In 2009, I scored a ticket to the hottest show on Broadway, a play starring James Gandolfini, Jeff Daniels, Hope Davis, and Marcia Gay Harden. When I walked up to the box office to claim my ticket, I instinctively looked up at the well-dressed man standing next to me and said, “Hello, Mr. Torre.” I had dated a Yankees fan for several years and I knew I wasn’t supposed to call him “Joe.”
As I floated into the theater, I took my seat one row back from one of the most famous managers in baseball history and sitting next to me was a Marilyn-Monroe-level-stunning blonde actress who I had just watched that morning in a few reruns of “The Sopranos.”
“Aren’t you Uncle Junior’s mistress?” I asked. She nodded, smiled, and handed me a card, cleverly designed to publicize her upcoming one-woman show. For some reason, I came home with a pocket full of similar cards on that trip, all with titles I never heard again.
“Aren’t you Uncle Junior’s mistress?” I asked. She nodded, smiled, and handed me a card, cleverly designed to publicize her upcoming one-woman show.
Then we all settled into an evening of New York theater starring the king of all TV mob bosses, Tony Soprano.
I thought about that night as I watched “Wise Guy: David Chase and the Sopranos” on HBO/Max. It’s a two-parter directed by acclaimed documentarian Alex Gibney, who cleverly set up a reproduction of Dr. Melfi’s office for his interviews with Chase. A good choice because this is therapy for Chase and for his fans.
For many reasons, that show wound its way through my life and American culture for the past 25 years. I fell in love with it after hearing one of my favorite literary critics gush about its brilliance. Then my friend G couldn’t stop talking about “Sex and the City” and soon, Sunday nights on HBO became don’t-miss-TV for about a decade.
But there’s nothing I enjoy more than a good “behind the scenes” story that shows how the doughnuts are made. And this doc is full of that.
Here are my takeaways:
Casting is both arduous and magical
The raw footage of auditions for this legendary cast is priceless. Dozens of good performances fly by until you see one reading that “pops.” So many possible Tonys, then all of a sudden, Gandolfini’s eyes sparkle into the camera. About 100 great actresses read for matriarch Livia until Nancy Marchand settles into the character like a favorite recliner.
But there’s nothing I like better than a good “behind the scenes” story that shows how the doughnuts are made. And this doc is full of that.
Edie Falco was cast as Carmella one day before shooting began. Michael Imperioli had never heard of a series on HBO and thought his audition for Christopher was terrible and pointless. Drea de Matteo won the role of Adriana after a terrific reading of the word “OW.” Hilarious. Lorraine Bracco fought for the role of Dr. Melfi. And guitarist Steve Van Zandt was cast as Silvio after Chase saw him present an award at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He was also a strong contender for Tony.
One more note: Audition videos trigger sympathy in me, both for the life of an actor and for the grind of finding that next job. Actors are the bravest people in the world.
Perfect timing always helps
Every major network rejected Chase and his brilliant pilot script, but HBO was still trying to position itself as alternative viewing. Executives gave Chase complete creative control and trusted him on the hard artistic decisions.
The viewing audience was also ready to embrace adult television with more complex themes along with more graphic sex and violence. Within this perfect storm of inspiration, creative freedom, and hard work, “The Sopranos” became the launchpad for a new Golden Age of TV.
Chase was also done with network TV. Years of meeting with executives and churning out scripts for “The Rockford Files,” “I’ll Fly Away,” and “Northern Exposure” had worn him down and he was dying to direct and write a feature film. “The Sopranos” offered a chance to create a hybrid: series TV story lines with a cinematic vision.
The viewing audience was also ready to embrace adult television with more complex themes along with graphic sex and violence. Within this perfect storm of inspiration, creative freedom, and high standards, “The Sopranos” became the launchpad for a new Golden Age of TV.
Making TV is a horrible slog
Just listening to James Gandolfini describe his weekly production schedule made me tired. Start at 5 AM on Monday, work until 7 PM, start again on Tuesday at 8, work until 10 PM. Fridays stretched into all-night shoots. For 86 episodes.
Eventually the grind got the best of Gandolfini. His battle with drugs and alcohol ended in a premature heart attack and death at age 51, seven years after the show ended.
Even the writers and crew acknowledge that during production, there is little time for anything other than hanging around on a set. TV life is best served by the single and the childless.
Chase had always wanted to write about his overbearing neurotic mother — although most of the cast and crew were convinced he was writing about THEIR mothers.
It All Boils Down to Family
There’s a classic story about the production team of the Broadway musical “Fiddler on the Roof”: as the show crept closer and closer to opening night, director Jerome Robbins incessantly asked, “What is this show about?”
Finally, someone burst out with one word: “Tradition!” And that’s when a cluster of tales by Jewish folklorist Sholom Aleichem became a unified story of family, legacy, and history beloved by audiences around the world.
Chase had always wanted to write about his overbearing neurotic mother — although most of the cast and crew were convinced he was writing about THEIR mothers. As “Wise Guy” unrolls, it turns out “The Sopranos” was a deep dive into Chase’s rich Italian legacy that eventually moves him to tears in his eulogy at Gandolfini’s funeral.
And that’s also why audiences loved the show. Underneath all of the “whacking,” was a message of loyalty and familial bonds.
Good leadership is easier in the rear-view mirror
Chase was determined to stretch the boundaries of television storytelling and he told the writers to come up with their best five ideas — and then throw them out. He wanted them to go deeper and he rejected predictability on all levels (you saw the series finale, right?).
The result was an intense writers room littered with casualties and battered imaginations. In hindsight, he reflects on the reason for his frustration that he couldn’t mine more gold from his staff.
“Maybe the reason they didn’t speak up,” he says, “is because I always said no.”
So, bake up a pan of ziti, grab a glass of red wine, and fire up HBO/Max. “Wise Guy” is a great way to spend an evening.
Not only will it shake up your memories, it’s a terrific time capsule reminding us how TV changed and how fun it was to watch, thanks to the ambition and vision of a tormented and determined creator.
But enough about me? How do YOU feel about “The Sopranos”? Did you love it? Hate it? Were you addicted? Never saw it? Please share in the comments.
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I hadn't heard about this doc, but I will definitely be watching it.
It was a bit of a time capsule and also really interesting.