James Gandolfini AKA Tony Soprano dies

[1bigfan13]

ITALY (WITI) — TMZ has reported James Gandolfini, who famously played Tony Soprano on “The Sopranos” — died Wednesday, June 19th in Italy.
Gandolfini is believed to have suffered a heart attack.

He was 51.

TMZ reports Gandolfini was in Italy to attend the 59th Taormina Film Festival in Sicily — and he was scheduled to participate in a festival event this weekend with Italian director Gabriele Muccino.

Gandolfini shot to fame playing a hitman in the 1993 hit “True Romance” and quickly became a Hollywood legend when he was cast as Tony Soprano in 1999. He won 3 Emmy awards for the role during the show’s 6 season run.

Gandolfini also appeared in a ton of huge movies including “Get Shorty,” “The Mexican” and “Zero Dark Thirty.”

 

[Bob Roberts]

Damn, RIP.

But as huge as he was, it can't be a surprise he had a heart attack.

 

[Cotton]

Whoops, I got timestamped. Didn't see this.

 

[EZ22]

I never watched The Sopranos, so I'm not a huge fan, but 51 is way too young to die.

 

[Donpingon]

He always looked to me like he struggled breathing on the Sopranos, could never tell if it was acting but like someone said given his size it's no surprise

 

[EZ22]

I dunno, there are lots of really fat people out there older than he was that are just fine. Was this his first heart attack?

I bet there were drugs involved.

 

[Clay_Allison]

I dunno, there are lots of really fat people out there older than he was that are just fine. Was this his first heart attack?

I bet there were drugs involved.

He may have also been a heavy smoker, that doesn't help.

 

[1bigfan13]

I dunno, there are lots of really fat people out there older than he was that are just fine. Was this his first heart attack?

I bet there were drugs involved.

The guys on CNN were saying this was his first heart attack.

 

[Deuce]

He always looked to me like he struggled breathing on the Sopranos, could never tell if it was acting but like someone said given his size it's no surprise

I thought the same. I re watched the series recently and noticed many times you could hear him breathing heavy after talking.

 

[Kbrown]

He IS that character. RIP.

 

[Smitty]

Holy shit.

That is nuts.

 

[Smitty]

He was big, but he wasn't John Candy big.

Damn, I need to get my ass off the couch.

 

[L.T. Fan]

The most common heart problem with men is from the plaque buildup in the arteries. Some folks are prone to having cholesterol problems due to the liver production of same. This can be controlled via diet,medications and exercise. The key is to get the hdl numbers up. The higher the better. One can survive this aspect of heart problems if they get it diagnosed early. I suffered two heart attacks because the medical profession was too narrow regarding how some individual's livers are out of control without medication. I have eaten enough oats in my life to supply a racing stable but the doctor believed I was causing the problems with my eating habits. After proper medications the problems were brought under control. I was in my 50's when I had my attacks. Possibly Gondolfini just didn't have correct medical monitoring but who knows. Every male in their 40's should have their cholesterol diagnosed.

 

[ravidubey]

RIP

 

[BipolarFuk]

I never watched The Sopranos, so I'm not a huge fan, but 51 is way too young to die.

You are missing out on one of the very best shows of all time.

 

[Smitty]

You are missing out on one of the very best shows of all time.

Agreed.

 

[Texas Ace]

Damn, RIP.

We're definitely never going to get a Sopranos movie now.

 

[dallen]

You are missing out on one of the very best shows of all time.

It was a great trailblazer for HBO, but I don't think it is as great a show as everyone makes it out to be. It was very, very good definitely. One of the 10 best of the decade. But of the big HBO dramas, I'd put it behind The Wire, Deadwood, Oz, and Boardwalk Empire. Too many seasons were just variations on "find the rat"

 

[Deuce]

I wouldn't go that far. All the shows you mentioned are great, but only The Wire is better than Sopranos.

 

[townsend]

The most common heart problem with men is from the plaque buildup in the arteries. Some folks are prone to having cholesterol problems due to the liver production of same. This can be controlled via diet,medications and exercise. The key is to get the hdl numbers up. The higher the better. One can survive this aspect of heart problems if they get it diagnosed early. I suffered two heart attacks because the medical profession was too narrow regarding how some individual's livers are out of control without medication. I have eaten enough oats in my life to supply a racing stable but the doctor believed I was causing the problems with my eating habits. After proper medications the problems were brought under control. I was in my 50's when I had my attacks. Possibly Gondolfini just didn't have correct medical monitoring but who knows. Every male in their 40's should have their cholesterol diagnosed.

while it's an important tool in risk evaluation LDL count, and the mechanisms of cholesterol production, and arterial plaque depisits have been grossly oversimplified, or outright misrepresented.

I think in part this is due to the fact that most doctors, and therefore medicine tend to lean on their training (which may be 30 years out of date.) I also think pharmaceutical companies are chomping at the bit to get people on Lipitor.