Tony Soprano

		Biography
		The Sopranos
		Awards & Nominations

Anthony "Tony" Soprano is the fictional Boss of the DiMeo family in the HBO TV series, The Sopranos, played by James Gandolfini.

Throughout the series, Tony Soprano has to juggle the ongoing needs of both his personal family and his professional family. He has a volatile relationship with his wife, Carmela, and a loving -- if somewhat overbearing -- relationship with his two children, Meadow and Anthony, Jr. Passionate and often hotheaded, he is nonetheless intelligent and struggles to conduct his personal and professional lives with reason rather than passion.

Tony is frequently unfaithful to his wife. His affairs and one-night stands and his inability to be faithful have been a source of conflict between Tony and Carmela, leading to a brief separation in their marriage. Affairs have included Mercedes saleswoman Gloria Trillo and Russian dancer Irina Peltsin. Tony lets his hedonistic pursuits conflict with his business. He had sex with Svetlana Kirilenko, Uncle Junior's nurse and Irina's cousin. He also had an affair with Valentina la Paz. Their relationship started while Valentina was dating Ralph Cifaretto.

Coupled with this, Tony has to juggle northern New Jersey's most powerful criminal organization, keeping it functioning properly and keeping dissonance to a minimum. Tony is technically only the 'Acting Boss' of the DiMeo Crime Family, keeping it operating while Official Boss Junior Soprano is on house arrest and going senile .The relationship between Tony and Junior was very close for many years, with Junior acting as a father figure for Tony following the death of Giovanni (AKA Johnny Boy) Soprano, Tony's father. 

However, the relationship was strained when a disgruntled Junior, becoming more and more marginalized in the organization as the FBI's investigation into his activies increased. He pulled the mock execution of Christopher Moltisanti and had Brendan Filone killed, which infuriated Tony. If that wasn't bad enough, he soon conspired with Tony's own mother, Livia Soprano, to have Tony himself killed (although the hit failed).

Tony also suffers from panic attacks, a condition that both his father and now son also suffer from. To deal with it, he takes medication and sees a psychiatrist, Dr. Melfi. The relationship between Tony and Dr. Melfi has been up-and-down, with Tony reaching a level of comfort with Dr. Melfi that he has never experienced with anyone else before, not even his wife. 

This closeness leads Tony to have something of a "crush" on Dr. Melfi, something that is unattainable (as Dr. Melfi tries hard to suppress her feelings for him). However, the "prying" from Dr. Melfi is uncomfortable for Tony and he often turns sarcastic and antagonistic towards her, leading to an ongoing strain in their relationship.

Despite a level of local notoriety, Tony represents himself publically as a waste management consultant to Barone Sanitation, in fact one of the many fronts for his criminal enterprises. Tony has been using his nephew Christopher Moltisanti as a buffer between him and his capos during the past two seasons in order to insulate himself from the FBI.

Tony's Injury: In the premiere of the 2006 season, Corrado Soprano, suffering from dementia, believes Tony to be "Little Pussy" Malanga and shoots him in the abdomen. He manages to dial 911 but loses consciousness before being able to tell the operator what happened.

The second episode of the sixth season reveals Tony in currently in a medically-induced coma in the hospital. In the third episode we see Tony continue in a dream-like state, eventually arriving at what is Tony's mental representation of a purgatory, where he is greeted by his cousin, Tony Blundetto. 

It is also possible the shadowy figure in the doorway to the house (purgatory) is his mother. However, the voice of a younger version of his daughter calls him back. At the end of the third episode he awakes from his coma in a confused but safe state.

Trivia

• Tony Soprano was born in Newark, New Jersey and lives in North Caldwell, New Jersey
• Tony's cell phone number, as given in the Season 4 episode, "Pie-O-My," is 555-0157.
• Tony attended Seton Hall University for two-and-a-half semesters before dropping out.
• In the Season 5 finale, "All Due Respect," it is revealed Tony has an IQ of 136.
• In the Season 6 episode, "Members Only", we learn that Tony suffers from sleep apnea.
• In "Members Only", we also learn that Tony weighs about 280 pounds.

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