“If only there was a way I could play these fire Gallantry articles in this here diner. If only these guys from Gallantry had a podcast or something, something where someone like, I dunno, read the articles. That way, you know, I could like use this Bluetooth thing to let everyone in this joint know what’s what when it comes to the hottest EDC around.”
“If only there was a way I could play these fire Gallantry articles in this here diner. If only these guys from Gallantry had a podcast or something, something where someone like, I dunno, read the articles. That way, you know, I could like use this Bluetooth thing to let everyone in this joint know what’s what when it comes to the hottest EDC around.”Does Tony (“T”, as he is affectionately called by his peers on the show) Soprano (played like nobody else in the world could have played him by late Gallantry Man Legend James Gandolfini), the New Jersey-based mob boss constantly struggling with the difficulties of balancing life with his own family with his other “family” (his criminal one) live or die at the end of the Emmy Award-winning American crime drama behemoth known as The Sopranos? It’s the billion dollar question that fans of the show everywhere have been asking about TV’s most famous ending since June 10, 2007, when the finale (episode 21 of season 6, “Made in America”) mysteriously “cut to black” (you can watch the iconic final scene of one of the finest television shows ever made right HERE) as Tony looked up to see his daughter Meadow walk in while eating dinner with the other members of his immediate family at Holsten’s restaurant (with Journey “Don’t Stop Believin’” playing in the background, of course).
“Look, sweetheart, the important thing is we all got our brand new issues of The Dispatch from Gallantry in our respective inboxes. At the end of the day, it’s what matters most.”
“Look, sweetheart, the important thing is we all got our brand new issues of The Dispatch from Gallantry in our respective inboxes. At the end of the day, it’s what matters most.”To say Tony’s fate became (and still is to this very day) hotly contested by fans is the understatement of the century.
Oh! Who’s this fuggin’ stunade?
Oh! Who’s this fuggin’ stunade?“No everyday carry from Gallantry on this guy? I’m not so sure about this gagootz.”
“No everyday carry from Gallantry on this guy? I’m not so sure about this gagootz.”- Tony Soprano, probably
“Wait. Now who are these guys? Again, I ask, where’s the EDC from Gallantry? Meh. It’s probably nothing. Oogatz.”
“Wait. Now who are these guys? Again, I ask, where’s the EDC from Gallantry? Meh. It’s probably nothing. Oogatz.”Enter 2021.
David Chase, the prolific writer, director, producer, and, of course, creator of The Sopranos, is doing to the press tour for The Many Saints of Newark, his Sopranos prequel for HBO Max. What does David Chase go ahead and do? Well, nearly 15 years after the finale’s original airing, Chase put the open-ended nature of the ending (you can read what got edited out from the shooting script HERE) to sleep with the fishes once and all, telling The Hollywood Reporter:
The [original] scene I had in my mind was not that scene. Nor did I think of cutting to black. I had a scene in which Tony comes back from a meeting in New York in his car. At the beginning of every show, he came from New York into New Jersey, and the last scene could be him coming from New Jersey back into New York for a meeting at which he was going to be killed … But I think I had this notion — I was driving on Ocean Park Boulevard near the airport and I saw a little restaurant. It was kind of like a shack that served breakfast. And for some reason I thought, ‘Tony should get it in a place like that.’
And just like that, Chase’s verdict was in. Tony was, in fact, a dead man. The people finally had their closure.
“Isn't that what you said one time? Try to remember the times that were good?”
“Isn't that what you said one time? Try to remember the times that were good?”- Anthony 'A.J.' Soprano, Jr. (Robert Iler)
“Well, it's true, I guess.”
“Well, it's true, I guess.”- Tony Soprano
Or did they?
“Hey, kiddo. Don’t try switching up topics with me. I’m talking to you. Now answer me this. Did you read this week’s Dispatch or not? And I don’t want to hear any mamaluke mealy-mouthed excuses about how you didn’t because of this, that, or the other thing, either!”
“Hey, kiddo. Don’t try switching up topics with me. I’m talking to you. Now answer me this. Did you read this week’s Dispatch or not? And I don’t want to hear any mamaluke mealy-mouthed excuses about how you didn’t because of this, that, or the other thing, either!”Since The Sopranos was ordered to pilot in 1997 and premiered on HBO (where it revolutionized cable television) on January 10, 1999, David Chase has been notoriously fickle with the press. In other words, it’s often hard to tell if and when the guy is trolling journalists or giving them the straight gabagool. So while David Chase has seemingly ended the age-old debate, we also can’t forget about the old maxim "If you don't see it happen on screen it didn't happen".
