1 00:00:15,141 --> 00:00:18,269 [crowd chattering] 2 00:00:20,563 --> 00:00:22,732 [upbeat rock and roll playing] 3 00:00:24,484 --> 00:00:25,985 [whistle blowing] 4 00:00:25,985 --> 00:00:27,111 [man yells] 5 00:00:29,697 --> 00:00:31,324 - Got a picture? - [reporter 1] Sopranos fever 6 00:00:31,324 --> 00:00:33,993 here probably reached a peak last July 7 00:00:33,993 --> 00:00:36,579 when 14,000 wiseguy wannabes 8 00:00:36,704 --> 00:00:38,790 answered the show's open casting call 9 00:00:38,790 --> 00:00:42,251 in decidedly unglamorous Harrison, New Jersey. 10 00:00:42,251 --> 00:00:45,963 [reporter 2] Crowd estimates ranging from ten to 25,000. 11 00:00:46,547 --> 00:00:48,424 [David Chase] This was after the first season. 12 00:00:48,549 --> 00:00:50,843 The line was all the way out to the freeway. 13 00:00:50,843 --> 00:00:54,847 And, uh, it was ridiculous. 14 00:00:54,847 --> 00:00:57,392 - [man] Keep it moving, folks. - [woman] Ladies, step forward. 15 00:00:57,517 --> 00:00:59,560 [reporter 1] Apparently, the word got around. 16 00:00:59,685 --> 00:01:01,521 Just bring your eight-by-ten photo to Jersey. 17 00:01:01,521 --> 00:01:03,606 [man 2] There are policemen, firemen, teachers here. 18 00:01:03,606 --> 00:01:05,233 Who wouldn't want fame and fortune? 19 00:01:05,358 --> 00:01:06,526 I'll tell you one thing here. 20 00:01:06,526 --> 00:01:08,361 I am right for this part on The Sopranos. 21 00:01:08,361 --> 00:01:10,405 You can't get more Italian than this. 22 00:01:10,530 --> 00:01:11,572 They don't make 'em like that. 23 00:01:11,697 --> 00:01:13,866 My friend and I, we got all dressed up 24 00:01:13,866 --> 00:01:15,201 and, like, uh, 25 00:01:15,201 --> 00:01:18,371 there were 482,000 people ahead of us. 26 00:01:18,371 --> 00:01:20,623 I don't know if we got much of a chance now. 27 00:01:20,748 --> 00:01:23,167 [overlapping chatter] 28 00:01:23,167 --> 00:01:24,210 Leave the area! 29 00:01:24,210 --> 00:01:25,420 You are subject to arrest 30 00:01:25,545 --> 00:01:27,213 if you don't leave the area. 31 00:01:27,213 --> 00:01:28,548 [reporter 1] The Harrison police, 32 00:01:28,548 --> 00:01:30,133 concerned about public safety, 33 00:01:30,258 --> 00:01:31,384 closed down the audition. 34 00:01:31,384 --> 00:01:34,262 It's over, it's over, it's over. 35 00:01:34,387 --> 00:01:36,431 [reporter 1] So most of this mob had to be content 36 00:01:36,556 --> 00:01:38,349 with just dropping their picture in the bin 37 00:01:38,349 --> 00:01:40,518 and taking their chances. 38 00:01:40,518 --> 00:01:43,146 [David] We found Ginny Sack in that group. 39 00:01:43,146 --> 00:01:45,690 She had gone later to the same high school I went to. 40 00:01:45,690 --> 00:01:47,942 She was a beautician, never acted. 41 00:01:49,610 --> 00:01:50,862 What the hell is this? 42 00:01:50,862 --> 00:01:53,364 I was dizzy. I was having low blood sugar. 43 00:01:53,364 --> 00:01:55,116 What happened to the fruit salad, then? 44 00:01:55,241 --> 00:01:57,160 You were supposed to quit smoking and didn't. 45 00:01:57,160 --> 00:01:58,911 Nicotine's an addictive substance! 46 00:01:58,911 --> 00:02:01,247 What's wrong with you? Why are you yelling at me? 47 00:02:01,247 --> 00:02:02,832 You never doubted her for a second. 48 00:02:02,832 --> 00:02:05,793 I know I've gained weight these last few years. 49 00:02:06,794 --> 00:02:09,547 I see the other wives, the way men look at them. 50 00:02:10,256 --> 00:02:12,175 - [sighs] - Don't I look at you like that? 51 00:02:13,968 --> 00:02:15,303 Haven't I always? 52 00:02:16,471 --> 00:02:17,513 I love you. 53 00:02:17,638 --> 00:02:18,639 [sobs] 54 00:02:19,849 --> 00:02:21,225 [David] As time went on, 55 00:02:21,225 --> 00:02:23,269 I began to realize that the audience 56 00:02:23,269 --> 00:02:25,688 did break down into two different types. 57 00:02:25,688 --> 00:02:29,358 There was one part that were looking for a serial drama, 58 00:02:30,109 --> 00:02:31,527 and then there was the group 59 00:02:31,652 --> 00:02:33,237 that was called 60 00:02:33,237 --> 00:02:34,655 "Less yakking, more whacking." 61 00:02:37,658 --> 00:02:39,786 - [silenced gunshots] - [woman screams] 62 00:02:39,786 --> 00:02:41,162 - [glass shatters] - [horn blares] 63 00:02:44,957 --> 00:02:47,877 In the show, it wasn't an easy tone, in the sense that 64 00:02:48,002 --> 00:02:50,088 it alternated light and dark, 65 00:02:50,088 --> 00:02:52,298 and so you had to be prepared for either one to happen 66 00:02:52,298 --> 00:02:53,841 anywhere around the corner. 67 00:02:53,966 --> 00:02:55,593 Well, I mean, I guess something 68 00:02:55,593 --> 00:02:57,303 that's really important to me 69 00:02:57,303 --> 00:02:59,430 is the darkness mixed with humor. 70 00:02:59,430 --> 00:03:02,725 And when I think about that, I think about myself 71 00:03:02,725 --> 00:03:04,894 as a kid going to my first funerals, 72 00:03:05,019 --> 00:03:07,772 seeing my grandfather dead in the coffin 73 00:03:07,772 --> 00:03:10,066 and hearing some lunatic conversation, 74 00:03:10,650 --> 00:03:13,277 some stupid thing that one of my aunts was saying. 75 00:03:13,277 --> 00:03:16,030 You think to yourself, "What are you talking about? 76 00:03:16,155 --> 00:03:18,825 There's your father lying there in a casket." 77 00:03:18,825 --> 00:03:21,577 As a writer, that made an impression on me. 78 00:03:21,577 --> 00:03:24,122 Look at her like that. Mariolina. 79 00:03:24,122 --> 00:03:27,166 Gave me my first hand job, me and Vincent Maniscalco 80 00:03:27,166 --> 00:03:29,085 in the alley behind the chicken market. 81 00:03:29,669 --> 00:03:30,837 - [Mikey] Junior. - God. 82 00:03:30,837 --> 00:03:32,714 What am I saying at this poor woman's wake? 83 00:03:33,339 --> 00:03:34,966 - [woman] Let's go. - [door closes] 84 00:03:35,800 --> 00:03:37,760 [David] You know, I would say this about The Sopranos 85 00:03:37,885 --> 00:03:39,262 is that I really don't know 86 00:03:39,262 --> 00:03:41,431 whether it was a drama or a comedy. 87 00:03:42,598 --> 00:03:44,517 For example, Tony Sirico. 88 00:03:44,517 --> 00:03:46,269 [gunshot] 89 00:03:46,269 --> 00:03:47,979 He was a serious gangster actor, 90 00:03:47,979 --> 00:03:50,815 but the comedy just started to come forward. 91 00:03:50,815 --> 00:03:52,275 Oh, motherfucker! 92 00:03:52,400 --> 00:03:55,027 [David] This absurdity, which was partly him. 93 00:03:55,027 --> 00:03:56,821 [Mikey groans] Please! 94 00:03:56,821 --> 00:03:58,948 Fuckin' poison ivy all over. 95 00:03:59,907 --> 00:04:01,409 [Tony Sirico] I was born in Brooklyn. 96 00:04:01,534 --> 00:04:03,953 I grew up on the streets. I still got cement in my shoes. 97 00:04:04,078 --> 00:04:06,497 So, you know, I'm well aware of the life. 98 00:04:06,497 --> 00:04:08,458 And I know a lot of guys involved in this life. 99 00:04:08,458 --> 00:04:10,752 I can feel it itching me already! 100 00:04:12,879 --> 00:04:15,423 He didn't wear makeup 'cause he would go to tanning booths. 101 00:04:16,549 --> 00:04:18,760 Like that, you know, he's got that reflector thing 102 00:04:18,885 --> 00:04:20,762 getting tanned? Like that was really Tony. 103 00:04:20,887 --> 00:04:22,263 Tony always had a tan. 104 00:04:22,930 --> 00:04:25,266 I think my character acts like me, personally. 105 00:04:25,767 --> 00:04:27,852 But, uh, don't-don't tell nobody. 106 00:04:28,603 --> 00:04:30,772 [Christopher] You realize by the time Caitlin's out of college, 107 00:04:30,897 --> 00:04:33,399 it'll be like the year 2027 or something? 108 00:04:33,399 --> 00:04:36,277 She takes after you, she won't be out of fourth grade by then. 109 00:04:36,402 --> 00:04:38,404 [laughter] 110 00:04:38,404 --> 00:04:40,531 - Oh! What are you doing? - Nothing. 111 00:04:40,531 --> 00:04:41,824 Oh! 112 00:04:42,325 --> 00:04:44,994 [director] And cut! Very nice. Check it. 113 00:04:45,119 --> 00:04:46,954 [man] Tony Sirico was very fastidious 114 00:04:47,080 --> 00:04:49,457 and very, you know, particular about how he looked. 115 00:04:49,582 --> 00:04:51,000 No one could touch his hair. 116 00:04:51,000 --> 00:04:53,795 There were no hair people allowed to touch his hair. 117 00:04:53,920 --> 00:04:55,129 He told me the whole system. 118 00:04:55,254 --> 00:04:56,672 He would get up at three in the morning, 119 00:04:56,672 --> 00:04:58,257 and he would read his lines, 120 00:04:58,257 --> 00:05:00,385 he would comb his hair, spray the spray in the air, 121 00:05:00,385 --> 00:05:02,136 and then the mist would settle, 122 00:05:02,261 --> 00:05:03,429 and then he'd do it a few times 123 00:05:03,429 --> 00:05:05,681 till it was shellacked and ready to go. 124 00:05:05,681 --> 00:05:07,308 - The fuck you doing? - [Valery grunts] 125 00:05:07,433 --> 00:05:08,684 You think we're digging a hole? 126 00:05:08,684 --> 00:05:10,353 [Terence] So we're doing "Pine Barrens" episode. 127 00:05:10,353 --> 00:05:12,021 That's right, shithead, get to work. 128 00:05:13,272 --> 00:05:14,982 I know the ground's kind of hard, 129 00:05:15,108 --> 00:05:17,151 but give it some of that Siberian action. 130 00:05:17,276 --> 00:05:19,695 [Terence] Paulie and Christopher were going to kill a guy, 131 00:05:19,695 --> 00:05:21,572 they took him into the woods, the guy escaped, 132 00:05:21,572 --> 00:05:23,574 and then they got lost in the woods. 133 00:05:24,158 --> 00:05:25,493 [Christopher] Wait a minute. 134 00:05:26,494 --> 00:05:27,912 We walked in a circle. 135 00:05:28,788 --> 00:05:31,290 How's that fucking possible? 136 00:05:31,290 --> 00:05:33,000 [Terence] One of the aspects of the episode 137 00:05:33,126 --> 00:05:34,377 is when you first see Paulie... 138 00:05:34,377 --> 00:05:36,129 Let's go with the satin finish. 139 00:05:36,129 --> 00:05:38,297 ...he's perfectly coiffed and he's getting a manicure. 140 00:05:38,297 --> 00:05:40,258 - Excuse me. - The whole idea is that 141 00:05:40,258 --> 00:05:41,926 he completely devolves 142 00:05:41,926 --> 00:05:44,721 to the worst version of himself by the end. 143 00:05:44,721 --> 00:05:46,305 Fucking cunt! 144 00:05:46,305 --> 00:05:47,849 I lost my shoe. 145 00:05:48,641 --> 00:05:50,601 [Terence] He's a complete mess. 146 00:05:50,601 --> 00:05:53,229 So I said to Tony Sirico, "That's the reality 147 00:05:53,354 --> 00:05:54,772 of what would happen to your hair." 148 00:05:54,772 --> 00:05:56,065 He goes, "I'm not messing up my hair." 149 00:05:56,190 --> 00:05:57,775 "Tony, come on. The whole point of this 150 00:05:57,775 --> 00:06:01,487 is that, you know, you're... Paulie's all fucked up." 151 00:06:01,487 --> 00:06:02,864 So he said, "All right." 152 00:06:02,989 --> 00:06:05,992 And so he just like... I said, "Come on. Tony." 153 00:06:05,992 --> 00:06:07,785 And he went, "All right, you fuck." 154 00:06:07,785 --> 00:06:09,579 And he messed his hair up like crazy. 155 00:06:09,579 --> 00:06:11,497 I said, "Get this on film before he changes his mind." 156 00:06:11,497 --> 00:06:13,750 And that's the only time you've ever seen Tony Sirico 157 00:06:13,875 --> 00:06:15,084 with his hair like that. 158 00:06:15,209 --> 00:06:16,544 Got mayonnaise on your chin. 159 00:06:17,879 --> 00:06:18,671 What? 160 00:06:18,671 --> 00:06:20,381 Mayonnaise. 161 00:06:20,506 --> 00:06:21,466 Mayonnaise! 162 00:06:24,510 --> 00:06:27,555 [Vivaldi's "Sposa son disprezzata" playing] 163 00:06:34,020 --> 00:06:35,897 [birds singing] 164 00:06:36,022 --> 00:06:38,274 [bell tolling] 165 00:06:41,235 --> 00:06:42,904 [David] As the show got more complicated, 166 00:06:43,029 --> 00:06:45,823 Denise and I, we bought a house in France, 167 00:06:45,823 --> 00:06:47,241 and we would go there to work 168 00:06:47,241 --> 00:06:49,160 trying to come up with the next season. 169 00:06:49,869 --> 00:06:51,662 She was always gardening, so I'd go out there 170 00:06:51,662 --> 00:06:53,623 and sit there while she was clipping and stuff, 171 00:06:53,623 --> 00:06:55,416 and I'd tell her these stories. 172 00:06:56,209 --> 00:06:58,586 Her influence, it was extraordinary. 173 00:06:58,711 --> 00:07:00,671 ["Sposa son disprezzata" continues] 174 00:07:02,882 --> 00:07:04,759 [David] It was always 13 episodes. 175 00:07:05,218 --> 00:07:06,844 So I'd make 13 lines. 176 00:07:08,429 --> 00:07:10,014 Then I'd start making lines like that 177 00:07:10,014 --> 00:07:11,724 that would say, "Tony." 178 00:07:11,724 --> 00:07:13,351 What does Tony do in episode one? 179 00:07:13,351 --> 00:07:15,061 What does Tony do in episode two? 180 00:07:15,061 --> 00:07:18,189 What happens... And that was containing a plot. 181 00:07:18,189 --> 00:07:20,691 Then I started adding Carmela. 182 00:07:20,691 --> 00:07:22,235 What's Carmela doing? 183 00:07:22,235 --> 00:07:24,695 She had her own season. Chris. 184 00:07:24,695 --> 00:07:27,407 They all had their own seasons. Some had two or three. 185 00:07:27,407 --> 00:07:29,617 Tony would have two or three lines 186 00:07:29,742 --> 00:07:32,120 of what happened to him in that season. 187 00:07:32,787 --> 00:07:33,871 Then I would get back, 188 00:07:33,871 --> 00:07:35,790 I would lay it all out for the writers 189 00:07:35,915 --> 00:07:37,959 so they knew what the direction of the season was. 190 00:07:38,084 --> 00:07:39,377 Then we'd sit down and say, 191 00:07:39,377 --> 00:07:40,962 "All right, episode one. 192 00:07:41,087 --> 00:07:42,338 I know what it says up here, 193 00:07:42,338 --> 00:07:44,632 but what's this really going to be about?" 194 00:07:45,258 --> 00:07:47,844 It was actually building a drama. 195 00:07:47,844 --> 00:07:49,637 They're meeting in a basement, after all. 196 00:07:49,762 --> 00:07:51,848 We'd sit around bullshitting like you and I are doing. 197 00:07:51,973 --> 00:07:53,516 - Right. - All day long. 198 00:07:53,516 --> 00:07:57,228 We'd talk about it and-and bullshit, bullshit, bullshit, 199 00:07:57,228 --> 00:07:59,105 which a lot of good stuff comes out of that. 200 00:07:59,105 --> 00:08:02,108 It was literally sitting with your friends 201 00:08:02,108 --> 00:08:04,485 and, "What'd you do last night?" 202 00:08:04,610 --> 00:08:06,988 And that would digress into a story, 203 00:08:07,113 --> 00:08:09,532 or one time this happened to me or that or... 204 00:08:09,532 --> 00:08:12,577 And sometimes it was prompted by David saying things like, 205 00:08:12,577 --> 00:08:14,370 "What's the worst thing you've ever done 206 00:08:14,495 --> 00:08:15,663 to somebody in a relationship?" 207 00:08:16,873 --> 00:08:18,583 Really, Tony, just tell me. 208 00:08:18,583 --> 00:08:19,917 How come I can't see you again? 209 00:08:19,917 --> 00:08:21,127 ‘Cause you fuck Ralph. 210 00:08:21,127 --> 00:08:22,628 You got morals all of a sudden? 211 00:08:22,628 --> 00:08:24,380 I don't got morals, but I do got rules. 212 00:08:24,505 --> 00:08:28,509 And you'd just tell stories. And it was very therapeutic. 213 00:08:28,634 --> 00:08:31,137 I mean, again, we were also together for years. 214 00:08:31,137 --> 00:08:33,681 So, I mean, in that room we went through, 215 00:08:33,806 --> 00:08:36,267 you know, divorces and children being born 216 00:08:36,267 --> 00:08:39,437 and-and parents dying and a lot-- 217 00:08:39,437 --> 00:08:41,397 you know, the-the-the stuff of life. 218 00:08:41,522 --> 00:08:45,276 The actor is the instrument for conveying ideas. 219 00:08:45,985 --> 00:08:47,195 During the next... 220 00:08:47,320 --> 00:08:48,696 [Terence] I told a story about how 221 00:08:48,821 --> 00:08:51,115 when I started writing, I also took acting classes. 222 00:08:51,115 --> 00:08:52,450 This is Acting for Writers? 223 00:08:52,450 --> 00:08:54,327 And that became part of 224 00:08:54,327 --> 00:08:55,953 the first episode I ever wrote. 225 00:08:55,953 --> 00:08:57,705 [Christopher] Help me, Daddy! 226 00:08:58,539 --> 00:09:00,917 [sobbing] Dad, help me! 227 00:09:01,918 --> 00:09:03,252 Daddy! [sobbing] 228 00:09:03,252 --> 00:09:05,546 [man] You-You can depend on me. 229 00:09:06,047 --> 00:09:06,923 Trust me. 230 00:09:08,841 --> 00:09:10,301 [Terence] I told them a story about 231 00:09:10,301 --> 00:09:11,511 a visit to a psychic I had, 232 00:09:11,511 --> 00:09:12,804 and that became a story 233 00:09:12,804 --> 00:09:13,971 where Paulie visits a psychic. 234 00:09:13,971 --> 00:09:15,598 Charles Pagano. 235 00:09:16,182 --> 00:09:17,517 How the fuck do you know that? 236 00:09:17,517 --> 00:09:19,769 He says he was your first, 237 00:09:20,728 --> 00:09:21,854 but I feel many more. 238 00:09:21,854 --> 00:09:23,731 - Hey! - That one's laughing. 239 00:09:24,690 --> 00:09:25,650 Poison ivy? 240 00:09:27,944 --> 00:09:29,821 He wants to know if it still itches? 