A sit down in NJ with The Sopranos: Italian buffet and Jersey drama

It's been almost 18 years since "The Sopranos" went off the air, and thanks to streaming services, they're still as popular as ever, especially in New Jersey.

Sopranos stars return to West Orange

On Wednesday, Oct. 1, you can have a "Sit Down With The Sopranos" at The Highlawn in West Orange. You'll hear the stories that you can't tell anyone from Vincent Curatola, who played "Johnny Sack," Federico Castelluccio, "Furio Giunta," John Bianco, aka "Gerry Torciano," and Artie Pasquale, also known as "Bert Gervasi."

The event will be hosted by Danny Provenzano, whose credits include "That Thing of Ours" and "Real Housewives of New Jersey."

Vincent Curatola remembers Johnny Sack

Curatola, a guest on The Steve Trevelise Show, described his character as "pragmatic" when asked how he got the role.

"I didn't want to go through the first two auditions that my agent had appointed for me, only because I was busy doing an NBC movie called Exile. My dear friend Chris Noth asked me to be in it, and Dabney Coleman, and I said to my agent, 'Look, I already know what this is all about.' My good friend Tony Sirico said they're already shooting. I said 'maybe if they have a second season, you'll send me,' and he said no, they want to see you. Why do they want to see me? They don't know me. I gotta tell you, man, I blew off two appointments until I finally agreed to go to the third one, like, three days later, and that was the trick."

As for playing Johnny Sack?

"The writing was so tremendous. I gotta tell you something. I never heard a word from David Chase or any other producers or directors to say to me, 'Listen, I think Johnny is this.' Nobody ever said a word. It came completely from each individual script that I worked in, and I knew right away what they wanted, what they were looking for. I never had to ask them a question. And it just went on. It just kept going."

John Bianco on Sopranos casting struggles

John Bianco, also a guest of The Steve Trevelise Show, whose character was the only one to die in slow motion and had his hair dyed blonde, "didn't think they wanted him after reading for them for so long."

"Finally when I got the job, I went over to director Terence Winter who told me, 'We knew we wanted to work with you, it was just a question of for what role.' When an actor hears that, all the bad stuff goes away. It just puts everything in perspective.

Tickets to the Sopranos reunion event

For tickets to "A Sit Down With The Sopranos," which includes an Italian buffet, contact John@alleycatfilms@yahoo.com or call 917-674-4105.