That one scene from Funhouse where T brings home a mink stole ("Gotta open the bag and let it breathe. Whoa - it's alive!") she actually looked pretty good in it.
Another good one from the first season was where Meadow and her class are singing "All through the night" while Mikey whacks Brendan "Hi Jack, bye Jack" and Christophaa leaves skidmarks in his shorts on the docks of the Meadowlands. The airport followup in the next show was good too. You rarely see Chrissy with his tail between his legs. Man, when Ade bent over in those tights . . . .
HEH HEH ON THE HUMOR RS7 AND GG'S WHERE THE SMART $$ IS (FOR ONCE IN HIS LIFE) -FPC SAYS "UM GONNA MURDERIZE DA BUM!"
I've never understood the wild success of the Sopranos. It seems so cliched. The "fughedaboutit" kind of attitude, the cliched names of some of those guys. It's funny, if it portrayed any other ethnicity, people would be jumping up and down about it. Can you imagine a one hour show on a black criminal family? Jesse Jackson and his crowd would be marching on Washington to get it off the air. If it was about a Latin drug kingpin and his exploits in Miami, you'd have the Latino/Cuban groups disliking it. If it had gays or lesbians, GLAAD would be all over it. But if it's a white italian guy who "wacks" other mafioso's, then it's ok. I think some of the Italian groups didn't like it for a while, and it caught some flack in NYC, but it seems tame to what Al Sharpton and his guys would be doing.
The Sopranos is a compelling, gritty and often realistic depiction of mob life. In no way does it glorify it. Could an equally acclaimed drama emerge from the gangster underbellies of Chinatown, Harlem or Miami? Doubtful. These settings just don't resonate with the same emotional impact, both in terms of current events and family pathos. We've already had "Year of the Dragon", "Scarface" and "Boyz in the Hood." Other ethnic gangs have come and gone and today they are shadows of their former selves. The possible plot lines are just too thin to warrant a 5+ season show. However, the Italian Mob continues to remain a strong, mysterious force in East Coast society. This mystique continues to fuel interest in dramas like The Sopranos. As far as the "racist" aspect of the show, you can't please everyone all of the time. In case you didn't realize, the Italian Defamation League HAS been jumping up and down on this show. That's why members of the cast weren't permitted to march down 5th Avenue with Mayor Bloomberg on Columbus Day. People will be offended by anything these days, so it's a no-win situation. From the New York Post: L.I. Sopranos Busted November 15, 2002 -- A Long Island crime family lived like the Sopranos - complete with their own version of the Bada Bing strip club and secret mob confabs at the high school football games of the underboss' son, authorities said yesterday. Suffolk County DA Thomas Spota said he hopes the roundup of 14 suspects and the impending arrests of several others "sends a searing message" to the mob. He said the biggest organized-crime crackdown by Long Island officials in 20 years began when a strip-club owner complained to authorities. The owner of Sinderella's strip club and adult-movie rental business in Brentwood said a mobster put a gun to his head and announced his business now belonged to the mob. During the nine-month investigation, the probers found that the mobsters used cell phones they thought were "laundered" and safe from police surveillance. But authorities were able to listen in on crime conferences of reputed Luchese crime-family underboss Joseph Caridi, of East Northport. Asked if Caridi, 53, and his associates were real-life Sopranos, Spota said: "Absolutely. We have an underboss who lives in suburbia, like Tony Soprano . . . going to football games with other mobsters," Spota said. "They're not football dads, but they look like football dads." Authorities said the mobsters arranged meetings at football games where Caridi's son played. "What's the name of the [Sopranos] place?" Spota said. "The Bada Bing? They've got Sinderella's." The 14 arrests announced yesterday were for racketeering, loan sharking, gambling and other crimes. Almost $70,000 in cash as well as computers and business records were seized. Suffolk Police Commissioner John Gallagher said he hoped the arrests will de-glamorize organized crime in the public's eye. "Every Sunday, millions of Americans invite 'The Sopranos' into their living rooms," but they wouldn't invite real-life mobsters into their homes, Gallagher said. The mob is "dirty, vicious," he said. "It reaches out to ordinary citizens and terrorizes them . . . it leaves people broken and their lives ruined." Spota said a West Hempstead cell phone store, Simply Cellular, provided Luchese members with "laundered" cell phones in other people's names in a failed attempt to foil surveillance. The manager of the store denied knowingly supplying cell phones to the mob. "It's very tough to monitor who we're giving phones to," said the manager, who asked not to be named. "It's not our business to know about their private life. These people don't walk around with labels."
