cerva (Drea de Matteo), Rosalie Aprile (Sharon Angela), Angie Bonpensiero (Toni Kalem), and Artie (John Ventimiglia) and Charmaine Bucco (Kathrine Narducci). Hesh is an adviser and friend to Tony, and served in this role under Tony's father John "Johnny Boy" Soprano. Adriana is Christopher's long time girlfriend; the two have a tempestuous relationship. Rosalie is a close friend of Carmela's, not to mention the widow of the former boss of the family, Jackie Aprile, who stays tied to the organization. Angie is Salvatore Bonpensiero's wife who later goes into business for herself. Artie and Charmaine are school friends of the Sopranos and owners of the popular restaurant Vesuvio. Charmaine wishes to have no association with Tony and his crew due to his criminal involvement, and often has to insist that Artie--a law-abiding and hard-working man--is drawn to Tony's way of life.
John "Johnny Sack" Sacrimoni (Vince Curatola), Phil Leotardo (Frank Vincent) and "Little" Carmine Lupertazzi, Jr. (Ray Abruzzo) are all significant characters from the New York-based Lupertazzi crime family, which shares much of its business with the Soprano organization. Although the Lupertazzis' and DiMeos' interests are often at odds, Tony maintains a cordial business-like relationship with Johnny Sack, preferring to make deals that benefit both families. His second-in-command and eventual successor, Phil Leotardo, is less cordial and is harder for Tony to do business with.
[edit] Plot synopsis and episode list
Main article: List of The Sopranos episodes
See also: The Sopranos timeline
See also: List of deaths in The Sopranos series
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Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed.
Tony Soprano in a season one episode.The series begins with Tony Soprano collapsing after suffering an anxiety attack. This prompts him to begin therapy with Dr. Jennifer Melfi. Gradually, the storyline reveals that Tony's mother was manipulative and possibly psychotic, his children have troubled futures, someone in his organization is talking to the FBI, and his own Uncle is plotting his death. Tony's Uncle Junior had been installed as boss of the family while Tony controls things from behind the scenes. Furious at Junior's plan to have him killed, Tony responds to the attempt on his life with a violent reprisal and confronts his mother for her role in plotting his downfall. She has a psychologically triggered pseudo-stroke. Junior is arrested by the FBI.
At the beginning of the second season, Richie Aprile is released from prison and proves to be uncontrollable in the business arena as well as starting a relationship with Tony's sister Janice. Tony's friend "Big Pussy" returns to New Jersey after a conspicuous absence and Tony realizes he is an FBI informant. Tony with the help of Silvo Dante and Paulie Walnuts kill Big Pussy on a boat then wrap him up in chains and throw him overboard. Janice kills Richie in a violent argument before Tony is forced to deal with him.
The third season sees the return of the ambitious Ralph Cifaretto after a long absence in Florida. He gets involved with Rosalie Aprile, a friend of Tony's family. Despite a personal animosity, Tony promotes him because of his professional success. Jackie Aprile, Jr. becomes involved with Meadow, Tony's daughter, and then descends into an increasingly reckless life of crime. Tony initially attempts to chalk up Jackie Jr.'s erratic behavior to a forgivable incident of his youth, and tries to prevent an escalation by having a frank and direct talk with Jackie. Despite Tony's counsel--and warning--Jackie crosses a line by organizing a botched robbery attempt on Tony's own borgata. Tony decides to give Ralph the decision regarding Jackie Jr.'s punishment. Despite his role as a surrogate father, Ralph ultimately decides to have Jackie Jr. killed. In the fourth season, Tony murders Ralph in a violent rage because he believes Ralph killed their racehorse Pie-O-My in a stable fire. Ralph's behavior up to that point had become increasingly erratic and senselessly violent, including the murder of one of Silvio Dante's working girls.
Tension between Tony and Carmela comes to a head when Tony's former mistress calls the house. Their marriage finally breaks down and Carmela leaves him. Tony is approached by Johnny Sack, his friend in the powerful New York based Lupertazzi Crime Family, with a proposal to murder Carmine Lupertazzi, which he eventually turns down. In the fifth season, Tony's cousin Tony Blundetto is released from prison alongside other mob figures. Carmine dies unexpectedly and his failure to nominate a successor leads to a power struggle in New York. Despite trying to avoid returning to organized crime, Blundetto gets involved in the conflict against Tony's orders. When Blundetto kills the brother of Phil Leotardo, Johnny demands that Tony turn him in. Refusing to do so provokes the New York faction, and eventually Tony elects to kill Blundetto himself rather than hand him over to be tortured.
