Last night we lost a legend. The sad news from Rome of James Gandolfini’s passing came as a huge blow for fellow fans of the powerhouse actor. I first remember seeing him on screen as Virgil, the brutish mobster who uses Alabama (Patricia Arquette) as a punching bag in True Romance, and I was amazed, a few years back, by his performance on stage as an irritable Brooklyn parent in God of Carnage. But the role he will be most remembered for is, of course, Tony Soprano, the ruthless, conflicted New Jersey mob boss. I never missed an episode of the show during its 9-year run on HBO. And there were many a notable food scene—Christopher and Paulie subsisting on frozen condiment packets while stuck in the woods on a manhunt, mistress Gloria tossing a steak at Tony in a fit of rage, the gabagool (aka, capicola) and vinegar pepper subs Tony picked up at Satriale’s, or any of the elaborate Italian dinners orchestrated by Carmela or skittish chef Artie Buco. But in pondering which food-themed scene to post as an homage to the late, great actor I couldn’t help but settle on the show’s much-debated final one. Tony slides into a booth at the local diner, flips through the jukebox (it should be noted that the songs he skips over “Who Will You Run To” and “Magic Man” by Heart, and “I’ve Gotta Be Me” and “A Lonely Place” by Tony Bennett, have as much significance as the one he picks) and puts on Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin'”. Carmela arrives, then AJ; they talk about his new entry-level job, wait for Meadow, who is struggling to parallel park outside, and order onion rings and fountain sodas. It was as mundane, as it was memorable. FV