241 00:09:30,738 --> 00:09:32,824 Don't fuck with me. Who you been talking to? 242 00:09:33,616 --> 00:09:36,077 All my stories, they come directly 243 00:09:36,786 --> 00:09:38,704 from my personal experiences, 244 00:09:38,704 --> 00:09:40,665 seeing and hearing and watching. 245 00:09:41,416 --> 00:09:43,000 26 Grady Court. 246 00:09:43,000 --> 00:09:44,585 - [man] 26. Good. - This is where I grew up. 247 00:09:44,711 --> 00:09:46,087 This is the building that I grew up in. 248 00:09:46,754 --> 00:09:50,133 And here's my famous apartment right here, 107. 249 00:09:50,800 --> 00:09:53,052 I grew up in a place called Maverick Housing Projects 250 00:09:53,052 --> 00:09:54,762 in East Boston. 251 00:09:54,887 --> 00:09:57,765 Whether it was shoplifting to whatever we did 252 00:09:57,890 --> 00:09:59,475 to make money as a kid, you know. 253 00:10:00,268 --> 00:10:02,311 And when I'm like 13, 14, 254 00:10:02,311 --> 00:10:06,357 I found my way into the local social club 255 00:10:06,357 --> 00:10:08,985 with these neighborhood gangsters. 256 00:10:09,110 --> 00:10:11,446 If I'm getting an invitation to the dance, 257 00:10:11,571 --> 00:10:13,448 I wish the feds would hurry the fuck up about it. 258 00:10:13,573 --> 00:10:15,074 [Frank] "Hey, kid, do me a favor. 259 00:10:15,074 --> 00:10:16,951 Just sweep the floors." 260 00:10:17,076 --> 00:10:18,786 And I worked the card games. 261 00:10:18,911 --> 00:10:21,038 - Yeah, I'm in. - [player] 400 to you, Sil. 262 00:10:21,038 --> 00:10:24,208 Behind closed doors I was with these guys. 263 00:10:24,208 --> 00:10:26,169 Don't look at the floor, Bobby. Look at me. 264 00:10:26,169 --> 00:10:28,546 [Frank] So once we got in the room together 265 00:10:28,546 --> 00:10:31,924 to write characters, like Bobby Baccala... 266 00:10:31,924 --> 00:10:34,969 To the victor belongs the spoils. 267 00:10:35,094 --> 00:10:36,888 Get the fuck out of here before I shove 268 00:10:36,888 --> 00:10:39,307 your quotations book up your fat fucking ass. 269 00:10:40,600 --> 00:10:42,685 [Frank] ...or Richie Aprile... 270 00:10:42,685 --> 00:10:46,230 I did a lot of meditation in the can on this. 271 00:10:46,230 --> 00:10:47,690 [Beansie] On what? 272 00:10:47,690 --> 00:10:50,234 You can't believe how clear you see things. 273 00:10:51,319 --> 00:10:53,196 - Do you ever meditate? - Me? Meditate? 274 00:10:53,196 --> 00:10:54,947 - [Frank] Beansie... - Are you crazy? 275 00:10:54,947 --> 00:10:56,657 Not as crazy as I used to be. 276 00:10:57,867 --> 00:11:00,119 Still crazy enough to take an eye out. 277 00:11:00,119 --> 00:11:02,121 What's going on here, Rich? 278 00:11:02,121 --> 00:11:03,581 [Frank] This is where I could contribute 279 00:11:03,581 --> 00:11:07,001 based on my experiences around these wiseguys. 280 00:11:07,126 --> 00:11:10,421 Sucking up to Tony Soprano has done wonders for you. 281 00:11:10,421 --> 00:11:12,590 [Terence] Look at somebody like Uncle Junior 282 00:11:12,590 --> 00:11:14,467 or Tony or Paulie Walnuts. 283 00:11:14,467 --> 00:11:16,636 I mean, these are, like, petty, horrible people. 284 00:11:16,636 --> 00:11:20,890 So you felt free to talk about anything you wanted. 285 00:11:21,015 --> 00:11:22,809 It was all just, hey, this is a writers' room. 286 00:11:22,809 --> 00:11:24,977 We're writing about bad people. 287 00:11:24,977 --> 00:11:26,229 Bad people do bad things, 288 00:11:26,354 --> 00:11:28,314 and we got to access those parts of ourself. 289 00:11:28,314 --> 00:11:31,859 I mean, we said things that nowadays, 290 00:11:32,318 --> 00:11:33,903 you know, would be frowned upon. 291 00:11:33,903 --> 00:11:38,825 We could have been mistaken for being racist, sexist, 292 00:11:38,825 --> 00:11:40,576 you-name-it-ist, you know. 293 00:11:40,576 --> 00:11:43,204 We considered having an assistant in there for a while 294 00:11:44,747 --> 00:11:47,041 and realized we couldn't do that. 295 00:11:47,500 --> 00:11:48,960 [Robin] If she had a bathing suit on, 296 00:11:48,960 --> 00:11:50,253 if you're-- are you serious? 297 00:11:50,378 --> 00:11:51,546 [writer] I think she stayed at the door 298 00:11:51,671 --> 00:11:53,214 and as he goes, she's calling after him... 299 00:11:53,339 --> 00:11:55,466 [Alex] So how did you make the transition 300 00:11:55,466 --> 00:11:58,010 from being a cast member to being a writer? 301 00:11:58,010 --> 00:12:01,264 You know, I didn't start writing on the show 302 00:12:01,264 --> 00:12:03,975 'cause I wanted to give my character juicy stuff to do. 303 00:12:03,975 --> 00:12:06,686 It was really 'cause I really loved all the characters. 304 00:12:06,686 --> 00:12:09,480 I just fell in love with all of them. 305 00:12:09,480 --> 00:12:11,524 You know, what I learned from David was, 306 00:12:11,524 --> 00:12:15,069 you know, specificity, specifics, detail. 307 00:12:15,695 --> 00:12:17,029 Everything was thought-out. 308 00:12:17,029 --> 00:12:18,698 [writers chattering] 309 00:12:18,698 --> 00:12:20,992 [Terence] At some point during the process, 310 00:12:20,992 --> 00:12:23,619 David would get up and go on the couch 311 00:12:23,619 --> 00:12:25,788 and just lay down and go to sleep. [laughs] 312 00:12:25,788 --> 00:12:27,290 And we would just keep talking. 313 00:12:27,874 --> 00:12:29,542 But he wasn't really asleep. 314 00:12:29,542 --> 00:12:31,586 He'd have his eyes closed, thinking. 315 00:12:32,086 --> 00:12:34,005 [David] I couldn't stand talking anymore, 316 00:12:34,005 --> 00:12:35,840 and I would be on the couch by myself 317 00:12:35,840 --> 00:12:37,925 and they'd go on talking. 318 00:12:38,885 --> 00:12:41,054 And finally I would get something done. 319 00:12:41,054 --> 00:12:43,056 [Terence] At some point, he would get up 320 00:12:43,056 --> 00:12:44,932 and silence would befall the room, 321 00:12:45,058 --> 00:12:46,976 and he would pick up a marker, go to the board, 322 00:12:47,101 --> 00:12:48,603 and then write out 323 00:12:48,728 --> 00:12:52,190 a fully fleshed out 12-beat story. 324 00:12:52,190 --> 00:12:54,942 David starts filling the whiteboard. 325 00:12:55,068 --> 00:12:57,612 You know, big-- three gigantic whiteboards. 326 00:12:57,737 --> 00:12:59,614 He's going nuts, filling the whole thing. 327 00:13:00,615 --> 00:13:03,493 And we're all like, "Yeah, that's great..." 328 00:13:04,160 --> 00:13:07,038 Chiming in and this thing gets done. 329 00:13:08,122 --> 00:13:09,832 We broke for lunch, come back, he's looking at it, 330 00:13:09,832 --> 00:13:11,292 he goes, "This is fucking horrible." 331 00:13:11,417 --> 00:13:13,544 Erases the whole-- It took us hours. 332 00:13:13,544 --> 00:13:15,296 Every year we would start, I'd say, "Remember, 333 00:13:15,421 --> 00:13:17,215 the first five ideas, 334 00:13:17,215 --> 00:13:19,008 we're going to throw those out. 335 00:13:19,133 --> 00:13:20,134 Don't even bring them up. 336 00:13:20,259 --> 00:13:23,471 Idea number six, maybe you should..." 337 00:13:23,596 --> 00:13:25,473 - This includes me. - [Alex] Right. 338 00:13:25,598 --> 00:13:26,516 "...we'll voice it. 339 00:13:26,516 --> 00:13:29,018 Everything else, we've seen before. 340 00:13:29,685 --> 00:13:31,521 - It's not good." - [car alarm chirps] 341 00:13:31,521 --> 00:13:33,106 And you're talking about important things. 342 00:13:33,106 --> 00:13:36,526 You're talking about life, death, love, violence. 343 00:13:37,985 --> 00:13:40,530 - [Melfi yells] - Shut up, don't turn around. 344 00:13:40,530 --> 00:13:42,698 [Robin] I still feel proud that we never did 345 00:13:42,698 --> 00:13:45,201 violence for violence's sake. I didn't find that. 346 00:13:45,326 --> 00:13:46,994 [Alex] It was consistent with the characters. 347 00:13:47,120 --> 00:13:48,955 Yeah, I thought it was earned. 348 00:13:48,955 --> 00:13:53,334 I don't think any of us ever were gratuitous with violence. 349 00:13:53,459 --> 00:13:54,961 I don't think we ever said, 350 00:13:54,961 --> 00:13:56,629 "Oh, we gotta show this gory thing." 351 00:13:56,629 --> 00:13:57,588 It was the opposite. 352 00:13:57,964 --> 00:13:59,632 [Melfi] I'll give you all my money! 353 00:13:59,632 --> 00:14:03,219 [Melfi screaming] 354 00:14:03,219 --> 00:14:05,263 [sobbing] No! 355 00:14:05,263 --> 00:14:07,598 - No! No! [screams] - Shut up! Shut up. 356 00:14:07,598 --> 00:14:09,058 - No, come on! - Get the panties off. 357 00:14:09,183 --> 00:14:10,643 [Melfi] No, stop it! 358 00:14:10,643 --> 00:14:14,522 - [man grunting] - Please! No! 359 00:14:14,647 --> 00:14:17,942 - [sobbing] No! - [man] You fucking bitch! 360 00:14:17,942 --> 00:14:20,111 [sobbing] No! No! 361 00:14:21,904 --> 00:14:23,364 Stop it! 362 00:14:23,489 --> 00:14:25,700 [sobbing] Stop it! 363 00:14:27,744 --> 00:14:31,414 [screaming] 364 00:14:36,377 --> 00:14:39,464 [Terence] Melfi's rape was very, very violent 365 00:14:39,464 --> 00:14:41,132 and incredibly disturbing to watch 366 00:14:41,132 --> 00:14:43,009 because it made her choice 367 00:14:43,009 --> 00:14:46,304 whether or not to tell Tony all the more poignant 368 00:14:46,304 --> 00:14:48,222 because you saw what happened to her. 369 00:14:49,932 --> 00:14:51,517 [Melfi] Did they let him go? 370 00:14:51,517 --> 00:14:53,352 Somebody misplaced the evidence kit 371 00:14:53,352 --> 00:14:55,146 for a little while or something-- 372 00:14:55,146 --> 00:14:56,564 I don't know what the fuck they did, 373 00:14:56,689 --> 00:14:57,982 those stupid idiots. 374 00:14:57,982 --> 00:15:00,234 Did they just let him out until the trial? 375 00:15:00,359 --> 00:15:02,403 Because I can identify him. 376 00:15:02,528 --> 00:15:04,030 [Richard] It's a legal thing. 377 00:15:04,155 --> 00:15:06,699 - They have to let him skip. - [Melfi] That's impossible. 378 00:15:06,699 --> 00:15:08,785 [Richard] I told you everything he told me. 379 00:15:10,286 --> 00:15:12,955 [Melfi] That employee of the month cocksucker 380 00:15:12,955 --> 00:15:15,500 is back on the street, and who's gonna stop him? 381 00:15:15,500 --> 00:15:16,584 You? 382 00:15:17,210 --> 00:15:19,962 Who could I sic on that son of a bitch 383 00:15:19,962 --> 00:15:22,173 to tear him to shreds? 384 00:15:30,598 --> 00:15:31,557 [sobs] 385 00:15:31,557 --> 00:15:32,517 What's the matter? 386 00:15:33,768 --> 00:15:35,353 Hey, hey, hey. Come on. 387 00:15:36,479 --> 00:15:37,647 What'd I do? 388 00:15:37,772 --> 00:15:39,649 - [sobbing] - Come on, huh? 389 00:15:39,649 --> 00:15:41,818 [Lorraine] I remember reading the script 390 00:15:41,943 --> 00:15:43,319 and not finishing it, 391 00:15:43,778 --> 00:15:46,447 and I called David. I said, "Why? 392 00:15:47,115 --> 00:15:48,783 Why would you hurt her? 393 00:15:49,450 --> 00:15:55,456 She's the only one trying to have a-a sense of-of right, 394 00:15:55,581 --> 00:15:58,251 a-a sense of reason. 395 00:15:58,251 --> 00:15:59,544 Um... 396 00:15:59,544 --> 00:16:01,546 Why are you violating her? 397 00:16:01,546 --> 00:16:04,340 I can't even get through it, I'm so upset." 398 00:16:05,258 --> 00:16:08,553 "Could you just read it to the end, Lorraine?" [chuckles] 399 00:16:08,553 --> 00:16:11,180 And I said, "Yeah, okay." 400 00:16:11,806 --> 00:16:12,807 And then... 401 00:16:16,686 --> 00:16:17,812 What? 402 00:16:19,605 --> 00:16:21,315 I mean, you wanna say something? 403 00:16:29,866 --> 00:16:30,992 No. 404 00:16:31,993 --> 00:16:34,579 [Lorraine] When she says no, 405 00:16:34,579 --> 00:16:37,665 it hit me like a ton of bricks. 406 00:16:38,666 --> 00:16:41,127 There's a fork in the road 407 00:16:41,127 --> 00:16:44,047 and she has to choose that fork. 408 00:16:44,630 --> 00:16:46,090 I mean, let's put it this way. 409 00:16:47,008 --> 00:16:50,178 She knew if she told him about the rape, 410 00:16:52,305 --> 00:16:54,515 then it was all over. 411 00:16:55,183 --> 00:16:57,018 She didn't go to school 412 00:16:57,894 --> 00:17:00,396 for 15 years 413 00:17:01,564 --> 00:17:03,191 to become a gangster. 414 00:17:05,151 --> 00:17:07,945 ["Living on a Thin Line" by The Kinks playing] 415 00:17:07,945 --> 00:17:10,114 [Drea] Even the most violent episodes 416 00:17:10,114 --> 00:17:13,493 had such... beauty to them. 417 00:17:13,493 --> 00:17:16,412 Like the episode where the stripper gets killed. 418 00:17:17,080 --> 00:17:19,707 It tells the story of Meadow in college. 419 00:17:20,875 --> 00:17:21,918 Do you have a condom? 420 00:17:22,877 --> 00:17:24,545 [both chuckling] 421 00:17:27,215 --> 00:17:28,841 [Drea] Against this young girl 422 00:17:28,841 --> 00:17:30,468 who would be the same age. 423 00:17:32,261 --> 00:17:33,721 [Ralphie grunting] 424 00:17:35,556 --> 00:17:36,849 [Edie] The show was always shocking 425 00:17:36,849 --> 00:17:38,142 somebody about something. 426 00:17:38,601 --> 00:17:39,894 That make you feel good? 427 00:17:40,686 --> 00:17:42,230 You feel like a man? 428 00:17:42,355 --> 00:17:45,400 You could push the envelope and let people be uncomfortable. 429 00:17:46,734 --> 00:17:49,028 Forgive me but, like, without a trigger warning. 430 00:17:49,904 --> 00:17:52,865 The whole point is you want to surprise people 431 00:17:52,865 --> 00:17:55,243 and give them feelings that maybe are uncomfortable 432 00:17:55,368 --> 00:17:57,245 and have them learn to deal with them. 433 00:17:57,370 --> 00:18:00,123 That, my friend, is life. 434 00:18:00,123 --> 00:18:02,083 You're not going to be given trigger warnings 435 00:18:02,208 --> 00:18:03,710 when terrible things happen. 436 00:18:03,710 --> 00:18:05,837 [grunting] 437 00:18:05,837 --> 00:18:07,171 [Tracee whimpers] 438 00:18:07,171 --> 00:18:08,339 [body thuds] 439 00:18:09,716 --> 00:18:12,135 - [Ralphie grunting] - [Tracee wheezing] 440 00:18:12,135 --> 00:18:13,428 [metal clangs] 441 00:18:14,303 --> 00:18:15,430 [grunts] 442 00:18:16,097 --> 00:18:18,474 [Terence] Ralphie beating the stripper to death. 443 00:18:18,474 --> 00:18:21,436 You needed to see what an absolute despicable person 444 00:18:21,561 --> 00:18:24,772 this was in order to understand 445 00:18:24,897 --> 00:18:26,899 these are the guys you're rooting for. 446 00:18:26,899 --> 00:18:29,110 Look at you now. [panting] 447 00:18:30,445 --> 00:18:32,196 [Terence] It was interesting, every once in a while, 448 00:18:32,196 --> 00:18:33,698 the audience would be lulled into feeling, 449 00:18:33,698 --> 00:18:35,491 "Oh, these are big, fun teddy bears 450 00:18:35,491 --> 00:18:37,452 you can talk to over the backyard fence." 451 00:18:37,577 --> 00:18:39,746 And, yeah, that's true until you owe them money, 452 00:18:39,746 --> 00:18:41,497 and then they're not funny anymore. 453 00:18:41,497 --> 00:18:43,708 And then they're-- so, every once in a while 454 00:18:43,708 --> 00:18:47,295 remind people, this is who Tony Soprano really is. 455 00:18:47,420 --> 00:18:48,713 You finished? 456 00:18:51,591 --> 00:18:53,634 [breathing rapidly] Thank you, T. 457 00:18:54,761 --> 00:18:56,304 ‘Cause that sugarless motherfucker, 458 00:18:57,263 --> 00:18:59,098 it's the last fucking drink you're ever gonna have. 459 00:18:59,098 --> 00:19:02,935 Oh! Swear to God! Mommy! Mommy, please, Tony. 460 00:19:02,935 --> 00:19:04,395 [David] I said to the writers, 461 00:19:04,395 --> 00:19:06,564 - look, he's a killer... - [moans] 462 00:19:06,564 --> 00:19:09,442 He's a philanderer. He's a motherfucker. 463 00:19:09,442 --> 00:19:11,360 ♪ I'm a fool to do your dirty work... ♪ 464 00:19:11,360 --> 00:19:13,905 [David] He's a fool, in many ways. 465 00:19:13,905 --> 00:19:15,865 Maybe it sounds fucking crazy to you. 466 00:19:15,865 --> 00:19:18,076 But Tony's always got to be the smartest guy in the room. 467 00:19:18,076 --> 00:19:19,702 Nothing sounds crazy anymore, the older I get. 468 00:19:22,497 --> 00:19:24,332 [David] He's not fun all the time. 469 00:19:25,625 --> 00:19:29,337 This is a bad guy, extremely violent person. 470 00:19:30,713 --> 00:19:31,672 [Carmela] You want coffee? 471 00:19:33,341 --> 00:19:34,175 No. 472 00:19:34,300 --> 00:19:36,135 [David] And I always felt that 473 00:19:36,135 --> 00:19:38,304 if there was any lack of realism, 474 00:19:38,888 --> 00:19:42,016 it was that he was more reflective than reality. 475 00:19:42,725 --> 00:19:43,893 Tony thinks too much. 476 00:19:44,018 --> 00:19:45,019 He's too worried. 477 00:19:45,812 --> 00:19:47,522 [Alex] But something was happening to him 478 00:19:47,647 --> 00:19:50,024 - that he couldn't control. - [David] The panic attacks. 479 00:19:50,149 --> 00:19:51,567 If it hadn't been for the panic attacks, 480 00:19:51,567 --> 00:19:53,611 I don't think he would have gone to a shrink. 481 00:19:53,611 --> 00:19:55,905 I don't got time for these fucking attacks. 482 00:19:56,030 --> 00:19:57,782 It was so good for months. 