Celebrity Superfan Alec Baldwin joins Michael and Steve this week on Talking Sopranos. Steve and Michael have always said no one comes on the podcast unless they were directly involved in the making of the Sopranos. Well we’re going to break that rule for Alec, and we’re going to break it again with the Talking Sopranos Superfan Contest! In order to thank our fans for voting for us for the Webbys, Michael and Steve are going to invite a few lucky fans to join them on the podcast. Just go to the ...
May 31, 2021•2 hr 30 min•Ep. 62
It all begins with a big THANK YOU to all our fans for voting Talking Sopranos the best podcast in Television and Film at the Webbys! Then Michael and Steve take on one of the best episodes of the entire Sopranos series. They also welcome guests Leslie Rae Bega (Valentina La Paz) and Joe Lisi (Dick Barone). Leslie is a fascinating woman who not only is an incredible actress, but an extremely successful real estate agent and accomplished chef. She tells us the story of her life, her career and ho...
May 24, 2021•2 hr 11 min•Ep. 61
The one and only Steven Van Zandt joins Michael and Steve this week on Talking Sopranos. Little Steven talks about his early days with Bruce Springsteen, Southside Johnny and of course the Sopranos. David Chase, the Sopranos creator, saw Steven induct the Rascals into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and asked him to audition for the show. Steven’s answer was “thanks but no thanks”. Eventually he did come around and was actually cast as Tony Soprano. But it was HBO who nixed the whole idea, they w...
May 17, 2021•2 hr 37 min•Ep. 60
Paul was a member of the SUNY Purchase Mafia and talks about his college days with Edie Falco, Hal Hartley and Wesley Snipes. He originally auditioned for the role of Mikey Palmice, but after his audition David Chase asked him to read for Father Phil. Strangely, Paul’s real life dad was a bit of a flawed priest himself so Paul knew exactly how to play that part. Then Jason Minter joins the podcast. Jason started out as the locations manager for the Sopranos but David Chase quickly took him on as...
May 10, 2021•2 hr 24 min•Ep. 59
VOTE TALKING SOPRANOS THE BEST PODCAST IN FILM AND TV AT THE WEBBY AWARDS! Click the link below or go to https://www.talkingsopranos.com to Vote. Voting is open until May 6th. http://bit.ly/3goJBEf This week on Talking Sopranos Michael and Steve welcome Maureen Van Zandt (Gabriella Dante)to the podcast. Maureen shares stories about her days with Jimi Hendrix, Tony Sirico, the Beatles and growing up in a Mafia family. She also talks about how Georgianne Walken asked her to audition for the part o...
May 03, 2021•2 hr 8 min•Ep. 58
**VOTE TALKING SOPRANOS THE BEST PODCAST IN FILM AND TV AT THE WEBBY AWARDS! Go to https://www.talkingsopranos.com to Vote. Direct Link to Film and TV category at http://bit.ly/3goJBEf Voting is open until May 6th so VOTE NOW! This week Michael and Steve welcome Todd A. Kessler (writer/producer) to the podcast. Todd is a really interesting guy who wrote 4 episodes of the Sopranos and produced 20 more. He’s a Harvard grad who met David Chase when he was 24 and started writing for the show at 25. ...
Apr 26, 2021•2 hr 20 min•Ep. 57
Matt kicks things off with a really interesting story about how a girl and a trip to Italy changed him from a D1 lacrosse player at BC to an actor in NYC. How Georgianne Walken caused him to lose one job, but then got him the gig of a lifetime on the Sopranos. He also shares stories about his first day on set and his audition where he got a rare pat on the back from David Chase. Then Chris Caldovino joins the podcast. Chris followed Terry Winter from NY to LA and was the only other client of Ter...
Apr 19, 2021•2 hr 27 min•Ep. 56
This week Oksana Lada (Irina Peltsin) and Carl Capotorto (Little Paulie Germani) join Michael Imperioli and Steve Schirripa for another amazing episode of Talking Sopranos. Oksana doesn’t do a lot of interviews so it’s a real pleasure to hear how she’s doing. She looks exactly the same as she did 20 years ago and just as much fun. Then Carl Capotorto joins the podcast and shares some stories about the Sopranos he has never revealed before. He talks about how he auditioned for Ralphie four or fiv...
Apr 12, 2021•2 hr 38 min•Ep. 55
Will is a great guest and shares some hilarious stories about his life, the business and of course the Sopranos. He tells us about how his mother prepared him for his Sopranos audition, and how nervous he was the first day on set. He also shares a really funny story about smoking pot right before one of his scenes, and how he got through it….totally baked. He also talks about how shocked he was he first read the script where Finn catches Vito in the parking lot. He thought his character would ge...
Apr 05, 2021•2 hr 17 min•Ep. 54
This week on Talking Sopranos Michael Imperioli and Steve Schirripa welcome a real legend. Frankie Valli (Rusty Millio), singer, songwriter and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee joins the podcast. In an extremely revealing interview, Frankie talks about growing up on the mean streets of New Jersey, and how without music, many of his friends may have ended up dead, in the mob or in jail. He also shares how he developed a close relationship with Frank Sinatra and why it all went south. He also t...
