this is cnn breaking news. this is "piers morgan live." welcome to our viewers in the united states and around the word. tonight, breaking news and very sad breaking news, the death of an american superstar in every sense. james gandolfini has died at the age of 51, reportedly of a heart attack while traveling in italy. james gandolfini did what was impossible for most actors, make americans and the world love a mob boss. >> to my health, to being in this beautiful spot with people that i love. i couldn't ask for more. >> salute. >> it was a role that made him a superstar. tony sopranos, here is another

moment from that classic series. >> you know why we're here, so any doubts or reservations, now is the time to say so. no one will think any less of you because once you enter this family, there's no getting out. it comes before everything else. >> one of the greatest of all tv characters, perhaps the greatest. that part won james gandolfini three emmy awards. more on his extraordinary life and career. i want to begin with bill carter that covers television for the "new york times" and interviewed james gandolfini and remembers him as a huge talent. bill carter, it's a real shock. he was only 51, the peak of his acting powers. what is your reaction to the death of james gandolfini? >> i have to say i'm really stunned. i -- you know, did speak to him on many occasions and he was a warm guy, you know, he was not a great interview because he was sort of reserved, not at all

like his character. but, you know, full of life. i mean, the guy was just a force, a tremendous physical force and really a superb talent. his performance as tony sparano, it changed television. television changed dramatically because of this and really, i think the center point of dramatic acting shifted from movies to television because of him. i mean, he just changed the way people regard television and actors came to television because they could perform at this level after watching him. >> what was interesting about him? i met him a couple times, he was pretty shy, actually, when you met him in the flesh, very modest, very reserved in many ways as you hinted there in terms of interviews but very, very different to the character he played in "the sopranos, and became this theater force.

the character tony sparano in television. >> i think at the top because i think television forever was consumed with creating a lead character who would be in likable, and i think he made him -- he made this incredibly scary guy, who in many ways, extremely likable at the same time. it was a really knew answer -- nuanced performance and fully fleshed out. i mean, you know, he had tremendous vulnerability and going to a psychiatrist and torments in his family and mother and children. it was a full fleshed performance and i don't think we saw anything like that before and won't see anything like it again. and i don't think we'll ever see anything like it again. we see great performances but this was breakthrough, this was a changing performance and nothing was the same in television after this show. >> we have a statement just in, actually, from david chase, the creator of sopranos. he said he was a genius. he's one of the greatest actors of this or any time.

a great deal of that genius resided in those sad eyes. i remember telling him you don't get it, you're like mozart. he wasn't easy sometimes but he was my partner, brothers in ways i can't explain and never will be able to explain. david chase there. the creator of "the sopranos." very moving words there, bill. >> yes. >> i've been struck by the extraordinary outpouring of tributes and grief on twitter and facebook, really a lot of people seem to have been really affected by this. >> this has been an amazing story. this show when it started nobody knew anything about it. it was supposedly about a mobster but sounded like an opera show because it was called "the sopranos." it was rejected by fox and had been pitched to them, and here it was, and it suddenly became the most talked about

show and grew to an enormous level. hbo is only seen in a third of the televisions in america. it would have 13 million people watching these episodes. it was a cultural phenomenon and just drove the talk of, you know, television and the entertainment industry for all the years it was on. >> he did the remarkable interview in the actor's studio. he really was someone that took the craft of acting seriously. and agonized about it, didn't he? whenever i read it, it was the constant pursuit of perfection. he was never happy? >> no, and he didn't seem very happy about it. he and chase -- i did a double interview with them right before the show ended and i spent a whole day with them on the set, and he and chase were like partners, but they did not seem like they were like close friends. it was like he had created this charter and it was almost like

he was challenging chase a little bit to bring out more of this charter. i mean, he was a really difficult guy in some waste. i think chase eluded to that. he had demons, there is no question about that. but i mean, he just had an enormous amount of talent not because he started out because he wanted to be an actor. he was a truck driver until he was like 25 years old and found this calling. boy, he was devoted to it. >> what was particularly sad, bill, he was in his second marriage and had a young baby daughter born last year and in terms of his acting, he had moved on from the sopranos and taking on big roles and seems to have come at this crushingly awful time, professionally and personally when he could, i suspect, never have been happier. >> no, i think that's true and i think he -- i think he felt very close to this new family of his. i think he really had big ideas for things to do.

