Sopranos star opens up about outed
character and career
By Jon Chattman
Forget The Sopranos fading to
black and ending on an onion ring, the biggest letdown
the mob drama ever had was when Vito Spatafore got
whacked simply for liking leather and loving Johnny
Cakes. The “don’t ask, don’t tell” character, played
gloriously by character actor Joe Gannascoli, was
wonderfully complex. He was a family man and a made man,
a top-earning captain for mob boss Tony Soprano (and who
could forget him shooting Jackie Jr.?), a loving father
and husband, and a closeted homosexual.
Spatafore was killed off last season,
but his death weighed heavy in the war between the
Soprano and Leotardo families during the series’ final
episodes. That’s something, the actor is very proud of.
“Season 6 was all about Vito even though I wasn’t in it.
It was an unbelievable thing to be in a major storyline
on the greatest show ever,” the actor said in a recent
interview.
While he’s proud of his work on the
infamous HBO series, Gannascoli’s career won’t be
defined solely by his conflicted character. As a matter
of fact, since getting killed off the series, the actor
has written a successful book “A Meal to Die For,” has
put out a line of pool sticks and cigars, and is, of
course, continuing to act in various projects.
Gannascoli’s talents go well beyond
the Bada Bing! Before becoming an actor, the
Brooklyn-born Gannascoli was a self-taught
world-renowned cook in the 1980s, working in Manhattan,
Boston, Los Angeles, and New Orleans. He caught the
acting bug while working in New York and landed a play.
In 1990, the actor says he “cashed out” after losing big
one day gambling, and headed of to Los Angeles. While
there, he landed his first role in Money for Nothing
opposite John Cusack. In 1995, he came back to his
roots and opened Soup as Art restaurants in his native
New York.
After a string of acting and odd jobs,
he landed The Sopranos gig via friend and
Money For Nothing co-star Benicio Del Toro, who
introduced him to two Sopranos casting agents.
Gannascoli actually played another
character prior to Vito, appearing as a customer named
Gino in a famous bakery scene in which Christopher
(Michael Imperioli) shoots a baker in the foot. In the
second season, the actor was brought back to play Vito,
and his character’s screen time grew with each passing
season thereafter – ironically as his pants sizes
shrunk.
A candid Gannascoli discussed all of
this and more (obviously we had to have him weigh in on
the series finale) with us last week.
Were you pleased with the
direction your character went on the Sopranos, and how
he got whacked?
Yeah, I guess I was. They
made it sensitive and sympathetic. I mean I don’t know
if I would’ve done it differently. I came up with the
idea to make the character gay after reading the book
Murder Machine by Jerry Capeci about an
openly-gay mobster. I saw it as a way to take the
character in a different direction and give me more
[screen time]. I saw him as this closeted [guy] in
denial - kind of a homophobe.
How long into playing Vito did
you know the character’s sexuality would be exposed?
[His sexuality] didn’t come into fruition until episode
nine of season five when Vito was [spotted giving oral
sex in a car]. When I was outed in the leather bar in
episode five of season six, I mean, I just had to know
where my character was going.
How long did you know Vito was
going to die?
David [Chase, the show’s
creator] told me in episode five. I asked him and he
said ‘you’re going to go on [episode] 11 or 12.’ I
pleaded to Chase that the bottom line is money and if
I’m (Vito’s) earning through Tony, as long as I don’t
embarrass the family, and keep my private life to
myself, I don’t need to be killed. But, the bottom line
was he was hurting Tony in the pocket. Guys wouldn’t
deal with him because of the fact he was gay or bi. So
outside, maybe Atlantic City or New Hampshire, [he
thought he’d be able to] still earn for him, but Phil (Leotado)
got to him.
Speaking of David Chase. Fans
have been really on his case for the abrupt series
ending. What did you think of it?
I thought it was great. It’s a way to top off a
masterpiece. I don’t think he went the conventional way.
It’s like analyzing a Beatles cover like Abbey Road.
Is Paul McCartney dead? Him walking without shoes….John
Lennon in a white suit. People read into different
things and theories, [and they] see all these symbolisms
and metaphors in the last episode.
Do you think Chase had the
ending in mind all along to leave it all up to the
viewer?
He said he always had an
ending in mind. Maybe somewhere down the line he might
say I want to continue it – do a movie or whatever. I
think we’re better off not knowing. I’d like to think
Tony’s alive and leave it at that.
In a nutshell what have you
been working on since The Sopranos. I know you have a
line of “To Die For” products…
My book’s been out a year and half, and it’s doing
really well. I’m still doing book signings in fact. I
also came out with a pool stick, I’ve been working on it
for about six months, and that just came out. My line of
Rocky Patel cigars is coming out in August. And, I
continue to talk to people about movies. I’m doing a
short film now, and getting a start date soon on a
Martin Lawrence film. I’m also doing an animated feature
with Big Pussy.
You dropped a ton of weight
dieting a few years back. How hard has it been to keep
off those pounds?
I was thin. I was a
ballplayer, opened a restaurant, and stopped going to
the gym. By season six, I was in tremendous pain. My
hips were shot from playing hockey, heredity, and
whatever. As soon as I finished the show, I had
double-hip replacement surgery. Now, I play racquet
ball. I’m feeling great actually. But, it’s a constant
battle.
Maybe it’s because my name is
Jon, but ever since that episode when you uttered the
line “I Love You, Johnny Cakes” it’s been a constant
joke among friends. Did you know when you said that line
that it’d become such a notable quotable?
I hear it constantly. Howard Stern does a soundbyte
anytime a gay thing comes up. He throws an “I Love You,
Johnny Cakes.” As a matter of fact I was just in New
Hampshire doing a cigar event, and I went to a diner and
they made me Johnny Cakes. I’ll sign autographs, if a
guy’s name is John, he’ll ask me to sign it “Johnny
Cakes.” So, it’s pretty cool. Its like “Hasta la vista,
baby.” I didn’t know how big it’d be – [then again] on
the set, people were calling everyone Johnny Cakes.
You’ve got a lot of things in
the pipeline, but do you still consider yourself an
actor before anything else?
I’m an actor, but I don’t
sit around and wait for the phone to ring. I recently
got married, have a mortgage, and can’t afford to wait
for phone to ring. I know what it’s like to be broke.
You feel like a scumbag. I have that fear, but it’s a
little easier now. People know Vito and what I can do.
