Sopranos 6th Season

[marybethp]

I enjoyed last night. The parts with Paulie had me roaring. "My muddah's a whooo-ah!"

The priest storyline is a little out there. I didn't like that they were trying to intimidate the poor paramedic!

I wonder if it will get back to Tony that Paulie nailed that guys knees regarding the sanitation.

[Google]

 

[Justafan1]

I liked it too actually. Many interesting layers. The rap"artists" story, the Paulie's news, the Tony's interactions with the science guy at the hospital...

Not bad. As someone mentioned here I think they are getting us ready for something REALLY big and interesting.. Like the power fight between Tony, Vito, Pailue and others.

[Brandy]

My bet would be Janice posted the Ojibwe saying on Tony's bulletin board - not like she never lied before - but then again the show could be trying to imply it's a mystery. Hmmm.

Funny how Tony kept watching "Kung Fu" on tv. (For those too young, it was a Tv show in the 1970s I think, about a young monk-apprentice trying to learn about life from an older Buddhist monk) Were they trying to tell us that this is what bled into Tony's subconscious? The closest he got to philosophy in his lifetime?

Trivia: Bruce Lee was originally set to play the role David Carradine played in Kung Fu, but lost it due to his thick accent and basically, racism. (The show thought America would accept a white guy in the role better)

Hal Holbrook who played the Bell labs scientist is a very fine actor, if anyone has a chance to check out any of his other work. He is known among other things for a great portrayal of Mark Twain.

This show's right on the money with its characterisations. Like how Paulie responded to a heartwarming scene by going out and kneecapping someone. Lol. Guy just ain't wired right.

Looks like Carmela is getting more 'wise' and into Tony's business, telling him about Vito... Oughta be an interesting season!!

[canadian_angel]

I really liked the older science guy in the hospital. I know his views were written, but I really liked his outlook on life.
The action, it's slowly coming back, but for some reason I found this episode rather lackluster.

[Austin Gambler]

That Paulie has some really crazy logic. A mother expresses love for her son so he' going to extort the exact amount of money each month it costs to keep his mom/aunt in that elderly residence.

[Brandy]

Austin: Yes, I think that's Paulie's sense of justice - it starts and ends with how it all affects himself! What was taken from him i.e. feeling legit about paying that $4000 himself, will be restored by taking from a guy who has what he wants i.e. the love of his birth mother. Caveman karma!

Kind of an interesting episode, if a bit clunky with its philosophy and of course, once again trashing Christians as being uniformly (represented by) rigid, judgmental and narrow-minded. (Whereas the other forms of spirituality are gentle and understanding)

Some funny lines, especially Christophuh's line about Adam and Eve being chased by a T Rex. haaa

[Justafan1]

Bumping the thread so people can discuss tonight's episode.

It looks like the old Tony is back (especially from the previews for the next ep).

Anybody is watching?

[bbnbama]

Yep, I watched and I must say I was [[ shocked about Vito...I didn't see that coming...did anyone else?]]....Plus Tony wanted to make sure he showed who the big dawg was, huh?

[Justafan1]

http://apnews1.iwon.com//article/200...=home&SEC=news

Gay 'Sopranos' Mobster Glad for Exposure


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Apr 10, 7:02 AM (ET)

By DOUGLAS J. ROWE

NEW YORK (AP) - Heath Ledger, Jake Gyllenhall and ... Joseph R. Gannascoli? In what Gannascoli cheerfully calls "the year of the queer," when "Brokeback Mountain" became a phenomenon and Philip Seymour Hoffman won an Oscar playing Truman Capote, Gannascoli's character (spoiler alert: read no further if you haven't seen the episode yet) was outed Sunday night on "The Sopranos."

Dressed in appropriate leather bar attire, Vito Spatafore - the heretofore closeted gay mobster - was sighted by a couple wiseguys who came by the sweaty S&M joint to collect their protection money.

"It's a joke," Vito weakly offers, then begs: "Don't say nothin'!"

By the end of the episode, he's checked into a motel with a gun, looking suicidal.

Fans of the HBO series were stunned last season when Meadow's boyfriend, Finn, saw a security guard sitting in the driver's seat of a truck - and then Vito's head popped up.

