James Gandolfini, died suddenly, en route to Taormina Film Festival in Sicily, Italy, to receive the Taormina City Prize and teach a masterclass. The beloved around-the-globe Gandolfini will be forever remembered for his portrayal of anti-hero Tony Soprano, the protagonist and patriarch of HBO's "THE SOPRANOS", the iconic and plethoric New Jersey mob monster we all loved to watch, publicly despise, and secretly identify with.
The show was recently voted as No 1 TV series, since television's inception, from Writers Guild of America."THE SOPRANOS" were created by screenwriter-director David Chase.
During "THE SOPRANOS" 6-year run, he also won three straight Screen Actors Guild Award besides Emmys for lead drama actor.
Sicily's Taormina Film Festival organizes a tribute to the actor.