Mar 29, 2021•2 hr 25 min•Ep. 53
Can you believe Michael and Steve are almost finished with four seasons of Talking Sopranos? This week they kick things off by talking about what it’s like to pitch a TV show, movie, or book. The arduous process of selling to executives and how many hurdles you have to go through to get a project produced. It’s amazing anything ever gets made! They also share a few of their biggest hits and misses. Looking back maybe that show for Playboy may not have been the best idea…. Then did you know Micha...
Mar 22, 2021•1 hr 52 min•Ep. 52
Peter Riegert (Assemblyman Zellman) joins Michael and Steve for this week’s episode of Talking Sopranos. Peter is both an Oscar and Emmy nominee known for his work on Animal House, The Mask, Oscar, Barbarians at the Gate, Crossing Delancey and so much more. He talks about how he got into the business and his first TV job on M*A*S*H. He also shares what it was like to work with John Belushi and the entire cast on Animal House. Peter originally auditioned for the role of Elliot Kupferberg on the S...
Mar 15, 2021•2 hr 31 min•Ep. 51
This week Michael and Steve welcome both Alla Kliouka (Svetlana Kirilenko) and Robert Funaro (Eugene Pontecorvo) to the Talking Sopranos podcast. First up it’s Alla Kliouka who played Svetlana, one of the most memorable characters of the series. She talks about what it was like to be a successful actress in the Soviet Union and how the Sopranos was her first real US gig. When she auditioned for David Chase she walked into the room as Svetlana and completely blew everybody away. She also shares h...
Mar 08, 2021•2 hr 27 min•Ep. 50
This week Michael and Steve welcome two exciting guests. Al Sapienza who played Mikey Palmice, and Dan Grimaldi who played both Philly and Patsy Parisi. First up Al talks about how he got his start in the business. Did you know he played Ringo in Beatlemania on Broadway? Then he shares how a relationship with Jason Alexander got him the audition for the Sopranos. For Al, Mikey Palmice was the role of a lifetime and he was devastated when he heard he was getting whacked. He tried to talk David ou...
Mar 01, 2021•2 hr 18 min•Ep. 49
This week on Talking Sopranos it’s another double header! Michael and Steve welcome both Angelo Massagli and Arthur J. Nascarella to the podcast. First up it’s Angelo Massagli, Bobby Baccalieri III and Steve’s on-screen son. Angelo talks about what it was like to be part of the Sopranos at age 10. How David Chase always made him feel so important and how he helped Angelo even after the Sopranos was over. Angelo’s parents wouldn’t let him watch the show when it aired, but he recently watched the ...
Feb 22, 2021•1 hr 39 min•Ep. 48
In this episode Michael Imperioli and Steve Schirripa try something new. They invite Sopranos Celebrity Super Fan Pete Davidson, star of SNL and The King of Staten Island to the podcast. Steve always said he wouldn’t have anyone on the podcast who wasn’t part of the show but Pete is a huge Sopranos fan. He has seen the entire series 10-15 times, knows everything about the show and even has an awesome Bada Bing tattoo to prove it. Pete is a fantastic guy and absolutely loves talking about the Sop...
Feb 15, 2021•1 hr 58 min•Ep. 47
Emmy award winning director Jack Bender joins Michael and Steve for this week’s exciting episode of Talking Sopranos. Jack talks about his incredible journey which began as a young actor appearing on such famous TV shows as All in the Family , The Mod Squad and Mary Tyler Moore. In the 80’s Jack moved behind the camera and since then has enjoyed an illustrious career being nominated for 9 Emmy awards and winning one. Over the years Jack has produced and directed episodes for 73 different TV seri...
Feb 08, 2021•2 hr 10 min•Ep. 46
This special episode features two of the most memorable and law-abiding characters from the series. First up Lola Glaudini. She actually played two parts on the show, Agent Deborah Ciccerone and Danielle from Whippany. Lola tells Michael and Steve about her unconventional childhood and what it was like growing up surrounded by actors, artists, and lots of parties. She also talks about how she got the gig on the Sopranos and how excited she was to land a role on her favorite TV show. She tells us...
Feb 01, 2021•2 hr 37 min•Ep. 45
This week on Talking Sopranos Michael and Steve welcome everybody’s favorite Soprano’s character, Dominic Chianese (Uncle Junior). In this rare and revealing interview Dominic talks about his start in musical theater and his long and impressive singing career. He shares how he learned the craft of acting and how discipline and process played such a huge role in his success. He also talks about working with Al Pacino, Francis Ford Coppola and how he got the part in the Godfather. Dominic talks ab...
Jan 25, 2021•2 hr 6 min•Ep. 44
Michael and Steve are joined by their good friend Ray Abruzzo (Little Carmine). They have a blast talking about old times and all the laughs they've had on the Sopranos set. Ray explains about how a nice Italian American boy from Queens ended up in show business, and about his days on LA Law and Dynasty . He also shares his Sopranos audition story. Originally Little Carmine was supposed to be a 300 lb sweaty gangster but when Ray made a little movement with his neck, and mis-pronounced a word Da...