I don't know that there really much of an issue with which to object. At least not in the context mentioned. I have not watched the HBO prison show...Oz? But from the clips I have seen promoting it, it seems that the prison population is portrayed as mostly black. Is this discriminatory? Or is this a reflection of what is real? In the same vein of thinking, is organized crime, to a great degree comprised of Italian-Americans? Around the time that "The Godfather" movies were popular, an Italian version of the Anti Defamation League was created (I forget the exact name that they used, but close to the ADL). Ironically it was founded and funded by well known "mafioso". Joe Colombo, if memory serves. Anyway, I am not sure if the organization still exists, but certainly their reason to be was (is?) to make the public aware that the vast majority of Italian-Americans are law abiding citizens. And that the "mafia" stereotype is objectionable to these people. We all know that Rudi Guilliani was a first rate crime fighter. Targeted Italian run "mafia" figures. John Gotti is off the streets. The "mafia" is in decline. There are now more serious threats to society from other criminal elements. Black gangsters have been depicted in many books, movies, tv shows, etc. As have Jewish gangsters. "Bugsy Siegel" had his life portrayed in a major hollywood movie. The Meyer Lansky character, "Mo Green", and many others were portrayed in "The Godfather" movies. The movie "Casino".....Robert DeNiro, the quintessential Italian gangster played the role of the real "Lefty" Rosenthal. A true life jewish Vegas bad guy (had a bar here in South Florida until a year or so ago). The examples are endless. The Russian Mafia is now becoming more omnipresent. And therefore more often portrayed in the entertainment industry (including in "The Sopranos"). There are gangsters and gangster stories that can be pointed to from virtually any ethnic group. It is really just entertainment. And if the characters on the Sopranos are offensive to some people, and they consider the material "racist", well certainly they are entitled to their objections. But the truth of the matter is that whether the stereotyping is fair or not is irrelevant. It is truly a matter of free speech and expression. And giving the public what they want. Anyone who actually watches the show knows that the bad guys are NOT portrayed as being representative of Italians in general. The cast is largely comprised of Italian-American actors and actresses. They seem to have no problem with the issue. The therapist, Dr. Malfi, the "hero" and moral counter-balance in the show is an Italian character. I don't see that clear thinking people can seriously be convinced by watching this show that Italian-Americans are as a group likely to be gangsters because of their heritage. If anyone is that isolated from reality, it is unlikely they have access to cable television. What is really objectionable here? Is there organized crime comprised of Italian-Americans? Yes. Is it fair to use this element of real life as a basis for entertainment? Obviously this is a personal issue. But it has been part of our society (both the real "mafia" and the fictionalized version). Is it entertaining? Clearly it is and has been. Is it profitable to create this entertainment? Absolutely. The Godfather....written by Mario Puzo ...an Italian American. Directed by Francis Ford Copula. An Italian-American. Is the Sopranos creating a bad image for Italian-Americans? The real question is, is there INTENT TO DO THIS? Clearly not, and that is why people are not "jumping up and down" protesting the material. It's just entertainment. I would be interested to know if any Italian-American members of ET are offended by this show. It would surprise me if there were. This show is not causing mass feelings of anything as far as I can see. Other than people wanting to tune in to a well written, well acted and very entertaining hour of tv. So many people, myself included, who generally do not watch tv seem compelled to make time for "The Sopranos". They must be doing something right. Peace, rs7