In Nursing Home
“Sopranos” actor Tony Sirico died at 79
The US actor Tony Sirico, known from the Mafia series “The Sopranos”, is dead. The actor, who played Mafioso Paulie “Walnuts” Gualtieri in the HBO hit series, died at the age of 79.
Published: 2:48 am
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Updated: 4:15 am
The US actor Tony Sirico, best known for the mafia series “The Sopranos”, is dead. The actor was 79 years old. He died on Friday (local time) in a nursing home in the US state of Florida, his longtime manager Bob McGowan told the DPA news agency. The cause of death is not yet known. However, Sirico has suffered from dementia for several years, McGowan said.
“It is with great sadness but incredible pride, incredible love and many fond memories that the family of Gennaro Anthony ‘Tony’ Sirico would like to inform you of his death on the morning of July 8, 2022,” the family said on Facebook. “Sopranos” actor Michael Imperioli confirmed the friend of his “dear friend” and colleague.
In the hit series “The Sopranos” (1999 to 2007), regarding the machinations of a mafia family in New Jersey, Sirico played mobster Paulie “Walnuts” Gualtieri. In his role, he was known as a brutal criminal but also for his great loyalty to mafia boss Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini).
Became interested in acting while in prison
Sirico was born in 1942 in Brooklyn, New York. In his youth he had frequent troubles with the law and was repeatedly arrested. He became interested in acting while in prison, when a group of ex-convicts performed there.
The Italian-American has starred in dozens of film and television productions. Martin Scorsese got him in front of the camera for the mafia drama “GoodFellas” in 1990. Director Woody Allen has given Sirico frequent supporting roles, including in films such as Bullets Over Broadway, Aphrodite Beloved, Cafe Society and Wonder Wheel.
He was more than 50 years old when he was cast on the HBO series The Sopranos. The eccentric and sometimes violent Paulie Gualtieri, played by him, is one of the most popular characters of the series regarding the life of gangsters in New Jersey. (SDA/AFP)