<p>An even worse month for Rutgers. Very sad news.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Holsten’s is just a couple of blocks from where my ex and I lived when my son was growing up, and we also used to go there with him all the time. For years, I took the bus into Manhattan every morning from the stop directly outside Holsten’s. </p>
<p>And the apartment building in Clifton where I later lived appears in the background of a scene in another episode, filmed at a local golf course. I remember how excited my son and I were when we saw that.</p>
<p>We probably crossed paths at Holstens at some point!</p>
<p>Just heard on CNN that Gandolfini was in rehab for alcohol and cocaine addiction years ago, and that these conditions, even though not current, are indicators for heart disease. He also was up to 300 pounds recently. I’m sure I’m partly trying to assure myself that I won’t drop dead any time soon, but I wish the man had taken better care of himself.</p>
<p>Just this past Monday we started watching The Sopranos, beginning from episode 1, on Netflix since we never watched it when it was first released. If you haven’t seen it, I highly recommend it. “Hooked” after just 5 episodes…</p>
<p>I really liked this column by a journalist who knew him:</p>
<p>[Matt</a> Zoller Seitz on James Gandolfini, 1961-2013 – Vulture](<a href=“http://www.vulture.com/2013/06/james-gandolfini-obit-matt-zoller-seitz.html]Matt”>Seitz on James Gandolfini, 1961-2013: A Great Actor, A Better Man)</p>
<p>A local reporter had dinner next to him last night in Rome and posted a photo.
He didn’t look well. :(</p>
<p>Mommaj- the man isn’t cold yet. Do you need to point out his flaws? Really.</p>
<p>HBO has been running The Sopranos on one of its channels every night at 8. H and I have been watching, after having seen the whole series twice before. Because we know the plotlines so well, we can really focus on the acting, and Gandolfini (as well as Edie Falco and so many of the cast) was truly a marvel. It’s a great loss.</p>
<p>DonnaL
That is a great shot of Gandolfini at Mardi Gras. He looks so happy!</p>
<p>In addition to his great talent, I admired how well he conducted himself in interviews - with grace and self-deprecating humor. He received so much deserved praise for “The Sopranos” that he could easily have become one of those Hollywood nightmares, yet he never did. The world is a lesser place without him.</p>
<p>Very sad to hear this.</p>
<p>How sad. People always describe James Gandolfini as a humble, generous, genuinely nice person. Booklady, I sometimes do the same thing–watch episodes again and focus on how good they were. The end of the last episode, which I watched again on YouTube last night, is pretty amazing. Thinking about the eventual end of Mad Men, I wonder if Matthew Weiner (former Sopranos writer) can match that. I don’t think so.</p>
<p>A local tribute to Gandolfini:</p>
<p>[Booth</a> Where ‘Sopranos’ Cut To Black Reserved in Memory of Gandolfini - Bloomfield, NJ Patch](<a href=“Booth Where 'Sopranos' Cut To Black Reserved in Memory of Gandolfini | Bloomfield, NJ Patch”>Booth Where 'Sopranos' Cut To Black Reserved in Memory of Gandolfini | Bloomfield, NJ Patch)</p>
<p>Very sad. Unfortunately he had many risk factors for sudden cardiac arrest working against him. New research is including balding:</p>
<p>[Risks:</a> Balding and Heart Disease - NYTimes.com](<a href=“http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/04/05/baldness-as-a-signal-of-heart-disease-risk/]Risks:”>Risks: Balding and Heart Disease - The New York Times)</p>