We just…can’t…forget.
“It’s like The Sopranos. It’s over. Find a new show.”
Kimo (Taylor Wily), Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008)
One interpretation is that Chase’s ending was actually intended to be an anti-ending. It seems as if ever since Sopranos ended, the press has been so fixated on its abrupt conclusion that it forgot about the entire six seasons (that’s 86 one-hour episodes, by the way) that predicated it. Not to undermine endings, endings are important, of course, but perhaps the fixation misses the big picture. Or, contrarily, maybe Chase wanted to leave it seemingly open-ended so that certain audience members could keep that beloved anti-hero known as Tony Soprano alive in their mind in order spare themselves the pain of seeing a most beloved character get wacked on-screen.
Chase’s own words help buttress the suggestion that maybe he’s just saying Tony is dead to get the press of his back about the issue once and for all. After all, he finds the subject ‘annoying’. In another segment of his interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Chase even drops this brojolli on us:
I had no idea it would cause that much—I mean, I forget what was going on in Iraq or someplace; London had been bombed! … Nobody was talking about that; they were talking about The Sopranos. It was kind of incredible to me. But I had no idea it would be that much of an uproar. And was it annoying.
In the end, it’s up for the viewer to decide. For a show that’s largely centered around psychiatry (like so many brilliant freethinkers, Chase wrote The Sopranos as a form of self-therapy to begin with), it’s no wonder that so many people end up thinking they need to see a shrink to deconstruct this friggin’ Sopranos ending.
So if you’re still on the fence with agita and need to talk to your own Dr. Melfi (Lorraine Braco) about it…
Let me tell ya something. Nowadays, everybody’s gotta go to shrinks, and counselors, and go on ‘Sally Jessy Raphael’ and talk about their problems. What happened to Gary Cooper? The strong, silent type. That was an American. He wasn’t in touch with his feelings. He just did what he had to do. See, what they didn’t know was once they got Gary Cooper in touch with his feelings that they wouldn’t be able to shut him up! And then it’s dysfunction this, and dysfunction that, and dysfunction vaffancul!
Or, as is the more likely scenario, i.e. that you just want to scribble down your favorite wise guy lines from The Sopranos with “The Stugots” (the name of Tony’s beloved boat) of the everyday carry notebook and pen world (while you snack on some manigot or maybe even some sfogliatella fresh out the oven, of course), you already know that your Gallantry La Familia has you covered and then some in this thing of ours we call the EDC Syndicate.
Tony’s boat would’ve looked a lot cooler with a Gallantry logo on the side. What? Just sayin’!
Tony’s boat would’ve looked a lot cooler with a Gallantry logo on the side. What? Just sayin’!Photo Credit: blogfinger.net
Hey, to us, being a Gallantry Man is like being a made guy, but for EDC. You know what we mean?
So, without further adieu, let’s toast…
SALUD! HO! PISAN!
Let’s get this friggin’ EDC notebook and pen party started.
First up, we’ve got…
“I walk in here and first thing I notice is that you’re not even taking notes in one of the Black or Espresso Form Function Form Field Notes Notebook Wallets that I bought you as a gift from Gallantry. I mean, like, what are we doin’ ova here? I gotta be honest here, Dr. Malfi, maybe I’m not the one who needs to be seeing a head doc, you ever think about that? Huh? It’s a disgraziata!”
THE FIELD NOTES NOTEBOOK WALLET FROM FORM FUNCTION FORM
This superb “Made in America” wallet, crafted from hand-stitched Horween Horsefront leather, features six credit card slots and a catch-all pocket that you can store your folded cash or receipts in. If you happen to be the kind of Gallantry Man Legend that digs jotting down ideas on the run, get ready, because it’s also a got a built-in sleeve for an included zero gravity Fisher Space Pen Bullet as well as a dedicated slot for an included Field Notes notebook.
HO! This is some notebook wallet we’re working with over here!
