R.I.P. James Gandolfini Passed away at 51

[fttickler]

Actor James Gandolfini, who galvanized us with his portrayal of a mobster on cable TV, has passed away while vacationing in Rome.

 

[Cosmo_ac]

Just saw this. I have to admit, I was a bit surprised and saddened. I rather enjoyed James Gandolfini. Best wishes to his friends and family.

 

[maniactickler]

Good actor. he didnt look so healthy though.

 

[kis123]

Wow!

I'm very surprised to hear this news, but he hasn't looked very healthy at all.

I hope he lived his life to the fullest before he left out of here.........

 

[Mitchell]

I was stunned and saddened to hear about Mr Gandolfini's passing.

I wasn't a Sopranos fan, and I didn't see too many of his movies, but I did see him in "Surviving Christmas" with Ben Affleck, and Christina Applegate in 2004. I thought it was a pretty good movie.

51 is far too young to go. May he R. I. P.,

 

[Amnesiac]

This shit ain't right, man. Not only is 51 too damn young, but it happened to too fine an actor.

Gandolfini was one of the finest and most criminally underrated actors in the American stable. He was so effective at conveying authentic emotion from his characters that he was often cast as heavies and villains where that kind of intensity was most demanded, but the skill that gave him that quality was one of the rarest kinds of talents you can find. The tragedy for those of us who are not his immediate friends and family is that we never got to see him given his due and allowed to branch out of the meathead-bully roles that he excelled in before and since The Sopranos. Thankfully, some wiser heads who knew what they had cast him in a number of unseen roles where he got to showcase his non-Tony Soprano side--John Turturro in Romance & Cigarettes being the most prominent, but also Gore Verbinski in The Mexican--but aside from some roles in underwhelming indie movies--with the exception of Not Fade Away--America as a whole never got to see the incredible range and heart he was capable of unleashing.

In my mind, Gandolfini's passing is the greatest loss of untapped dramatic potential since Vincent Price. Somewhere, in an alternate world, Vincent Price spent the late 40s to the 1990s doing evisceratingly clever dramatic work instead of schlocky horror films, but much like Gandolfini's ouevre post-2013 ouevre, that's a catalog of movies we'll never get to see and it pains me to think about the gaping hole it leaves in our culture.

The A.V. Club did a marvelous obit piece on Gandolfini, and I would feel remiss if I didn't put it here for others to read.

http://www.avclub.com/articles/james-gandolfini-has-died,99242/

 

[C.A.B.]

...always the good ones. But our idiots seem to live forever. RIP James.

 

[BostonTickling]

This shit ain't right, man. Not only is 51 too damn young, but it happened to too fine an actor.

Gandolfini was one of the finest and most criminally underrated actors in the American stable. He was so effective at conveying authentic emotion from his characters that he was often cast as heavies and villains where that kind of intensity was most demanded, but the skill that gave him that quality was one of the rarest kinds of talents you can find. The tragedy for those of us who are not his immediate friends and family is that we never got to see him given his due and allowed to branch out of the meathead-bully roles that he excelled in before and since The Sopranos. Thankfully, some wiser heads who knew what they had cast him in a number of unseen roles where he got to showcase his non-Tony Soprano side--John Turturro in Romance & Cigarettes being the most prominent, but also Gore Verbinski in The Mexican--but aside from some roles in underwhelming indie movies--with the exception of Not Fade Away--America as a whole never got to see the incredible range and heart he was capable of unleashing.

In my mind, Gandolfini's passing is the greatest loss of untapped dramatic potential since Vincent Price. Somewhere, in an alternate world, Vincent Price spent the late 40s to the 1990s doing evisceratingly clever dramatic work instead of schlocky horror films, but much like Gandolfini's ouevre post-2013 ouevre, that's a catalog of movies we'll never get to see and it pains me to think about the gaping hole it leaves in our culture.

Couldn't have said it better myself. Such an amazing talent. And so sad.

 

[milagros317]

Very sad that he died so young. Rest In Peace, Mr. Gandolfini.

 

[Mitchell]

I just watched Jim Gardner's 6pm newscast from Philly. They sent a correspondent to the town in NJ where Mr Gandolfini was from. They said he would visit there, and behave like a regular guy, walking up to people, and saying "Hi, I'm Jim". Regular people, like postal workers, and sales people, considered him a friend, and they said he never portrayed a "Star's smugness" at all.

His death is truly tragic. A great man and great talent, who was taken far, far too soon.

 

[Mitchell]

I just read that the autopsy has been completed, and it indicated that Mr Gandolfini passed away of a heart attack.

 

[kopfhorer]

Apparently, Mr. Gandolfini made documentaries dealing with veterans' affairs: http://www.stripes.com/news/us/gandolfini-covered-veterans-issues-in-hbo-documentaries-1.226709