this is ""piers morgan live." breaking news to the death of an american super star james gandolfini died at the age of 51 reportedly of a heart attack. he did what was impossible of most actors, make 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 super star. tony sopranos, here is another moment from that classic series.

>> you know why we're here, so any doubts of 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 charters, perhaps the greatest that part when 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 charter. but, you know, full of life. i mean, the guy was just a force, a tremendous physical force and really a sapurb talent. 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 charter he played in the sopranos and it became this theater force. the charter tony soprano in television? >> i think at the top because i think television forever was consumed with creating a lead charter who would be in a 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 great 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. 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 act tomorrows 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 moats art. 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. 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 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 pitched to them and suddenly it was the most-talked about show and grew to an enormous level. hbo is only seen in a third of the televisions in america. 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 a remarkable interview in the actor's studio, if you haven't seen it, get on youtube and watch it. he really was the craft of acting. incredibly seriously and agonized about it, didn't he? whenever i read it, it was the constant pursuit of perfection. he was never happy? >> 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 huge 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. 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. >> thank you 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 week ace go

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 mohammed ali. it was a black tie dinner. he felt wonderful. a great career, nice play on broadway. the interesting thing about him piers, he was a great charter actor and charter 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. he says, yeah, i'll go.

he was really good. i think he was smoking a cigar and he was, of course, really over weight. we don't know what he died of yet. i can speculation. but when you see a guy that size at age 51, no previous things about anything you wouldn't 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 super star status that came with his role "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 charter. many roles, many diverse roles and suddenly, you're given this -- you know, you're come parred to o'connor getting all in the family, very similar, another charter 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. if he was on your show tonight, you would finish at 10:00 and you would go have a pizza with him. >> 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 there. you were there at the start of the sopranos. what did you think? . >> i was shocked. he was young. i was the law secretary to the

chief of the judge with the trials. 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 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 were depressed and unhappy with their lives. the very thing it wasn't was glamorous.

>> 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 were depressed and unhappy with their lives. the very thing it wasn't was glamorous. >> there is no glamor. 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 move vie actors and producers to do this 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 not be one of the greatest television actors but the greatest. 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 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 1234. >> no, no straight jackets. a residential treatment center. >> you got any idea what my life would be worth if certain people found out i checked into a

laughing academy? to healthcare written by people just like you. no company can pay to be on angie's list, so you can trust what you're reading. angie's list is like having thousands of close neighbors, where i can go ask for personal recommendations. that's the idea. before you have any work done, check angie's list. find out why more than two million members count on angie's list. angie's list -- reviews you can trust. i love you, angie. sorry, honey.

you said the co-star, james, is a very gentle guy in real life. >> he is. >> weird seeing him smashing holes in a wall. >> we all have many sides to us. no, he's kind and incredibly generous. he's a very lovely guy. he's definitely got to work out this part of his personality for ten years. >> back now with more on the breaking news of the sudden death of james gandolfini in italy. matthew is the executive

producer of the hollywood reporter. 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. >> 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 heat 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. >> 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 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 said 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. he had been to rehab for cocaine and alcohol abuse. none of that will help, i guess, 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. i saw rob low called him the greatest tv charter of them all and he was in 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 and act tors. 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. jim carry 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 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. >> neshel 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 generous and loyal actor and supportive of the other people on the show. he came from the theater and he

was one of those act tomorrows you could tell 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 committee. he was a very, very big-hearted wonderful, as judy said, a wonderful big hearted giant of a guy not at all like his charter on the sopranos. >> were you aware, was the cast aware of any health issues? >> well, at that time -- this -- we worked together along time ago, and he was -- it's funny because he was just beginning -- when i worked with james, the sopranos had not yet aired, so nobody knew what it was. no one knew the phenomenon it would turn into. the first day on the set he turned to me and said who would watch a show about a big italian guy like me? of course, we all did. at that point none of us realized and james didn't

realize how big this would be or how it would affect his life. >> we have a statement that has come in from who played vita on the sopranos. 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 ngspecial?he had s because nobody predicted this 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 studies 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 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 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. >> 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 into your life and ours? >> i got the script and i remember reading it and laughing out loud and i said there is no way i will be able to do this. i mean, i've said that before. i really thought that they would pick someone, you know, different than i. >> how different? in what way? >> good looking mafia guy. you know, just somebody a little more leading-man type. the sleep number bed conforms to you. i wake up in the morning with no back pain. i can adjust it if i need to...if my back's a little more sore. and by the time i get up in the morning, i feel great! if you have back pain, toss and turn at night or