‘Sopranos’ actor gets N.H. Johnny Cakes
A Telegraph Column By Mike Morin
Published: Tuesday, June 12, 2007
I got to hang out with a mobster recently. I guess I
shouldn’t be bragging about this. I could be swimming with the
fishies like Big Pussy from “The Sopranos.” Or have my head end up
in a bowling bag a la Ralphie Cifaretto, another former “business”
associate of Tony Soprano.
Turns out, “Sopranos” character Vito Spatafore, played by Joe
Gannascoli, paid a visit to New Hampshire recently to promote a line
of premium cigars. That’s what the press release said. I knew
better. What Vito really wanted was a steaming hot stack of Johnny
Cakes, like he had in Episode 73, Season 6 of “The Sopranos.”
Before meeting a most untimely and unflattering demise on the HBO
drama, Vito fled to New Hampshire to avoid getting whacked. While
visiting a town that looked like it could have been Keene or
Peterborough, Vito fell in love with a Granite State staple known as
Johnny Cakes at Jim’s Diner.
Hold on a second. Johnny Cakes are the cornmeal cousins to pancakes,
enjoyed mostly in the South. New Hampshire diners don’t serve Johnny
Cakes. To make things worse, the exterior shots of Vito’s New
Hampshire scenes were filmed in some small town in New Jersey. Next
thing you’re going to tell me is that they use red food coloring
instead of blood on “The Sopranos. Marone!
After speaking with Vito while he waited at Kennedy airport, I told
him I’d try to hook him up with some Johnny Cakes while he was in
town. I knew if anyone served Vito’s fave, it would be the 24-hour
Red Arrow Diner in Manchester. Owner Carol Sheehan told me Johnny
Cakes were not on the menu but they’d find a recipe to make Vito
happy.
Why was I doing this? Because Vito got the short end of the stick by
eating a faux New Hampshire meal in a faux New Hampshire diner in
Jersey for his “Sopranos” episodes. It was my responsibility to make
things right.
As we entered the Red Arrow around 1 o’clock, a capacity crowd of
lunch patrons began snapping photos of my gangster buddy dressed in
sweatpants, just like his character. A fan gave Vito an ashtray made
from a New Hampshire license plate. Priceless! Vito was in his
glory.
Roy the cook delivered three man-sized Johnny Cakes while Vito
signed autographs and posed with customers. Between bites, Vito
fired off racy one-liners and showed the “Sopranos” swagger that
made him a fan favorite. The crowd roared. Young women flirted with
him. There were times I wasn’t sure if I was hanging out with Vito
the mafia guy or Joe the actor. I’m not really sure he always knew,
either.
After 20 minutes, Vito and his manager followed me up Bridge Street
to I-93 on their way to his next appearance. In true “Sopranos”
fashion, as they drove past me, Vito grinned and flipped me the
famed mobster hand gesture.
Looks like we’re not in New Hampshire anymore, Toto.
Hear Mike Morin weekdays from 5-10 a.m. on “New Hampshire in the
Morning” on 95.7 WZID. Contact him at Heymikey@aol.com.
Actor Joseph R. Gannascoli Opens the Books with Ringside Report
to Talk about his Role as Vito Spatafore on The Sopranos and The
Sport of Boxing
Exclusive Interview by “Bad” Brad Berkwitt
Photos Courtesy of Joseph R. Gannascoli-June 20, 2007
“I actually cried as so many did when The Greatest (Muhammad Ali)
lost.”--Joseph R. Gannascoli
Joseph R. Gannascoli is a Brooklyn, New York, born and raised actor
who has plied his trade for many years in some well known movies,
but hit pay dirt, as Mafia Capo Vito Spatafore, a tough guy
character that is found out to be gay in the HBO Hit Original
Series, The Sopranos. Before he became a truly famous face, he had
parts in movies such as Ed Wood with Johnny Depp, Mickey Blue Eyes
with Hugh Grant, and maybe one of the most famous actors to play a
mafia figure in James Caan, (Sonny Corleone in The Godfather).
When you look at Gannascoli’s resume, you see a guy who has worked
his way up in each movie role with small parts leading of course,
into bigger ones. Acting, in a sense, is no different than boxing.
Both the boxer and actor must start out small working their way up
the ranks. The Actor starts with smaller roles, the fighter in
smaller venues, working his way through lesser competition. So in
that sense, an actor such as Joe, who if he wins the Oscar one day,
is like the boxer winning his first legitimate World Title. Exciting
for both, no doubt, and for sure a milestone that can be passed on
to generations in their families.
In this new series that saw us debut with Attorney Robert Shapiro,
this week, and wanting to follow up that interview with a name that
would instantly invoke many thoughts because of The Sopranos
success, but to also show that boxing fans truly do come in all
walks of life. So if you are thinking of not reading any further:
fuggettaboutit…..
BB: I know my first question you have probably been asked countless
times since the final episode of The Sopranos went off, but what did
you personally think of it?
I thought it was very good. Working with David Chase (Creator), I
know the way he operates and he doesn’t tie up loose ends. You don’t
know if Tony Soprano lived or died, which I would like to think he
lived and it leaves the door open for future things, which
personally, I don’t think is going to happen. The music in it had a
lot of meaning and the episode had a lot of symbolism from eating an
orange, from Uncle Junior with no teeth in his mouth. I really did
love it.
BB: Your character Vito Spatafore, which got a lot of airtime was
not only was a high ranking Capo, but you were also found out to be
a homosexual as well. In my research, I read that you came up with
the idea to incorporate it into your character. How did David Chase
take to your idea?
Yes, that was my idea from a book I was reading and I thought it
would be interesting because it was something you just don’t see in
Mob life. It was also a chance to get some challenging acting work
in. I brought it up to the creators about the book I was reading
(Murder Machine by Authors Gene Mustain and Jerry Capeci) which had
a gay character in there, which if they were interested in running
with it, I wouldn’t mind. That was actually in the middle of season
3. I didn’t hear anything about it until about season 5, when they
asked me the name of the book I was reading which talked about the
murder of the Acting Boss of the Family, "Johnny Boy" D’Amato back
in 1992, that actually happened in Brooklyn, New York, when he was
shot from the front several times in a backseat of a car.
BB: Looking back now that your character is in the can, how did you
think you did on your portrayal? Finally, how did the different Gay
and Lesbian organizations feel about your role since it was a main
character on of the most watched TV shows in the history of
television?
