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(CNN) — Actor Tony Sirico, best known for playing sidekick Peter Paul “Paulie Walnuts” Gualtieri on HBO’s “The Sopranos,” has died, according to his manager Bob McGowan. He was 79 years old, according to his IMDB profile.
McGowan did not provide a cause of death, but called Sirico a “very loyal and long-term customer” of 25 years and someone who “always gave to charity.”
Sirico’s “The Sopranos” co-star Michael Imperioli also shared the news on Instagram, saying Sirico died on Friday.
“Tony was like no one else: he was as tough, as loyal, and as big of heart as anyone I’ve ever met,” she wrote. “I was by his side in many things: in the good and the bad. But mostly in the good. And we laughed a lot.”
A Brooklyn native, Sirico racked up several credits in the late ’80s and ’90s, appearing in movies like “Goodfellas,” “Mighty Aphrodite” and “Mickey Blue Eyes.”
But he became widely known — particularly in cable households — through “The Sorpanos,” playing the colorful but brutal Paulie Walnuts.
At the time of his audition, he recalled in an interview, he was 55 years old and sleeping on his mother’s couch. He had auditioned for a different character, but creator David Chase approached him with a different role, which turned out to be iconic in its own right.
“He said, ‘Do you want the good news or the bad news?'” Sirico recalled in a 2021 interview. “I said, ‘Give me the bad news.’ He said, ‘You didn’t get Uncle Junior. But I have something in mind. Would you be up for a recurring role on the show? I have a character named Paulie Walnuts.'”
After the show ended, Sirico appeared on shows like “Lilyhammer”, “The Grinder” and “Family Guy”.
But Sorpanos, thanks in part to the show’s renewed popularity through streaming, remained his most memorable work.
“We found a groove as Christopher and Paulie and I’m proud to say I did a lot of my best and funniest work with my dear friend Tony,” added Imperioli. “I will miss him forever. He is truly irreplaceable. He sent love to his family, friends and his many fans. He was loved and will never be forgotten. He is heartbroken today.”
Michael Gandolfini, son of the late “The Sopranos” star James Gandolfini, also paid tribute to Sirico on Instagram.
“Tony Sirico was one of the kindest, most fiercely loyal and sincere men I have ever met,” she wrote. “He was always Uncle Tony to me, and Tony was always there for me and my family. I will sorely miss him nipping my cheek and his infectious laugh. He was a phenomenal actor and an even better man.”
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