This season, Vito has hung around the hospital while Tony Soprano was recovering from a gunshot wound, trying to ingratiate himself with Tony's wife while plotting with Paulie Walnuts to grab her cut of a big score. And he's chomped on carrots while prattling on about all the weight he's losing. (In real life, he's down to 260 from a high of 400 pounds.)

Now that the gay story line is heating up, the 47-year-old Brooklyn-born actor is immensely pleased, in part because it was his idea to make Vito homosexual.

"I saw him as, like, a cross between Mike Tyson and Liberace," Gannascoli told The Associated Press in an interview at his home. "I wanted to make him sort of in self-denial, self-loathing, a real gay hater."

Gannascoli's suggestion was inspired by the book "Murder Machine," about the Gambino family, which had an openly gay member also named Vito.

"They didn't bother him about it, because I guess he was good at what he did, which was chopping up bodies," Gannascoli said.

Gannascoli concedes that he had a self-serving motivation for making the suggestion: Breaking out of the pack.

"I thought that was a way of separating myself from the other actors, because I would have been in the background most of the time. You know, line here, line there, and nothing really substantial," said Gannascoli, whose character previously was best known for whacking Jackie Aprile Jr. "To really make an impact is all I can ask for."

He also thought it would create an interesting acting challenge. But even amid all the recent gay buzz, Gannascoli knows the reaction to Vito won't be all positive.

"I'm a Brooklyn guy. I was just in Brooklyn last night. And, you know, I had some real wise guys that look at me and they give me dirty looks. I've had guys, like, come after me in clubs," he said.

He just hopes the "cerebral people" will appreciate his performance.

Gannascoli said "The Sopranos" has changed his life "in so many ways."

"Recognition, I'd say, the most. It allowed me to get married."

It's also allowed Gannascoli to buy his house ("which coming from a rent-controlled apartment all my life was a huge step up"), get his novel published ("A Meal to Die For," loosely based on his life in the restaurant business) and develop a signature line of food (olive oil, tomato sauce, barbecue sauce, salsa and wine).

"While I'm not going to be cheffing anymore, I'm going to be still involved in food. Which is one of my passions."

He considered becoming a lawyer like his older brother but dropped out of St. John's University after two years. He did well the first year but by his second year, "I had a huge Quaalude business" that sidetracked him. ("I was hustlin', you know.")

He then bounced around, working at various New York restaurants and becoming a "self-taught" kitchen magician. He even headed to New Orleans and learned Cajun cooking in the '80s.

He owned all or part of a few restaurants over the years, but disliked the "day-to-day machinations" of keeping it going.

It was during one of his numerous food-service jobs when acting felt like the dish of the day. A waiter-friend (who, like so many in New York, also was an aspiring actor) urged him to audition for a play. He got the role and started taking acting lessons.

But he soon found himself pushing an ice-cream cart on Wall Street before eventually opening another eatery. He got burnt out from working 9 a.m. to 2 at night and started gambling heavily.

On the last day of the 1990 pro football regular season he was in a hole. Like any desperate gambler, he tried to win it back fast.

"Cody Carlson is responsible for my acting," Gannascoli joked, able to laugh about it now.

The backup Houston Oilers quarterback started in place of injured Hall of Famer Warren Moon and had a great game against betting favorite Pittsburgh. The Steelers lost, and Gannascoli was out $60,000.

Gannascoli paid off his debts with equity from his restaurant, thus avoiding a real-life leg-breaking - or worse - and then decided to head to L.A.

On the West Coast, he met Benicio Del Toro, which led to an audition and small role in the 1993 feature "Money for Nothing" - and a meeting with Georgianne Walken (Christopher Walken's wife) and Sheila Jaffe.

Both Jaffe and Walken are casting directors who've chosen actors for roles in scores of films and TV shows - including "The Sopranos."

Gannascoli underwent hip-replacement surgery last week and hopes the increased mobility will help him exercise and lose more weight. But while controlling his Falstaffian appetites, he'd loved to develop a hybrid cooking/sports show. He'd have a famous athlete as a guest and they'd cook up one of star's favorite dishes while talking about his career and showing clips.

He'd like to call it "Food Bowl."

[AJane]

I loved the scene with Vito in the gay bar. What a jolt. I assume [[he shot himself????]]

My husband thought that Tony might have set up the fight with the new bodyguard beforehand. I'm not sure...you wouldn't think a wheezing, overweight, out-of-shape Tony could beat up a young musclehead like that?