483 00:19:57,782 --> 00:19:59,450 [David] But he couldn't afford to be collapsing 484 00:19:59,450 --> 00:20:01,160 in front of his crew, you know. 485 00:20:01,911 --> 00:20:04,580 And obviously, there was a lot underneath there. 486 00:20:04,580 --> 00:20:07,750 He was very depressed and didn't understand or know it. 487 00:20:08,501 --> 00:20:10,920 He had a lot of fears, and didn't know it. 488 00:20:12,046 --> 00:20:14,716 Do you have any qualms about how you actually 489 00:20:15,842 --> 00:20:17,051 make a living? 490 00:20:18,386 --> 00:20:19,303 Yeah. 491 00:20:21,514 --> 00:20:23,558 I find I have to be the sad clown. 492 00:20:24,684 --> 00:20:25,977 Laughing on the outside, 493 00:20:27,228 --> 00:20:28,896 crying on the inside. 494 00:20:30,690 --> 00:20:32,567 Feel exhausted just talking about it. 495 00:20:33,901 --> 00:20:36,946 It's my feeling, and I've been to a lot of therapy. 496 00:20:36,946 --> 00:20:40,575 You're really never held to account with a psychiatrist. 497 00:20:42,034 --> 00:20:44,662 And that's always kind of bothered me a little bit. 498 00:20:45,246 --> 00:20:47,123 "You mean anything I do is..." 499 00:20:47,248 --> 00:20:49,333 "Oh, you have to understand what my parents are like, 500 00:20:49,333 --> 00:20:50,960 and so I can't be blamed?" 501 00:20:51,085 --> 00:20:52,336 Hello? 502 00:20:54,589 --> 00:20:56,132 [Georgie groans] 503 00:20:56,132 --> 00:20:57,884 [Alex] Theoretically, therapy is supposed to 504 00:20:57,884 --> 00:20:59,927 - make you a better person. - Let me hear it. 505 00:21:00,053 --> 00:21:01,596 [David] Instead, it made him a better mobster. 506 00:21:01,721 --> 00:21:03,806 He could actually take what other people 507 00:21:03,806 --> 00:21:06,392 were feeling into account. [laughs] 508 00:21:06,392 --> 00:21:08,352 For 20 or 30 seconds. 509 00:21:08,352 --> 00:21:11,564 All we want you to do is talk to him. 510 00:21:11,564 --> 00:21:13,024 After all, he's your uncle. 511 00:21:13,024 --> 00:21:14,984 - Come on. - [Ray] That's right. 512 00:21:15,610 --> 00:21:18,029 As we said in the show, as Livia said, 513 00:21:18,446 --> 00:21:19,280 "Psychiatry..." 514 00:21:19,947 --> 00:21:23,117 That's nothing but a racket for the Jews. 515 00:21:23,242 --> 00:21:25,536 That's what my mother would have said about psychiatry. 516 00:21:25,536 --> 00:21:27,538 They knew nothing about it. 517 00:21:27,538 --> 00:21:28,706 [Tony] Melfi. 518 00:21:28,706 --> 00:21:30,500 [David] So it was important to me 519 00:21:30,625 --> 00:21:31,793 for her to be Italian. 520 00:21:31,918 --> 00:21:33,336 What part of the boot you from, hon? 521 00:21:33,461 --> 00:21:34,962 "Dr. Melfi." 522 00:21:36,297 --> 00:21:38,925 My father's people were from Caserta. 523 00:21:38,925 --> 00:21:40,134 Avellino. 524 00:21:40,927 --> 00:21:43,137 My mother would have loved it if you and I got together. 525 00:21:43,262 --> 00:21:46,849 [David] And not to be too forceful, 526 00:21:47,433 --> 00:21:49,519 or to be even that sympathetic. 527 00:21:50,186 --> 00:21:52,397 What's the one thing every woman-- 528 00:21:52,397 --> 00:21:54,273 your mother, your wife, your daughter-- 529 00:21:54,273 --> 00:21:55,483 have in common? 530 00:21:55,608 --> 00:21:57,276 They all break my balls. 531 00:21:57,276 --> 00:21:59,028 [David] Her character was based on 532 00:21:59,153 --> 00:22:01,364 the psychologist I was going to at that time. 533 00:22:01,364 --> 00:22:02,740 They're all Italian. So what? 534 00:22:02,740 --> 00:22:05,410 So, maybe by coming clean with me, 535 00:22:05,410 --> 00:22:07,203 you're dialoguing with them. 536 00:22:07,328 --> 00:22:08,704 [David] I think I began to realize 537 00:22:08,830 --> 00:22:10,832 what I was doing there was 538 00:22:10,957 --> 00:22:12,834 re-mothering myself. 539 00:22:12,959 --> 00:22:14,961 [Alex] What you were doing there in therapy... 540 00:22:14,961 --> 00:22:16,546 - With her. - Right. 541 00:22:17,463 --> 00:22:19,507 Was, I was getting a new mother. 542 00:22:19,507 --> 00:22:21,467 - What? - [David] And certainly, 543 00:22:21,467 --> 00:22:23,094 that's what Tony was doing. 544 00:22:23,094 --> 00:22:25,346 You've made me all of the things 545 00:22:25,471 --> 00:22:27,432 you feel are missing in your wife 546 00:22:28,558 --> 00:22:29,892 and in your mother. 547 00:22:31,978 --> 00:22:32,854 [scoffs] 548 00:22:36,691 --> 00:22:37,942 [exhales] You're-- 549 00:22:37,942 --> 00:22:40,570 You're making me out to be some fucking mama's boy. 550 00:22:41,696 --> 00:22:42,739 I'm a man. 551 00:22:43,698 --> 00:22:46,242 Now that we're sitting in this psychiatrist's office 552 00:22:46,367 --> 00:22:47,869 and we're analyzing these guys, 553 00:22:48,536 --> 00:22:50,079 he needed a mother. 554 00:22:50,204 --> 00:22:51,205 Ma? 555 00:22:51,330 --> 00:22:53,291 [David] His mother was a lunatic. 556 00:22:53,291 --> 00:22:54,709 You know my good jewelry? 557 00:22:54,834 --> 00:22:56,210 The stuff Dad gave you. 558 00:22:57,336 --> 00:22:59,380 Some of those pieces came right out of Cartier's window. 559 00:22:59,505 --> 00:23:02,425 I gave it all to your cousin Josephine. 560 00:23:03,676 --> 00:23:05,261 What the fuck? The good jewelry? 561 00:23:05,386 --> 00:23:06,763 She always admired it. 562 00:23:06,888 --> 00:23:08,056 [James] They're a lot alike. 563 00:23:08,181 --> 00:23:09,390 That's where the conflict comes from. 564 00:23:09,515 --> 00:23:11,100 You gave a fucking cousin 565 00:23:11,225 --> 00:23:12,143 Cartier dinner rings, 566 00:23:12,143 --> 00:23:13,603 and you give me a vibrating chair? 567 00:23:13,603 --> 00:23:15,730 [James] He tries 'cause he's Italian 568 00:23:15,855 --> 00:23:17,023 and it's his mother, 569 00:23:17,023 --> 00:23:19,942 but she knows all the buttons to push on him 570 00:23:19,942 --> 00:23:21,319 and consistently does it. 571 00:23:21,319 --> 00:23:24,197 Listen, before you do any more serious damage 572 00:23:24,197 --> 00:23:26,949 to yourself or your grandchildren's inheritance, 573 00:23:26,949 --> 00:23:28,659 you're gonna stop living alone right now. 574 00:23:28,659 --> 00:23:31,162 I'm not going to that nursing home. 575 00:23:31,162 --> 00:23:33,915 Then I will get a durable power of attorney over you, 576 00:23:34,040 --> 00:23:35,291 and I will place you there. 577 00:23:35,416 --> 00:23:36,626 Then kill me now. 578 00:23:37,377 --> 00:23:38,294 Go on. Go. 579 00:23:38,419 --> 00:23:39,253 Go into the ham 580 00:23:39,379 --> 00:23:41,255 and take the carving knife 581 00:23:41,381 --> 00:23:42,340 and stab me. 582 00:23:42,340 --> 00:23:45,635 Here. Here! Now, please! 583 00:23:45,635 --> 00:23:48,388 It would hurt me less than what you just said! 584 00:23:48,388 --> 00:23:50,723 You know, I know seniors that are inspired! 585 00:23:50,723 --> 00:23:53,518 [weeping] 586 00:23:53,518 --> 00:23:57,146 Livia was an amalgam, whether it was intended, 587 00:23:57,563 --> 00:24:00,775 whether David saw it that way or anybody else saw that, 588 00:24:00,900 --> 00:24:02,193 but it was truly an amalgam. 589 00:24:02,193 --> 00:24:04,278 The writers, the one thing we had in common 590 00:24:04,404 --> 00:24:06,072 was we all had the same mom. 591 00:24:06,072 --> 00:24:08,199 And I had a terrible relationship with my mother. 592 00:24:08,199 --> 00:24:10,410 My mother, just to sum up my mom, 593 00:24:10,410 --> 00:24:13,329 who was absolutely the rock of our family. 594 00:24:13,454 --> 00:24:15,123 My dad died on a Thursday, on Monday morning, 595 00:24:15,248 --> 00:24:17,166 my mom was back at work, with five kids. 596 00:24:17,166 --> 00:24:18,543 God bless her. 597 00:24:18,543 --> 00:24:20,586 But we did not have a great relationship. 598 00:24:20,586 --> 00:24:23,256 When I got into NYU, I called my mother and I said, 599 00:24:23,256 --> 00:24:25,091 "I got accepted to New York University." 600 00:24:25,091 --> 00:24:27,093 I had been living alone, and she said, 601 00:24:27,093 --> 00:24:28,553 "I'll give you six months." 602 00:24:28,553 --> 00:24:31,055 [chuckles] And I went, "Okay, thanks." 603 00:24:31,055 --> 00:24:33,015 When I got into law school, I called my mother. 604 00:24:33,141 --> 00:24:35,143 I said, "Mom, I got accepted to law school." 605 00:24:35,268 --> 00:24:37,895 And she said, "Another one of your harebrained schemes!" 606 00:24:39,021 --> 00:24:40,648 [Frank] There's things in that show 607 00:24:40,648 --> 00:24:41,983 that I literally picked them, 608 00:24:42,108 --> 00:24:43,651 you know, visiting my mother. 609 00:24:43,776 --> 00:24:45,319 She was living in a senior housing. 610 00:24:45,445 --> 00:24:47,196 - [Livia] Who is it? - It's me, Ma. 611 00:24:47,196 --> 00:24:50,199 The fucking lady next door kept running the water. 612 00:24:50,199 --> 00:24:51,492 There it is again. 613 00:24:51,617 --> 00:24:52,827 [water running] 614 00:24:52,952 --> 00:24:54,704 [Frank] Drove my mother insane. 615 00:24:54,704 --> 00:24:57,832 That's enough water! How much water does she need? 616 00:24:58,291 --> 00:25:00,960 She runs the water all day. 617 00:25:00,960 --> 00:25:03,129 Water, water, water! 618 00:25:03,129 --> 00:25:05,840 I'm living next door to Gunga Din! 619 00:25:07,300 --> 00:25:08,718 [Terence] It's not concocted. 620 00:25:08,718 --> 00:25:11,512 It's all based on stuff that's our real life. 621 00:25:11,637 --> 00:25:13,890 And it all started with David and his life, 622 00:25:14,015 --> 00:25:16,184 but we recognized similar problems 623 00:25:16,309 --> 00:25:17,852 and similar things that make us laugh 624 00:25:17,977 --> 00:25:19,771 or make us frustrated and stuff. 625 00:25:19,771 --> 00:25:22,690 And if it fit with David and it fit with Tony Soprano, 626 00:25:22,815 --> 00:25:24,358 that was part of the show. 627 00:25:25,860 --> 00:25:27,403 [David] When I was about eight or nine, 628 00:25:27,528 --> 00:25:30,448 we used to go down to the shore in Belmar, New Jersey. 629 00:25:31,532 --> 00:25:33,659 And we were going out somewhere at night, 630 00:25:33,659 --> 00:25:34,660 going down the stairs, 631 00:25:34,660 --> 00:25:35,995 and my father fell 632 00:25:35,995 --> 00:25:37,080 and ripped his pants. 633 00:25:37,080 --> 00:25:39,123 My mother went crazy laughing. 634 00:25:39,123 --> 00:25:40,166 [laughing] 635 00:25:40,750 --> 00:25:43,086 That came from that. Most people didn't understand. 636 00:25:43,086 --> 00:25:45,630 "What's she laughing at? That's so horrible." 637 00:25:46,339 --> 00:25:48,883 And Nancy said to my wife Denise, 638 00:25:49,008 --> 00:25:50,385 first season, she said, 639 00:25:51,177 --> 00:25:54,055 "I trust that this creature I'm portraying is deceased?" 640 00:25:54,180 --> 00:25:55,431 [Alex laughs] 641 00:25:55,556 --> 00:25:57,767 [Melfi] What your mother has, at the very least, 642 00:25:57,767 --> 00:26:01,062 is what we call borderline personality disorder. 643 00:26:01,187 --> 00:26:02,814 These people's internal phobias 644 00:26:02,814 --> 00:26:04,941 are the only things that exist to them. 645 00:26:05,066 --> 00:26:07,735 The real world, real people are peripheral. 646 00:26:07,860 --> 00:26:10,446 These people have no love or compassion. 647 00:26:11,406 --> 00:26:13,241 [David] In the original feature script 648 00:26:13,366 --> 00:26:17,036 and also in the last episode of season one, 649 00:26:17,036 --> 00:26:19,705 Melfi was going to tell him, "It's your mother 650 00:26:19,705 --> 00:26:21,082 who's out to kill you." 651 00:26:21,958 --> 00:26:24,085 You twisted, fucking bitch. 652 00:26:24,210 --> 00:26:25,837 That's my mother we're talking about. 653 00:26:26,421 --> 00:26:29,173 [David] And he goes up to the retirement center, 654 00:26:29,173 --> 00:26:32,301 and he grabs a pillow, and he smothers her to death. 655 00:26:32,301 --> 00:26:33,553 That's what it was in the movie, 656 00:26:33,553 --> 00:26:35,763 and what it was going to be in the show. 657 00:26:36,264 --> 00:26:41,310 But Nancy, she had lung cancer and emphysema. 658 00:26:42,478 --> 00:26:44,230 As the end was coming, 659 00:26:44,230 --> 00:26:47,108 she said, "David, I just... just keep me working." 660 00:26:47,650 --> 00:26:48,776 Your mom's had a stroke. 661 00:26:48,901 --> 00:26:50,445 That was changing the whole story. 662 00:26:50,570 --> 00:26:51,654 Stroke? 663 00:26:51,654 --> 00:26:53,656 The news on TV yesterday really upset her. 664 00:26:53,781 --> 00:26:55,116 Not that it's any of my business. 665 00:26:55,241 --> 00:26:57,410 Anyhow, it just happened. The EMTs are-- 666 00:26:57,410 --> 00:26:59,162 I'm gonna live a nice, long, happy life. 667 00:26:59,287 --> 00:27:00,496 Which is more than I can say for you. 668 00:27:00,496 --> 00:27:02,582 - That's enough! - Yeah? [grunting] 669 00:27:02,582 --> 00:27:04,041 [woman] Keep her moving, keep moving. 670 00:27:04,041 --> 00:27:05,084 I tried to do the right thing, 671 00:27:05,084 --> 00:27:06,461 you try to have me whacked? 672 00:27:06,586 --> 00:27:08,337 - [woman] She doesn't understand. - She's smiling! 673 00:27:08,337 --> 00:27:11,799 Look at the look on her face! She's smiling! 674 00:27:11,924 --> 00:27:13,843 - [all grunting] - Get off me! 675 00:27:13,968 --> 00:27:16,304 Yeah. So we kept her working. 676 00:27:16,429 --> 00:27:17,597 I wasn't always perfect, 677 00:27:17,597 --> 00:27:19,974 but I always tried to do the best I could. 678 00:27:22,101 --> 00:27:24,520 And I know you didn't, any of you, 679 00:27:24,520 --> 00:27:27,315 didn't like it when I tried to tell you what to do. 680 00:27:29,358 --> 00:27:31,694 Babies are like animals. 681 00:27:31,819 --> 00:27:33,571 They're no different than dogs. 682 00:27:34,280 --> 00:27:37,158 Somebody has to teach them right from wrong. 683 00:27:37,283 --> 00:27:39,494 [melancholy guitar music playing] 684 00:27:39,619 --> 00:27:41,370 [David] But she didn't live that long. 685 00:27:44,457 --> 00:27:45,750 [voice breaking] Um... 686 00:27:48,169 --> 00:27:49,337 She was wonderful. 687 00:27:53,174 --> 00:27:54,342 People loved Livia. 688 00:27:54,467 --> 00:27:56,344 They just got such a kick out of her. 689 00:27:57,178 --> 00:27:59,722 I don't know how many thousands of times I heard, 690 00:27:59,847 --> 00:28:01,432 "That's just like my grandmother!" 691 00:28:01,432 --> 00:28:03,101 "That's just like my aunt!" 692 00:28:03,101 --> 00:28:05,645 And yet my mother, who it was patterned after, 693 00:28:05,645 --> 00:28:07,522 was, I thought, 694 00:28:07,647 --> 00:28:11,275 completely out there by herself in some other universe. 695 00:28:12,568 --> 00:28:13,778 I knew people had mother issues. 696 00:28:13,778 --> 00:28:15,113 I didn't think I was alone 697 00:28:15,113 --> 00:28:16,155 on the reservation, 698 00:28:16,155 --> 00:28:18,157 but I really did think my mother 699 00:28:18,157 --> 00:28:20,243 was out in some other universe. 700 00:28:20,243 --> 00:28:21,869 It's really about her fears 701 00:28:21,994 --> 00:28:24,497 and terrors and anxieties. 702 00:28:24,497 --> 00:28:26,958 But what I didn't understand then, 703 00:28:26,958 --> 00:28:30,169 the thing I learned many, many years later, 704 00:28:30,169 --> 00:28:32,380 I was living out in California. 705 00:28:32,505 --> 00:28:34,590 I was talking to my mother on the phone. 706 00:28:34,590 --> 00:28:36,718 This was toward the end of her life. 707 00:28:36,843 --> 00:28:38,553 We were talking about my grandfather. 708 00:28:38,678 --> 00:28:40,054 She said, "It's like Aunt Louise, 709 00:28:40,179 --> 00:28:41,723 he didn't mean to hurt her." 710 00:28:43,057 --> 00:28:44,559 I said, "What do you mean?" 711 00:28:45,268 --> 00:28:46,894 She said, "Well, yes, he kicked her 712 00:28:47,019 --> 00:28:48,688 and he didn't mean to." 713 00:28:48,688 --> 00:28:50,523 I said, "What do you mean he kicked her?" 714 00:28:51,107 --> 00:28:53,443 She said, "Well, yes, he kicked her in the vagina." 715 00:28:53,568 --> 00:28:54,610 [bells tolling] 716 00:28:54,610 --> 00:28:55,903 I said, "What?" 717 00:28:56,863 --> 00:28:58,906 She said, "Yeah, he kicked her in the vagina." 718 00:28:59,407 --> 00:29:01,033 I said, "What was going on?" 719 00:29:01,033 --> 00:29:02,285 "Oh, I don't know. 720 00:29:02,285 --> 00:29:04,245 She was getting married the next day. 721 00:29:04,370 --> 00:29:07,331 And, um, he was just upset." 722 00:29:08,040 --> 00:29:09,250 [chuckles softly] 723 00:29:09,917 --> 00:29:11,127 I just thought, 724 00:29:12,086 --> 00:29:14,297 this is-- things started to make sense to me. 725 00:29:15,048 --> 00:29:17,884 Because I remember my mother screaming 726 00:29:18,634 --> 00:29:20,011 in a nightmare saying, 727 00:29:20,011 --> 00:29:21,846 "Papa, put your pants back on! 728 00:29:21,846 --> 00:29:24,515 Don't do-- Papa, put your pants back on!" 729 00:29:24,515 --> 00:29:25,641 So I have no proof, 730 00:29:26,267 --> 00:29:28,269 but he was a bad guy. 731 00:29:29,312 --> 00:29:30,646 And so was my father's father. 