It’s hard to judge my own performance, but I heard from both people
in the community, and gay community, that they loved it, which is
very gratifying to hear. In the portrayal of Vito Spatafore, I just
really tried to give an honest performance. Many people don’t
realize this, but during that entire season, I was in tremendous
pain with major hip problems where you actually see me limping
around because of it. Since then, I have had double hip replacement
surgery and I’m happy to say, I’m feeling much better now and
playing racquetball everyday.
The Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) nominated my
scenes in The Sopranos for a drama award, but they didn’t win. I was
honored by that even without the win.
BB: Researching your acting career, I found a movie (Money For
Nothing) that happened to have both James Gandolfini (Tony Soprano)
and Elizabeth Bracco, Lorraine Bracco’s (Dr Melfi’s) real life
sister who also played your wife on The Sopranos. When you finally
realized you were going to be on the Sopranos, did you already have
some type of rapport with either star going in?
Wow, I didn’t realize that Elizabeth Bracco was in that movie. I
didn’t work with James (Gandolfini), but I had a couple of scenes
with Michael Madsen. So honestly, since I didn’t work in it that
much, we didn’t build rapport from this movie going into The
Sopranos because I didn’t see either one of them. However, I did
become friends with Benicio Del Toro from the set which really
helped me get started in the business. Benicio also directed me in a
short film back in 1995, called Submission.
BB: With the huge success of The Sopranos worldwide, I am sure that
anyone on the show whether a mainstream character or lesser known
maybe recurring role would say it changed their life. With that
said, how did it change your life and create opportunities for a
hard working actor such as yourself?
The whole point of doing the gay thing was about getting more work
of course. Yes, there were many perks that came with being in the
show such as having a book published (Meal to Die For), having my
own cue stick line and I have a line of cigars coming out soon. It
allows me not to have to always sit and wait by the phone as so many
actors have to do. I got married a couple of years ago and it
afforded me the opportunity to purchase a beautiful house. With
having a new family, it takes some of the burden off of me to worry
about where the money is going to come in from. The Sopranos for
sure was a springboard for me into other things and now when the
phone rings, they know I can do the work they would like to offer me
and it’s just a matter of fitting them into the schedule.
BB: One other question before we talk about boxing, and I must ask
since I am big fan of Ed Wood movies. Looking at your career, you
actually played a role in biographical movie about Ed Wood that
starred Johnny Depp and Martin Landau as Bela Lugosi (Dracula). What
was that set like since the story of Ed Wood is pretty wild?
It was a wild set though I was not on much, but had scenes with
Johnny Depp who is a great actor and I really enjoyed doing on the
Warner Brothers Set. I actually got the job from the same casting
director who cast me in Money For Nothing. I really owe a lot to
them.
BB: Let’s now shift our interview to your love for the sport of
boxing. First thing that came to mind when I was thinking back on
The Sopranos along with boxing is they never if I recall, went to a
fight or shot a scene maybe at a fight or a gym. But they did have a
picture of Rocky Marciano that was in the office at the Bada Bing
Strip Club. Was there ever talk about doing any stories around
boxing or a fight that got canned?
Not that I know of.
BB: How long have you followed boxing?
I have followed it since I was a kid and really was a huge Muhammad
Ali fan. Over the years, I have read as many books as I can about
him and truly respect the man. He actually fought Leon Spinks on my
19th Birthday (Feb 15, 1978) and lost his title as we all know by a
split decision to Spinks who amazingly was fighting for the 8th time
as a professional fighter. I actually cried as so many did when The
Greatest lost. He is a true Muslim who has taken his religion very
seriously over the years and standing up for what he believed in
always.
BB: Being a New York born and raised guy like you are; what fights
did you enjoy seeing at Madison Square Garden over the years?
Believe it or not, as much as I love boxing, I just started getting
out to the fights such as Floyd Mayweather, JR. versus Arturo Gatti
in Atlantic City, and Wladimir Klitschko versus Calvin Brock at MSG
where I was sitting next to Zab Judah who was a real cool character.
BB: Pick three Italian or Italian American fighters that you would
rate as the best and why for each?
First would be Jake Lamotta. He was a tremendous competitor in the
ring and fearless who was a little crazy, which I am sure he had to
be. Rocky Marciano was very exciting even though his career was over
by the time I was born. I have seen his old fights and as a kid. I
can remember that boxing program he had on TV where he would
breakdown a fight and talk to the kids as well. I really enjoy both
Arturo Gatti and Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini who are true “Blood and
Guts” fighters, but I also like the fighters who are also boxers.
BB: What is your favorite boxing movie and why?
The Setup, filmed in 1949, with acting great Robert Ryan in the lead
and Robert Wise as the Director. This was a great film all around
and stands the test of time when it comes to boxing movies.
BB: Do you have any funny stories you can share with the readers
about any fighters you have met or hung around with?
Funny you ask this. It’s not really a story about boxing, but does
kind of involve it. Currently I am kind of involved in spat with
this F*&^%$# Jerk off Philly Sports DJ who has been saying bad
things about me on WIP Radio. I don’t want to even say his name to
give him publicity, (RSR looked it up and the DJ’s name is Howard
Eskin so we said it).
The morning Sports DJ named Angelo Caltadi who is a guy on that
station said he was a really A#% while he was on the air for what he
said about me, which was totally not true and the way he acts. Some
other of the DJ’s said they would set us up in a boxing match with
42 ounce gloves on and if I win, which I will, I will donate to his
rehabilitation because I will knock him out.
I was in Philly doing some work and at a baseball game where I was
invited back to the meet at the hotel. Well, this guy (Eskin) says I
was selling pictures in the hotel suite. That is an absolute lie.
Yes, I do signings and get paid to do them, but I never charge a fan
that comes up say in a restaurant or maybe the owner for a picture.
See, this is just principal to me. Attack my acting…you’re entitled
to your opinion. Say “Hey Joe” you Fat F@#!,” who cares? But attack
my integrity, and no way am I going to put up with that crap. This
guy is trying to make a name on this crap and I would love to box
him. In fact, I know you guys shoot video for your RSRTV. You guys
can come out and film it. I hope he reads this and accepts the
challenge.
BB: Do you favor a mandatory retirement fund for all boxers, and if
so, how do you think it could be accomplished?
Yes, I do 100%. It has never been something I have been asked, but
it’s a shame that fighters don’t have one like the NBA, NFL and MLB.
The easy answer would be of course for the fighter and the promoter
to pay in, but I know it needs a lot more than just this to ensure
it was done right so they would be taken care of.
