RIP Tony Sirico (Paulie Walnuts in The Sopranos)

[al_infierno]

Another big loss for mafia movies in the last few days, Tony Sirico played Paulie Walnuts in the HBO show The Sopranos.  RIP.

He was one of my favorite character actors, though I understand his mental faculties had been waning in later years.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/tony-sirico-dies-age-79-famed-sopranos-actor/

[Gusington]

That's terrible. RIP

[undercovergeek]

I loved this guy and his character - there is a reunion of sopranos actors on YouTube and he didn't seem well but he was such a character

And Paulie...... no one has made me laugh like he did during the interior decorator scene in sopranos

[al_infierno]

And Paulie...... no one has made me laugh like he did during the interior decorator scene in sopranos

Definitely one of the best exchanges on the show.

Tony (on the phone): "The guy was some kind of ex-commando. He killed 16 Chechen rebels single-handed. He was with the Interior Ministry."

Paulie: "What? You're breaking up."

Chrissie: "What'd he say?"

Paulie: "You won't believe this. He killed 16 Czechoslovakians. The guy was an interior decorator."

Chrissie: "Well his house looked like shit."

[Dammit Carl!]

Hate being old enough to where the people you watched on TV and film start dropping away on a regular basis.  Godspeed Mr. Sirico.

Odd thought; with what I just said, how many more "mafia," kinda media things can be made with and by people who were there and who may have a first-hand knowledge of the subject and the times?  The mafia doesn't seem to be what it used to be (from my very, very narrow perspective, mind you) so could we be seeing the curtain coming down on a certain type of movie genre?

[al_infierno]

Hate being old enough to where the people you watched on TV and film start dropping away on a regular basis.  Godspeed Mr. Sirico.

Odd thought; with what I just said, how many more "mafia," kinda media things can be made with and by people who were there and who may have a first-hand knowledge of the subject and the times?  The mafia doesn't seem to be what it used to be (from my very, very narrow perspective, mind you) so could we be seeing the curtain coming down on a certain type of movie genre?

That's a very good point.  Most Mafia media draws from a relatively small cadre of actors who have interacted with actual mafiosos of the "golden era" of organized crime, or in the case of Tony Sirico and Tony Lips, actually are former mafiosos themselves. 

I'm certain people will continue making Mafia flicks, but much like the lukewarm Sopranos film, they'll likely feel more like pale imitations than a true-to-life Mafia films in the same way as Goodfellas and the Godfather, and other films that had influence from actual former mobsters.