you know, he had been a star on broadway after the sopranos. he picked very interesting roles. he never took the more conventional things. he took some small roles. you're surprised you see james gandolfini in a part. he accepted a new role that was extraordinary and i was really looking forward to that. it's just a shame to be taken away from because i think he had years, years of great performances in it. >> you could argue decades. he was 51 years old and in zero dark 30 of course and hugely successful movie and every movie in television show, even outside of the sopranos, he had this dominant physical presence, didn't he? and personality that came through. >> piers, i've rarely been with a guy that was more physically imposing. guys might have been bigger but he was like a building. he was so big and part his arm around me.

i have a picture of him and looks like i'm standing next to a mountain. he was such a physical presence and in the pilot of the sopranos, chase told the story of him. he had to like at one point confront christopher, his -- his nephew and in the scene he all of a sudden picked him up physically and threw him unexpectedly to chase and he was like oh my gosh because it was perfect to say, wow, this is a scary guy. he could be a really scary, scary guy physically. he would really intimidate people, which was perfect for that part. >> bill carter, thank you so much for joining me. >> nice to be with you piers. for viewers just tuning in, very sad breaking news of the death of james gandolfini, the star of course of the sopranos. he died at the age of 51 he was in italy we believe on a private holiday. i want to bring in michelle turner and sanjay gupta and larry king on the phone.

larry, you were at a function in las vegas several weeks ago with james gandolfini. what kind of shape was he in there? >> he was in a great mood, piers. we had a great time at dinner honoring muhammad ali. he was a big fan of ali's. we were at the same tibl. it was a black tie dinner. he felt wonderful. he had a marvelous career, a successful play on broadway. the interesting thing about him piers, he was a great character actor and character actors rare he become stars and the sopranos made him a star. he did a lot of wonderful films, plays theater. the guy sitting next to me bid 250,000 -- i think $275,000 for a cruise to the mediterranean

and won the bid and said to james, you want to go with me? and gandolfini said, yeah i'll go. casually says, yeah, i'll go. he was really good. i think he was smoking a cigar and he was, of course, really overweight. we don't know what he died of yet. i don't like to speculate. but when you see a guy that size at age 51, no previous things about anything, you would normally think the heart. but the last time i saw him, he was in a great mood. >> tell me, larry, you interviewed him and you knew him. i always got the feeling with james gandolfini that the superstar status that came with his role in "the sopranos" took him by surprise and he always slightly struggled with the amazing fame it brought him. would you go along with that? >> i would agree completely with that. as i said, he was a classic character actor. many roles, many diverse roles and loved comedy. and suddenly, you're given

this -- you know, you're come -- compare it to carol o'connor from "all in the family," very similar. another character actor suddenly becomes this huge star in a -- in a television show that goes beyond expectations and suddenly you're freshed on the scene. you'll never be the same once you have that. suddenly even recognizes you and you're still the regular guy you always was. and he -- he was a classic regular guy, piers. >> that's exactly what i heard about him, yeah. yeah, very sociable guy -- >> down to earth, regular guy -- >> larry -- >> you -- >> larry, if you wouldn't mind holding for a second. i got bob with me now. the president of nbc universal when the sopranos came on television, bob, a devastating day for everyone in the world of

acting and television. you knew james gandolfini well. you were there at the start of the sopranos. what is your reaction? >> i was shocked. he's a young man. certainly by our current day standards. my history of the though goes back a long time. i was the law secretary to judge ripple, the chief federal judge in new jersey when we had sam the plumber trials in 1970. many of those trails with the rico act were the basis of the stories behind the sopranos and i thought tony and his role, it was so spectacular. it was so real. it was a lot of language. there was a lot of violence. there was a lot of things that we couldn't do on broadcast television, and he was a great actor that made all of that come into our living rooms and seemingly with all of that, that i just said, it was just so