Christopher Moltisanti discovers that his girlfriend Adriana is an FBI informant and tells Tony. Tony, with Christopher's understanding, orders Silvio to kill Adriana. Tony eventually manages to convince Carmela to take him back. With one successful reconciliation achieved Tony approaches Johnny to put an end to the bloodshed between their families and get back to business. As they meet Johnny is arrested by the FBI.
At the beginning of the sixth season, Tony is shot by the now senile and confused Uncle Junior. Following the shooting, Tony has numerous vivid dreams while in a coma. These change his outlook and he tries to change his ways. However, he is faced with more problems in his business life. Vito Spatafore is outed as a homosexual and Tony is urged to deal with the problem by Phil Leotardo, now acting boss of New York with Johnny Sack in prison. When Tony fails to act, Phil intervenes and kills Spatafore. Tony's crime family commits a reprisal murder and once more it appears that the families are on the verge of all-out war.
In the second part of the sixth season, themes of legacy and succession are darkened by Tony's vindictiveness and paranoia. Tony, having virtually abandoned his new philosophy, considers killing several of his associates for relatively minor infractions. Christopher is unable to leave the mob, deflecting his problems by relapsing into drug addiction and killing his old narcotics anonymous sponsor. He is then seriously injured in a car accident that he causes while driving under the influence of narcotics. Tony, the sole passenger, is unharmed and suffocates Christopher to death. AJ Soprano is dumped by his fiancee and slips deeper into depression, culminating in a suicide attempt in the backyard pool. Dr. Melfi is convinced by friends that Tony is making no progress and may even be using talking therapy for his own sociopathic benefit. She drops him as a patient.
Johnny Sack dies from cancer while imprisoned and Leotardo consolidates his position in the Lupertazzi family. He has his opposition for leadership killed and then officially takes over. In a resumption of their past feud Phil won't compromise with Tony on a garbage deal. When Tony assaults a Lupertazzi soldier for bothering Meadow on a date Phil seizes a chance for revenge. Phil orders the execution of Bobby Baccalieri, who is shot to death, Silvio, who ends up comatose, and Tony, who goes into hiding. A deal is brokered where the rest of the Lupertazzi family agree to ignore the order to kill Tony, and give Tony an opportunity to go after Phil. An FBI agent informs Tony of Phil's location and Tony has him killed. With Phil’s death, the threat from New York is extinguished and Tony, Carmela, Meadow, and AJ meet for dinner.
[edit] Themes and characteristics
The Sopranos is noted for David Chase's multifaceted, symbolism-heavy style of writing and the series has consistently been the subject of feverish analysis.[15] The show operates on a rich number of levels. Chase and his co-writers have addressed a large number of psychological, philosophical and political themes throughout the series' run.
[edit] Southern Italian culture and immigration
Italy is referenced as "the old country" or "the other side" by mobsters or family members. Furio Giunta represents links between Italian and American mafia. The show delves into, explains, and erodes some of the Italian traditions, especially from the South, brought to America. The most prominent of these traditions (which include the mafia rules of behaviour including honor, a blood oath, omerta and machismo) is Italian cooking, by mobster's wives or Tony's friend Artie Bucco in his restaurant. Tony says many times that Italians determined their own fate when they arrived in America, and did their best to survive as a strong, independent community. In a scene where Father Intintola invites a writer to his parish who says to Italian-American women that they should be proud of their heritage, and that they should talk about Rudy Giuliani when instead they talk about John Gotti, and the stereotypical Italian mob. Carmela Soprano, Rosalie Aprile and Gabriela Dante are very upset.
Throughout the series, it is revealed that Tony thinks Italian-Americans have abandoned many of the aforementioned traditions. His reliance on, sometimes to his disadvantage, the blood ties of family, including the increasing load of responsibility he levels at his nephew, Christopher, and his continued faith in an ailing Uncle Junior, reveals that he values old Country traditions, but feels betrayed by them. Tony, and others in the crew, constantly lament the erosion of these values and long for better days.