732 00:29:32,065 --> 00:29:34,067 Some of these guys from Southern Italy... 733 00:29:34,067 --> 00:29:36,110 [exhales] Wow. 734 00:29:43,534 --> 00:29:46,120 [gentle guitar melody playing] 735 00:29:47,955 --> 00:29:49,332 [train whistle blows] 736 00:29:50,583 --> 00:29:53,628 [David] I came here to Hollywood to make movies, 737 00:29:53,753 --> 00:29:56,130 and I got sidetracked into TV 738 00:29:56,255 --> 00:29:58,091 and to becoming a writer, 739 00:29:58,091 --> 00:29:59,550 basically because of what I would say 740 00:29:59,550 --> 00:30:00,968 were my own weaknesses. 741 00:30:01,094 --> 00:30:03,054 One, I became scared to direct, 742 00:30:03,054 --> 00:30:05,807 and also there was money involved. 743 00:30:06,516 --> 00:30:08,518 But then the second year of the show, 744 00:30:08,518 --> 00:30:11,771 my feature agent took me out to lunch and he said, 745 00:30:11,771 --> 00:30:15,024 "I want to impress upon you that you are a brand now. 746 00:30:15,149 --> 00:30:16,984 And I'm saying this to you because 747 00:30:17,110 --> 00:30:19,821 now you can get to do all those movies you want." 748 00:30:21,280 --> 00:30:23,991 Many people probably would have quit then and there, right? 749 00:30:24,117 --> 00:30:25,535 And maybe I should have. 750 00:30:26,119 --> 00:30:28,871 But I just loved doing The Sopranos so much 751 00:30:28,871 --> 00:30:31,124 that I stuck with it. 752 00:30:31,124 --> 00:30:34,043 They talk about universe-building all the time. 753 00:30:34,168 --> 00:30:36,045 The more I did The Sopranos, 754 00:30:36,170 --> 00:30:39,298 the less I could watch anything else. 755 00:30:39,298 --> 00:30:41,634 It wouldn't make sense to me. 756 00:30:41,634 --> 00:30:44,429 It wasn't in the universe where I was existing. 757 00:30:44,429 --> 00:30:46,931 Not only those characters, I was living there. 758 00:30:46,931 --> 00:30:48,850 [Alex laughs] Right. 759 00:30:48,975 --> 00:30:50,309 [David] It's all about the characters. 760 00:30:50,309 --> 00:30:51,728 What's going on? 761 00:30:51,728 --> 00:30:54,188 I mean, the story comes out of those characters 762 00:30:54,689 --> 00:30:56,399 and in that little universe. 763 00:30:56,524 --> 00:30:58,192 Oh! 764 00:30:58,317 --> 00:30:59,777 Over and over again, 765 00:30:59,777 --> 00:31:02,363 every character made a deal with the devil. 766 00:31:02,905 --> 00:31:05,241 I said it's about money and death, right? 767 00:31:05,366 --> 00:31:07,577 Why do we have to get rid of the body? 768 00:31:07,702 --> 00:31:09,162 With the fucking questions now? 769 00:31:09,704 --> 00:31:11,789 Everybody made a deal with the devil. 770 00:31:11,789 --> 00:31:13,833 There was this issue of an outstanding loan. 771 00:31:13,833 --> 00:31:15,293 Can I stop you for a second? 772 00:31:15,293 --> 00:31:17,170 Melfi made a deal with the devil. 773 00:31:17,170 --> 00:31:19,380 I don't know where this story is going. 774 00:31:21,174 --> 00:31:23,593 But there are a few ethical ground rules 775 00:31:23,593 --> 00:31:25,470 we should quickly get out of the way. 776 00:31:27,055 --> 00:31:29,432 What you tell me here falls under 777 00:31:29,432 --> 00:31:31,934 doctor-patient confidentiality, 778 00:31:32,894 --> 00:31:35,396 except, if I was, uh... 779 00:31:36,439 --> 00:31:39,901 if I was to hear, let's say, a murder was to take place. 780 00:31:40,026 --> 00:31:42,070 Not that I'm saying it would, but if. 781 00:31:42,570 --> 00:31:44,655 If a patient comes to me and tells me a story 782 00:31:44,655 --> 00:31:46,199 where someone's going to get hurt, 783 00:31:46,199 --> 00:31:48,367 I'm supposed to go to the authorities. 784 00:31:48,951 --> 00:31:50,495 [David] Would I have to go to the police? 785 00:31:50,495 --> 00:31:51,496 Technically. 786 00:31:51,496 --> 00:31:52,830 Technically. 787 00:31:53,414 --> 00:31:55,124 I don't know what happened with this fellow. 788 00:31:55,124 --> 00:31:58,127 I'm-I'm... I'm just saying. 789 00:31:59,420 --> 00:32:01,422 Isn't that a deal with the devil? 790 00:32:01,547 --> 00:32:02,382 Here. 791 00:32:02,382 --> 00:32:03,758 [can hissing] 792 00:32:04,550 --> 00:32:05,802 [Tony chuckles] 793 00:32:06,761 --> 00:32:09,639 [uneasy music playing] 794 00:32:10,473 --> 00:32:12,600 [Carmela] He's a good man, a good father. 795 00:32:12,725 --> 00:32:15,353 You tell me he's a depressed criminal. 796 00:32:15,353 --> 00:32:18,106 - [grunting] - Prone to anger, 797 00:32:18,231 --> 00:32:19,857 serially unfaithful. 798 00:32:19,857 --> 00:32:23,653 Is that your definition of a good man? 799 00:32:24,904 --> 00:32:27,448 [David] Carmela, she was married to the devil. 800 00:32:27,573 --> 00:32:29,492 She married him and stayed married to him. 801 00:32:30,159 --> 00:32:31,536 [sobbing, sniffling] 802 00:32:32,120 --> 00:32:35,289 You can leave now or stay and hear what I have to say. 803 00:32:38,751 --> 00:32:40,294 You must trust your initial impulse 804 00:32:40,420 --> 00:32:42,380 and consider leaving him. 805 00:32:43,256 --> 00:32:45,675 You'll never be able to feel good about yourself. 806 00:32:45,675 --> 00:32:49,512 You'll never be able to quell the feelings of guilt and shame 807 00:32:50,346 --> 00:32:51,681 that you talked about 808 00:32:52,640 --> 00:32:54,642 as long as you're his accomplice. 809 00:32:55,977 --> 00:32:57,228 [sniffles] Leave him. 810 00:32:57,228 --> 00:32:59,147 [Krakower] Take only the children, 811 00:32:59,272 --> 00:33:01,107 what's left of them, and go. 812 00:33:01,941 --> 00:33:04,193 [Carmela] My priest said I should try and work with him, 813 00:33:04,193 --> 00:33:05,862 help him to be a better man. 814 00:33:05,987 --> 00:33:07,238 [Krakower] How's that going? 815 00:33:07,238 --> 00:33:09,157 [glass smashing] 816 00:33:11,159 --> 00:33:14,537 [David] She was told, "Take your kids and leave now." 817 00:33:15,329 --> 00:33:17,373 That old psychiatrist, 818 00:33:17,498 --> 00:33:18,833 that was the only person 819 00:33:18,958 --> 00:33:20,543 that ever spoke the truth about it 820 00:33:20,668 --> 00:33:21,711 in the whole show. 821 00:33:21,836 --> 00:33:23,004 Tony. 822 00:33:24,130 --> 00:33:25,506 [Krakower] I'm not charging you 823 00:33:25,631 --> 00:33:26,924 because I won't take blood money. 824 00:33:26,924 --> 00:33:28,009 Happy birthday. 825 00:33:28,134 --> 00:33:29,343 You can't either. 826 00:33:29,677 --> 00:33:30,678 Mm! 827 00:33:31,846 --> 00:33:33,514 One thing you can never say, 828 00:33:35,224 --> 00:33:36,851 that you haven't been told. 829 00:33:38,061 --> 00:33:39,937 [David] You're living off of his blood money. 830 00:33:39,937 --> 00:33:41,939 Tony, what did you do? 831 00:33:41,939 --> 00:33:44,734 Take your children now and leave. 832 00:33:44,859 --> 00:33:45,943 Oh my God. 833 00:33:45,943 --> 00:33:48,029 - We're having a good week. - [gasps] 834 00:33:48,529 --> 00:33:49,363 She didn't do it. 835 00:33:49,489 --> 00:33:52,283 Oh my God! What a car! 836 00:33:52,283 --> 00:33:54,702 It's a very interesting thing, the level of denial 837 00:33:55,203 --> 00:33:57,497 that someone like her would have to live with. 838 00:33:57,497 --> 00:34:00,875 Or the story she tells herself in order to make that okay. 839 00:34:01,667 --> 00:34:03,044 I don't think there was anything going on 840 00:34:03,169 --> 00:34:05,338 she didn't know about, at least peripherally. 841 00:34:05,338 --> 00:34:06,923 [floorboards creaking] 842 00:34:10,927 --> 00:34:14,013 - [cocking shotgun] - [crows cawing] 843 00:34:14,138 --> 00:34:16,474 [Alex] If Tony's the devil, is there a deal with the devil? 844 00:34:16,474 --> 00:34:18,142 [David] He obviously made his deal. 845 00:34:18,142 --> 00:34:20,978 You know, he's really the devil's representative, 846 00:34:20,978 --> 00:34:22,480 however you want to put it. 847 00:34:22,480 --> 00:34:23,815 [water running] 848 00:34:23,815 --> 00:34:25,942 But he wasn't happy with his deal, was he? 849 00:34:26,734 --> 00:34:28,653 See, that's what I often felt. 850 00:34:28,653 --> 00:34:30,988 People said, "Oh, he should have been punished." 851 00:34:30,988 --> 00:34:32,907 - [water stops] - And my response always: 852 00:34:33,032 --> 00:34:36,285 "He was punished every day, this guy. 853 00:34:36,285 --> 00:34:39,539 You didn't see him be miserable for all these years?" 854 00:34:39,539 --> 00:34:40,665 [retching] 855 00:34:40,665 --> 00:34:41,999 [James] It's a man in struggle. 856 00:34:41,999 --> 00:34:43,126 He doesn't have a religion. 857 00:34:43,251 --> 00:34:44,502 Doesn't believe in the government. 858 00:34:44,502 --> 00:34:46,254 Mr. Soprano was kind enough to come with us. 859 00:34:46,379 --> 00:34:49,173 He doesn't believe in anything except his code of honor. 860 00:34:49,173 --> 00:34:51,134 I'm sure Agent Harris explained 861 00:34:51,134 --> 00:34:52,927 that there's something we'd like you to hear. 862 00:34:53,052 --> 00:34:55,596 And his code of honor is all going to shit. 863 00:34:55,722 --> 00:34:56,931 [tape deck clicks] 864 00:34:57,056 --> 00:34:58,808 [Junior] What are you talking about, meetings? 865 00:34:58,933 --> 00:35:00,351 With who, for Christ's sake, Livia? 866 00:35:00,351 --> 00:35:01,769 [Livia] All of them! 867 00:35:01,894 --> 00:35:04,063 Raymond. Larry. 868 00:35:04,063 --> 00:35:06,524 Three of my capos have their mothers in his place? 869 00:35:07,400 --> 00:35:10,236 If this is true, Livia, you know what I... 870 00:35:10,236 --> 00:35:11,821 I mean, I'm the boss, for Christ's sake. 871 00:35:11,946 --> 00:35:13,781 If I don't act, blood or no... 872 00:35:14,449 --> 00:35:15,491 [Tony groaning] 873 00:35:15,491 --> 00:35:17,034 [Junior] I have to. 874 00:35:17,910 --> 00:35:20,246 - Dead now, motherfucker. - [Tony screams] 875 00:35:20,246 --> 00:35:21,956 [gunshot echoes] 876 00:35:24,584 --> 00:35:26,085 [James] So he has nothing left 877 00:35:26,085 --> 00:35:27,837 and he's looking around and he doesn't-- 878 00:35:27,962 --> 00:35:29,422 It was that-that searching 879 00:35:29,422 --> 00:35:31,758 that I think a lot of America does half the time. 880 00:35:31,758 --> 00:35:33,634 You can go buy things, do whatever, 881 00:35:33,760 --> 00:35:36,345 but it was that he had no center left. 882 00:35:36,345 --> 00:35:39,348 He's a guy who always tries to do the right thing in his mind, 883 00:35:39,348 --> 00:35:42,852 which ends up screwing up everybody's life, pretty much. 884 00:35:42,977 --> 00:35:44,520 He's always trying to do the right thing 885 00:35:44,520 --> 00:35:46,481 and it's never really the right thing. 886 00:35:47,982 --> 00:35:49,609 Like blowing up his friend's restaurant 887 00:35:49,609 --> 00:35:51,903 to stop a hit from being done there. 888 00:35:51,903 --> 00:35:53,654 He thinks it's doing the right thing, 889 00:35:53,780 --> 00:35:56,699 instead it reverberates down and screws up everybody's life. 890 00:35:56,824 --> 00:35:57,992 [cocking rifle] 891 00:35:58,868 --> 00:36:00,328 The fuck are you doing? 892 00:36:00,453 --> 00:36:01,662 Look me in the eye. 893 00:36:02,622 --> 00:36:06,042 Tell me you didn't lay a finger on my place. 894 00:36:06,793 --> 00:36:09,003 [David] I think the show got deeper as it went on. 895 00:36:09,128 --> 00:36:10,713 I didn't burn down your restaurant. 896 00:36:10,713 --> 00:36:12,548 I think Jim was a lot of the reason for that. 897 00:36:12,673 --> 00:36:13,925 I swear on my mother. 898 00:36:18,846 --> 00:36:20,348 [Chris] Jimmy had magic, 899 00:36:20,473 --> 00:36:22,266 and I think that magic kind of 900 00:36:22,266 --> 00:36:24,977 permeated in concentric circles 901 00:36:24,977 --> 00:36:27,355 out to everybody else, including the crew, the directors, 902 00:36:27,480 --> 00:36:29,399 the writers, the actors. 903 00:36:29,399 --> 00:36:30,775 [crew member] Very quiet. 904 00:36:31,359 --> 00:36:33,236 [James sighs] 905 00:36:33,361 --> 00:36:35,113 [Edie] It was always great, 906 00:36:35,113 --> 00:36:37,240 from the beginning to the very end. 907 00:36:37,240 --> 00:36:40,201 [crew member] Here we go. Background! Action! 908 00:36:40,326 --> 00:36:41,536 It was like playing, 909 00:36:41,661 --> 00:36:43,246 it always felt like playing with him, 910 00:36:43,246 --> 00:36:44,997 the way little kids play. 911 00:36:44,997 --> 00:36:47,166 Like, "You be the mommy and I'll be the daddy." 912 00:36:47,166 --> 00:36:50,336 It was as easy and carefree as that. 913 00:36:50,878 --> 00:36:53,131 [crew member] Take eight. Pick up eight mark. 914 00:36:54,173 --> 00:36:55,007 Action! 915 00:36:55,007 --> 00:36:56,134 Go ahead. 916 00:36:56,884 --> 00:36:58,553 Tell me again I sound like your wife. 917 00:36:58,678 --> 00:36:59,887 [James squeals] 918 00:37:00,596 --> 00:37:01,639 [Lorraine] Go ahead. 919 00:37:01,639 --> 00:37:04,392 [babbling] 920 00:37:05,309 --> 00:37:07,603 [Lorraine] He would just, you know, fuck around. 921 00:37:07,729 --> 00:37:09,021 [blows raspberry, chuckles] 922 00:37:09,021 --> 00:37:10,565 He would throw kisses at me 923 00:37:10,690 --> 00:37:12,400 and take his clothes off. 924 00:37:12,525 --> 00:37:15,737 I mean, he was just a lunatic. 925 00:37:15,862 --> 00:37:16,946 [blows air] 926 00:37:17,071 --> 00:37:19,282 - [Lorraine] Okay. - Wait a minute. Hold on. 927 00:37:19,282 --> 00:37:21,784 Go ahead. Tell me again I sound like your wife. 928 00:37:22,744 --> 00:37:24,537 [James trumpets like an elephant] 929 00:37:24,537 --> 00:37:26,497 [James chuckles] 930 00:37:27,123 --> 00:37:29,208 [mumbling indistinctly] 931 00:37:29,208 --> 00:37:31,002 [David] He was great to that crew. 932 00:37:31,002 --> 00:37:32,253 Made them laugh. 933 00:37:33,087 --> 00:37:36,591 And he gave each of the cast members $30,000. 934 00:37:36,716 --> 00:37:38,718 [Alex] You mean after his big negotiation 935 00:37:38,718 --> 00:37:40,678 where he held out and HBO paid him 936 00:37:40,678 --> 00:37:41,846 a million dollars an episode? 937 00:37:41,846 --> 00:37:42,805 Yeah. 938 00:37:44,432 --> 00:37:46,100 [Drea] When Jim got the deal, 939 00:37:46,225 --> 00:37:47,727 none of us even knew it was on the table. 940 00:37:47,727 --> 00:37:49,604 We didn't know to negotiate. 941 00:37:50,730 --> 00:37:52,190 I think he felt terrible about that. 942 00:37:52,190 --> 00:37:57,236 So he called us all into his trailer one by one 943 00:37:57,236 --> 00:37:59,697 and gave everybody a check for $30,000. 944 00:37:59,697 --> 00:38:01,032 What? 945 00:38:02,909 --> 00:38:06,079 - I never got $30,000. - [Alex exclaims, chuckles] 946 00:38:06,079 --> 00:38:09,457 All right. This is where I turn the camera on you. 947 00:38:09,582 --> 00:38:11,084 No, I don't know anything about that. 948 00:38:11,084 --> 00:38:13,336 Uh, he gave money to cast members? 949 00:38:13,336 --> 00:38:15,213 Yeah, that makes-- That sounds like him. 950 00:38:15,755 --> 00:38:19,717 He was a very good-hearted, kind man. 951 00:38:21,344 --> 00:38:22,970 Looking out for his friends. 952 00:38:24,263 --> 00:38:26,641 [mellow electronic music playing] 953 00:38:26,766 --> 00:38:28,559 [David] He was a generous person. 954 00:38:29,143 --> 00:38:31,646 I think he felt HBO had fucked them. 955 00:38:31,771 --> 00:38:35,733 And he wanted to do something to make up for it, to help. 956 00:38:37,151 --> 00:38:40,488 I also think that there was maybe a shred of regret 957 00:38:40,613 --> 00:38:43,032 for the days he didn't show up for work. 958 00:38:43,157 --> 00:38:44,575 Everybody was ready... 959 00:38:47,328 --> 00:38:48,579 Where's Jim? 960 00:38:48,579 --> 00:38:49,956 Look, we all partied 961 00:38:49,956 --> 00:38:52,166 and we had a great fucking time. 962 00:38:52,291 --> 00:38:54,711 And maybe there were some mornings where it just 963 00:38:54,711 --> 00:38:57,547 was a little harder to get out of bed for all of us. 964 00:38:57,672 --> 00:38:59,215 It wasn't just Jim. 965 00:38:59,340 --> 00:39:00,508 What started to happen was, 966 00:39:00,633 --> 00:39:02,719 aside from the money that it cost, 967 00:39:02,844 --> 00:39:04,178 there's the worry about, 968 00:39:04,303 --> 00:39:06,013 you know, what's happening to him. 969 00:39:07,473 --> 00:39:10,518 And then ultimately, he had to agree that we could dock him 970 00:39:10,643 --> 00:39:13,688 $100,000 a day for every day he didn't show up. 971 00:39:13,813 --> 00:39:15,648 [crew member] All right, this is a pick-up. 972 00:39:15,648 --> 00:39:18,276 [David] I think what Jim didn't know or expect 973 00:39:18,985 --> 00:39:22,113 is just how difficult it is to be the lead of a series. 