well-written, so well-produced and he was such a wonderful actor. >> the initial concerns were that it may -- it may glamorize the mob, the mafia but as james gandolfini said many times over the years, i remember seeing this in an interview, it had a reverse effect. they all were pretty depressed, all unhappy with their lives. the very thing it wasn't was glamorous. >> there's certainly no glamour. he was a bartender at one time in his own world, so some of the -- some of the aspects of the show were not that foreign from his, you know, his earlier background. yes, we were -- we were -- i was concerned that we weren't able to do shows like that and i was concerned that if we weren't able to -- to produce and write and have shows like that on nbc

at the time, that we would be losing contact with a lot of americans who were going to be interested in the show because i thought the show was so good. that was -- that was a very selfish feeling. >> bill carter said earlier he really felt that the sopranos transformed television and created a new way of doing television which drew in great movie actors and producers and directors to do this kind of stuff on the small screen. >> i would agree with that. it also -- when you watch the show and you saw episode after episode, you know, the language and violence became secondary. the acting was very good. the plots were very -- were, you know, so realistic. you felt like you were in it, and you did have a lot of sympathy. the people there were not doing that well. you know, they were kind of like low rent mobsters. >> bob wright, thank you very much indeed for joining me. >> thank you, piers. thank you very much.

i want to go back to larry king. larry, i think as the next few days unravel, there will be a general consensus. i'm already sensing this on twitter and other social media that james gandolfini and his role as tony soprano may be one of the greatest television actors. what do you think? >> it will be right up there. it is hard to pick the greatest but certainly, you can't not include him in the greatest. if he put a stamp on that role, it will live forever. it was a very special role. he went right in with it, and there is no way, you know, what happened to him, that he was able to transform himself from this character actor as i said into this major star and yet, he remained -- i think the public this charter actor as i said into this major star and yet, he remained -- i think the public sensed his humanity.

the public sensed that he was like one of the guys, like he was -- he was a regular guy. he was playing this role. he was tony soprano but you knew you would like james gandolfini if you were with him. i got to go make a speech, piers, so i have to run. >> larry, i know you have. thank you for joining me. >> my pleasure. >> larry king there. let's take a quick break. sanjay gupta and turner will be with me. the death of james gandolfini from the sopranos but first, a scene from the mafia boss and his psychiatrist. >> i don't even know why i come here. nothing else to do. >> do you think it would help if you went someplace so you can rest up awhile? >> like vegas? >> not vegas. someplace where you can be looked after. >> like a hospital with the padded rooms and straight jackets? >> no, no straight jackets. a residential treatment center. >> you got any idea what my life would be worth if certain people

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for a body in motion. >> he is kind and he's incredibly generous. he's a very lovely guy. definitely got you to work out this particular part of his

personality for ten years. >> back with more on the breaking news of the sudden death of james dan doll feeney in italy. james gandolfini changed television for the better. amazing tributes, who played his wife "the sopranos," i interviewed her and she said he was a huge gentle giant. behind his huge burly frame and menacing character that he played. >> people who knew him said he was very much unlike his charter. he was very soft-spoken, almost disappearing into a room if he was there except when you got him into a scene and he could become this monster. you see him on "sopranos" and he would go from destroying people and it was the key of the charter. >> amazing impact, doesn't it, his death? incredible outpouring of tributes to him, one saying one of the greatest charters of all time tony soprano.