BB: If you had the power right now to change one thing in the sport
of boxing, what would that be?
Wow, good one! I would get rid of so many of these organizations
because years ago, you knew the champion in a weight class for the
most part. Today with it being so diluted, you don’t know who the
champion is in just about any weight class. This in my opinion would
help the sport and bring more attention to the champions by even the
casual boxing fan out there.
BB: Finally, what is the saying you live your life by?
“Be a good person and it will come back to you.”
Joe would like to add the following to our interview:
I welcome all of the RSR readers to check out my website and see the
various things we offer such as my book, cue stick and soon, the
cigar line. There are also some great pictures for fans of The
Sopranos. You can email me directly from there and just so you know,
I answer all of my emails personally.
Actor Joe Gannascoli of "The Sopranos" did not
appear in the controversial final episode of the acclaimed HBO
series, his character having already been beaten to death with a
pool cue.
Gannascoli, who played gay mobster Vito Spatafore
on the show, watched the final hour on television like the rest of
us, waiting to see what would happen to suburban crime lord Tony
Soprano.
Hear part one of David Dunkle's interview with Joe
Gannascoli.
"I loved it, thought it was great," he said yesterday at Christ
United Methodist Church in Swatara Twp., where he was shooting
scenes for a short film.
His endorsement included the ambiguous ending,
which has generated more than a little antipathy toward series
creator David Chase from "Sopranos" fans who wanted a more
definitive -- and bloody -- conclusion.
Hear part two of the interview.
"I know it's not too popular with some people,"
Gannascoli said. "It is what it is. It doesn't take away from the
unbelievable show that's it been."
Gannascoli is in central Pennsylvania for a few
days, shooting scenes at a handful of locations for "The Egg," a
short movie directed by Mark Freed, a Paxtang native who is a film
student at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts.
The film, based on a short story by Sherwood
Anderson, is essentially Freed's final exam, although he plans to
show it at film festivals like Tribeca and Sundance. If it's
well-received, it can help him launch a career.
A friend of a friend connected Freed with
Gannascoli, who liked the script and agreed to take a role in the
film, which is about a son wrestling with his late father's failures
while attending his funeral. Gannascoli plays a family friend.
Freed said he's shooting his low-budget film in
the midstate, in part, because he can do it cheaper here. His crew,
for example, is bunking in the church parsonage.
"The pastor's a friend of mine," he said.
Then there are homecooked meals from his parents, retirees who still
live in Paxtang. "For me, not them," he said with a smile, pointing
to crew members scurrying to unload equipment in the parking lot
behind him.
Freed said he has only rarely seen "The Sopranos,"
but he knows the ending was not to everyone's taste.
Other than a grisly death involving an SUV tire
for Tony's chief rival, Phil Leotardo, the final episode was
peaceful, even banal.
The last scene showed Tony and his family -- the
one with his wife and children, not the mob crew that included
characters like Vito and Paulie Walnuts -- about to have dinner in a
New Jersey diner.
There were hints of impending violence, but the
screen literally went blank without a resolution.
Gannascoli said he's glad Chase didn't kill off
the lead character, played by actor James Gandolfini. "I just don't
think he wanted him to die," he said. "I didn't want to see him die.
I wanted to see Tony live."
He believes a "Sopranos" movie is unlikely. "I
don't think it can happen, but who knows?"
Gannascoli, a Brooklyn native who lives on Long
Island with his wife, grew up around mob guys. He said a few didn't
appreciate his portrayal of a homosexual gangster.
"They gave me some dirty looks," he said.
"Actually, it was my idea to make the character gay."
Gannascoli, a self-taught chef before turning to
acting, knows he's likely to be forever associated with Vito.
He isn't complaining. He and other "Sopranos" cast
members travel constantly, making personal appearances.
"The whole show has been a career highlight," he
said. "This season, the first part was all about Vito. It was quite
a ride."
Vito, who was a member of Tony's crew, was forced
to go into hiding after he was outed by other mobsters at a gay bar.
He eventually tried to return, only to be beaten to death by Phil.
Gannascoli figured he might as well embrace the
myth.
That's why you can buy a "To Die For" pool cue,
complete with Vito's name and Gannascoli's signature, for $99.99 on
his Web site at
www.josephrgannascoli.com.
"They killed me with a pool stick, so it's good
for 'Sopranos.'"
Actor Joe Gannascoli of "The Sopranos" did not appear
in the controversial final episode of the acclaimed HBO series, his
character having already been beaten to death with a pool cue.
Gannascoli, who played gay mobster Vito Spatafore
on the show, watched the final hour on television like the rest of
us, waiting to see what would happen to suburban crime lord Tony
Soprano.
Hear part one of David Dunkle's interview with Joe
Gannascoli.
"I loved it, thought it was great," he said yesterday at Christ
United Methodist Church in Swatara Twp., where he was shooting
scenes for a short film.
His endorsement included the ambiguous ending,
which has generated more than a little antipathy toward series
creator David Chase from "Sopranos" fans who wanted a more
definitive -- and bloody -- conclusion.
Hear part two of the interview.
"I know it's not too popular with some people,"
Gannascoli said. "It is what it is. It doesn't take away from the
unbelievable show that's it been."
Gannascoli is in central Pennsylvania for a few
days, shooting scenes at a handful of locations for "The Egg," a
short movie directed by Mark Freed, a Paxtang native who is a film
student at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts.
The film, based on a short story by Sherwood
Anderson, is essentially Freed's final exam, although he plans to
show it at film festivals like Tribeca and Sundance. If it's
well-received, it can help him launch a career.
A friend of a friend connected Freed with
Gannascoli, who liked the script and agreed to take a role in the
film, which is about a son wrestling with his late father's failures
while attending his funeral. Gannascoli plays a family friend.
Freed said he's shooting his low-budget film in
the midstate, in part, because he can do it cheaper here. His crew,
for example, is bunking in the church parsonage.
"The pastor's a friend of mine," he said.
Then there are homecooked meals from his parents, retirees who still
live in Paxtang. "For me, not them," he said with a smile, pointing
to crew members scurrying to unload equipment in the parking lot
behind him.
Freed said he has only rarely seen "The Sopranos,"
but he knows the ending was not to everyone's taste.
Other than a grisly death involving an SUV tire
for Tony's chief rival, Phil Leotardo, the final episode was
peaceful, even banal.