SPECIFICATIONS
- Horween Horsefront leather
- Six credit card slots
- Catch-all pocket for cash and receipts
- Hand stitched
- Includes matte black Fisher Space Pen Bullet and Field Notes Notebook
- Made in the USA
- 4-1/4″ W x 5.5″ H
Field Notes Notebook Wallet
$128.00
[tab-section data-sc-active-background="#ffffff" data-sc-other-background="#ffffff" data-sc-color="#555555"][tab title="Details"] This superb American made wallet is crafted from hand-stitched Horween Horsefront leather. It features six credit card slots, and a catch-all pocket in which you can store folded cash or receipts. And for those who… read more
Field Notes Notebook Wallet
$128.00
[tab-section data-sc-active-background="#ffffff" data-sc-other-background="#ffffff" data-sc-color="#555555"][tab title="Details"] This superb American made wallet is crafted from hand-stitched Horween Horsefront leather. It features six credit card slots, and a catch-all pocket in which you can store folded cash or receipts. And for those who… read more
“I’m sorry I got so worked up before, doc. I didn’t realize you were just taking the day off from using the EDC Form Function Form Field Notes Notebook Wallets that I got you to use your EDC Form Function Form Black and Espresso Charette Wallets that you bought from Gallantry yourself like the classy Gallantry Woman that you are instead. Let me make it up to you by signing you up for Gallantry’s mailing list. Now you’ll get a new, incredibly fresh Dispatch every week. I promise. Let me take care of this.”
“I’m sorry I got so worked up before, doc. I didn’t realize you were just taking the day off from using the EDC Form Function Form Field Notes Notebook Wallets that I got you to use your EDC Form Function Form Black and Espresso Charette Wallets that you bought from Gallantry yourself like the classy Gallantry Woman that you are instead. Let me make it up to you by signing you up for Gallantry’s mailing list. Now you’ll get a new, incredibly fresh Dispatch every week. I promise. Let me take care of this.”THE CHARETTE WALLET FROM FORM FUNCTION FORM
This superb “Made in America” three-card-slot wallet is crafted from hand-stitched Horween Horsefront leather and includes not only the write-anywhere Fisher Space Pen but also a Rhodia A7 pocket size notebook.
In other words, Tony, the boss of bosses himself, would approve.
He’d approve big time.
SPECIFICATIONS
- Horween Horsefront leather
- Three credit card slots
- Hand stitched
- Includes matte black Fisher Space Pen Bullet and Rhodia A7 notebook
- Made in the USA
- 4-3/4″ H x 3-1/2″ W
Charette Wallet
$108.00
[tab-section data-sc-active-background="#ffffff" data-sc-other-background="#ffffff" data-sc-color="#555555"][tab title="Details"] This superb American made wallet is crafted from hand-stitched Horween Horsefront leather. This three-card-slot wallet includes the write-anywhere Fisher Space Pen and holds an included Rhodia A7 pocket size notebook. [/tab] [tab title="Specs"] Horween Horsefront… read more
Charette Wallet
$108.00
[tab-section data-sc-active-background="#ffffff" data-sc-other-background="#ffffff" data-sc-color="#555555"][tab title="Details"] This superb American made wallet is crafted from hand-stitched Horween Horsefront leather. This three-card-slot wallet includes the write-anywhere Fisher Space Pen and holds an included Rhodia A7 pocket size notebook. [/tab] [tab title="Specs"] Horween Horsefront… read more
CHIN DON!
May you Gallantry Men and Women live for one hundred years with your new killer EDC!
“I don’t want to see you walking around without those EDC notebooks and pens I got you from Gallantry again, you understand? You’re a Gallantry Man and a Soprano and as long as you’re living under my roof that means something! Capisce?!”
“I don’t want to see you walking around without those EDC notebooks and pens I got you from Gallantry again, you understand? You’re a Gallantry Man and a Soprano and as long as you’re living under my roof that means something! Capisce?!”STREAMING THE EDC NOTEBOOK/PEN, SOPRANOS-STYLE
Stream all 6 seasons of the show that started it all, the one that David Chase himself has said couldn’t be made today (“Chances of doing this ever again is unlikely…my understanding is things have changed [in television].”), right HERE on HBO Max™ today.
Still not enough? Don’t worry. We got more you ol’ Frances Albert Sinatra, you!
Watch Michael Imperioli (who played Tony’s nephew, fan favorite Christopher Moltisanti) and Steve Schirripa (who played Tony’s brother-in-law, Bobby Baccalieri) Talking Sopranos with the show’s El Padrino himself, David Chase, right HERE and, oh yea, right over HERE, too!
“It’s good to be in something from the ground floor. I know what I originally said about coming in too late for that, and how I was getting the feeling that I came in at the end, but you know what? Things couldn’t be going better. Each piping hot new issue of The Dispatch from Gallantry that pops up in my inbox is better than the next and my EDC collection only continues to get more and more legendary with each passing week. I think I’m having one of them, you know, what do you call ‘em? Oh yeah. Breakthroughs. I’m having one of them breakthroughs, that’s it. I truly am a blessed man. A blessed Gallantry Man Legend, that is.”
