Posted on 07/04/2006 5:00:11 AM PDT by johnny7
Now that "Paulie Walnuts" and "Sylvio Dante" have re-signed with the Godfather over at the HBO family, "Sopranos" fans can breathe easier. The cast is just about all buttoned up for the final eight episodes of the mob show. If you're like me and wondering why they're even bothering after last season's soap opera that was more a story about a psychotic gay murderer than about old-fashioned crime and punishment: Apparently there are still plenty of fans out there.
July Fourth weekend on the Jersey Shore is a testament to that fact. Near the beach there's an Italian deli that takes its food very seriously. The cold cuts are the best money can buy, the refrigerator is filled with homemade pastas and other Italian specialties and they take pride in their freshly filled cannoli.The owners are transplanted Italian-American New Yawkers who are probably the nicest...
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
Hell... that's how all my moms side of the family spoke... they were mimmicking my granpa... giovanni7. “Eh... youz 'wanna sang-a-weech? Go look in 'da frig-a-daire” ;)
At it's worst, The Sopranos is still arguably the best drama ever produced for TV. And the reason is James Gandolfini. He doesn't act the role, he inhabits the role of Tony Soprano. No actor on earth could do a better job. The show deflated when he was silent, in the hospital bed for a few episodes last season. I had the pleasure of knowing (and working for) John Patterson, who directed many of the episodes, and to whom the final episode of this past year was dedicated, as he passed away in February. John once told me that Gandolfini was born to play that role, it was his destiny. He said it with reverence. And you have to credit the writers and casting director too. It all just comes together in a magical way.
My parents never dropped the last letter but always used a 'G" sound in place of a "C". I never knew why until I went to Sicily a few times and learned that the "C" sound is difficult for Sicilians to pronounce so they replace it with a "G' sound. My family is of Sicilian origin.
My old Grandpa's pronunciation of 'hamburger': ham-BOY-ga.
and...when you say, "pasta", you better fudge the "p" to sound somewhat like a "b". Practice it by saying "bahst-a".
It's Gravy...only when served on Sunday in my wife's family's house
;-)
In Massachusetts' Merrimack Valley many people still say "sangwich". Axe anybody. And many still say "ice box".
Italians are greatly amused by Americans who say "pro-shoot" and "mana-got" and think they're being authentically Italian.
The one that bothers me most is bruschetta, which is invariably pronounced "broo-shetta." I can't tell you how many times I've said "broo-sketta" (the actual Italian pronunciation) and been gently corrected.
Dear denydenydeny,
Well, Italians may be amused, but this is how our grandparents and parents spoke.
If I say "manigott," it isn't because I'm feigning being Italian. It's because that's how my American-born Sicilian father says it, and that's how he learned it from his Sicilian-born father and grandparents. It's because that's how my mother said it, as she learned it from her Sicilian-born mother.
"Nowadays in nearly all of Italy the final vowel is always pronounced, even in the south, thanks to the homogenizing influence of Italian television."
That's kind of interesting. Maybe folks like my father will be the last speakers of the Sicilian dialect.
sitetest
My Mom's people are from Abruzzi.. They drop the "A" at the end of Ricotta , supressatta,and "bracciola", the "i" at the end of "manicotti"; and tend to replace the "Cs" with "Gs". And it's "GRAVY", not "SAUCE"
My family was from up north. We never dropped the last letter either.
You've missed a very entertaining series.
No, no, the correct terminology is "Go anna look ina da ice-a-box"
I claim100% "Itralian" ancestry, was born in "da Bronex" and learned the language from all the aunts and uncles.
FUHGEDDABOUDITT!!
I never pronoun-a-it...I eata it....
"I am happy to say I have never seen one episode of that "show".
It sounds like a Godfather wan-a-bee show.
"
James Gandolfini plays a hit man in a crime family.
The segment where he encounters Patricia Arquette (Medium)in the hotel room is where Tony Soprano was "born".
BTW, True Romance has numerous supporting actors in it that are now big time stars. Check it out.
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