Best Sopranos tribute you'll ever see. This video is on the crimes commited by Tony's organization in New Jersey and by himself. Also serves as a good retrospective for the 6 seasons before the grand series finale. Contains scenes of violence. Footage is DVD quality and not from a TV Rip.
The name of the song is written in the credits.
Steve Schirripa
Role: Bobby "Bacala" Baccalieri
Robert Iler
Role: Anthony Soprano, Jr.
Vincent Pastore
Role: Salvatore "Big Pussy" Bonpensiero
Vincent Curatola
Role: John "Johnny Sack" Sacrimoni
Steve Van Zandt
Role: Silvio Dante
Federico Castelluccio
Role: Furio Giunta
Joseph R. Gannascoli
Role: Vito Spatafore
Tony Sirico
Role: Paulie Walnuts
Jamie-Lynn Sigler
Role: Meadow Soprano
Dominic Chianese
Role: Corrado "Junior" Soprano
Michael Imperioli
Role: Christopher Moltisanti
David Proval
Role: Richie Aprile
Edie Falco
Role: Carmela Soprano
The mobsters in the series are depicted as tough, savvy, and street-smart but lacking education and common sense. The characters are frequently oblivious to the humorous usage of their language and ignorance. The show's many malapropisms are often a source of humor for the viewers.[1]
Paulie pronounces "Mayhem" as "Mayham" in the third episode of season six,[5] giving the episode its title.
When New York mob boss Carmine Lupertazzi makes his first appearance in the third episode of Season 3 (Episode 29), "Fortunate Son," he reassures Tony that seeing a therapist is nothing to be ashamed of: "There's no stigmata."
His son, Little Carmine, is also given to malapropisms, saying of his movie-producing in "Cold Stones" that "I have nine pictures under my sub-species" and explaining the final scene in Cleaver as a mix of "the sacred and the propane" ("Stage 5").
In the second episode of season one, Paulie "Walnuts" Gualtieri laments to "Big Pussy" that Americans are stealing Italian culture and making money as a result (pizza, calzones, etc. are cited as examples). Paulie also cites "Expresso" (emphasis on "X") coffee as something stolen by Americans from Italian culture and sold in the mainstream for profit; the coffee is actually spelled and pronounced "Espresso".
In the first episode of Season 4, Episode 40, "For All Debts Public and Private," Bobby Baccalieri drew the ire of Tony while discussing world events and biblical prophecy by erroneously stating that "Quasimodo predicted all of this." Tony then corrected him by saying that he meant Nostradamus and that Quasimodo was the Hunchback of Notre Dame.
Tony has had several instances of misused language. He mentions his uncle's "cathode" when referring to a catheter in the eleventh episode of Season 2, Episode 24, "House Arrest." In season four, he attributes a quote of Rodney King, "Why can't we all just get along?", to "the Reverend Rodney King Jr." Tony apparently inherited this trait from his father, Johnny Soprano, who in Season 1 episode 7, "Down Neck", told his wife, Livia, she was an "albacore around his neck." In Season 6, Episode 16, "Chasing It" he talks about "Vito's passing and all that entrails."
Key plot lines of the show highlight the characters ineptitude and frequent misunderstandings of history and common knowledge. When Paulie mentions what he thinks caused the extinction of the dinosaurs and a lady diner queries, "Wasn't that a meteor?", Paulie dismissively replies "they're all meat-eaters".
When Tony Blundetto becomes involved in a business dealing with a Korean, Paulie reminds him to "remember Pearl Harbor".
Much of the episode "Pine Barrens" was devoted to the failings of Paulie and Christopher as they attempted to survive a single day and night in a snowy wilderness after a botched execution. In this episode, Tony tells them to be careful with the subject of their execution as he once allegedly killed 16 Chechen rebels and was part of the Russian Interior Ministry. When Paulie later repeats this claim, he says that the subject killed 16 Czechoslovakians and was an interior decorator.
Earlier in the same episode Christopher shows his bad knowledge of history when he talks about Russians with Paulie. In the pilot, Christopher explains his understanding that Polish people are from Czechoslovakia.
He believes his girlfriend has two uteri in the seventh episode of Season 4, Episode 46, "Watching Too Much Television" and, in Episode 82, "Walk Like a Man," moments before he shoots J. T. Dolan, Christopher mis-repeats Tony's comment that he's ostracizing himself from the other mobsters by not drinking and asks Dolan, "Why are you ostrafrying me?"
In Season 6, episode 6, Tony talks to Melfi about homosexuality, misquoting (and mangling the name of) then-Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum saying "I agree with that Senator Sanitorium. He says if we let this stuff go too far, pretty soon we'll be fucking dogs." [6]
Tony often repeats things that Dr. Melfi says to him elsewhere, only to get the phrase entirely wrong or completely miss the point. When Melfi told him that his relationship with Gloria can be described as "Amour Fou" ("crazy love"), Tony later repeats the phrase to Gloria, describing their affair as "Our Mofo".
In the tenth episode of the fifth season, "Cold Cuts," Tony says "revenge is like serving cold cuts" only to be corrected by Dr. Melfi saying, "Revenge is a dish best served cold".