[edit] Dreams
See also: Tony Soprano's Dreams
A distinct aspect of The Sopranos is the dream sequences. Series creator David Chase, who writes most of the dream sequences,[16] states of them, "We've used those dreams to further the narrative. For example, 'Funhouse' could have been a story in which Tony gets some information that Pussy's the rat and he tracks it down and we do some stultifying procedural until we have the proof in hand. And I just couldn't go through that. I can't stand that (stuff). So we just decided it would be more interesting, that on some level Tony knows this, that his friend is betraying him, and it makes him ill in combination with some bad chicken, and his subconscious erupts like that and gives him the information."[16] The dream sequence includes Tony talking to Big Pussy as a fish and realizing his friend is an FBI informant. In the dream, Pussy (the fish) tells Tony, "You knew. You passed me over for promotion." Another famous dream is the sequence in "The Test Dream" that is over 20 minutes in length.[16]
Season six contains the longest continuous "dream" sequence with Tony as a regular man having his identity mistaken for a man named Kevin Finnerty.[17] In the dream, Tony is stuck in Costa Mesa, California, a city he had traveled to for business, and because of mistaken identity, he cannot travel home. Finnerty is portrayed as a salesman who lives a conservative, law-abiding life. During this sequence, he has a memorable run-in with Buddhist monks at a nearby monastery [17]
[edit] Ineptitude of mobsters
The mobsters in the series are depicted as tough, savvy, and street-smart but lacking heavily in formal education and common sense. The mobsters' educational and linguistic shortcomings, particularly those of Paulie Walnuts and Christopher, is often a source of humor.[18] The characters themselves are frequently oblivious to their use of malapropisms and misunderstandings of basic history and common knowledge.
The gangsters' incompetence is in some way displayed in every episode of the series. Some of the more notable examples include:
Much of the episode "Pine Barrens" is devoted to the failings of Paulie and Christopher as they attempt to survive a single day and night in a snowy wilderness after a botched execution. In this episode, Tony by phone tells them to be careful with the subject of their execution as he once allegedly killed 16 Chechnyan rebels and was part of the Russian Interior Ministry. When Paulie later repeats this claim, he says that the subject killed 16 Czechoslovakians and was an interior decorator, to which Christopher responds by saying "his apartment looked like ****," causing a humorous misunderstanding between the two mobsters. The transmission was somewhat scrambled but it is implied that Paulie simply is not intelligent enough to distinguish between Chechnya and Czechoslovakia and between an interior decorator and a Russian government agent. Earlier in the same episode Christopher shows his bad knowledge of history when he expresses disbelief that the Cuban Missile Crisis actually occurred by saying: "That was real? I saw that movie. I thought it was bullshit".[19]
Bobby Baccalieri draws the ire of Tony while discussing world events and biblical prophecy by erroneously stating that "Quasimodo predicted all of this." Tony then corrects him by saying that he meant Nostradamus and that Quasimodo was the Hunchback of Notre Dame. Baccalieri then continues the conversation by mentioning the backfield of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, now thinking that a hunchback is like a full back.[20]
Although more intelligent than his cohorts, Tony often use malapropisms and repeats things that Dr. Melfi says to him elsewhere, only to get the phrase entirely wrong or to completely miss the point. Some of his more famous malapropisms include "revenge is like serving cold cuts" (a mangling of the expression "revenge is a dish best served cold")[21] and describing "amour fou" (a french expression meaning "crazy love") as "our mofo."[22]
Recurring character "Little Carmine" Lupertazzi's delusions of eloquence are a consistent source of comedy for viewers.[23] He often muddles metaphors, once telling Tony that "You're at the precipice of an enormous crossroad."[24] "I have nine pictures under my sub-species," he at one time says of his movie-producing.[21] He also explains the final scene of the fictitious mafia/slasher movie Cleaver as a mix of "the sacred and the propane."[25]
Some mobsters are portrayed as intelligent and well-spoken in contrast, though they appear to be exceptions to the rule. For instance, Johnny Sack, Ralph Cifaretto, and Tony Blundetto are all highly intelligent (Blundetto allegedly has an IQ of 158) and almost never use malapropisms.[26]
[edit] References and allusions
[edit] Goodfellas
Chase has stated that the Martin Scorsese gangster film Goodfellas was a source of inspiration for him, calling the 1990 movie his "Koran."[27]
The Sopranos began with four starring cast members (Lorraine Bracco, Michael Imperioli, Tony Sirico and Vincent Pastore) who had appeared in Goodfellas. Later Frank Vincent, another Goodfellas cast member, joined the cast as Phil Leotardo. Joseph Gannascoli, who can be seen briefly in the film as an uncredited extra, joined the cast as Vito Spatafore. Recurring characters played by actors who also appeared in Goodfellas include Barbara Soprano Giglione (Nicole Burdette), Larry Boy Barese (Tony Darrow), Carmine Lupertazzi (Tony Lip), FBI Chief Frank Cubitoso (Frank Pellegrino), Albie Cianflone (John "Cha Cha" Ciarcia), Mary De Angelis (Suzanne Sheperd), Beansie Gaeta (Paul Herman), Joanne Moltisanti (Marianne Leone, also played by Goodfellas alumna Nancy Cassaro in one earlier episode), Doc Santoro (Dan Conte) and Pat Blundetto (Frank Albanese). Anthony Caso appeared in The Sopranos episode "46 Long" as Martin Scorsese and had a small part in Goodfellas. Actor Chuck Low appeared as Jewish character Morrie in Goodfellas and Hasidic hotel owner Mr. Teitlemann in The Sopranos. Actors who have had small roles in The Sopranos and Goodfellas include Tobin Bell, Gene Canfield, Gaetano LoGiudice, Vito Antuofermo, Frank Adonis, Anthony Alessandro, Victor Colicchio, and Angela Pietropinto. A total of 27 actors have appeared in both productions.