974 00:39:23,698 --> 00:39:25,825 [James] I... had no clue. 975 00:39:25,825 --> 00:39:27,910 I walked in with a big smile on my face 976 00:39:28,035 --> 00:39:30,955 and I got punched right in the nose and I said, 977 00:39:30,955 --> 00:39:32,623 "I got to figure out some way to do this." 978 00:39:32,623 --> 00:39:34,876 I had no clue how to prepare for it. 979 00:39:36,878 --> 00:39:38,171 You'll start Monday morning, 980 00:39:38,171 --> 00:39:41,424 usually 5:30, six o'clock, even earlier. 981 00:39:41,424 --> 00:39:44,052 It'll go to... you go 14 hours. 982 00:39:44,177 --> 00:39:46,137 And because the actors have a 12-hour turnaround, 983 00:39:46,137 --> 00:39:47,972 you go 8:00 and you start at 8:00 the next day, 984 00:39:47,972 --> 00:39:49,348 then you work till 10:00. 985 00:39:49,348 --> 00:39:51,142 You start 10:00 the next day, work till 12:00. 986 00:39:51,142 --> 00:39:53,895 Then you're going to come home and you've got to memorize 987 00:39:54,020 --> 00:39:55,396 seven, eight pages, 988 00:39:55,521 --> 00:39:58,608 four or five scenes for the next day. 989 00:39:58,608 --> 00:40:00,359 And they can work you later on a Friday night. 990 00:40:00,359 --> 00:40:03,029 So Friday you're usually there till 2:00, 3:00 in the morning. 991 00:40:03,029 --> 00:40:05,740 Sometimes we've seen the sun come up on Saturday, 992 00:40:05,865 --> 00:40:08,242 and then Monday morning, you start all over again. 993 00:40:09,702 --> 00:40:12,997 He probably quit the show every other day, I would say. 994 00:40:12,997 --> 00:40:14,540 You know, maybe every day. 995 00:40:14,540 --> 00:40:15,917 But giving him... 996 00:40:16,042 --> 00:40:17,794 Every other day, 997 00:40:17,794 --> 00:40:20,254 we would go to a bar and, you know... [chuckles] 998 00:40:21,381 --> 00:40:23,800 We would have the exact same conversation. 999 00:40:23,800 --> 00:40:27,345 We would get drunk, you know, say, "I'm-I'm done. 1000 00:40:27,345 --> 00:40:28,763 I can't, I'm not going back." 1001 00:40:28,888 --> 00:40:30,264 And I would say, "Okay, 1002 00:40:30,390 --> 00:40:32,975 you got a hundred people depending on you here." 1003 00:40:33,101 --> 00:40:36,437 You know? And he's like, "Ah, yeah, yeah. Okay." 1004 00:40:36,562 --> 00:40:38,189 You know. [laughs] 1005 00:40:38,189 --> 00:40:40,191 So usually he would come back. 1006 00:40:40,191 --> 00:40:43,319 But then a few times, he disappeared for a few days. 1007 00:40:43,319 --> 00:40:44,779 You know, it just got to him. 1008 00:40:47,573 --> 00:40:49,117 [director] And action. 1009 00:40:49,826 --> 00:40:52,370 I'm gonna tell you something you're not gonna like. 1010 00:40:54,956 --> 00:40:56,457 [sighs] Fuck. 1011 00:40:56,958 --> 00:40:58,042 Just cut it. 1012 00:40:59,419 --> 00:41:01,462 - This fucking scene. - [bell rings] 1013 00:41:01,587 --> 00:41:06,050 He felt that he had to go to places, he said, that were 1014 00:41:07,635 --> 00:41:08,678 destructive to him. 1015 00:41:08,803 --> 00:41:09,679 [Tony] You know what? 1016 00:41:10,263 --> 00:41:11,848 [David] And painful for him. 1017 00:41:11,973 --> 00:41:13,349 You're fucking crazy. 1018 00:41:13,933 --> 00:41:16,227 All I ever asked for was kindness. 1019 00:41:16,227 --> 00:41:18,521 - Come here. Come here. - [whimpers] 1020 00:41:18,521 --> 00:41:20,481 You listen to me and you listen to me good. 1021 00:41:21,274 --> 00:41:23,067 No more calls, no more nothing. 1022 00:41:23,067 --> 00:41:25,319 You see me, you cross the street. 1023 00:41:25,445 --> 00:41:27,655 You're a dangerous fuck and I don't want you in my life. 1024 00:41:28,698 --> 00:41:30,366 No, don't. Don't go! Don't go! 1025 00:41:31,117 --> 00:41:32,034 I'll call your wife! 1026 00:41:35,329 --> 00:41:36,205 What'd you say? 1027 00:41:38,666 --> 00:41:39,500 I'll go to Columbia. 1028 00:41:40,126 --> 00:41:41,461 I'll tell your daughter about us. 1029 00:41:42,003 --> 00:41:44,589 [James] Some of the things I'll use to get angry 1030 00:41:45,840 --> 00:41:48,342 are... lack of sleep 1031 00:41:50,011 --> 00:41:52,346 will piss you off to no end. 1032 00:41:52,472 --> 00:41:53,556 [Tony groans] 1033 00:41:53,556 --> 00:41:55,391 Sleep two, three hours a night 1034 00:41:55,516 --> 00:41:56,809 before you have a violent scene, 1035 00:41:56,809 --> 00:41:59,228 every single thing that anyone does 1036 00:41:59,228 --> 00:42:00,563 will piss you off. 1037 00:42:00,688 --> 00:42:01,522 [Gloria wheezing] 1038 00:42:01,647 --> 00:42:02,940 Now you listen to me. 1039 00:42:03,649 --> 00:42:05,943 You go near my wife or my family, 1040 00:42:05,943 --> 00:42:07,195 and I'll fucking kill you. 1041 00:42:07,320 --> 00:42:09,238 You understand me? I'll fucking kill you. 1042 00:42:09,238 --> 00:42:12,366 Kill me. Kill me, you cocksucker. 1043 00:42:12,492 --> 00:42:14,619 I'll do a lot of weird things. Bang my head on things. 1044 00:42:14,619 --> 00:42:16,162 You do whatever you need to do. 1045 00:42:16,162 --> 00:42:18,039 Put a rock in your shoe, a very pointy rock. 1046 00:42:18,164 --> 00:42:19,415 Walk around with that all day. 1047 00:42:20,208 --> 00:42:22,668 I mean, it's silly, but it works. You're mad. 1048 00:42:23,544 --> 00:42:25,588 And slowly, things become more accessible to you. 1049 00:42:25,713 --> 00:42:27,715 But I find I need to be alone. 1050 00:42:28,383 --> 00:42:30,885 I'm not the type that's going to be chatting a lot 1051 00:42:31,010 --> 00:42:32,720 before I have to do something. 1052 00:42:32,845 --> 00:42:34,472 I'll drink six cups of coffee. 1053 00:42:35,181 --> 00:42:37,141 I don't recommend that to anybody, but... 1054 00:42:37,725 --> 00:42:39,018 And then you're mad. 1055 00:42:39,018 --> 00:42:41,354 I'll try anything to get where I have to go. 1056 00:42:41,354 --> 00:42:43,272 As long as it's not gonna hurt anybody. 1057 00:42:43,731 --> 00:42:47,151 Fucking goddamn! Fucking bitch! 1058 00:42:48,194 --> 00:42:49,570 Goddamn it, Tony! 1059 00:42:54,742 --> 00:42:56,411 [crew chattering] 1060 00:42:56,536 --> 00:42:57,829 [coughs] 1061 00:43:01,707 --> 00:43:03,209 [Robin] He would get himself ready for a scene 1062 00:43:03,209 --> 00:43:05,128 by punching the inside of the car so much 1063 00:43:05,128 --> 00:43:06,504 his knuckles would be bruised. 1064 00:43:06,504 --> 00:43:09,006 He'd have to do these things to himself. 1065 00:43:09,006 --> 00:43:11,134 [somber music playing] 1066 00:43:13,386 --> 00:43:17,306 When Jim killed the snitch, he really hurt his hands. 1067 00:43:17,306 --> 00:43:19,392 The rope or whatever it was. 1068 00:43:19,392 --> 00:43:20,768 [Tony grunting heavily] 1069 00:43:21,477 --> 00:43:24,272 - [telephone ringing] - [birds calling] 1070 00:43:24,272 --> 00:43:25,982 [Edie] He was incredibly invested 1071 00:43:26,107 --> 00:43:28,317 in making that character believable, 1072 00:43:28,317 --> 00:43:31,195 and unless you're really diligent, 1073 00:43:31,195 --> 00:43:33,197 you can end up taking your work home. 1074 00:43:33,197 --> 00:43:35,491 As an actor, that's not always a great idea. 1075 00:43:35,491 --> 00:43:39,620 So yeah, I think-- I think it may have taken a toll on him. 1076 00:43:42,790 --> 00:43:44,083 [David] When you said to me, 1077 00:43:44,083 --> 00:43:45,585 "He said it was difficult for him," 1078 00:43:45,585 --> 00:43:47,045 and I said, "That's what he said." 1079 00:43:47,045 --> 00:43:48,087 [Alex] Right. 1080 00:43:48,087 --> 00:43:49,589 To a certain extent, 1081 00:43:49,589 --> 00:43:52,341 I'm being a wiseass because obviously 1082 00:43:52,341 --> 00:43:54,802 there was other things going on in his life also. 1083 00:43:55,636 --> 00:43:59,140 And he had some problems which are now well-known, 1084 00:44:00,141 --> 00:44:02,560 uh, that were continuing to go on. 1085 00:44:03,269 --> 00:44:05,313 [interviewer] How do you recover from a shoot like that? 1086 00:44:05,980 --> 00:44:07,190 You drink. 1087 00:44:07,190 --> 00:44:09,317 [chuckles] I don't know. I don't know. 1088 00:44:10,610 --> 00:44:14,906 We did an intervention with him at my apartment in New York, 1089 00:44:15,990 --> 00:44:19,160 and, uh, that was to try to get him to go 1090 00:44:19,869 --> 00:44:22,955 to a facility, you know, for rehab. 1091 00:44:22,955 --> 00:44:26,042 And we had had a lot of friction by that point. 1092 00:44:26,167 --> 00:44:30,338 And-And the, uh, the ruse was I was inviting Jimmy over 1093 00:44:30,463 --> 00:44:33,174 so we could talk things through and clear the air. 1094 00:44:34,217 --> 00:44:37,053 And then he came up, everybody, 1095 00:44:37,178 --> 00:44:39,389 we had the rehearsal the day before or whatever. 1096 00:44:39,389 --> 00:44:41,349 His sister, everybody were there, 1097 00:44:41,474 --> 00:44:43,476 and he walked in, he saw everybody sitting there, 1098 00:44:43,476 --> 00:44:45,311 and he went, "Oh, fuck this." 1099 00:44:45,311 --> 00:44:48,231 And he walked out and everybody went, "Jimmy, Jimmy." 1100 00:44:48,356 --> 00:44:51,067 And he turned to me and he went, "Fire me." 1101 00:44:52,026 --> 00:44:53,152 And he left. 1102 00:44:53,152 --> 00:44:54,821 [indistinct chatter] 1103 00:44:54,821 --> 00:44:56,948 Can I be-- Can I be a Soprano baby? 1104 00:44:57,490 --> 00:44:59,617 [Michael] Jim had, you know, like all of us, 1105 00:44:59,617 --> 00:45:01,494 his own things to work out. 1106 00:45:01,494 --> 00:45:03,663 And his life changed dramatically 1107 00:45:03,663 --> 00:45:05,248 in the course of that show. 1108 00:45:05,248 --> 00:45:06,457 [man] Relax, man. 1109 00:45:06,457 --> 00:45:08,042 [James] Get the fuck away from me. 1110 00:45:08,167 --> 00:45:09,127 You understand me? 1111 00:45:09,127 --> 00:45:11,629 [man] Yeah. Just relax. 1112 00:45:11,629 --> 00:45:13,589 [James] I'm gonna break your fucking face. 1113 00:45:13,589 --> 00:45:16,801 He went from being a relatively unknown actor 1114 00:45:16,801 --> 00:45:19,804 to being a huge star, extremely recognizable, 1115 00:45:19,804 --> 00:45:22,181 and it was a little strange for him, 1116 00:45:22,181 --> 00:45:25,476 that kind of eradication of privacy. 1117 00:45:25,476 --> 00:45:27,395 [photographer] Whoa, whoa, whoa! 1118 00:45:27,520 --> 00:45:28,938 [Michael] He was really in the spotlight 1119 00:45:29,063 --> 00:45:29,939 wherever he went. 1120 00:45:30,064 --> 00:45:31,524 He didn't blend into the crowd. 1121 00:45:31,524 --> 00:45:33,359 Stop it. My kid's with me. 1122 00:45:33,359 --> 00:45:35,403 And he was very different than Tony Soprano. 1123 00:45:36,112 --> 00:45:37,488 He was very laid back. 1124 00:45:37,488 --> 00:45:39,240 You know, he wore Birkenstocks 1125 00:45:39,365 --> 00:45:41,909 and liked Green Day and AC/DC. 1126 00:45:42,034 --> 00:45:44,328 - What kind of puppy? - [woman] Chihuahua Pomeranian. 1127 00:45:44,328 --> 00:45:46,873 What's funny is that a lot of fans look at Tony Soprano 1128 00:45:46,873 --> 00:45:48,332 as kind of a role model, 1129 00:45:48,332 --> 00:45:51,085 which is very scary in a lot of ways. 1130 00:45:51,627 --> 00:45:52,920 So maybe that-- you know, 1131 00:45:53,046 --> 00:45:54,714 I mean, he probably felt that. 1132 00:45:55,298 --> 00:45:56,716 People thinking he's Tony Soprano 1133 00:45:56,716 --> 00:45:57,925 and he's not. 1134 00:45:58,426 --> 00:46:01,512 [David] He was really a good guy and really complicated. 1135 00:46:02,430 --> 00:46:03,473 You might say, 1136 00:46:05,433 --> 00:46:06,642 and I'm not sure about this, 1137 00:46:06,768 --> 00:46:08,519 maybe there was more Tony there 1138 00:46:08,519 --> 00:46:10,271 than he wanted to admit. 1139 00:46:10,396 --> 00:46:11,981 That it was too easy for him. 1140 00:46:12,106 --> 00:46:13,649 [Carmela] Can I tell you something, Tony? 1141 00:46:14,108 --> 00:46:15,777 Don't pretend like I got a choice. 1142 00:46:16,486 --> 00:46:17,528 The last year, 1143 00:46:18,404 --> 00:46:21,657 I have been dreaming, and fantasizing, 1144 00:46:21,783 --> 00:46:23,284 and in love with Furio. 1145 00:46:24,243 --> 00:46:25,453 [stammers] 1146 00:46:27,914 --> 00:46:30,083 [continues pounding on wall] 1147 00:46:30,083 --> 00:46:32,627 He talked to you! Oh, poor you! 1148 00:46:32,752 --> 00:46:34,504 He made me feel like I mattered! 1149 00:46:34,629 --> 00:46:36,089 You asked me the other day, 1150 00:46:36,089 --> 00:46:37,840 what Irina's cousin has that you don't have. 1151 00:46:37,840 --> 00:46:40,843 And I thought about it 'cause it's a good fucking question. 1152 00:46:40,843 --> 00:46:43,012 And she's sexy enough, even with the one pin gone, 1153 00:46:43,137 --> 00:46:44,013 but that's not it. 1154 00:46:44,138 --> 00:46:45,473 I could converse with her 1155 00:46:45,598 --> 00:46:46,766 'cause she had something to say! 1156 00:46:46,766 --> 00:46:48,768 I am here! 1157 00:46:48,768 --> 00:46:50,144 I have things to say! 1158 00:46:50,269 --> 00:46:52,146 Besides "Bring the fucking chairs down" 1159 00:46:52,271 --> 00:46:53,481 and "Did you sign the living trust?" 1160 00:46:53,606 --> 00:46:55,108 She's a grown fucking woman 1161 00:46:55,108 --> 00:46:56,150 who's been kicked around! 1162 00:46:56,275 --> 00:46:57,527 And she's been on her own 1163 00:46:57,527 --> 00:46:59,695 and she's had to fight! And struggle! 1164 00:46:59,821 --> 00:47:01,489 Unlike me, is that it? 1165 00:47:01,614 --> 00:47:03,908 Who the fuck wanted it like this? 1166 00:47:03,908 --> 00:47:07,161 Who the fuck pissed and moaned at just the idea 1167 00:47:07,286 --> 00:47:09,122 of me with a fucking real estate license?! 1168 00:47:09,122 --> 00:47:11,541 Free to sit back for 20 fucking years 1169 00:47:11,541 --> 00:47:13,209 and fiddle with the air conditioning, 1170 00:47:13,334 --> 00:47:15,044 and fucking bitch and complain 1171 00:47:15,169 --> 00:47:18,297 and fucking bitch, bitch, bitch! To me! 1172 00:47:18,297 --> 00:47:20,508 To your priest! Fuck it! 1173 00:47:22,385 --> 00:47:25,346 [David] And people say, "The show got darker." Well... 1174 00:47:26,055 --> 00:47:27,265 he got darker. 1175 00:47:34,230 --> 00:47:35,732 [priest] I am Resurrection. 1176 00:47:35,857 --> 00:47:37,483 [somber organ music playing] 1177 00:47:37,483 --> 00:47:39,861 And I am Life, says the Lord. 1178 00:47:41,821 --> 00:47:44,407 Whoever has faith in me shall have life, 1179 00:47:46,200 --> 00:47:47,785 even though he died. 1180 00:47:49,579 --> 00:47:51,247 And everyone who has life 1181 00:47:51,247 --> 00:47:54,876 and has committed himself to me in faith, 1182 00:47:56,919 --> 00:47:58,212 shall not die forever. 1183 00:48:01,549 --> 00:48:03,217 [James Lipton] Jim, if heaven exists, 1184 00:48:03,342 --> 00:48:04,761 what would you like to hear God say 1185 00:48:04,761 --> 00:48:06,596 when you arrive at the Pearly Gates? 1186 00:48:07,388 --> 00:48:09,474 "Take over for a while. I'll be right back." 1187 00:48:09,474 --> 00:48:12,602 - [audience laughing] - No, no, no. No, no, no. 1188 00:48:12,602 --> 00:48:14,896 - That's it. That's it. - [cheering] 1189 00:48:15,021 --> 00:48:17,815 You dare not change it. It's too good. 1190 00:48:17,815 --> 00:48:19,484 Think of the possibilities. 1191 00:48:20,526 --> 00:48:23,112 ["Ave Maria" playing on piano] 1192 00:48:24,447 --> 00:48:26,657 [David] This is years after the show ended. 1193 00:48:27,408 --> 00:48:28,659 His agent called me. 1194 00:48:33,122 --> 00:48:34,165 And she said... 1195 00:48:35,583 --> 00:48:37,251 She was, I don't mean blunt, 1196 00:48:37,377 --> 00:48:39,420 she was just very straightforward about it. 1197 00:48:41,130 --> 00:48:42,423 [Alex] Were you surprised? 1198 00:48:42,548 --> 00:48:43,508 No. 1199 00:48:45,968 --> 00:48:47,095 [clears throat] 1200 00:48:48,221 --> 00:48:49,138 Dear Jimmy, 1201 00:48:50,473 --> 00:48:52,892 your family asked me to speak at your service, 1202 00:48:52,892 --> 00:48:55,645 and I am so honored and touched. 1203 00:48:57,146 --> 00:48:59,941 Um, I tried to write a traditional eulogy, but... 1204 00:49:00,983 --> 00:49:03,277 it came out like bad-- bad TV. 1205 00:49:03,403 --> 00:49:04,320 Um... 1206 00:49:05,488 --> 00:49:06,864 So I'm writing you this letter, 1207 00:49:06,864 --> 00:49:08,950 but it is being done to and for an audience, 1208 00:49:09,075 --> 00:49:10,952 so we'll give the funny opening a try. 1209 00:49:11,619 --> 00:49:14,330 One day we were on the set shooting a scene, 1210 00:49:14,330 --> 00:49:16,040 and it said, "Tony opens the door angrily 1211 00:49:16,040 --> 00:49:17,458 and he closes it, 1212 00:49:17,583 --> 00:49:18,626 then he starts to speak." 1213 00:49:19,335 --> 00:49:22,922 The cameras rolled and you opened the refrigerator door, 1214 00:49:22,922 --> 00:49:24,757 and you slammed it really hard, 1215 00:49:24,757 --> 00:49:26,718 and you kept slamming it and slamming it 1216 00:49:26,718 --> 00:49:28,678 and you went apeshit on that refrigerator. 