wake up tired with no energy, the sleep number bed could be your solution. the sleep number bed's secret is it's air chambers which provide ideal support and put you in control of the firmness. and the bed is perfect for couples because each side adjusts independently to their unique sleep number. here's what clinical research has found: 93% of participants experienced back-pain relief 90% reported reduced aches and pains 87% fell asleep faster and enjoyed more deep sleep. for study summaries, call this number now. we'll include a free dvd and brochure about the sleep number bed including prices, and models plus a free $50 savings card. and how about this? steel springs can cause uncomfortable pressure points. but the sleep number bed contours to your body. imagine how good you'll feel when your muscles relax and you fall into a deep sleep! i'm not just a back surgeon,

i'm also a back patient. i sleep on the sleep number bed myself and i highly recommend it to all of my patients. need another reason to call? the sleep number bed costs about the same as an innerspring but lasts twice as long. so if you want to sleep better or find relief for your bad back, call now. call the number on your screen for your free information kit with dvd, brochure and price list. call right now and you'll also receive a $50 savings card just for inquiring about the sleep number bed. ask about our risk-free 100-night in-home trial. call now for your free information kit and a free $50 savings card. call now! radio: it's mattress discounters' 4th of july sale.

radio: it's mattress discounters' bulldog: that cloud reminds me... radio: the tempur-pedic cloud collection... dog: that's it! radio: ...now with 48 months interest-free financing. basset hound: free financing? radio: the 4th of july sale is on now... bulldog: hey... where's everyone going? ♪ mattress discounters

back with breaking and 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 iom chr christi, of ur new jersey, james gandolfini and he says 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. i can see each of them are an individual 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. what is your reaction to the sad untimely death today? >> i'm shocked and incredibly sad like everybody else. i'm a huge fan and it is true, a

have a charter morino the second most important chapter in my novel and it's been talked about for years of james gandolfini. we are in the process of making the movie and he would have been perfect. i'm stunned. >> you were a big sopranos fan. >> i watch the reruns over and over again. writing a book series i can learn a lot from a successful television series and i have a soprano thing, i always end with all the charters together over a meal, which is -- i stole directly from "the sopranos," i admit it because i learned a lot from series that are successful. when i did meet him at a fundraiser several years ago, it's as people described. 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 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.

a very big energy and in fact -- >> uprooting, 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 him. >> american viewing, what "the sopranos" did, it was one on those first shows you could watch on bing 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. so amazing and well-done. >> he'll be sadly missed, won't he -- >> absolutely. >> but the acting profession and america. he was a huge figure. >> everybody will miss him. hate to think 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, and that's, you know, sudden death -- to say it's a

terrible thing is right but nobody is prepared for something that happens that fast. >> thank you very much, indeed. when we come back, much more on the sad death today of james gandolfini. >> i made the down payment. i bought the materials. i leaned on that building inspector with your thumb up your [ bleep ]. so start talking about your money. your a businesswoman that built a piece of [ bleep ] house that will kill that unborn baby any day. now you can't sleep. >> go [ bleep ] yourself. >> i'll live in a [ bleep ] dumpster for all i care.

back now with more on the extraordinary career of james gandolfini who tragically died today in italy at the age of 51. i want to bring in jeffrey lions. jeffrey, talking about "the sopranos" but he was a great movie actor, wasn't he? >> he was. somebody you can't feel sorry for until he gets into the act and into the role and he did something very few actors can do, bring the back story to it

and say this is a real charter who is here for one situation but he has a real life and you can't teach that. and he's not just remembered for tony soprano but good work on stage and on screen and his father bought tires from john travolta's father so i like to think more than coincidence he worked with travolta. >> in terms of potential, he was 51 years old. >> yeah. >> he stopped doing sopranos and many believed he was reaching his peak as an actor and would have huge roles. he wants to tell students is to go like anybody angry but he put a rock and the fan school of a member of actor studio and when you see him on scene, you can see stage acting in the best sense and not many actors can do that with the ease with which he was able to do that time and time again.