and one of the great actors in history. >> you can really look at the television business before sopranos and after "sopranos." sopranos changed tv. tony soprano was a charter nobody had seen before and it was a precurser for madmen, homeland, breaking bad, shows not afraid to build a show around a flawed and dark charter. that's what tony soprano was and that had never been seen before. >> let me bring in sanjay gupta. obviously, he died tragic at 51 and a very big-framed man. we don't know much about the kind of lifestyle that he had. what is your sort of suggestion -- suspicion if you would like what may have caused this? we are merely speculating. >> certainly, you would have to think about heart disease and specifically when you talk about heart disease leading to potentially a heart attack, what often is actually causing death is when the heart as a result of poor blood flow to the heart starts to beat irregularly and

it's called an arrhythmia. that can cause this. i think obviously, piers, as you suggested have to put that at the top of the list. but he is young, 51 years old. the average age of a first attack typically is mid 60s. but there are risk factors. certainly somebody over weight or obese or a smoker, high cholesterol or drug use in the past, those are all risk factors. i'll point out, as well, in italy where he is, as a u.s. citizen over there, there is a chance the medical investigators will try to figure out in more detail what happened here. when something happens that's unusual, unexpected -- >> what we do know, sanjay? >> in 2002 he admitted he battled alcohol and cocaine abuse and checked into rehab several times. so that, i guess, would give indications he had demons to

deal with which may have precipitated heart problems. he also said this about his own weight. i should exercise, but i'm too hold for that. i lost 30 pounds to play my part in the mexican. people don't take right to skin me mafia men. i don't feel right when i'm thin. he was slightly bigger than he was when he died. you are talking arnt a man over 300 pounds and with had been to rehab for cocaine and alcohol abuse. none of that will help in terms of avoiding heart trouble. >> yeah, i mean, those are all certainly big risk factors and, you know, even short of those risk factors heart disease is the biggest killer of men and women in the united states. those things will put him at increased risk, but still, piers, one of the questions that does arise when something like this happens to someone in a young age, you want to make sure there is nothing else, as well. people are speculating, as you

said, piers this is the cause but there may be a more definitive answer here and that will be dependent on what the medical examiners in italy, how they chose to pursue this and his family, obviously. >> nischelle turner, i said earlier, facebook and twitter have blown up with tributes. from almost everybody. i saw one from rob lowe calling him the greatest tv character of them all and he was in of course "west wing." what are you picking up there? >> definitely, piers, a lot of reaction on social media and all over the internet from people that either worked with james gandolfini, just knew him or admired him in the industry. other celebrities an actors. one film he did with steve carell and jim carry and olivia wild and olivia wild tweeted a little while ago it was such a sad, sad day and she was proud to have shared the screen with him for a little bit.

we also reached out to jim carrey who said he was not available for interviews. you were talking a lot about how "the sopranos" changed the face of television and that's a lot what we're hering, as well, piers. that people are really validating that and saying tony soprano could, in fact, be the best -- one of, if not the best charters on modern day television, and he played it with such ease and panache and skill and fear, all of those things we love about television these days. so there is, again, just a lot of positive reaction, a lot of people saying they will miss james gandolfini. >> thank you. we've been on the phone with kevin o'rourke. kevin, thank you for joining me and my deep condolences to you and the actors that worked on "the sopranos." a sad day. >> a very sad day. he was a wonderful, generous and

loyal actor. incredibly supportive of the other people on the show. he came from the theater. he was one of those actors who you could tell he had that foundation in the way he did his work. i was lucky enough to work with him in that instance and also he would generously donate time to the screen actors guild when i was on the negotiating committee. he was a very, very big-hearted, wonderful -- as edie said a wonderful, big hearted giant of a guy not at all like his character on "the sopranos." >> were the cast aware of any health issues? >> at that time -- we worked together a long time ago. he was -- it's funny because he was just beginning -- when i worked with james, "the sopranos" had not yet aired. no one knew what it was or the phenomena that it was going to