The last scene showed Tony and his family -- the
one with his wife and children, not the mob crew that included
characters like Vito and Paulie Walnuts -- about to have dinner in a
New Jersey diner.
There were hints of impending violence, but the
screen literally went blank without a resolution.
Gannascoli said he's glad Chase didn't kill off
the lead character, played by actor James Gandolfini. "I just don't
think he wanted him to die," he said. "I didn't want to see him die.
I wanted to see Tony live."
He believes a "Sopranos" movie is unlikely. "I
don't think it can happen, but who knows?"
Gannascoli, a Brooklyn native who lives on Long
Island with his wife, grew up around mob guys. He said a few didn't
appreciate his portrayal of a homosexual gangster.
"They gave me some dirty looks," he said.
"Actually, it was my idea to make the character gay."
Gannascoli, a self-taught chef before turning to
acting, knows he's likely to be forever associated with Vito.
He isn't complaining. He and other "Sopranos" cast
members travel constantly, making personal appearances.
"The whole show has been a career highlight," he
said. "This season, the first part was all about Vito. It was quite
a ride."
Vito, who was a member of Tony's crew, was forced
to go into hiding after he was outed by other mobsters at a gay bar.
He eventually tried to return, only to be beaten to death by Phil.
Gannascoli figured he might as well embrace the
myth.
That's why you can buy a "To Die For" pool cue,
complete with Vito's name and Gannascoli's signature, for $99.99 on
his Web site at
www.josephrgannascoli.com.
"They killed me with a pool stick, so it's good
for 'Sopranos.'"
Rocky Patel and Soprano Star to Appear at Two Guys Smoke
Shops in New Hampshire
Two Guys Smoke Shop announces that Cigar Mogul Rocky Patel and
Soprano Star Joseph R. Gannascoli, who plays the character Vito
Spatafore in the HBO hit series The Sopranos, will be appearing at
several locations this weekend to sign autographs and take photos.
Salem & Seabrook, NH (PRWEB) May 30, 2007 -- Two Guys Smoke Shop
announces that Cigar Mogul Rocky Patel and Soprano Star Joseph R.
Gannascoli, who plays the character Vito Spatafore in the HBO hit
series The Sopranos, will be appearing at several locations this
weekend to sign autographs and take photos. Vito, who was “whacked”
last season, has come back to life bigger than ever and is now
touring the United States and abroad as the celebrity spokesman for
Rocky Patel Premium Cigars. “I’ve been a stogie man for years, says
Gannascoli, its funny how life works, I was a Rocky Patel customer
and now I am their spokesman!”
We are thrilled to have Joe on our team. He’s helping bring us to a
new level of National notoriety, Soprano fans and cigar lovers see
him with one of our cigars and they instantly want one! He’s touring
the country with us at events and we’re creating a signature line of
cigars with his name and image to be released this summer.
This event is a sort of home coming for Joe. New Hampshire is where
he escaped to during his infamous role as Vito on the Sopranos
before he was killed by the mob! “We spent over a month filming this
part of the show and I am thrilled to be in New England alive and
well. Come on down, have a smoke, and meet Rocky and me!”
Rocky Patel, who has built his brand over the past decade into one
of America’s top selling cigars in 2007 says, “We are thrilled to
have Joe on our team. He’s helping bring us to a new level of
National notoriety, Soprano fans and cigar lovers see him with one
of our cigars and they instantly want one! He’s touring the country
with us at events and we’re creating a signature line of cigars with
his name and image to be released this summer.”
Friday June 1st, from 10am-6pm -Two Guys Smoke Shop Seabrook NH-
Meet and greet Rocky and Vito for cigar deals and autographs!
Friday Night June 1st- 8pm- Two Guys Smoke Shop Salem NH- Rocky
Patel CIGAR DINNER call for tickets (only a few left) 603 898-2221.
Saturday June 2nd 10am-6pm – Two Guys Smoke Shop Salem NH- and greet
Rocky and Vito for cigar deals and autographs!
For more information about Rocky Patel and Rocky Patel Premium
Cigars visit: www.rockypatel.com or call the Cigar Agency at 603
889-0500.
Joe Gannascoli (Vito) and Rocky Patel will be available for radio
and television interviews. To schedule, call Doug Friedman at (973)
985-1050.
----
‘Sopranos’ actor gets N.H. Johnny Cakes
A Telegraph Column By Mike Morin
Published: Tuesday, June 12, 2007
I got to hang out with a mobster recently. I guess I shouldn’t be
bragging about this. I could be swimming with the fishies like Big
Pussy from “The Sopranos.” Or have my head end up in a bowling bag a
la Ralphie Cifaretto, another former “business” associate of Tony
Soprano.
Turns out, “Sopranos” character Vito Spatafore, played by Joe
Gannascoli, paid a visit to New Hampshire recently to promote a line
of premium cigars. That’s what the press release said. I knew
better. What Vito really wanted was a steaming hot stack of Johnny
Cakes, like he had in Episode 73, Season 6 of “The Sopranos.”
Before meeting a most untimely and unflattering demise on the HBO
drama, Vito fled to New Hampshire to avoid getting whacked. While
visiting a town that looked like it could have been Keene or
Peterborough, Vito fell in love with a Granite State staple known as
Johnny Cakes at Jim’s Diner.
Hold on a second. Johnny Cakes are the cornmeal cousins to pancakes,
enjoyed mostly in the South. New Hampshire diners don’t serve Johnny
Cakes. To make things worse, the exterior shots of Vito’s New
Hampshire scenes were filmed in some small town in New Jersey. Next
thing you’re going to tell me is that they use red food coloring
instead of blood on “The Sopranos. Marone!
After speaking with Vito while he waited at Kennedy airport, I told
him I’d try to hook him up with some Johnny Cakes while he was in
town. I knew if anyone served Vito’s fave, it would be the 24-hour
Red Arrow Diner in Manchester. Owner Carol Sheehan told me Johnny
Cakes were not on the menu but they’d find a recipe to make Vito
happy.
Why was I doing this? Because Vito got the short end of the stick by
eating a faux New Hampshire meal in a faux New Hampshire diner in
Jersey for his “Sopranos” episodes. It was my responsibility to make
things right.
As we entered the Red Arrow around 1 o’clock, a capacity crowd of
lunch patrons began snapping photos of my gangster buddy dressed in
sweatpants, just like his character. A fan gave Vito an ashtray made
from a New Hampshire license plate. Priceless! Vito was in his
glory.