my favorite role, one of my favorite parts was in get shorty where he sees the body guard named bear and james gandolfini and he says to him, you walk pretty good for a big guy and he walks away for a split second and travolta tosses him down the stairs. it's a great moment and a little snippet of what was to come. >> thanks very much. we got a statement from hbo said we're all in shock and feeling inmessble sadness. 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 into locks really. he could say that hb o's great success is built on "the sopranos." >> absolutely. no one before had that kind of must-see tv on cable until "the sopranos" came and it was -- everyone water cooler talk, everybody talked about it before there was madmen, "the sopranos." and i think the most interesting thing when i've been reflecting back is tragic as it is, it's kind of incredible, as popular as he was he wasn't in the trappings of celebrity. he wasn't interested in that. he doesn't want to do the fame game. he's a 260-pound woody allen he

said. i'm an erotic mess. why are you interested in me? why aren't you interested in the guy driving the car? >> i think he was taken aback himself with the fame of the role and he found that a little awkward to deal with. >> absolutely. 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, and like you were talking about earlier, he would walk in a room and wouldn't demand that everyone look at him. he just kind of was. he showed up when he needed to. >> krista stay with me and we'll be back with more on the death of james gandolfini.

back with me now is krista smith from "vanity fair." talking about the death of james gandolfini, who died today at the age of 51. one thing we haven't discussed ant him is his work with veteran soldiers. >> this is true to form of who he was. he's a very salt of the earth guy. he cared a lot about the veterans. he made documentaries with hbo about it, and about post traumatic syndrome specifically. i believe he went over there a couple of times. this was something that was definitely a passion project of his.

i know in his own small community he knew people involved in the military. this was his way of drawing attention to it and giving back and once again behind the scenes. >> amazing tributes from twitter from a variety of stars. robin williams says my thoughts and prayers go out to james gandolfini's family. susan serandon, jeff daniels, and jonah hill, who probably speaks for most of us. i'm heart broken to hear that james gandolfini has passed away. a tragic loss. and in politics, john mccain said james gandolfini one of the nicest guys i've ever met. certainly the picture being built up is a very shy, quite reserved man. quite a brooding presence, brilliant actor, great family man. he had a son and a daughter born

last year with his second wife. this is a real tragedy. >> it's so had and so shocking at 51. but i'm not surprised the outpouring. he was an actor's actor. people loved him. he had tremendous loyalty. he respected the craft of acting immensely. i'm not surprised at all. he is one of the greats. the way he fluctuated. it's very difficult to play this hateful character, but yet the audience sympathizes with him. they want to know why and understand his emotional life. very few actors can do that and he did it beautifully. >> thank you very much. we'll be right back after this short break. bulldog: ahh, the dog days of summer...

bulldog: ahh, the dog days time to celebrate with your mates... grill a few dogs... eh, hot dogs. bacon burgers... dachshund: mattress discounters' 4th of july sale!? bulldog: that cloud reminds me of... radio: the tempur-pedic cloud collection. bulldog: that's it! radio: ...now with 48 months interest-free financing... bassett hound: free financing? radio: or get a queen size sealy gel memory foam mattress for just $497. bulldog: that's a ringer of a deal! radio: the 4th of july sale is on now... bulldog: hey where is everyone going? ♪ mattress discounters

james gandolfini was an actor's actor, a towering presence on and off the screen. his performance as tony sparano gave him the role of a lifetime, as rob lowe just tweeted, james gandolfini gave the greatest performance in the history of television. his death at just 51 is stunning news for millions of fans. stay with cnn for the latest on this breaking story. we leave you with that final

scene of "the sopranos." it is, like james gandolfini, unforgettable. ♪ the breaking news tonight is sad news. james gandolfini, one of america's best actors and the man who brought america's best known fictional gangster to

life, has died. he was in rome when he suffered what is believed to be a heart attack. gandolfini, just 51, went from character actor to superstar. david chase had this to say. he was a genius. anyone that saw him knows that. he is one of the greatest actors of this or any time. a great deal of that genius resided in those sad eyes. we'll be talking tonight to the people who knew him, who admired his work and watched him become a folk hero in the garden state and around the world. let's begin with larry king, who joins us by phone, and dr. sanjay gupta. dr. gupta, i want to begin with you. we need to be careful. we're just get thing information in, but 51 years old, three months short of 52 years old, indications are a heart attack or stroke. what would your questions be? >> well, clearly this is young to have a heart attack, even