In "Commendatori" Paulie travels to Italy and attempts to blend in with the locals, but does not realize that he is repeatedly being mocked.
On another occasion Tony remarks to Dr. Melfi that he has read a book she recommended, The Art of War by Sun Tzu, but that many of his compatriots have read Prince Matchabelli, a malapropism that simultaneously alludes to a perfume and the book The Prince by Niccolò Machiavelli.[episode needed]
Little Carmine, too, often muddles metaphors, as in "The Second Coming," when he tells Tony, "You're at the precipice of an enormous crossroad." Some characters, however, are portrayed as well spoken in contrast. For instance, Johnny Sack almost never used malapropisms.[7]
I don't believe for a second that a Roman Catholic priest is promoting essentially what is best and most commonly known as Italian folk healing/magic. I watched both these videos many times and what I see and hear is a... for lack of a better word, spin.
I take umbrage to the notion that Benedicaria and its practitioners are the "Holiest of Holies". Divination is a huge part of Benedicaria and last I heard the Catholic Church wasn't endorsing fortune-telling. I was taught to know "la luce ed il buio" (the light and the darkness) and when we practiced divination it was something we did while at the same time apologizing to God and praying that He not be offended and punish us -because our mothers, in hushed voices, told us to. We even made emergency trips to the chapel of L'Oratoire St. Joseph to light candles to pray for forgiveness and to protect us from demons! (Really, there is a spot in the chapel to light candles for this intention.) I also observed how men especially, outwardly dismissed the practices of the über-devout (Catholic) women in my neighbourhood as scary silly superstition. These same men wore their corno on their gold chains right beside their crucifixes and never made eye contact with them -just in case.
In case of what?
I had never heard the term Benedicaria until I read it online. Solitario, creator and webmaster of The Stregoneria Italiana Project posted it up on his forum asking his readership if we knew this term. The lady who taught me the ways, said to me "Ora tu sei sempre Benedetta." and she always called me Benedetta Carusa (Blessed Dear One). So although I use the term Benedicaria on my site to describe the practices in our collective ways that are indeed in tune with Catholicism, I cannot speak to the usage of the term Benedicaria outside of Vito's writing because I've never seen it. However, I like it and I do believe that if Vito chose this word to describe the "things he does", then he should own it.
The theme in both of Vito's videos is one of a desperate appeal to authority. He wants the good +Father to endorse his practices and thereby authenticating and legitimizing them. The good +Father does state that Benedicaria is liturgically sound and has absolutely no ties to stregoneria (witchcraft/folk magic/sorcery) in any way -but, it is very contrived. I guess what I'm saying is that Vito's questions are very leading and he repeats what +Father Jason says to the camera to fit his agenda. Seems like a lot of putting the priest on the spot if you ask me.
Notice how in the video in this entry, Vito expresses his... for lack of a better word, dismay, at the inclusion or rather association of Benedicaria to stregoneria on The Stregoneria Italiana Project. Vito's Benedicaria, with it's elements of Traditional Catholicism, Mexican Curanderismo and Cuban Santería is actually quite charming, but in my humble opinion it is not purely Sicilian nor Italian and it is definitely not purely Catholic.
Italian Americans have long been defined by their religious beliefs and practices. During the great wave of immigration, the Irish-dominated Roman Catholic hierarchy identified Italian immigrants as the "Italian problem" and mere "sacramental Catholics" due to the latter's popular anti-clericalism, the seamless blending of witchcraft and ecclesiastic teachings, their deep devotion to the cult of the saints and the Virgin Mary, and the spectacularly staged feste that mixed the sacred and the profane in streets across America. During the 20th century, Italian American spirituality and religious practices have undergone significant transformations with shifts in theological tenets, economic status, and the political climate. -John D. Calandra Italian American Institute and The Italian American Studies Program of Queens College
The mere sight of them makes me sigh and their sweet, creamy, herbal fragrance breaks my heart.
I have moved many times, and am currently far from where I originally come from however, the moment I smell the scent of lilacs in bloom upon a warm breeze, I am home.
To me, being compared to a dog is the ultimate compliment, and my mom certainly deserves the honor for her honesty, integrity, and loyalty. Without my mother's encouragement and support, I would not be where I am today. She taught me the value of being around the right people, being a part of the right "pack." She would say, "Don't hang around people with no goals. They'll only slow you down." I still believe that today. You're not going to grow unless you surround yourself with other people who want to grow. That is a lesson I hope to pass on to my kids.
Something else my mom deserves credit for: my signature "tsst" sound. As a child, it was the sound my mother would make around the house to get our attention or discourage something we were doing.
I wish all mothers and mothers-to-be a very happy mother's day. I hope you are surrounded by the love and warmth of family on your special day.
There's a lot of people out there who would be thrilled with your old baby things. Try contacting a local shelter for domestic violence victims, or a local homeless shelter. They often have women in desperate need of baby items. Your family and friends might not appreciate them, but a poor mother with nothing will think they are treasures!
“A philosopher once wrote you need three things to have a good life. One, a meaningful relationship, two, a decent job of work, and three, to make a difference. And it was always that third one that stressed me, to make a difference. And I realise that I do. Every day, we all do. It’s how we interact, with our fellow man.”