turn in to. i remember he turned and said who is going to watch a show about a big, fat italian guy like me. of course we all did. at that point, i don't think we realized and i don't think that james realized how big it would be or how it would affect his life. he said we're not the closest of friends but i'm forever indebted to him. he came to my wedding and spoke and he would go in and talk to david chase with me if i didn't want to play my role on the show. just a great, humble, gifted actor and person. is that, kevin, how all the cast viewed him? >> again, i can't speak for everyone else but that was certainly the impression i got. he was very generous. he felt lucky to have that role of a lifetime and he knew that every actor relied on great writing that david was giving

him and he supported the rest of us do to our best on the show, as well. >> in terms of his ability as an actor, was it obvious right from the start he had something special? because nobody predicted this vast success of the sopranos but it was driven by the force of his charter. >> not only that. people don't realize this but it's funny, he and i read for the same part in the production of "streetcar name desire" on broadway with aleck baldwin and jessica lang and he ended up doing the part. it was one of the poker players but under studied one of the leads but when he went on as that role as mitch in "streetcar," everyone in the audience, everyone what came to see that star said ut oh, this is the real deal. this is the real deal right here and that's really where it started. >> kevin o'rourke, thank you for joining me. >> thank you.

matt, it's -- it's something that clearly everyone worked with him says the same thing, he was an incredibly talented actor and very, very driven. >> absolutely. if you talk to the entire cast, we did interviews over the years and everybody knew that show hinged around one guy and if that charter was not believable and if you didn't buy into the likability of a mob boss that show would fail and it revolved him around and he took that seriously. i think that, you know, later roles. he also played leon panetta in "zero dark 30." >> yeah. >> any time that there was a role with a sense of -- a little bit of menace maybe and authority, he was a good guy to play that. >> the sad thing is he talked often about the stereotypical aspect of playing a character as big as tony soprano. and he thought he moved on from that, playing those roles like

in "zero dark 30." he got to that place and now he's dead at 51. >> yeah, very sad. he was developing a new project with hbo that would return him to that same network in a different role. it is a tragedy. that we'll never see that. >> stay with me. thank you. we'll be back with much more on the life and sudden death of james gandolfini. >> how did tony soprano come in to your life and ours? >> i got the script and i remember reading it and i was laughing outloud. i said there's no way i will be able to do this. i have said that before. i really thought they would pick someone different than i. >> how different? in what way? >> suave, good-looking, mafioso looking guy. you know, somebody a little more leading man type. migraines mean powerful pain, and when you have a migraine

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kaiser permanente. thrive. tragic news on the sudden death -- death of james gandolfini who died at 51. it's a really sad day for the acting profession and for america. >> it is a sad day. because, you know, not too many years ago around 1999 did the exact -- there was a time you would think why would anyone pay for television? but the reason was james gandolfini, you would pay to see a performance like he gave as tony soprano and "the sopranos," he put hbo on the map, helped make it relevant. helped people to see that tv could be more than it was and you could have these charters

that ran season after season, performances that deepened, performances that had a novel quality and made people agree to pay for television and now it makes sense. people see why you want to pay for a performance like he gave as tony soprano. >> a statement in from chris christie. of course he was from new jersey, james gandolfini and he said this is a great shock. james gandolfini was a fine actor, true jersey guy. i was a huge fan of his and the charter he played so authentically. tony soprano. i've gotten to know jimmy and many of the other actors from the "the sopranos" cast and each are a new jersey treasure. we express our deepest sympathies to his family and children and our prayers with him at this time. i want to bring in patricia. you're an author and had a charter you thought would be perfect for james gandolfini. you did meet him. what's your reaction to his very

sad, untimely death today? >> i'm shocked. i'm really incredibly sad, like everybody else. i'm a huge fan. it's true. i have a character, marino, who's the second most important character in my series, the detective and he's been talked about as james gandolfini being the perfect person to play that role. we're in the middle of making the money. we haven't cast the characters but he was going to be who i pitched to the studio because when i watch him, that's who i see. i'm stunned really. >> you were a big sopranos fan. >> i watch the reruns over and over again. for writing a book series, i can learn a lot from a successful television series. in fact i have a sopranoesque thing i do in my books now. i end with all of the characters together over from the meal. i stole directly from "the sopranos." i admit it.

