'The Sopranos' Star James Gandolfini Dies
by Shannon Keirnan
Sad and unexpected news this evening: James Gandolfini, who shot to fame playing mob boss Tony Soprano on the popular show “The Sopranos,” has passed away.
He was 51.
Gandolfini was in Italy, preparing to attend the 59th annual Taormina Film Festival in Sicily when he suffered a “major heart attack.” He did not survive.
“Everyone is in tears,” said a source close to the actor.
Gandolfini was set to participate in a festival event with director Gabriele Muccino.
Gandolfini, originally of Westwood, New Jersey, got his start in 1992 when he landed a role in Broadway’s “A Streetcar Named Desire,” opposite Alec Baldwin and Jessica Lange.
Until then, he had supported himself as a bartender and nightclub manager.
He returned to Broadway in 2009 for the Tony-winning “God of Carnage,” and has been prolific in the film industry, appearing in movies like “Get Shorty,” “True Romance,” and “Crimson Tide.”
It was 1999’s “The Sopranos,” however, that made Gandolfini a household name. He was nominated six times and won three Emmy Awards for his work on the character of Tony Soprano.
Most recently, he was seen in “The Incredible Burt Wonderstone” alongside Jim Carrey and Steve Carell. He was currently working with Noomie Rapace and Tom Hardy on Fox Searchlight’s “Animal Rescue.”
Gandolfini leaves behind his wife, ex-model Deborah Lin, who he married in 2008. Lin gave birth to their daughter in October. Gandolfini also has a son with ex-wife Marcy Wudarski.
A major hole has been left in the acting community with this tragic news.