Roy the cook delivered three man-sized Johnny Cakes while Vito
signed autographs and posed with customers. Between bites, Vito
fired off racy one-liners and showed the “Sopranos” swagger that
made him a fan favorite. The crowd roared. Young women flirted with
him. There were times I wasn’t sure if I was hanging out with Vito
the mafia guy or Joe the actor. I’m not really sure he always knew,
either.
After 20 minutes, Vito and his manager followed me up Bridge Street
to I-93 on their way to his next appearance. In true “Sopranos”
fashion, as they drove past me, Vito grinned and flipped me the
famed mobster hand gesture.
Looks like we’re not in New Hampshire anymore, Toto.
----
Vito' pays a visit to smoke shop
Sopranos star discusses hit HBO show
By Susan Morse
smorse@seacoastonline.com
June 05, 2007 6:00 AM
SEABROOK — As Vito Spatafore, Sopranos' star Joseph R. Gannascoli
got whacked last season after five years on the hit HBO series.
Not bad for a guy who, as a former chef from Brooklyn, gambled away
his restaurant, moved to Los Angeles and landed a part he already
knew from the streets.
This is Gannascoli's story of living large, enjoying good food, wine
and a fine cigar.
Gannascoli met cigar mogul Rocky Patel in New York and the two
formed a friendship. Patel is about to release a line of signature
cigars called "Gannascoli by Rocky Patel."
They've hit the road, touring the country and stopped locally at Two
Guys Smoke Shop in Seabrook, owned by Roy Kirby. An estimated 200
people came to the Route 1 shop Friday night to get an autographed
photo of Gannascoli, including Bob Radochia of Woburn, Mass. He and
his wife, Yoland, and 7-year-old son were on their way north and
decided to stop in.
"I'm a big Sopranos' fan," Radochia said.
Inside the year-old business, about a dozen customers sat on sofas
and chairs, smoking cigars and soaking up the big man's aura.
Occasionally he'd smoke on the show, Gannascoli said.
"I was there five years, did about 50 shows," he said. "It made us
household names."
Gannascoli got the job by audition, after a move to Los Angeles.
"I gambled away my restaurant, moved to LA," he said.
Combining food and fame, he is now the author of "A Meal to Die For"
and "A Cue to Die For."
Gannascoli, who makes his home in Long Island, grew up in Brooklyn,
not far from the New Jersey scene of "The Sopranos."
---
'Sopranos' finale has everyone guessing
By LIZ MUGAVERO
Norwich Bulletin
Even though Steve Schirripa was present for the filming of his
character's whacking on last week's "Sopranos" episode, actually
watching the final scene had the actor "on the edge of his seat."
"Bobby went out in a blaze of glory," Schirripa said, referring to
his character's execution, carried out in a hobby store. "It's a
little disturbing, even though I knew it was coming."
Schirripa's character, Bobby "Bacala" Baccalieri, was one of the
"Big Three" targeted last week as the series nears its final episode
Sunday. As the show ended, Silvio lay in a coma and Tony lay in wait
for Phil's men to come for him in the final battle between the
families.
It's been quite a season for the series that, by many accounts, was
never supposed to work and ended up being hailed a "television
landmark" by the Washington Post and "a show like no other" by USA
Today. Now, with seven seasons under its belt, the cast will bid HBO
farewell for good Sunday night.
Well, those who weren't offed already, anyway.
In preparation for the event, the cast will gather today for a
private party at Foxwoods Resort Casino, complete with a
meet-and-greet for those lucky enough to be invited.
Meanwhile, predictions have been flying about what will happen in
the climactic last episode -- and the actors aren't talking.
"There aren't too many who know how it will end," said Joe
Gannascoli, who played Vito Spatafore, the mobster with a secret
life who was whacked last season under the direction of Brooklyn
boss Phil Leotardo, with whom Tony will face off Sunday. "I just
hope Tony doesn't die. I think everyone wants to see him live."
While the whole series boasted twists, turns, whackings and loose
ends, this final season has been one of the most shocking of all,
beginning with Tony's surprise killing of Christopher a few weeks
back and continuing with the hits on Bobby and Silvio directed by
Leotardo.
"Tony was very torn about Christopher," said Schirripa. "Chris
became a detriment, an obstacle. It's like real life -- every man
for himself."
Chris was one of the reasons Bobby rose to the top of the ranks in
Tony's eyes this season, according to Schirripa.
"There were a lot of reasons," he said. "Janice was pushing for it,
Tony stopped trusting Christopher and he saw a loyalty in Bobby to
Uncle Junior and thought that loyalty would follow him."
Gannascoli thought Paulie Walnuts would take that as an insult.
"I have a feeling Paulie will kill Phil over that," he said. "He
would feel he should've been one of the Big Three."
But there's no telling how it will all play out.
Marty Shapiro of Norwich has quite a few theories about the ending.
"The easiest exit is to take Tony down. But somehow I think that's
too easy an ending," Shapiro said. "Maybe he will make peace with
Phil, sell him the Jersey business, and go into retirement. Or Phil
hits
Tony, or Tony hits Phil, or they do each other in, but somehow the
families survive and the next day, it's business as usual in the
neighborhood. The message is that the people can change, but the
business goes on."
Norwich Alderwoman Jackie Caron is taking a different view.
"I think Tony will die and Carmella will be the last one standing,"
Caron said. "Out of all the women, Carm has always stood tall and
been able to take care of business. She's got a level head about the
reality of her life.
"We need someone like her on the City Council," Caron said.
Reach Liz Mugavero at 425-4218 or lmugavero@norwichbulletin.com
----
TNT Gives "Sopranos" Fans a Cannoli Packed Monday:
One day after the series finale of "The Sopranos", TNT is giving
fans of the series a chance to spend the day with their favorite
stars when the network presents 12 episodes of the hit drama "Law &
Order" , featuring such guest stars as Edie Falco, Michael
Imperioli, Aida Turturro and Frank Vincent, who plays Phil Leotardo.
Other Sopranos stars to appear in the LAW & ORDER marathon include
Jerry Adler (Herman “Hesh” Rabkin), John Ventimiglia (Artie Bucco on
The Sopranos), Vincent Curatola (Johnny “Sack” Sacramoni), Dan
Grimaldi (Patsy Parisi), Joseph R. Gannascoli (Vito Spatafore),
Ray Abruzzo (“Little” Carmine Lupertazzi Jr.), Robert Funaro (Eugene
Pontecorvo), Dominic Chianese (Corrado “Jr.” Soprano), Vincent
Pastore (Salvatore Bonpensiero) and Sharon Angela (Rosalie Aprile).
