Tony Soprano

Tony Soprano is a fictional character and the protagonist in the HBO television drama series The Sopranos, portrayed by James Gandolfini. The Italian-American character was conceived by The Sopranos creator and show runner David Chase, who was also largely responsible for the character's story arc throughout the show's six seasons. The character is loosely based on real-life New Jersey mobster Vincent "Vinny Ocean" Palermo (born 1944), a former caporegime (capo) and de facto street boss of the DeCavalcante crime family of New Jersey. Considered to be the model for the Soprano family, several incidents involving the DeCavalcantes were incorporated into Sopranos scripts. Bobby Boriello portrayed Soprano as a child in one episode and Danny Petrillo played the character as a teenager in three episodes.