1217 00:49:28,678 --> 00:49:30,847 And so we finally had to call cut. 1218 00:49:30,847 --> 00:49:34,058 And I remember you saying, "Ah, this role, this role, 1219 00:49:34,058 --> 00:49:38,020 the-the places it takes me to and the things I have to do, 1220 00:49:38,020 --> 00:49:40,565 it's so dark." And I remember saying to you, 1221 00:49:40,565 --> 00:49:42,900 "Did I tell you to destroy the refrigerator? 1222 00:49:42,900 --> 00:49:44,986 Did it say anywhere in the script, 1223 00:49:45,111 --> 00:49:46,446 'Tony destroys the refrigerator'?" 1224 00:49:46,446 --> 00:49:48,322 [mourners laughing] 1225 00:49:48,448 --> 00:49:51,743 "It says, 'Tony angrily shuts the refrigerator door.' 1226 00:49:51,743 --> 00:49:53,077 That's what it says. 1227 00:49:53,077 --> 00:49:54,912 You destroyed the refrigerator." 1228 00:49:56,330 --> 00:49:57,331 [exhales] 1229 00:49:58,332 --> 00:50:00,668 Another memory image of you that comes to mind is, 1230 00:50:00,793 --> 00:50:02,795 we were shooting in that really hot summer 1231 00:50:02,795 --> 00:50:04,714 in humid New Jersey heat. 1232 00:50:04,714 --> 00:50:07,216 And you were sitting in an aluminum beach chair 1233 00:50:08,217 --> 00:50:10,219 with a wet handkerchief on your head. 1234 00:50:11,512 --> 00:50:13,765 And I was filled with love. 1235 00:50:14,348 --> 00:50:18,352 And I knew then that I was in the right place. 1236 00:50:19,312 --> 00:50:20,605 Because, um... 1237 00:50:21,814 --> 00:50:24,025 I said, "Wow, I haven't seen that done 1238 00:50:24,150 --> 00:50:25,443 since my father used to do it 1239 00:50:25,443 --> 00:50:28,488 and my Italian uncles used to do it 1240 00:50:28,488 --> 00:50:30,823 and my Italian grandfather used to do it 1241 00:50:30,823 --> 00:50:33,367 in this same hot sun in New Jersey." 1242 00:50:33,493 --> 00:50:36,871 And I was so proud of our heritage. 1243 00:50:36,996 --> 00:50:38,081 [sobs] 1244 00:50:43,336 --> 00:50:44,796 [sniffles] 1245 00:50:44,796 --> 00:50:47,965 It made me so proud of our heritage to see you do that. 1246 00:50:48,925 --> 00:50:51,302 I really feel that, though I'm older than you, 1247 00:50:51,302 --> 00:50:54,597 that-- and always felt, that we are brothers. 1248 00:50:55,556 --> 00:50:58,267 Now, to talk about a third guy between us, 1249 00:50:58,267 --> 00:51:00,978 there was you and me and this third guy. Um... 1250 00:51:01,562 --> 00:51:04,649 People always say, "Tony Soprano, 1251 00:51:04,649 --> 00:51:07,318 why did we love him so much when he was such a prick?" 1252 00:51:08,194 --> 00:51:10,822 And my theory was, is they saw the little boy. 1253 00:51:11,906 --> 00:51:13,533 They felt and they loved the little boy. 1254 00:51:13,533 --> 00:51:16,494 And they sensed his love and hurt. 1255 00:51:16,494 --> 00:51:19,247 And you brought all of that to it. 1256 00:51:19,914 --> 00:51:21,791 - [director] Cut it. - [bell rings] 1257 00:51:22,583 --> 00:51:23,751 Let's go again. 1258 00:51:24,711 --> 00:51:26,796 [Alex] Working with Jim as Tony, 1259 00:51:26,921 --> 00:51:28,172 when you were writing, 1260 00:51:28,172 --> 00:51:30,591 did you see elements of yourself in Tony? 1261 00:51:32,552 --> 00:51:34,429 Toward the end, I began to. 1262 00:51:35,430 --> 00:51:39,016 I was beginning to see that we had merged in some way, 1263 00:51:39,016 --> 00:51:40,226 some strange way. 1264 00:51:40,226 --> 00:51:42,019 [somber mandolin music playing] 1265 00:51:42,019 --> 00:51:43,563 [Frank] There were two Davids. 1266 00:51:43,563 --> 00:51:46,566 He was so fucking funny when he wanted to be. 1267 00:51:46,566 --> 00:51:50,278 He was so, so great when he wanted to be. 1268 00:51:51,112 --> 00:51:57,285 But this person that knowingly made you feel like 1269 00:51:57,994 --> 00:52:03,166 you... had some hand in the cause 1270 00:52:03,166 --> 00:52:06,836 of his dour state or whatever, or his unhappy-- 1271 00:52:06,961 --> 00:52:09,005 or-or you had to do something 1272 00:52:09,130 --> 00:52:11,174 to make him happy or whatever, 1273 00:52:11,174 --> 00:52:13,468 that-- [stammers] That wasn't gonna happen. 1274 00:52:14,844 --> 00:52:19,390 The third season comes along, and I didn't go back, you know? 1275 00:52:19,390 --> 00:52:20,683 Um... 1276 00:52:22,769 --> 00:52:24,729 [chuckles] I wasn't happy. 1277 00:52:26,856 --> 00:52:29,192 [Robin] A large part of what happened to me 1278 00:52:29,192 --> 00:52:31,235 is that it became toxic. 1279 00:52:32,320 --> 00:52:34,947 We didn't leave that room except to go on the set, 1280 00:52:34,947 --> 00:52:40,244 which was its own exhausting, you know, horror. 1281 00:52:40,244 --> 00:52:42,080 You know, just a lot of work, 1282 00:52:42,080 --> 00:52:44,665 just to have to be there and not really have a role, 1283 00:52:45,166 --> 00:52:46,793 um, that your mind could-- 1284 00:52:46,793 --> 00:52:49,087 You know, at the end, my mind was not on it. 1285 00:52:49,087 --> 00:52:51,005 And he knew that. And he was mad. 1286 00:52:51,130 --> 00:52:54,592 I made a couple of bad mistakes. I did. 1287 00:52:55,343 --> 00:52:57,220 You know, when he fired me, 1288 00:52:58,638 --> 00:53:00,807 we were in that-- oh, it was so awful. 1289 00:53:00,807 --> 00:53:02,141 And he... 1290 00:53:02,141 --> 00:53:05,353 Everything that David accused me of, I did. 1291 00:53:05,478 --> 00:53:08,648 I interrupted him during conversations with other people. 1292 00:53:08,648 --> 00:53:10,733 That was one thing I did. 1293 00:53:11,192 --> 00:53:12,944 I did, like, a few bad things. 1294 00:53:12,944 --> 00:53:14,278 [laughs] 1295 00:53:17,073 --> 00:53:18,366 And that was what-- 1296 00:53:18,491 --> 00:53:22,286 that ultimately was what it was with me and him. 1297 00:53:22,286 --> 00:53:24,580 Because you had to behave yourself. 1298 00:53:25,915 --> 00:53:28,793 You had to behave. He's a very coded person. 1299 00:53:28,793 --> 00:53:32,130 He has a code of cool and behavior 1300 00:53:32,130 --> 00:53:34,590 and what is acceptable and what is not. 1301 00:53:34,590 --> 00:53:36,926 And I think that I-- that I-- [laughs] 1302 00:53:37,844 --> 00:53:40,263 You know, I probably 1303 00:53:41,055 --> 00:53:43,933 morphed into that mother category of... 1304 00:53:44,058 --> 00:53:47,395 of, you know, black-holedness for him, you know. 1305 00:53:47,937 --> 00:53:50,398 In the writers' room, it's collaborative. 1306 00:53:51,065 --> 00:53:52,400 But it's still your vision. 1307 00:53:52,525 --> 00:53:53,568 Did that cause tension? 1308 00:53:53,693 --> 00:53:55,111 Let's put it this way. 1309 00:53:55,236 --> 00:53:57,447 I used to sometimes get very angry 1310 00:53:58,573 --> 00:54:00,491 because no one was coming up with anything. 1311 00:54:00,491 --> 00:54:04,328 And then, since those days, I've thought, 1312 00:54:04,871 --> 00:54:07,665 "Yeah, maybe that's because you said no to everything. 1313 00:54:07,665 --> 00:54:08,833 So they stopped." 1314 00:54:10,084 --> 00:54:11,711 This attitude of yours, 1315 00:54:11,711 --> 00:54:14,630 it's a lot of what's made you an effective leader. 1316 00:54:14,756 --> 00:54:17,258 But we all got flaws, even you. 1317 00:54:18,593 --> 00:54:21,846 Seven deadly sins, and yours is pride. 1318 00:54:23,723 --> 00:54:24,849 [Steven] David, look, you know, 1319 00:54:24,849 --> 00:54:26,392 he's very uncompromising, 1320 00:54:26,392 --> 00:54:27,852 but there has to be a part of you 1321 00:54:27,852 --> 00:54:29,437 that is ruthless and merciless 1322 00:54:29,562 --> 00:54:31,939 when it comes to protecting the art. 1323 00:54:32,065 --> 00:54:35,026 Uh, I think that's true with every art form. 1324 00:54:37,153 --> 00:54:38,196 All due respect, 1325 00:54:39,155 --> 00:54:42,116 you got no fucking idea what it's like to be number one. 1326 00:54:42,617 --> 00:54:44,160 Every decision you make 1327 00:54:44,285 --> 00:54:46,871 affects every facet of every other fucking thing. 1328 00:54:46,871 --> 00:54:48,623 It's too much to deal with, almost. 1329 00:54:49,457 --> 00:54:50,458 And in the end, 1330 00:54:51,125 --> 00:54:52,543 you're completely alone with it all. 1331 00:54:54,462 --> 00:54:55,713 [Michael] There was an enormous 1332 00:54:55,713 --> 00:54:56,923 amount of pressure on him 1333 00:54:56,923 --> 00:54:59,133 because, you know, now you're... 1334 00:55:00,301 --> 00:55:02,553 you got to-- you set the bar really high 1335 00:55:02,553 --> 00:55:05,473 and you gotta surpass it every year, you know? 1336 00:55:05,598 --> 00:55:06,641 You got to make it better. 1337 00:55:06,766 --> 00:55:08,684 Not just satisfy the audience, 1338 00:55:08,684 --> 00:55:11,062 but make it better, more interesting, stranger. 1339 00:55:11,604 --> 00:55:13,398 Think about the risks he took. 1340 00:55:13,398 --> 00:55:17,485 You know, his whimsical nature, that wonder. 1341 00:55:17,610 --> 00:55:18,986 "And what if we just do this?" 1342 00:55:19,112 --> 00:55:20,405 Think I wanna come home. 1343 00:55:20,405 --> 00:55:22,407 There are some non-negotiable conditions. 1344 00:55:22,407 --> 00:55:23,699 Like what? 1345 00:55:23,699 --> 00:55:25,410 You can't have your horse in here. 1346 00:55:25,410 --> 00:55:27,328 - Why not? - Are you kidding me? 1347 00:55:27,453 --> 00:55:30,081 The smell and shit all over the place? 1348 00:55:30,081 --> 00:55:31,499 I'll clean up after her. 1349 00:55:31,624 --> 00:55:33,584 - You always say that. - [horse whinnies] 1350 00:55:33,584 --> 00:55:35,503 [Edie] It really was just from this guy's 1351 00:55:35,628 --> 00:55:37,422 heart and imagination. 1352 00:55:37,422 --> 00:55:38,923 And we knew if you wanted 1353 00:55:38,923 --> 00:55:41,592 to even change a word of your dialogue, they're like, 1354 00:55:41,592 --> 00:55:43,511 "We gotta call the Master Cylinder," 1355 00:55:43,636 --> 00:55:45,096 which is what we referred to him as. 1356 00:55:45,096 --> 00:55:46,556 - The Master Cylinder? - The Master Cylinder 1357 00:55:46,681 --> 00:55:49,058 up in the tower somewhere. 1358 00:55:49,183 --> 00:55:51,686 We'd wait to get the word back, "He said that's all right" 1359 00:55:51,811 --> 00:55:53,187 or "No, keep it as it is." 1360 00:55:53,312 --> 00:55:57,108 But 'cause it mattered to him and it was his project. 1361 00:55:57,108 --> 00:56:00,111 You know, we were there to serve his project. 1362 00:56:00,111 --> 00:56:01,404 [photographer] Eyes right here. 1363 00:56:01,404 --> 00:56:03,281 [Edie] That's what we're hired to do. 1364 00:56:04,991 --> 00:56:06,617 - [laughs] - Just hug me. 1365 00:56:06,617 --> 00:56:08,202 [laughter] 1366 00:56:08,327 --> 00:56:10,204 [camera shutters clicking] 1367 00:56:10,329 --> 00:56:12,123 [Chris] The person who set the highest standards 1368 00:56:12,123 --> 00:56:14,375 was David, and it did torment him. 1369 00:56:14,500 --> 00:56:16,377 And he was never satisfied with the work. 1370 00:56:17,503 --> 00:56:19,422 He was one of those guys that just... 1371 00:56:21,382 --> 00:56:22,592 "David, enjoy it." 1372 00:56:24,844 --> 00:56:26,220 [Bruce Springsteen] Come on, buddy. 1373 00:56:26,345 --> 00:56:27,930 David, congrats, man. 1374 00:56:27,930 --> 00:56:29,557 - How are you? Thank you. - Good. 1375 00:56:29,682 --> 00:56:31,934 - Good to see you. - Good to see you too. 1376 00:56:32,685 --> 00:56:35,146 [audience cheering] 1377 00:56:36,439 --> 00:56:39,150 [Steven] Every couple of decades or so, 1378 00:56:39,150 --> 00:56:41,986 somebody comes along and changes the game. 1379 00:56:43,571 --> 00:56:45,948 The nice thing about being from New Jersey 1380 00:56:46,074 --> 00:56:48,076 is they never see us coming. 1381 00:56:48,201 --> 00:56:50,995 [audience laughing] 1382 00:56:50,995 --> 00:56:54,123 Uncompromising, unrelenting, 1383 00:56:54,123 --> 00:56:58,252 innovative, idealistic, romantic to a fault, 1384 00:56:59,087 --> 00:57:02,673 and, yes, a cynical, self-destructive contrarian. 1385 00:57:03,758 --> 00:57:06,594 In other words, my kind of guy. 1386 00:57:06,719 --> 00:57:09,680 [audience laughing, cheering] 1387 00:57:10,223 --> 00:57:12,642 ["Dream" by Roy Orbison playing] 1388 00:57:16,062 --> 00:57:19,107 [applause continues] 1389 00:57:19,732 --> 00:57:21,359 [helicopter whirring] 1390 00:57:21,359 --> 00:57:23,945 ♪ Dream ♪ 1391 00:57:24,070 --> 00:57:27,782 ♪ When you're feeling blue ♪ 1392 00:57:27,907 --> 00:57:30,535 [distorted] Change my meat to Black Forest. 1393 00:57:31,452 --> 00:57:33,913 ♪ Dream ♪ 1394 00:57:33,913 --> 00:57:35,540 [macaroni clinking] 1395 00:57:35,540 --> 00:57:37,375 ♪ That's the thing to do ♪ 1396 00:57:37,375 --> 00:57:39,335 [dog snarls, barks] 1397 00:57:39,460 --> 00:57:41,129 [dog growls] 1398 00:57:41,671 --> 00:57:44,757 - ♪ Just ♪ - [dial tone beeping] 1399 00:57:44,757 --> 00:57:49,887 ♪ Watch the smoke rings rise in the air ♪ 1400 00:57:49,887 --> 00:57:51,472 [wood creaking] 1401 00:57:52,181 --> 00:57:53,850 ♪ You'll find your share... ♪ 1402 00:57:53,975 --> 00:57:55,810 Fucking dreams, Jesus Christ. 1403 00:57:55,810 --> 00:57:57,395 [Alex] I wanted to talk to you about dreams. 1404 00:57:57,395 --> 00:57:59,731 - It's all right. - [David] Dreams and movies 1405 00:57:59,731 --> 00:58:01,023 are so close, 1406 00:58:01,691 --> 00:58:04,402 that you can go from right here in this room-- 1407 00:58:04,402 --> 00:58:06,821 Bam! To, you know, anywhere. 1408 00:58:06,821 --> 00:58:08,239 [Alex] Right. Free association. 1409 00:58:08,239 --> 00:58:09,323 [David] Yeah. 1410 00:58:09,449 --> 00:58:11,659 ["Dream" continues playing] 1411 00:58:11,659 --> 00:58:14,996 ♪ Dream ♪ 1412 00:58:15,121 --> 00:58:18,207 ♪ And they might come true ♪ 1413 00:58:19,667 --> 00:58:22,086 [door hinge creaking] 1414 00:58:22,086 --> 00:58:26,466 ♪ Things never are ♪ 1415 00:58:26,466 --> 00:58:30,803 - [dripping echoes] - ♪ As bad as they seem ♪ 1416 00:58:30,803 --> 00:58:32,722 ♪ So dream... ♪ 1417 00:58:32,847 --> 00:58:34,682 [crowd clamoring] 1418 00:58:35,058 --> 00:58:36,934 [Big Pussy] Come on, Ton. Sooner or later, 1419 00:58:36,934 --> 00:58:38,436 you gotta face facts. 1420 00:58:38,436 --> 00:58:40,855 - I don't wanna hear it. - Well, you're gonna hear it. 1421 00:58:42,815 --> 00:58:44,400 [boardwalk creaking] 1422 00:58:46,652 --> 00:58:49,072 [loud, indistinct station announcement] 1423 00:58:50,364 --> 00:58:52,533 [David] I had dreams for a long time 1424 00:58:52,658 --> 00:58:54,410 I had murdered someone. 1425 00:58:55,328 --> 00:58:58,498 [announcement continues] 1426 00:58:58,498 --> 00:59:01,793 And the weight of it got to me too late in the game. 1427 00:59:02,418 --> 00:59:04,587 And I was saying to myself in the dream, 1428 00:59:04,712 --> 00:59:06,130 "What did you do that for? 1429 00:59:07,340 --> 00:59:10,093 You've thrown everything away. You're finished. 1430 00:59:11,010 --> 00:59:12,678 The hell did you do that for?" 1431 00:59:12,678 --> 00:59:13,763 [static crackles] 1432 00:59:13,888 --> 00:59:15,014 [man] And now the news... 1433 00:59:15,014 --> 00:59:16,349 [crowd screaming on radio] 1434 00:59:16,349 --> 00:59:18,226 [gunfire on radio] 1435 00:59:20,186 --> 00:59:22,063 [static warbles] 1436 00:59:22,188 --> 00:59:24,774 [sirens wailing on radio] 1437 00:59:25,608 --> 00:59:27,610 [Gloria] You want to take it for a test drive? 1438 00:59:27,735 --> 00:59:29,570 [screaming continues] 1439 00:59:30,279 --> 00:59:33,282 [Alex] The fun thing about dreams in The Sopranos is that 1440 00:59:33,282 --> 00:59:35,618 when you've got a character who's supposed to be, 1441 00:59:35,618 --> 00:59:37,620 - you know, in control. - [David] Right. 1442 00:59:37,620 --> 00:59:39,831 [Alex] But dreams, you're never in control. 1443 00:59:39,831 --> 00:59:41,416 [David] No, never. 1444 00:59:41,541 --> 00:59:42,708 [radio static crackles] 1445 00:59:42,708 --> 00:59:44,252 [indistinct chatter] 1446 00:59:53,386 --> 00:59:55,638 [Alex] In the Kevin Finnerty dream sequence, 1447 00:59:55,763 --> 00:59:57,390 what was Tony trying to get at? 1448 00:59:57,390 --> 00:59:58,766 [Tony] What the hell? 1449 01:00:00,768 --> 01:00:01,978 This isn't my wallet. 1450 01:00:03,438 --> 01:00:04,480 Oh, no. 1451 01:00:04,605 --> 01:00:06,399 He was saying, "Who am I 1452 01:00:06,399 --> 01:00:08,025 and where am I going?" 1453 01:00:09,402 --> 01:00:10,611 And he was terrified. 1454 01:00:12,947 --> 01:00:15,283 [Terence] Tony's fatal flaw as a mobster 1455 01:00:15,408 --> 01:00:17,118 is that he had a conscience. 1456 01:00:17,243 --> 01:00:19,787 [woman] We're just impressed to be in the presence of a man 1457 01:00:19,912 --> 01:00:22,039 whose sales team snatched the brass ring 1458 01:00:22,039 --> 01:00:23,875 12 consecutive quarters. 