i have learned from series that were successful. when i met him at a fund-raiser year ago, it's like people describe. it is not like he's not in the room. he did not draw attention to himself. i went up and spoke to him and talked to him about his appearance on broad way and gods of carnage and he was humble. very nice man. >> i met him just once, i think, may have been twice but once when i actually talked to him. outside a hotel here in beverly hills and they lost his car the valet parking and he was slowly simmering with rage i could tell. i tried to talk to him and he was not now. i could see he was beginning boil almost like his charter. he seemed to me -- he was a very big man. he was sweating profusely that day. he didn't seem very fit, and it's probably -- don't want to speculate about what happened to him but in terms of his capacity to do these kind of roles, you as a viewer, what did you make of his power as a figure, physically and mentally? >> he is very powerful.

when i met him i was surprised how big he was, tall. he filled the form. he has a formidable presence and a big energy. >> brooding, wasn't he? >> he was scary. that's what i like about him because -- i think that's what even liked about him. you sensed a tremendous amount of power and you don't want to mess with this person. >> american viewing, what "the sopranos" did, it was one on those first shows you could watch on binge viewing, you could sit and watch four or five episodes, get into it and that was the power of his charter. >> i'm still doing the binge viewing. you sit there and watch five in a row. it doesn't matter how many times i've seen them. they are fine works of art. just amazing. so well done. >> he will be sadly missed. >> absolutely. >> by the acting profession and also by america. he was a huge cultural figure to

americans. >> i think everybody will miss him and i think we hate to think that such a great talent can be extinguished so early. and i feel terrible for his family and for so many people personally who will miss him. that's sudden death is to say it's a terrible thing is quite trite. nobody is prepared for something that happens that fast. >> thank you very much, indeed. much more on the sad death of james gandolfini. >> i made the down payment. i bought the materials. i leaned on the building inspector with your thumb up your [ bleep ] so stop talking about your money. >> get off of me. >> the house is going to cave in and kill that unborn baby any day. now you can't sleep. >> [ bleep ] yourself. >> you can live in a dumpster for all i care. dad. how did you get here?

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i want to bring in jeffrey lie lyons. he was a great movie actor,

wasn't he? >> he was in the style of ernest borgnine. somebody dwrou you couldn't feel sorry for until he acts and gets in role and he did something few actors can do and that is bring a back story to it and say this is a real character here for one situation but has a real life besides him you can't teach that. curt douglas told me an actor would be liked to be remembered for one role. he is not just remembered for tony soprano but good work on the stage and the screen. his father daughter tires from travolta's father in new jersey. i think it is more than coincidence he worked with travolta five times. >> in terms of his potential. he was 51 years old. many believed he had reached his peak as an actor and would have had huge roles in the movies ahead of him. >> i think he has two or three projects unfinished or in post

production. he once told some students the way he gets angry for a violent scene is to go without sleep for two days. he says that will make anybody angry or put a rock in his shoe or drink six cups of coffee. he was a graduate of the stanford mizener school of acting which is method acting and he was a member of actors studio. when you see him on the screen you could see stage acting in the best sense made cinematic. not many actors can do that with the ease of which he was able to do that time and time again. one of my favorite parts in his career is in "get shorty" where john travolta bounces up the stairs and sees the bodyguard that is james gandolfini and he says you are pretty good for a big guy and his character looks away for a second and travoltas to tosses him down the stairs. it was a great role and a

snippet of what is to come. >> a statement from hbo. we are all in shock and feeling sadness with the loss of a member of our family he was a special man of great talent but more importantly a gentle and loving person that treated everyone with equal respect. he touched so many of us over the years with humor, warmth and humility. our hearts go out to his wife and children during this terrible time. he'll be deeply missed by all of us. james gandolfini, tony soprano, "the sopranos" and hbo completely interlocked really. you can say that hbo's great success was bill on "the sopranos." >> no one before had that must-see tv on cable until "the sopranos." it was water cooler talk. everyone talked about it. before there was ""mad men"" there were "the sopranos." the most interesting thing when i have been reflecting back, as tragic as it is, it is