Goodfellas star Ray Liotta was also an early candidate to play Tony Soprano.
[edit] The Godfather
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Many of the characters are interested in The Godfather series of movies and some of the actors who portray them also appear in the films. For example in The Godfather Part II, Dominic Chianese (Corrado "Junior" Soprano) plays Johnny Ola. In The Godfather, Tony Lip (Carmine Lupertazzi) and Lou Martini, Jr. (Anthony Infante) appeared as wedding guests. In The Godfather Trilogy (a re-edited version of all three Godfather movies), Richard Maldone (Albert Barese) had a small role as Joey. Tony Sirico (Paulie Walnuts) claims to have been in The Godfather Part II[28] but he is not visible in the film.
Christopher Moltisanti is also fascinated with the films' depictions of the Mafia. They have all watched the films so often that Paulie, for example, refers to The Godfather star Al Pacino in conversation simply as "Al," Paulie's car horn plays "Love Theme From The Godfather", and several of the characters refer to the movies by their numbers: the first movie in the trilogy is simply referred to as "one." Tony and his crew sometimes discuss favorite scenes from the films. Silvio Dante in the early seasons would impersonate Al Pacino, from The Godfather Part III, saying, "Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in." He has done impersonations of the scene in The Godfather Part III between Michael Corleone and Al Neri where Michael says "Our true enemy has yet to reveal himself," (followed, tellingly, by an immediate cut to a shot of Big Pussy). The mobsters compare themselves to the cinematic images of organized crime in The Godfather trilogy, as well as other well known films about the Mafia, such as Goodfellas. Late in Season One, Christopher bonds over the Godfather movies with hip-hop mogul Massive Genius, who insists that the third one is "misunderstood."
There are also various visual homages to the Godfather trilogy.[original research?] Just before Tony is shot at in a failed assassination attempt in Season One, he buys a bottle of orange juice, a reference to Vito Corleone buying oranges during a similar attempt on his life.[citation needed] In addition, following the death of Livia Soprano in Season Three, there is a point-of-view shot of Tony taking an elevator to the funeral home basement. The scene is a direct homage to the scene in The Godfather where Vito calls on a favor to Bonasera following the murder of his son, Santino.[citation needed]
In Season Five, Carmine Lupertazzi suffers a fatal stroke while eating brunch. At the table, all the glasses are filled with water, except Carmine's, which has orange juice. In Season Six, in the episode "Member's Only", Tony is seen pouring orange juice into a coffee mug, and just after drinking it, he tells AJ that the only people you can really count on are family. Later in this episode Tony is shot by Junior, a family member. In the final episode, "Made in America", where it is conjectured that Tony may have been killed, Tony is seen eating an orange at Carmela's safe house. In The Godfather, Vito Corleone dies shortly after placing an orange wedge in his mouth in order to playfully frighten his grandson.
In the Season Six, Part 1 episode "Mayham," Anthony Junior plans to avenge the shooting of his father by killing Uncle Junior. A.J. tells Bobby and Christopher that getting to Junior would be "difficult, not impossible" (Rocco Lampone made this identical remark to Michael Corleone concerning the assassination of Hyman Roth in The Godfather Part II). When A.J. does in fact get caught in Junior's mental institution-jail with a knife in his revenge attempt, he later screams at Tony that Michael's restaurant revenge scene was always Tony's favorite, and Tony says, "It's a movie, A.J."
During the final scene of the series, in the episode "Made in America," an unknown man whom Tony watches closely walks into the bathroom of the restaurant they're in. The scene ends abruptly before the man returns, leading to speculation that the man came out of the bathroom and shot Tony. In The Godfather, Michael Corleone gets a gun from the bathroom and shoots Virgil Sollozzo and his policeman bodyguard, Captain McCluskey.