1459 01:00:23,875 --> 01:00:25,793 I mean, it's not such a big deal. 1460 01:00:26,961 --> 01:00:28,296 There's always a faster gun. 1461 01:00:30,423 --> 01:00:32,508 [Terence] As David even said, Tony in another life 1462 01:00:32,508 --> 01:00:34,343 would be a guy who sells lawn furniture 1463 01:00:34,343 --> 01:00:36,054 on the Garden State Parkway. 1464 01:00:36,054 --> 01:00:37,764 And Kevin Finnerty, 1465 01:00:37,764 --> 01:00:39,932 that was the alternate version of who Tony was. 1466 01:00:39,932 --> 01:00:41,434 I came here because 1467 01:00:41,434 --> 01:00:44,145 I thought you could help me reach Finnerty. 1468 01:00:45,104 --> 01:00:46,189 Now, I have his wallet. 1469 01:00:46,314 --> 01:00:49,067 I have his briefcase, but I'm not him. 1470 01:00:49,067 --> 01:00:50,985 One day we will all die, 1471 01:00:51,611 --> 01:00:53,821 and then we'll be the same as that tree. 1472 01:00:53,946 --> 01:00:55,490 No me, no you. 1473 01:00:56,449 --> 01:00:58,076 [Terence] At his core, 1474 01:00:58,076 --> 01:01:00,244 he understands right from wrong. 1475 01:01:00,244 --> 01:01:02,455 And again, you're in the wrong business 1476 01:01:02,455 --> 01:01:04,540 if you're going to be worrying about stuff like that 1477 01:01:04,540 --> 01:01:06,876 because you're going to be doing a lot of wrong. 1478 01:01:07,001 --> 01:01:08,669 I had fucked-up dreams last night. 1479 01:01:09,545 --> 01:01:10,588 Fever dreams. 1480 01:01:12,840 --> 01:01:14,842 I shot this guy. He's a friend of mine. 1481 01:01:15,385 --> 01:01:17,720 [Terence] So, you know, it's interesting that Tony, 1482 01:01:17,845 --> 01:01:19,722 he had the outlet in therapy. 1483 01:01:19,847 --> 01:01:21,933 I was... I was filled with... 1484 01:01:21,933 --> 01:01:23,768 - Anger. - Yeah, right. Anger. 1485 01:01:23,768 --> 01:01:25,019 You know everything. 1486 01:01:25,144 --> 01:01:26,938 [Melfi] You've never dealt with your anger. 1487 01:01:26,938 --> 01:01:28,147 And look at the cost. 1488 01:01:28,147 --> 01:01:31,025 You are the biggest threat to yourself. 1489 01:01:31,692 --> 01:01:33,361 But that's what being a human being is. 1490 01:01:33,486 --> 01:01:34,737 [Melfi's voice] Some people are more 1491 01:01:34,862 --> 01:01:36,114 self-destructive than others. 1492 01:01:36,114 --> 01:01:37,865 [wood creaking] 1493 01:01:39,200 --> 01:01:40,868 [Sonya] You just wash it down like a pill. 1494 01:01:41,577 --> 01:01:44,664 [Terence] And then peyote, you know, later on in the show. 1495 01:01:44,664 --> 01:01:46,207 Which was another way of him 1496 01:01:46,332 --> 01:01:48,543 sort of exploring the bigger picture. 1497 01:01:50,753 --> 01:01:51,838 I get it. 1498 01:01:51,838 --> 01:01:53,965 [breathing rapidly] 1499 01:01:59,887 --> 01:02:00,972 I get it! 1500 01:02:01,764 --> 01:02:04,475 [echoing] I get it! I get it! 1501 01:02:04,475 --> 01:02:06,602 [indistinct chatter] 1502 01:02:12,150 --> 01:02:14,360 [Edie] At the beginning of every episode, 1503 01:02:14,360 --> 01:02:15,987 we'd all sit around a table 1504 01:02:15,987 --> 01:02:18,114 and read through the script together. 1505 01:02:18,114 --> 01:02:20,074 But we'd all walk in kind of like, 1506 01:02:20,199 --> 01:02:22,160 "Are you all right?" Kind of like... [laughs] 1507 01:02:22,160 --> 01:02:23,828 "Is this your last episode?" 1508 01:02:23,828 --> 01:02:26,873 It's like, you never really knew who was going to be around 1509 01:02:26,873 --> 01:02:29,250 for the next couple of episodes. It was hysterical. 1510 01:02:29,375 --> 01:02:31,085 And we'd all be like, "Hey, no, I'm good." 1511 01:02:31,085 --> 01:02:33,755 Phew! [laughs] We were all scared of it. 1512 01:02:34,422 --> 01:02:36,424 Yeah, the guys were like... [grumbles] 1513 01:02:36,549 --> 01:02:38,176 "Who's gonna get it next?" 1514 01:02:38,885 --> 01:02:42,597 And the ritual was if David invited you for lunch or dinner, 1515 01:02:43,222 --> 01:02:45,308 you were fucked. [laughs] 1516 01:02:45,308 --> 01:02:48,770 The phone call from the Master Cylinder. 1517 01:02:49,187 --> 01:02:50,354 [chuckles] 1518 01:02:50,354 --> 01:02:52,648 [Lorraine] But, you know, he's the boss. 1519 01:02:54,233 --> 01:02:56,235 [Alex] The part of you that you were seeing in Tony, 1520 01:02:56,235 --> 01:02:58,196 was it the boss part? The idea that you're-- 1521 01:02:58,196 --> 01:03:00,823 Well, I-I thought that... 1522 01:03:00,823 --> 01:03:01,991 [Tony grunting] 1523 01:03:02,116 --> 01:03:03,451 You fucking-- 1524 01:03:03,576 --> 01:03:05,703 [David] ...when someone had to die on the show... 1525 01:03:07,080 --> 01:03:08,414 [Tony yells] 1526 01:03:09,123 --> 01:03:10,625 ...I would have to tell the actor. 1527 01:03:10,750 --> 01:03:12,043 [choking] 1528 01:03:12,043 --> 01:03:14,545 And it was hard for me. 1529 01:03:14,545 --> 01:03:15,963 [breathing shakily] 1530 01:03:16,089 --> 01:03:16,964 Jesus Christ. 1531 01:03:18,299 --> 01:03:20,176 [David] People were really broken up about it. 1532 01:03:20,301 --> 01:03:21,469 I got to sit down. 1533 01:03:22,637 --> 01:03:24,097 I feel like I can't stand. 1534 01:03:24,097 --> 01:03:25,640 Some would kind of beg, almost. 1535 01:03:25,765 --> 01:03:27,767 - Is that okay, Tony? - 'Cause it's their job. 1536 01:03:27,767 --> 01:03:28,810 It's their livelihood. 1537 01:03:31,104 --> 01:03:33,064 [Lorraine] Vincent Pastore, Big Pussy. 1538 01:03:33,064 --> 01:03:34,857 We fought for him. 1539 01:03:34,982 --> 01:03:37,110 "Don't kill him. Don't kill him, David. 1540 01:03:37,110 --> 01:03:38,903 Give him another season." 1541 01:03:38,903 --> 01:03:40,154 Well, you know what? 1542 01:03:41,280 --> 01:03:42,615 This is a mob show. 1543 01:03:42,615 --> 01:03:43,825 People gotta go. 1544 01:03:44,325 --> 01:03:45,660 Oh, fuck. 1545 01:03:46,494 --> 01:03:47,829 Adriana. 1546 01:03:47,954 --> 01:03:50,331 And I tried to distance myself with all of it. 1547 01:03:50,456 --> 01:03:51,499 What about her? 1548 01:03:51,624 --> 01:03:53,167 [breathing shakily] 1549 01:03:53,960 --> 01:03:54,794 Feds. 1550 01:03:55,503 --> 01:03:57,463 By thinking the way he was thinking. 1551 01:03:57,463 --> 01:03:58,506 Gotta go. 1552 01:04:02,051 --> 01:04:03,636 Jesus fucking Christ. 1553 01:04:03,636 --> 01:04:05,555 [Terence] Once we made the decision 1554 01:04:05,555 --> 01:04:08,683 that Adriana was going to start cooperating with the feds, 1555 01:04:09,559 --> 01:04:10,935 the writing was on the wall. 1556 01:04:11,519 --> 01:04:14,897 At some point, this was not going to end well for Adriana. 1557 01:04:15,481 --> 01:04:16,941 [Tony] I'm gonna take care of it. 1558 01:04:17,817 --> 01:04:20,361 [Drea] David sat me down on set 1559 01:04:20,486 --> 01:04:22,655 and he said, "I'm going to shoot this two ways. 1560 01:04:22,655 --> 01:04:25,575 I'm going to shoot it where you get away, 1561 01:04:26,743 --> 01:04:28,911 and I'm going to shoot it where they kill you, 1562 01:04:29,662 --> 01:04:32,540 and no one's going to know how it ends until it airs. 1563 01:04:33,332 --> 01:04:36,210 Because we have confidentiality issues on the set, 1564 01:04:37,003 --> 01:04:39,088 nobody can know what's really going on." 1565 01:04:39,213 --> 01:04:41,049 And I said, "But I'm going to be dead. 1566 01:04:41,883 --> 01:04:43,384 And I'm not going to be on the show anymore." 1567 01:04:43,509 --> 01:04:44,927 And he was like... 1568 01:04:46,721 --> 01:04:47,805 And I took another job 1569 01:04:48,514 --> 01:04:50,725 because I didn't know, and I was scared, 1570 01:04:51,184 --> 01:04:54,479 and he was fucking pissed. [laughs] 1571 01:04:54,479 --> 01:04:56,230 Because now that's gonna get out. 1572 01:04:57,231 --> 01:05:00,526 But I had to take that job. I thought I'd never work again. 1573 01:05:00,526 --> 01:05:04,238 I knew that playing Adriana for five seasons 1574 01:05:04,363 --> 01:05:06,032 - and being known for that... - [phone rings] 1575 01:05:06,032 --> 01:05:07,784 ...that that was gonna be my life. 1576 01:05:07,784 --> 01:05:10,036 I knew I was going to be stereotyped forever. 1577 01:05:10,036 --> 01:05:11,537 So I was like, I better just 1578 01:05:11,537 --> 01:05:13,289 take advantage of this right now. 1579 01:05:14,916 --> 01:05:16,667 - Hello? - [Tony] Yeah. It's me. 1580 01:05:16,667 --> 01:05:19,253 Jesus, I don't even know how to say this. 1581 01:05:20,963 --> 01:05:24,008 It's Christopher. He tried to commit suicide. 1582 01:05:24,008 --> 01:05:25,593 Oh my God, is he all right? 1583 01:05:25,718 --> 01:05:26,886 He's fine. 1584 01:05:26,886 --> 01:05:28,596 He was up by Ramapo. 1585 01:05:28,721 --> 01:05:30,098 Apparently, he took some pills, 1586 01:05:30,640 --> 01:05:32,934 and this trooper found him in a bathroom at this diner, 1587 01:05:33,059 --> 01:05:34,936 and they brought him to the hospital. 1588 01:05:36,437 --> 01:05:38,439 Anyway, I'm on my way up there now 1589 01:05:38,564 --> 01:05:41,401 and I'm gonna send Sil by to pick you up then, okay? 1590 01:05:41,401 --> 01:05:42,777 Jesus Christ. 1591 01:05:44,570 --> 01:05:45,655 [huffs] 1592 01:05:45,655 --> 01:05:47,949 As sad as I was to go in the end, 1593 01:05:48,074 --> 01:05:48,866 I was ready. 1594 01:05:48,866 --> 01:05:50,618 I knew that that was... 1595 01:05:51,077 --> 01:05:52,870 that that's how it needed to be. 1596 01:05:52,870 --> 01:05:54,664 [David] It was very difficult because 1597 01:05:54,664 --> 01:05:56,290 it's the characters and the actors. 1598 01:05:56,416 --> 01:05:58,042 It wasn't only Adriana. 1599 01:05:58,042 --> 01:06:00,628 It was Drea de Matteo. 1600 01:06:00,753 --> 01:06:03,798 [Drea] David did not want to see her get shot 1601 01:06:03,923 --> 01:06:05,299 because he loved her. 1602 01:06:06,968 --> 01:06:09,303 Why are you crying? He's gonna be fine. 1603 01:06:11,180 --> 01:06:13,683 [David] I couldn't bear to see Adriana get shot. 1604 01:06:14,183 --> 01:06:15,893 I couldn't have watched that. 1605 01:06:16,436 --> 01:06:19,355 So we broke the style of the show. 1606 01:06:19,480 --> 01:06:22,108 Any other victim on that show, you saw him get hit. 1607 01:06:22,108 --> 01:06:24,235 [birds singing] 1608 01:06:25,570 --> 01:06:27,321 [Alik] We started talking about it like, 1609 01:06:27,447 --> 01:06:28,823 how should we do this? 1610 01:06:28,948 --> 01:06:31,826 If it's not going to happen on camera naturally, 1611 01:06:31,951 --> 01:06:34,036 then we have to find a poetic transition. 1612 01:06:36,372 --> 01:06:39,250 She's not wild and begging, so I think she's more-- 1613 01:06:39,250 --> 01:06:41,377 - [Alik] We're rolling, guys. - This, you know? 1614 01:06:42,962 --> 01:06:45,298 - [gear shift clunks] - [director] Action! 1615 01:06:45,423 --> 01:06:47,216 [Steven] That was, by far, the hardest scene 1616 01:06:47,216 --> 01:06:48,384 that I've ever played. 1617 01:06:48,509 --> 01:06:50,178 And of course, she's so great, 1618 01:06:50,303 --> 01:06:53,431 she was like, uh, "Don't take it easy on me. 1619 01:06:53,973 --> 01:06:54,849 You know? 1620 01:06:55,725 --> 01:06:58,853 It's obviously gonna be my last scene, you know?" 1621 01:06:58,978 --> 01:07:01,230 [chuckles] "Let's make it good, right?" 1622 01:07:01,230 --> 01:07:03,983 I was like, "Stevie, we gotta fucking go! 1623 01:07:03,983 --> 01:07:06,235 I'm a cunt. You're a mafioso. 1624 01:07:06,235 --> 01:07:08,863 Grab me by my hair and let's fucking go." 1625 01:07:08,988 --> 01:07:10,573 [car dashboard beeping] 1626 01:07:10,698 --> 01:07:11,699 [softly] Oh, no. 1627 01:07:14,160 --> 01:07:15,369 Oh, no. No... 1628 01:07:16,287 --> 01:07:17,872 [Adriana whimpering] 1629 01:07:17,997 --> 01:07:19,957 - [Silvio] Come on. Come on! - No! No! Please! 1630 01:07:19,957 --> 01:07:21,959 Where you fucking going? 1631 01:07:21,959 --> 01:07:23,211 Come on! Come on! 1632 01:07:23,336 --> 01:07:25,338 - No! Please! - Fucking cunt! 1633 01:07:25,338 --> 01:07:26,881 No! 1634 01:07:27,590 --> 01:07:31,427 No! No! No! No! 1635 01:07:31,552 --> 01:07:32,595 [gun cocks] 1636 01:07:33,554 --> 01:07:34,555 [gunshots] 1637 01:07:34,680 --> 01:07:36,349 [Terence] When I wrote the scene, 1638 01:07:36,349 --> 01:07:40,269 it is scripted that the camera just drifts into the sky. 1639 01:07:40,269 --> 01:07:42,271 And it was going to connect to the camera drifting down 1640 01:07:42,271 --> 01:07:45,191 to find Tony and Carmela in another scene. 1641 01:07:45,858 --> 01:07:48,319 [David] On purpose, the last scene of that show, 1642 01:07:48,319 --> 01:07:50,947 Tony and Carmela are in the woods, 1643 01:07:50,947 --> 01:07:53,408 and she's talking about buying this piece of property. 1644 01:07:54,283 --> 01:07:56,244 [Tony] Yeah, it's a gorgeous piece of land. 1645 01:07:57,078 --> 01:07:58,246 [Carmela] And with this view? 1646 01:07:59,372 --> 01:08:01,082 Well worth 600,000. 1647 01:08:02,250 --> 01:08:04,669 The surveyor's coming on Tuesday. 1648 01:08:05,253 --> 01:08:08,339 [David] And he's, like, thinking only about Adriana. 1649 01:08:10,717 --> 01:08:12,301 Some of these things get me choked up 1650 01:08:12,301 --> 01:08:14,637 when I think about that character 1651 01:08:14,637 --> 01:08:16,097 getting it like that. 1652 01:08:17,223 --> 01:08:20,017 And it was also the end of Drea de Matteo. 1653 01:08:20,017 --> 01:08:21,686 We wouldn't have Drea anymore. 1654 01:08:22,770 --> 01:08:25,148 - You all right? - Yeah. Yeah, me? Yeah. 1655 01:08:26,232 --> 01:08:27,275 Absolutely. 1656 01:08:27,400 --> 01:08:29,402 [birds singing] 1657 01:08:34,323 --> 01:08:37,118 [birdsong continues] 1658 01:08:47,420 --> 01:08:49,130 [Alex] At what point did you start thinking 1659 01:08:49,255 --> 01:08:50,590 about ending the show? 1660 01:08:51,257 --> 01:08:52,675 [David] There were seven seasons, 1661 01:08:52,800 --> 01:08:55,011 but they called it 6A and 6B, 1662 01:08:55,136 --> 01:08:58,347 which is how HBO got out of giving the actors raises. 1663 01:08:59,974 --> 01:09:02,685 Um, if they had called it season seven, 1664 01:09:02,685 --> 01:09:05,188 they would've been contractually entitled to a raise. 1665 01:09:05,188 --> 01:09:06,481 [director] Cut. 1666 01:09:07,440 --> 01:09:10,193 [David] Two years before that, Chris Albrecht said to me, 1667 01:09:10,193 --> 01:09:12,361 "You know, you better start thinking about 1668 01:09:12,361 --> 01:09:13,654 how you want to end this show." 1669 01:09:14,363 --> 01:09:17,450 And I had never thought about it. Because ending? 1670 01:09:17,450 --> 01:09:19,368 When you cancel the show. I don't know. 1671 01:09:19,368 --> 01:09:21,662 That's what happens to all television shows, isn't it? 1672 01:09:21,788 --> 01:09:23,164 They finally get canceled. 1673 01:09:24,207 --> 01:09:26,000 But this was a different thing. 1674 01:09:27,460 --> 01:09:28,961 [Alex] You directed the first episode, 1675 01:09:28,961 --> 01:09:30,755 and then you didn't direct any others 1676 01:09:30,755 --> 01:09:32,715 while you were writing and producing. 1677 01:09:32,715 --> 01:09:35,676 But then you came back and directed the last episode. 1678 01:09:35,802 --> 01:09:38,262 [David] Yeah. With Alik, same DP. 1679 01:09:40,181 --> 01:09:41,724 [Alik] By then, we've both evolved. 1680 01:09:41,849 --> 01:09:43,393 I mean, ten years has passed. 1681 01:09:43,393 --> 01:09:44,769 - [Alex] Long time. - Yeah. 1682 01:09:45,311 --> 01:09:47,647 So I think what we did is in the last episode, 1683 01:09:48,231 --> 01:09:50,191 we talked a lot about 2001, 1684 01:09:51,025 --> 01:09:53,694 about point of view that gets interrupted 1685 01:09:53,820 --> 01:09:56,072 by the character entering into the point of view. 1686 01:09:56,197 --> 01:09:58,157 [heavy breathing] 1687 01:09:58,157 --> 01:10:00,368 [David] The astronaut begins to see himself. 1688 01:10:00,493 --> 01:10:04,205 [eerie, dissonant music playing] 1689 01:10:04,330 --> 01:10:05,540 Got the space suit on. 1690 01:10:06,374 --> 01:10:08,710 And he comes into himself in a mirror. 1691 01:10:10,253 --> 01:10:11,754 [music fades] 1692 01:10:11,754 --> 01:10:14,757 And he turns and there he is without the space suit on. 1693 01:10:16,384 --> 01:10:17,927 And then finally, he's eating dinner, 1694 01:10:18,052 --> 01:10:21,055 just all by himself and getting older. 1695 01:10:21,180 --> 01:10:22,598 [raspy breathing] 1696 01:10:22,598 --> 01:10:25,184 He looks behind and he sees himself in the bed 1697 01:10:25,184 --> 01:10:26,561 as an old man. 1698 01:10:26,686 --> 01:10:29,731 [strained breathing] 1699 01:10:30,773 --> 01:10:32,233 This simple technique, 1700 01:10:33,359 --> 01:10:35,361 it's always mesmerized me, that. 1701 01:10:35,862 --> 01:10:38,614 - [wind howling] - And for that episode, 1702 01:10:38,614 --> 01:10:41,951 Tony, all the way through, everyone he goes to see, 1703 01:10:42,076 --> 01:10:43,578 he walks into his own POV. 1704 01:10:44,912 --> 01:10:47,415 [tense, ominous music playing] 1705 01:10:50,877 --> 01:10:51,836 [sighs] 1706 01:10:53,921 --> 01:10:55,798 [David] It made me think of time 1707 01:10:57,592 --> 01:10:59,635 and, I guess, approaching death. 