TNT’s 12-hour "Law & Order" marathon kicks off Monday, June 11, at 2
p.m. (ET/PT)
###
How Gay Is Vito?
The Sopranos Plot That Dare Not Speak Its Friggin’ Name, Joe
Gannascoli Spotted Gay Mob Story Then, Bottom-Bing! Gandolfini’s
Offer, Refused: ‘You Want Me to Talk to Chase?’
By Sara Vilkomerson
Last week, the actor Joseph Ganna-scoli—who, as Vito on The
Sopranos, is living out this television season’s only great tragic
love story—was tooling around Lynbrook, Long Island, in a new silver
Mercedes R350 with a back seat filled with flowering plants. He was
wearing a Giants sweatshirt and sneakers, and was taking a reporter
on a tour through his neighborhood’s quiet maze of split-level
houses and manicured, postage-stamp lawns. He pulled up in front of
an unassuming two-story white house, which he and his wife, Diana,
moved into last August—the first house the actor has owned, after
letting go of a rent-controlled apartment in his old stomping ground
of Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, after 25 years.
Mr. Gannascoli, who at 47 is still a large man even after losing 160
pounds, removed the plants from the back of the Mercedes and hung
them carefully off the branches of a tree on the front lawn. He was
stepping gingerly after undergoing hip surgery five weeks earlier.
He proudly pointed out some yard work: a mosaic-tiled bird bath and,
plunked down in the grass, a large boulder that he thinks looks like
a bear. Looking at the boulder, he paused and said, “How long till
they write ‘fag’ on it?”
For these days, Mr. Gannascoli is known to Sopranos watchers as “Gay
Vito” (or even GaVito, in certain exotic circles). Vito’s reluctant
coming-out story line has locked up more Monday-morning chatter than
all of Bill Paxton’s polygamist wives and Desperate Housewives
shenanigans combined. He is, simply put, a sensation.
There’s something about the sight of Mr. Gannascoli dancing
gleefully in a biker’s cap in a leather bar, or going on the lam to
a gay Shangri-La (in this case, “Live Free or Die” New Hampshire)
and falling in love with the handsome mustached cook from the
diner—“Johnny Cakes”—that have given TV viewers that rare feeling
that they are watching something new. In the hyper-masculine world
of organized crime, with its intricately nuanced male taboos—it’s
O.K. to get misty-eyed at your daughter’s wedding, but it’s not O.K.
to cry if the Feds are bundling you back to prison—Sopranos creator
David Chase has introduced a character whose outsized vulnerability
will surely force a defining choice for the gentler,
back-from-a-coma Tony Soprano.
How Gay Is Vito?
Sure, there have been plenty of gay characters on television before:
wacky Jack from Will & Grace, or David, the fussy undertaker with
the hot cop boyfriend on Six Feet Under. But the plight of Gay Vito
has stirred up similar feelings to those viewers felt when they
first tuned in on Sunday nights in 1999 to see a Prozac-popping
Mafia boss spill his guts to his therapist. Now, seven years later,
it’s a different big guy with a wife and kids—this one with a
natural eye for antiques—that allows Mr. Chase to devilishly tickle
the big underbelly of male bravado.
Mr. Gannascoli’s character, Vito Spatafore, was revealed as a
closeted gay man when, at the end of last season, viewers spied his
head come bobbing up from the lap of a security guard. The scene was
more shocking than the stream of murders that pepper the show.
“I was on the wrong end of that blowjob,” Mr. Gannascoli laughed. He
remembered when he first found out his character’s new sexual
orientation. “They told me, ‘Don’t worry, you’re not dying … but you
are blowin’ a guy.’ I was like, ‘Get the fuck outta here—stop
breakin’ balls!’”
IN FACT, IT WAS MR. GANNASCOLI who had initially brought up the idea
of a gay mobster to the show’s writers during the filming of season
three, after he’d read Murder Machine by Gene Mustain and Jerry
Capeci, about an openly gay member of the Gambino crime family who
was allowed to live because he was a good earner. The writers didn’t
bite, but then, in 2003, newspapers reported that “Johnny Boy”
D’Amato—a mob boss of the New Jersey DeCavalcante family—had been
murdered because he was having sex with men. The writers contacted
Mr. Gannascoli. “Then they were like, ‘What’s the name of that
book?’ And I knew they were thinking about it,” he said.
When the cast gathered for the read-through of the episode in which
Mr. Gannascoli would be fellating the security guard, his fellow
cast members were a bit edgy.
“[Tony] Sirico [Paulie Walnuts] said, ‘Man, I wouldn’t do it.’ And
Jimmy [Gandolfini] was like, ‘You want me to talk to Chase? You
don’t have to do this,’” said Mr. Gannascoli. “I thought about it,
because I had seen the character different. I thought he’d be in
self-denial, self-loathing, sadistic: a cross between Mike Tyson and
Liberace. I thought I’d get blown and then kick the shit out of the
guy.”
But approaching David Chase wasn’t really an option. “I approached
one of the writers—I don’t think I’d have the balls to do it to
David,” said Mr. Gannascoli. “He’s really nice, but he’d look at me
like, Why are you talking to me?”
The blowjob proceeded as planned, and suddenly Mr. Gannascoli’s
character broke out of the shadowy pack of husky-shouldered
background mooks (previously his character was best known for
carrying out the hit on Meadow’s boyfriend, Jackie Aprile Jr.).
Early this season, the stage for tragedy was set when Vito was
spotted by mobsters as he gallivanted in full leather regalia in a
gay bar. (“It’s a joke!” he shouted to them when he realized he’d
been spotted, and thus most likely marked for elimination.)
Before shooting resumed for the current season, Mr. Chase called Mr.
Gannascoli to find out how much weight he had lost (through a
combination of surgery, pills and Celebrity Fit Club) so as to work
it into the script. “He said, ‘Get ready, it’s going to be a big
year,’” Mr. Gannascoli said. “I lost my breath, you know? To have
this big of a role on the greatest show … ever. I couldn’t ask for
anything more.”
And so viewers grew cozily attached to Vito as he left his wife and
fell in love with Johnny Cakes, as documented by scenes of them
kissing and grappling, shirtless, in a field next to their parked
Harleys. Mr. Gannascoli gamely went with the intimate scenes,
though, he noted, “It didn’t help when his fucking moustache was in
my mouth.”