incredible that as popular as he was he was never interested in celebrity. he didn't want to do the fame game. i remember a quote from him. he is like a 260-pound woody allen. i'm a neurotic mess and why are you interested in me and not the guy driving the car? >> i think he was taken aback by the scale of fame that came with the role. i think he always found it a little awkward to deal with. >> absolutely. it was never why he was an actor. he was an actor to act and that was it. he didn't have the need for that kind of attention. like you were talking about earlier, he would walk in a room and not demand that everyone looked at him. he just was. he showed up when he need to but didn't need extra. >> we will be back with more on the death of james gandolfini. "i'm only human" ] ms [ ship horn blows ] no, no, no! stop! humans. one day we're coming up with the theory of relativity, the next... not so much. but that's okay -- you're covered with great ideas like optional better car replacement

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about him is his work with veteran soldiers. >> is true to form to who he was. he is a very salt of the earth guy in all aspects. he cared a lot about the veterans. he made a movie, documentaries with hbo about it and about post traumatic stress syndrome specifically. i believe he went over there a couple of times. this was a passion project of his. i know in his own small community he knew people that were involved in the military. i think is his way to draw attention to it and giving back and once again behind the scenes. >> amazing tributes from twitter from a variety of stars here. robin williams says my thoughts and prayers go to james gandolfini family. an extraordinary actor. susan is serandon. one of the sweetest funniest actors i have ever worked. jeff daniels, rip james gandolfini, a great friend. and i'm truly heart broken to

hear that james gandolfini passed away. he is one of my all-time favorite actors a tragic loss. politics john mccain said james gandolfini one of the nicest guys i've ever met. the picture is built up as a shy reserved man, a brooding presence. brilliant actor, great family man. he just had a daughter. he had a son with his first wife marcy and a daughter was born last year with his second wife. had it all to live for, it is a real tragedy. >> it is heart breaking and sho shocking at 51. i'm not surprised at the outpouring. he was an actor's actor. people loved him. actors who worked with him loved him. he had tremendous loyalty. he respected the craft of acting immensely. he took it very seriously and i'm not surprised at all. he's one of the greats and the way he fluctuated in between jeffrey lyons talked about it. it is difficult to play this hateful character but yet the

audience sympathizes with him and they want to know why. they want to understand his emotional life and very few actors can do that and he did it beautifully. >> krista, thank you very much. back this after this short break. ♪ ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] if you can't stand the heat, get off the test track. get the mercedes-benz you've been burning for at the summer event, going on now at your authorized mercedes-benz dealer. hurry, before this opportunity cools off. going on now at your authorized mercedes-benz dealer. did you i did. email? so what did you think of the house? well it's got a great kitchen, but did you see the school rating? oh, you're right. oh hey babe, i got to go. ok. come here sweetie, say bye to daddy. bye daddy! have a good day at school ok? ok.

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robert low just tweeted james gandolfini gave the greatest performance in the history of television. his death at 51 is stunning news for millions of fans but the people that knew him, stay with cnn for the latest on this breaking story. we leave you with a final scene from "the sopranos" with tony and the family. it is like james gandolfini, unforgettable. ♪ ♪ don't stop believin' ♪ hold on to that feeling ♪

breaking news is sad news. james gandolfini one of america's best trrs and brought the best known fictional actor to life has died. he was in rome when he suffered what is believed to be a heart attack. he went from character actor to superstar playing mob boss tony soprano. the creator david chase had this to say. he was a genius. anyone who saw him even in the smallest of his performances knows that. he is one of the greatest actors of this or anytime. a grate great deal of that genius resided in those sad eyes. we will talk to the people who knew him, admired this work and watched him become a folk hero in the garden state and around the world. begin the discussion with larry king who is