1708 01:11:00,136 --> 01:11:01,721 [man] Sir. 1709 01:11:01,721 --> 01:11:02,889 Sir, excuse me. 1710 01:11:03,431 --> 01:11:04,640 [chains rattling] 1711 01:11:04,640 --> 01:11:06,476 [David] Or approaching something. 1712 01:11:07,727 --> 01:11:09,604 There's something mystical about it. 1713 01:11:13,399 --> 01:11:14,942 [door bell jingles] 1714 01:11:16,611 --> 01:11:19,530 ["All That You Dream" by Little Feat playing] 1715 01:11:19,530 --> 01:11:20,865 [door closes] 1716 01:11:24,494 --> 01:11:26,245 [David] For the last scene, the first idea 1717 01:11:26,245 --> 01:11:27,789 that I carried for a long time 1718 01:11:28,831 --> 01:11:31,667 was that Tony was going to go back into Manhattan, 1719 01:11:31,667 --> 01:11:35,129 through the Lincoln Tunnel for a meeting, 1720 01:11:35,254 --> 01:11:37,423 and that he was going to meet his demise there. 1721 01:11:37,965 --> 01:11:40,009 I didn't know that he was going to meet his demise, 1722 01:11:40,134 --> 01:11:41,260 but it didn't look good. 1723 01:11:41,260 --> 01:11:42,970 I guess that's what was gonna happen. 1724 01:11:43,846 --> 01:11:45,681 If you were in the audience, you'd think, 1725 01:11:46,182 --> 01:11:48,559 "I don't think this is going to work out well for him." 1726 01:11:48,559 --> 01:11:50,103 But you would never know. 1727 01:11:51,187 --> 01:11:54,273 And then I was driving down Ocean Boulevard here, 1728 01:11:54,273 --> 01:11:56,025 and I saw this diner, and I thought, 1729 01:11:56,150 --> 01:11:57,485 "Maybe the ending should take place 1730 01:11:57,610 --> 01:11:59,862 in a place they go to eat all the time." 1731 01:11:59,987 --> 01:12:01,656 - [man 1] Quiet, please. - [man 2] Quiet. 1732 01:12:01,781 --> 01:12:04,325 ["All That You Dream" continues playing] 1733 01:12:06,160 --> 01:12:07,787 [indistinct chatter] 1734 01:12:07,787 --> 01:12:09,831 [sizzling] 1735 01:12:12,166 --> 01:12:13,084 [door bell jingles] 1736 01:12:13,084 --> 01:12:14,752 [car horn honks] 1737 01:12:15,628 --> 01:12:17,463 [David] And when I said, "So, I'm thinking about 1738 01:12:17,463 --> 01:12:19,215 'Don't Stop Believing,'" everybody went, 1739 01:12:19,340 --> 01:12:21,300 "Oh, fuck! Are you fucking kidding? 1740 01:12:21,968 --> 01:12:24,846 The last of the whole goddamn series?" 1741 01:12:28,975 --> 01:12:30,309 [door bell jingles] 1742 01:12:30,309 --> 01:12:32,895 ["Don't Stop Believin'" by Journey playing] 1743 01:12:33,646 --> 01:12:35,440 [David] Everybody was up in arms. 1744 01:12:35,982 --> 01:12:38,526 And I said, "Well, you just decided it for me." 1745 01:12:39,318 --> 01:12:41,028 ♪ Just a small town girl ♪ 1746 01:12:42,029 --> 01:12:43,614 - Hey. - Hey. 1747 01:12:43,614 --> 01:12:45,867 ♪ Livin' in a lonely world ♪ 1748 01:12:45,992 --> 01:12:47,952 [David] But it wasn't just to be contrary. 1749 01:12:47,952 --> 01:12:52,874 ♪ She took the midnight train goin' anywhere ♪ 1750 01:12:55,752 --> 01:12:57,670 ♪ Just a city boy... ♪ 1751 01:13:00,214 --> 01:13:01,674 What looks good tonight? 1752 01:13:01,674 --> 01:13:03,426 [murmurs] I don't know. 1753 01:13:03,426 --> 01:13:05,261 [David] The more I was working with it, 1754 01:13:05,386 --> 01:13:08,306 I started to hear one of the lyrics in that song: 1755 01:13:08,306 --> 01:13:09,682 "The movie never ends. 1756 01:13:09,682 --> 01:13:11,517 It goes on and on and on and on." 1757 01:13:11,517 --> 01:13:13,895 - I thought, "Wow." - [bell jingles] 1758 01:13:13,895 --> 01:13:17,315 ♪ Strangers waiting ♪ 1759 01:13:18,733 --> 01:13:20,401 ♪ Up and down the boulevard... ♪ 1760 01:13:20,401 --> 01:13:22,737 [Alex] The whole episode, there's a circularity. 1761 01:13:22,862 --> 01:13:25,364 It feels like you're returning to episode one. 1762 01:13:25,364 --> 01:13:27,158 - [Meadow screams] - [Carmela] Get back. 1763 01:13:27,158 --> 01:13:29,077 - [Alex] The exploding Weber. - [booming] 1764 01:13:30,036 --> 01:13:30,870 The exploding car. 1765 01:13:30,870 --> 01:13:32,497 If you don't like that ramp, 1766 01:13:32,497 --> 01:13:34,457 I'll build you another one. Maybe it's the wood. 1767 01:13:34,457 --> 01:13:36,334 [Alex] I was struck by the circularity. 1768 01:13:36,334 --> 01:13:38,252 Like the first episode, last episode. 1769 01:13:38,378 --> 01:13:40,129 [Tony] Hey, kids! Come here. 1770 01:13:40,129 --> 01:13:43,132 [Alex] There's a vibe of, kind of, the patterns of life 1771 01:13:43,132 --> 01:13:45,176 that you keep seeing happening 1772 01:13:45,176 --> 01:13:46,552 over and over and over again. 1773 01:13:46,552 --> 01:13:48,262 You know, sometimes... 1774 01:13:49,639 --> 01:13:50,890 life is good. 1775 01:13:50,890 --> 01:13:52,433 Life is often good. 1776 01:13:53,184 --> 01:13:56,104 ♪ Working hard to get my fill ♪ 1777 01:13:57,063 --> 01:14:00,775 - [laughter] - ♪ Everybody wants a thrill ♪ 1778 01:14:00,775 --> 01:14:02,276 [Alex] And also the diner scene, 1779 01:14:02,402 --> 01:14:04,362 a lot of the conversation is "remember when." 1780 01:14:04,362 --> 01:14:06,447 [chuckles] Right. Yeah. Yeah. 1781 01:14:06,572 --> 01:14:07,657 To my family. 1782 01:14:08,241 --> 01:14:09,659 [David] In the first season, Tony had said... 1783 01:14:09,784 --> 01:14:11,619 You remember the little moments 1784 01:14:13,079 --> 01:14:13,955 like this. 1785 01:14:14,080 --> 01:14:16,374 [thunder rumbling] 1786 01:14:17,250 --> 01:14:18,376 [sighs softly] 1787 01:14:19,085 --> 01:14:20,461 That were good. 1788 01:14:21,337 --> 01:14:22,880 So buck up. 1789 01:14:23,423 --> 01:14:25,216 [David] And A.J. brings that back up to him. 1790 01:14:25,216 --> 01:14:26,384 Focus on the good times. 1791 01:14:26,384 --> 01:14:27,885 Don't be sarcastic. 1792 01:14:28,511 --> 01:14:29,804 Isn't that what you said one time? 1793 01:14:29,929 --> 01:14:31,973 Try to remember the times that were good? 1794 01:14:32,098 --> 01:14:34,767 - I did? - Yeah. 1795 01:14:34,767 --> 01:14:36,811 ♪ Up and down the boulevard... ♪ 1796 01:14:36,936 --> 01:14:38,354 Well, it's true, I guess. 1797 01:14:40,273 --> 01:14:43,568 That scene, it builds on itself like a pyramid structure 1798 01:14:43,568 --> 01:14:45,695 where we just build, build, build, build, build. 1799 01:14:46,612 --> 01:14:48,614 [David] What you're watching is a lot of shit going on. 1800 01:14:48,614 --> 01:14:50,283 She's trying to park her car. 1801 01:14:50,283 --> 01:14:51,659 There are a lot of people, characters, 1802 01:14:51,784 --> 01:14:53,995 the guy in the Members Only jacket. 1803 01:14:54,120 --> 01:15:00,084 ♪ Hiding somewhere in the night ♪ 1804 01:15:00,793 --> 01:15:04,213 [David] Other possible threats are walking in. 1805 01:15:10,011 --> 01:15:12,388 There's tension building in that diner scene. 1806 01:15:12,388 --> 01:15:13,890 We're expecting something. 1807 01:15:13,890 --> 01:15:16,350 ["Don't Stop Believin'" continues playing] 1808 01:15:16,476 --> 01:15:18,186 I went ahead and ordered some for the table. 1809 01:15:18,311 --> 01:15:21,189 ♪ Don't stop believin' ♪ 1810 01:15:23,316 --> 01:15:25,985 ♪ Hold on to the feelin' ♪ 1811 01:15:25,985 --> 01:15:27,862 ♪ Streetlights ♪ 1812 01:15:27,987 --> 01:15:33,618 ♪ People, oh ♪ 1813 01:15:33,618 --> 01:15:34,994 - [bell jingles] - ♪ Don't stop-- ♪ 1814 01:15:34,994 --> 01:15:36,204 [music halts] 1815 01:15:39,040 --> 01:15:41,459 [Michael] And then it goes to black. 1816 01:15:41,459 --> 01:15:43,461 It was so sudden and strange. 1817 01:15:44,045 --> 01:15:46,297 Really took everybody by surprise. 1818 01:15:46,881 --> 01:15:49,217 [Drea] I started calling everybody and I'm like, 1819 01:15:49,342 --> 01:15:51,219 "Yo, did my TV just go out?" 1820 01:15:52,011 --> 01:15:55,098 I was with Jim and Jim said, "That's it?" 1821 01:15:55,098 --> 01:15:56,432 [Alex chuckles] 1822 01:15:56,557 --> 01:15:58,768 "That's it?" He was-- He couldn't believe it. 1823 01:15:58,893 --> 01:16:00,603 - [Alex] So Jim didn't know? - Nope. 1824 01:16:02,563 --> 01:16:03,731 [Alex] Was he pissed? 1825 01:16:04,273 --> 01:16:07,402 I think he was in shock like everybody else. 1826 01:16:07,527 --> 01:16:08,611 It was just like... 1827 01:16:10,113 --> 01:16:11,072 that's it. 1828 01:16:12,073 --> 01:16:13,908 That's the end of the story. 1829 01:16:14,617 --> 01:16:16,828 And I'm thinking to myself, "This is David. 1830 01:16:17,412 --> 01:16:18,621 This is fucking David. 1831 01:16:18,621 --> 01:16:21,582 This is exactly how he wanted to end the show. 1832 01:16:22,458 --> 01:16:24,085 He doesn't want anyone 1833 01:16:24,210 --> 01:16:25,795 to know what's going on right now." 1834 01:16:25,920 --> 01:16:27,255 [mellow, uneasy music playing] 1835 01:16:28,381 --> 01:16:30,508 [David] I think what I was thinking about was 1836 01:16:31,259 --> 01:16:32,844 the universe goes on and on. 1837 01:16:35,304 --> 01:16:36,556 You may not go on and on, 1838 01:16:36,556 --> 01:16:38,766 but the universe is going to go on and on. 1839 01:16:40,810 --> 01:16:42,437 The movie is going to keep going. 1840 01:16:46,274 --> 01:16:49,360 [Alik] There is a resolution of irresolution, right? 1841 01:16:49,360 --> 01:16:51,446 Which opens up a very interesting 1842 01:16:51,571 --> 01:16:53,740 poetic point of open ending. 1843 01:16:53,740 --> 01:16:56,325 Uh, countless people have said to me, 1844 01:16:57,618 --> 01:16:58,995 "All right, I know you know. 1845 01:16:59,829 --> 01:17:01,706 What really happened?" 1846 01:17:02,123 --> 01:17:03,791 Vanity Fair did an article 1847 01:17:03,916 --> 01:17:06,544 like ten years after Sopranos, you know... 1848 01:17:07,920 --> 01:17:10,548 And they came to me and they said, you know, 1849 01:17:10,548 --> 01:17:13,009 "What's the ending? What was the real ending?" 1850 01:17:13,009 --> 01:17:14,343 You know? [chuckles] 1851 01:17:14,343 --> 01:17:16,929 I said, "Okay, all right, once and for all, 1852 01:17:16,929 --> 01:17:18,806 what happened at the end was, 1853 01:17:19,640 --> 01:17:22,810 the director yelled cut and the actors went home." 1854 01:17:23,936 --> 01:17:25,980 What could it have been? Tony getting killed? 1855 01:17:26,105 --> 01:17:27,356 The family getting wiped out? 1856 01:17:27,356 --> 01:17:29,233 And then everyone goes, "Yeah." 1857 01:17:29,233 --> 01:17:31,694 You know, big resolution and impact means nothing 1858 01:17:31,819 --> 01:17:34,113 because 20 minutes later you forget the whole show. 1859 01:17:34,113 --> 01:17:36,741 But if you build philosophical end, 1860 01:17:37,617 --> 01:17:40,203 open end, which is what it has become, 1861 01:17:40,828 --> 01:17:43,498 the show's gonna live forever. Nobody's going to figure it out. 1862 01:17:43,623 --> 01:17:45,666 The ending is whatever you want it to be. 1863 01:17:47,835 --> 01:17:48,795 He died an old man... 1864 01:17:48,795 --> 01:17:50,088 Somebody came out of the bathroom 1865 01:17:50,088 --> 01:17:51,422 and shot him in the head... 1866 01:17:51,422 --> 01:17:53,549 [Drea] Everyone stands around the water cooler 1867 01:17:53,674 --> 01:17:56,010 one last time and just says, 1868 01:17:56,010 --> 01:17:59,347 "I can't fucking believe what I just watched." [chuckles] 1869 01:18:00,515 --> 01:18:02,433 "What happened? What happened?" 1870 01:18:02,433 --> 01:18:04,185 What do you have left with? 1871 01:18:05,311 --> 01:18:07,605 You have left with something to resolve. 1872 01:18:08,648 --> 01:18:10,691 Okay. And how are you going to resolve it? 1873 01:18:10,817 --> 01:18:12,527 By watching the show again. 1874 01:18:13,319 --> 01:18:15,363 [indistinct chatter] 1875 01:18:16,114 --> 01:18:17,865 [music fades] 1876 01:18:19,826 --> 01:18:21,327 [Alex] When you were done, were you done? 1877 01:18:21,327 --> 01:18:23,871 Had you made peace with that? Were you sad? Were you... 1878 01:18:24,872 --> 01:18:26,082 Wanted to do something else? 1879 01:18:26,082 --> 01:18:27,542 I wanted to... 1880 01:18:28,584 --> 01:18:31,671 I wanted to get down to what I had always wanted to do, 1881 01:18:31,671 --> 01:18:34,465 which was make a fucking movie. 1882 01:18:34,465 --> 01:18:35,883 [chuckles softly] 1883 01:18:37,176 --> 01:18:39,387 And, um... 1884 01:18:39,512 --> 01:18:42,014 I-- It's for sure I had done enough Sopranos, 1885 01:18:42,014 --> 01:18:44,684 but it was over. It just felt right. 1886 01:18:44,684 --> 01:18:46,060 It was over. 1887 01:18:47,061 --> 01:18:49,647 All right, guys, here we go. Here, all here. 1888 01:18:49,647 --> 01:18:52,024 [lively chatter, cheering] 1889 01:18:52,024 --> 01:18:54,485 [all exclaiming, laughing] 1890 01:18:54,485 --> 01:18:57,780 [David] As time went on, I missed the people. 1891 01:18:57,780 --> 01:18:59,115 [shutter clicks] 1892 01:18:59,240 --> 01:19:00,700 It really was like a family. 1893 01:19:00,700 --> 01:19:02,827 [faint cheering] 1894 01:19:02,827 --> 01:19:04,829 And I missed the problem-solving. 1895 01:19:05,913 --> 01:19:08,416 There's writing, and then there's, like, 1896 01:19:08,541 --> 01:19:10,251 what color hat should he have on? 1897 01:19:10,877 --> 01:19:12,170 A red hat. 1898 01:19:12,170 --> 01:19:13,546 Well, he can't have a red hat 1899 01:19:13,546 --> 01:19:15,131 because she's got a red hat. 1900 01:19:15,131 --> 01:19:17,717 We can't shoot there because we can see the Shell sign. 1901 01:19:17,717 --> 01:19:19,761 Or during the editing process. 1902 01:19:20,261 --> 01:19:23,431 Well, why black? Why-Why cut to black? 1903 01:19:23,556 --> 01:19:25,224 [loud death metal plays, then stops] 1904 01:19:25,224 --> 01:19:27,977 [David] There was that scene between Meadow and A.J. 1905 01:19:28,102 --> 01:19:30,730 "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening." 1906 01:19:30,730 --> 01:19:33,566 Oh my God, I'm so glad I'm not in high school anymore. 1907 01:19:33,566 --> 01:19:35,276 - You read this? - This is a long time back. 1908 01:19:35,401 --> 01:19:37,487 - He was doing his homework. - What does it mean? 1909 01:19:37,487 --> 01:19:39,781 I have to turn in a close read by tomorrow. 1910 01:19:39,906 --> 01:19:40,948 What does it mean? 1911 01:19:41,074 --> 01:19:43,034 "The woods are lovely, dark and deep. 1912 01:19:43,034 --> 01:19:46,829 But I have promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep"? 1913 01:19:46,829 --> 01:19:49,082 "Woods on a Snowy Evening," I think is the name of the poem. 1914 01:19:49,082 --> 01:19:51,125 - [Alex] The Robert Frost? - Robert Frost poem. 1915 01:19:51,834 --> 01:19:53,378 And she says... 1916 01:19:53,378 --> 01:19:54,837 What's covering the field? 1917 01:19:54,962 --> 01:19:56,464 - Snow. - Yay! 1918 01:19:57,131 --> 01:19:58,674 And what does snow symbolize? 1919 01:19:59,133 --> 01:19:59,967 Christmas? 1920 01:20:00,093 --> 01:20:01,219 Hello. 1921 01:20:01,928 --> 01:20:02,845 Cold? 1922 01:20:03,513 --> 01:20:06,349 Endless white, endless nothing? 1923 01:20:06,349 --> 01:20:07,975 - I don't know! - Death. 1924 01:20:08,101 --> 01:20:09,394 I thought black was death. 1925 01:20:09,394 --> 01:20:11,062 "I thought black meant death." 1926 01:20:11,062 --> 01:20:12,480 [chuckles] 1927 01:20:12,605 --> 01:20:14,190 So that was in my head also. 1928 01:20:14,774 --> 01:20:18,820 But, see, now people will say, "See, he admitted Tony died." 1929 01:20:19,654 --> 01:20:20,655 The truth is-- 1930 01:20:30,665 --> 01:20:32,708 ["Death Letter" by Son House playing] 1931 01:20:35,002 --> 01:20:37,630 ♪ I got a letter this mornin' ♪ 1932 01:20:37,630 --> 01:20:40,216 ♪ How do you reckon it read? ♪ 1933 01:20:41,259 --> 01:20:42,510 ♪ It said, "Hurry, hurry" ♪ 1934 01:20:42,635 --> 01:20:45,346 ♪ "The gal you love is dead" ♪ 1935 01:20:46,013 --> 01:20:48,266 ♪ I got a letter this mornin' ♪ 1936 01:20:48,266 --> 01:20:51,102 ♪ I say how do you reckon it read? ♪ 1937 01:20:54,605 --> 01:20:57,191 ♪ It said, "Hurry, hurry" ♪ 1938 01:20:57,859 --> 01:21:00,737 ♪ "'Cause that gal you love is dead" ♪ 1939 01:21:03,531 --> 01:21:06,868 ♪ You know, I grabbed up my suitcase ♪ 1940 01:21:06,993 --> 01:21:08,953 ♪ Took off down the road ♪ 1941 01:21:09,537 --> 01:21:11,372 ♪ When I got there ♪ 1942 01:21:11,497 --> 01:21:13,875 ♪ She's layin' on a coolin' board ♪ 1943 01:21:14,000 --> 01:21:16,294 ♪ I grabbed up my suitcase ♪ 1944 01:21:16,294 --> 01:21:18,921 ♪ I said, I took off down the road ♪ 1945 01:21:22,133 --> 01:21:24,886 ♪ I said, when I got there ♪ 1946 01:21:25,803 --> 01:21:28,389 ♪ She's layin' on a coolin' board ♪ 1947 01:21:31,225 --> 01:21:33,811 ♪ You know, I walked up close ♪ 1948 01:21:34,520 --> 01:21:36,773 ♪ Looked down in her face... ♪ 1949 01:21:36,898 --> 01:21:38,816 [song fades]