Mr. Gannascoli made an appearance during the first season, playing a
guy named Gino at a bakery, before the producers decided to bring
him back as Vito Spatafore. But the journey getting there was a long
one. Born in 1959 in Brooklyn to Italian-American parents, his
mother—who passed away when he was 19—was a seamstress and his
father a jeweler. Both stressed the importance of education (“You
see those guys on the corner—you stay away from them”). Dutifully,
Mr. Gannascoli went to Lafayette High School and then two years at
St. John’s College, in an attempt to follow in his lawyer brother’s
footsteps. “I did well my first year,” he said. “Second year, I sort
of wandered …. ” Around the time of the wandering, he has admitted
to hustling Quaaludes. Falling into restaurant work, Mr. Gannascoli
started doing prep work at the restaurant in Lord & Taylor, and went
to New Orleans to cook for a year and a half. He returned to New
York at age 24 and settled into being a full-time chef in Brooklyn,
when an actor friend named Tim Kelleher suggested that he audition
for a play he was producing. Mr. Gannascoli got the part and started
selling ice cream out of a cart on Wall Street while studying with
acting coach Bob Patterson. But when things didn’t seem to pan out,
he opened a restaurant in Bay Ridge. He smoked, drank and gambled.
To pay off his debts, he worked as a food fence, which he described
as “Brooklyn guys, they get a truck that has food on it and they
knew who could move it. I was a guy who could move it.”
ONE FOOTBALL SUNDAY IN 1990, Mr. Gannascoli lost $60,000 on a game
between the Houston Oilers and the Pittsburgh Steelers, when the
back-up Oilers quarterback helped upset favored Pittsburgh. “I owe
Cody Carlson my career,” he joked. He sold his restaurant to pay the
debt and went out to L.A. to try his hand at acting. “I was
border-line suicidal,” he said. “I don’t think I’d ever do it, but I
went to church and I was like, ‘God, you got to show me the way.’ I
felt like Jimmy Stewart in It’s a Wonderful Life—just at the end of
my rope.” He did one-act plays in downtown Los Angeles—“all fucking
horrible”—until a guy in his neighborhood agreed to represent him.
He only lasted a week in the face of Mr. Gannascoli’s enthusiasm.
“I’d be up at 6 a.m., drinking fucking Big Gulps and 32 ounces of
coffee, smoking cigarettes and wired up and knocking on this guy’s
door, being like, ‘I’m ready to go!’ He would just be waking up and
be like, ‘Ready to go where?’”
Undaunted, Mr. Gannascoli came up with a new plan: He started to
steal the breakdowns—the sheets from casting agents spelling out
what they were looking for—from his former agent’s front stoop. He’d
run to Kinko’s, then return the originals to the stoop. He started
calling around town, pretending to be a talent manager by the name
of James Hoving (“I think Hoving was a curator of one of the
museums, and it sort of stuck in my head. It sounded cool”) who was
trying to get his “client,” Joe Gannascoli, to be seen. He started
to get himself roles—his first, Money for Nothing, starred John
Cusack, Philip Seymour Hoffman and future cast mate James
Gandolfini.
It was a friendship he struck up with Benicio Del Toro, who would
direct him as a lead in a 20-minute short film, Submission,
co-starring Matthew McConaughey, that would ultimately lead him to
grand doyenne Sopranos casting directors Georgianne Walken and
Sheila Jaffe.
Part of the genius in The Sopranos’ casting is that audiences get
the sense that the actors inhabiting their roles aren’t too far
removed from the real deal. (Who wouldn’t feel a bit daunted if they
came across Paulie Walnuts in a dark alley?)
“Yeah, New York guys, New Jersey guys …. Italians …. You grew up
around it, you see it,” Mr. Gannascoli said carefully. And while
James Gandolfini reportedly was told by some well-informed sources
that Mafia dons don’t wear shorts to barbecues, so too has Mr.
Gannascoli received some feedback.
“I got guys in my neighborhood who now give me dirty looks,” he
said. “I had a guy come after me in a club after doing that
[blowjob] scene. And he was yelling stuff like ‘You’re a
cocksucker!’ and this and that. I was like, ‘Who the fuck is that?’
And they said, ‘That’s so-and-so’s nephew, he just got out.’ I was
like, ‘Well, he’s a moron.’”
Mr. Gannascoli was recently asked to serve as grand marshal at an
Atlanta Gay Pride parade, and he’s received letters from openly gay
and closeted men applauding his portrayal.
“Being in the restaurant business, you’re with a lot of gays,” he
shrugged. “I never had no problem with it—I’m sort of a
live-and-let-live kind of guy. I had friends that were like, ‘I’m
not meeting you there,’ and I was like, ‘Oh, have a fucking drink at
the bar, I’ll be out at 12 and we’ll go out. They’re fucking fun
guys, what’s the fucking big deal? And you got hot broads hanging
out there—you know, the fag hags.’”
He met his wife at a bar in Brooklyn, and after a seven-week
courtship became engaged (“She wouldn’t give it up without the
ring,” he said), marrying last June. His cast mates all attended,
and he was back at work the following Monday. They plan to have
children: “As we speak,” he said with a wink. “I gave her a shot
this morning.”
And like some of his cast mates, he’s turned to the book business to
enlarge his reach. In January, he published A Meal to Die For, a
culinary caper of a novel based loosely on his food-fencing days,
and a line of pasta sauces and oils of the same name. He has an idea
for a sports cooking show, and he wants to still lose another 80
pounds. Pulling up a picture on his computer of himself as a
slimmed-down youth, he sighed, “I used to get more ass than a toilet
seat.”
The fate of his character hangs precariously in the balance: As of
last Sunday’s episode, Vito fled Johnny Cakes and sped through the
New Hampshire back roads, swilling vodka and listening to Sinatra,
until he smacked into a parked car and promptly shot dead its owner,
who’d insisted on calling the cops to file an accident report.
Mr. Gannascoli insists he doesn’t know Vito’s ultimate fate.
“We filmed four different endings for me,” he said. “They wanted to
keep it a secret, even from me. I literally have no idea. But real
fans don’t really want to know.” He paused. “We go back to shooting
in June, and of course I’m hoping I live. I have a fucking
mortgage.”
You may reach Sara Vilkomerson via email at:
svilkomerson@observer.com .
This column ran on page 1 in the 5/22/2006 edition of The New York
Observer.
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