Jan 18, 2021•2 hr 27 min•Ep. 43
In this special episode Michael and Steve are joined by two amazing guests. The first is the infamous Jerry Adler (Hesh). Jerry talks about his illustrious acting career and what is was like to grow up as part of the renowned Adler family. Jerry shares stories about how he got involved in the Sopranos, and that he may be the only actor who never auditioned for his role. He also tells Michael and Steve about how David told him the original idea for the Sopranos was centered around the music busin...
Jan 11, 2021•2 hr 14 min•Ep. 42
Michael and Steve kick off season four by welcoming Federico Castelluccio (Furio Giunta). Federico talks about his incredible career as both an actor and a painter. How he got the role on the Sopranos, and how he originally read for the part of Johnny Sack. When he walked into the audition with an Italian accent, and said he was born in Naples but grew up in Patterson NJ, he was destined to play Furio. Federico shares a great story about his first day on set and the infamous brothel scene. The p...
Jan 04, 2021•2 hr 32 min•Ep. 41
In this episode of Talking Sopranos Michael and Steve wrap up season three. Can you believe we’re already through 40 episodes! They kick things off by talking about some of their friends and colleagues in the business. What it took for them to achieve success, what they have to do to stay on top. Then they break down the Sopranos season three finale. In this one everybody is out for themselves and Jackie Jr. is gonna pay big time. Paulie and Ralphie are at each other’s throats and Adrianna meets...
Dec 28, 2020•2 hr 6 min•Ep. 40
Michael and Steve spend 90 minutes with the Sopranos series creator David Chase. This Talking Sopranos special holiday episode is dedicated entirely to this exciting and revealing interview. David shares his intimate thoughts about the show, many of which have never been heard before. He answers questions about how he got the idea for the series, his complicated relationship with James Gandolfini and of course the ending. There’s no better way for Talking Sopranos to wrap up 2020 than spending i...
Dec 21, 2020•1 hr 39 min•Ep. 39
This week Michael and Steve are joined by the incredible and talented Annabella Sciorra (Gloria Trillo). Annabella’s role of Gloria was one of the most memorable characters on the series and she was nominated for an Emmy for her performance. Annabella talks about how she got her start in the business, how she landed her first big role in True Love and her early days with Aida Turturro. Then she talks about her incredible time on the Sopranos. Originally she read for another role but she fell in ...
Dec 14, 2020•2 hr 21 min•Ep. 38
This week it’s Pine Barrens with guest Steve Buscemi…need I say more? This episode of the Sopranos is one of the greatest hours in the history of television. Now Michael and Steve are going to break it down scene by scene. We kick things off with an interview with Steve Buscemi who directed the episode and was nominated for an Emmy for his work. Steve talks about how the idea for the story came from a dream by Tim Van Patten, and how the episode randomly dropped to him to direct. He shares stori...
Dec 07, 2020•2 hr 41 min•Ep. 37
Michael and Steve are joined by guest Max Casella (Benny Fazio). Max is a show business veteran who has appeared in a number of hit movies and TV shows including; The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Inside Llewyn Davis, Blue Jasmine, Doogie Howser and of course the Sopranos. He talks about how he got his start in the business and what it was like to work with Woody Allen, The Coen Brothers and to perform the Lion King on Broadway. He also shares his story of auditioning for David Chase and how he thought...
Nov 30, 2020•2 hr 5 min•Ep. 36
Michael provides some amazing insight into the story as this was the second of five episodes he wrote. He tells us where the title came from, the story behind the Lollipop Lounge and how he came up with many of the ideas. This one also includes a short scene with an actress who at the time was a complete unknown but went on to become none other than Lady Gaga. She’s one of the girls by the pool watching AJ and friends trash the place. Adriana’s dream might come true, Jackie Jr is headed down a b...
Nov 23, 2020•1 hr 36 min•Ep. 35
Emmy award winner Martin Bruestle joins Michael Imperioli and Steve Schirripa for Talking Sopranos Ep #34 “He Is Risen”. Martin was a producer on the show, head of all post-production and responsible for selecting much of the show’s incredible music. In essence he was in charge of everything from when the director said cut until the show hit air. He shares some fantastic stories about how the series was made, his directorial debut and what went on behind the scenes. Martin tells us how the Sopra...
Nov 16, 2020•1 hr 55 min•Ep. 34
Emmy award winning Cinematographer Phil Abraham joins Michael and Steve for another exciting episode of Talking Sopranos. Phil worked on all six seasons of the Sopranos and shares some great stories from behind the camera. He talks about how James Gandolfini was once leery about a director so he tanked the scene just to see if the director would notice. He also talks about directing his first episode, and what it was like being part of crazy Soprano's family. Then Michael and Steve get into this...
Nov 09, 2020•2 hr 19 min•Ep. 33
