Celebrity Mound

James Gandolfini

James Gandolfini may not seem like the type to suffer from stage fright, but he says his transition from the small screen to the Great White Way was more than a little “nerve-racking.”

“But once you get the hang of it, you’re fine,” the New Jersey-born tough guy told us after after the premiere of his Broadway play, “God of Carnage.” “The best part is, I’m making people laugh now. And that’s a good thing.”

The burly actor shared that his co-stars Jeff Daniels, Marcia Gay Harden and Hope Davis “were very cool and patient. I still f— up now and again, but that’s life. I don’t get nervous now. It’s starting to become fun.”

Despite the three-time Emmy winner’s desire for distance from his HBO role in “The Sopranos,” there are visible flashes of mob boss Tony during Gandolfini’s angrier scenes. But he’s quick to say that’s not intentional.

“Naw, that’s just me,” he said with a chuckle and a hand rub along the back of his neck. “There are gonna be some similarities. I played that role for 10 years.”

Luckily, audiences seem eager to say ciao to Tony Soprano and embrace the new Gandolfini. In its second full week of previews, “God of Carnage” posted a $32,201 gain in box office sales over the previous week, according to Playbill.com

The show’s premiere also drew a number of celebs, including Jeremy Irons, who admitted, “I’m most looking forward to sitting on my bottom and watching someone else work.” His sentiment was echoed by “33 Variations” star Colin Hanks, who was “just happy not being the one on stage for a night.”

As the star-studded audience filed into the theater for the play — which centers on two sets of parents arguing over their children’s schoolyard dustup — they weighed in on the best way to solve an argument.

Hugh Jackman, rushing in with his wife, paused to smirk, “With your wife, there’s no way to win an argument!”

Hanks said, “Admit you’re wrong, right away. Personally, chances are I’m at fault anyway.”

Gandolfini’s “Sopranos” co-star Joey Pantoliano surprisingly advised, “Surrender and say, ‘You’re right — I just got here and it won’t happen again.’?”
Offered Harden: “You have to go with what you really want, and you shouldn’t always want to be right.”

But Gandolfini wouldn’t touch the question, chuckling: “I’m not answering that one!”

The best answer of the night went to Alan Alda: “Either toss a coin or get in the mud and wrestle.”

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James Gandolfini and fiancée Deborah Lin tied the knot Saturday in her hometown of Honolulu, Hawaii, a wedding guest confirms to PEOPLE.

“There was a nice big kiss at the end with both hands on the cheeks” as The Sopranos star and Lin officially became husband and wife, the guest tells PEOPLE. “They looked great.”

As a group of their closest friends and family looked on, Gandolfini, 46, and Lin, a former model, 40, exchanged their vows in an intimate ceremony surrounded by white lilies and rhododendrons adorning every pew held at Central Union Church.

According to the guest, Lin strolled down the aisle in a white gown made of Italian lace while her tuxedoed groom stood waiting as a harpist played the “Hawaiian Wedding Song” in the background.

Gandolfini’s son Michael, 8, from his first marriage to Marcy Wudarsk (which ended in 2002), served as best man.

Following the elegant 20-minute nuptials, the newlyweds stepped into a white stretch limousine bound for the evening reception at a nearby resort.

The couple made their first public appearance on the red carpet in March 2007 for the New York City premiere of the second half of the final season of The Sopranos and have been engaged since late 2007.

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When the “Sopranos” star was visiting the city morgue to research a role, he had no luck finding corpses. At the retirement party for Lt. Jay Fagan, former head of the NYPD’s TV & Film Unit, Gandolfini thanked Fagan forgiving him access to the morgue, but complained that the first night there were no dead bodies, and the second night, just one elderly man who had died on the toilet. The third night, he struck out again. “They [the cops] started to call me Jesus Christ because no one would die in New York City,” Gandolfini told the crowd at Capi tale, drawing laughs from director Michael Tadross Jr. and actors Danny Masterson and Richard Masur.

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Tony Soprano is shedding his wardrobe for charity. James Gandolfini, who starred on the hit HBO series, is selling off 24 outfits, including the button-down blue shirt he wore in the opening credits and the bathrobe he donned to fetch the morning newspaper.

Proceeds from the June 25 pop culture auction at Christie’s will go to the Wounded Warrior Project, a nonprofit group that assists severely wounded soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan. Estimates for the costumes start at $500.

Gandolfini’s wardrobe, which includes many outfits with the original production tags attached, is expected to bring up to $36,500.

The actor’s contract allowed him to keep the clothes after the show ended its six-season run last year, Christie’s said. He has authenticated all the outfits in the sale.

A tan cotton bathrobe with lavender trim and “S” insignia on the breast pocket, featured in the pilot when he got the newspaper and fed the ducks in his pool, may bring as much as $1,500.

The auction house is also offering the blood-splattered costume worn in the scene when Tony is shot by a demented Uncle Junior. Consisting of a black-and-beige short-sleeve polo shirt, white tank top and black pants, the costume could fetch up to $3,000.

Another 37 costumes worn by other lead “Sopranos” characters, including Paulie Walnuts, Christopher Moltisanti and A.J. Soprano, also are being sold, though the proceeds from those sales will not benefit the Jacksonville, Fla.-based veterans’ organization.

The costumes for the series were designed by Juliet Polsca, who earned two Emmy nominations and a Costume Designers Guild Award.

Who in their right mind would ever try to provoke the gigantic and imposing Tony Soprano a.k.a. James Gandolfini? Well, unlike The Sopranos’ fade-to-black finale, we do know the answer to the previous question: James’ number one fan!

Upon arriving back in New York City, hot off his Best Dramatic TV Actor Screen Actors Guild award win, James was approached by a sunglasses-wearing wanna-be who kept asking, “Can I be a Soprano baby?” It was cute at first, but apparently — like his on-screen persona — James has a super-short fuse, because the second time the question was posed, it evoked a much different response. The six-foot-tall actor grabbed the guy around the collar and got up in his face before tossing him aside like a rag doll.

“Yo, why’d you hit me?” the dude asked James. “I’m here to greet you, congratulate you on the SAG award; I’m just trying to figure out how to be a Soprano. You whacked me.” To which James astutely replied, “That’s how.”

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James Gandolfini

Steve Schirripa

Robert Iler

Jerry Seinfeld and Renee Zellweger

Tina Fey

Ralph Lauren and Ricky Lauren

James Gandolfini, Marcy Gandolfini and son Michael

RED-faced presidential candidate and Vietnam POW John McCain is nursing his wounds after James Gandolfini pulled out of appearing at a Oct. 30 fund-raiser for him. Gandolfini was listed as a “special guest” on the invitation for the New York Young Professionals for McCain event at Marquee. “At this time, Mr. Gandolfini is not committed to any one candidate,” a spokeswoman for the “Sopranos” star said. Gandolfini insisted he wasn’t whacking the candidate. “James respects Sen. McCain for his service and his commitment to our country. However, due to scheduling conflicts, he cannot attend the event,” the rep said. The two recently dined to discuss HBO’s documentary, “Alive Day Memories,” in which Gandolfini interviewed severely injured Iraq war veterans. McCain raved about the show. A Gandolfini endorsement would have been a coup for the Arizona senator on Republican rival Rudy Giuliani’s turf.

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