"Down Neck" is the seventh episode of the
HBO original series ''
The Sopranos
''The Sopranos'' is an American crime drama television series created by David Chase. The story revolves around Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), a New Jersey-based Italian-American mobster, portraying his difficulties as he tries to balance ...
''. It was written by
Robin Green
Robin Green is an American writer and producer. She was an executive producer on the HBO series ''The Sopranos''. She was a creator and executive producer for '' Blue Bloods''.
Biography
A Rhode Island native, Robin Green earned a Bachelor of ...
and
Mitchell Burgess
Mitchell Burgess is an American writer and producer. He was the writer and an executive producer on ''The Sopranos''. He was a creator and executive producer for '' Blue Bloods''. He frequently works with his wife Robin Green.
Career
''The Sop ...
, and directed by
Lorraine Senna Ferrara
Lorraine Senna (sometimes credited as Lorraine Senna Ferrara) is an American film and television director.
Career
As a television director, her credits include ''Dynasty'', '' Emerald Point N.A.S.'', ''Trapper John, M.D.'', '' Fame'', '' Falco ...
. This episode, the only one in the entire series directed by a woman, aired on February 21, 1999.
Starring
*
James Gandolfini
James Joseph Gandolfini Jr. (; September 18, 1961 – June 19, 2013) was an American actor. For his role as Tony Soprano, the Italian-American Mafia crime boss in HBO's television series ''The Sopranos'', he won three Emmy Awards, five Screen ...
as
Tony Soprano
Anthony John Soprano is a fictional character and the antihero protagonist in the HBO television drama series ''The Sopranos'' (1999–2007), portrayed by James Gandolfini. Soprano is a member of the Italian-American Mafia and, especially late ...
*
Lorraine Bracco
Lorraine Bracco (born October 2, 1954) is an American actress. Known for her distinct husky voice and Brooklyn accent, she has been nominated for an Academy Award, four Emmy Awards, four Golden Globe Awards, and three Screen Actors Guild Awards ...
as
Dr. Jennifer Melfi
*
Edie Falco
Edith Falco (born July 5, 1963) is an American actress. She is best known for portraying Carmela Soprano on the HBO series ''The Sopranos'' (1999–2007), and Nurse Jackie Peyton on the Showtime series ''Nurse Jackie'' (2009–2015). She also ...
as
Carmela Soprano
Carmela Soprano (''née'' DeAngelis), played by Edie Falco, is a fictional character on the HBO TV series ''The Sopranos''. She is married to Mafia boss Tony Soprano. A young Carmela, portrayed by Lauren DiMario, appears in the 2021 prequel fi ...
*
Michael Imperioli
Michael Imperioli (born March 26, 1966) is an American actor, writer, and musician. He is best known for his role as Christopher Moltisanti in the HBO crime drama ''The Sopranos'' (1999–2007), which earned him the Primetime Emmy Award for Ou ...
as
Christopher Moltisanti
Christopher Moltisanti, played by Michael Imperioli, is a fictional character on the HBO TV series ''The Sopranos''. He is Tony Soprano's protégé and a member of the DiMeo crime family, rising from associate to captain over the course of th ...
*
Dominic Chianese
Dominic Chianese (; born February 24, 1931) is an American actor, singer, and musician. He is best known for his roles as Corrado "Junior" Soprano on the HBO series ''The Sopranos'' (1999–2007), Johnny Ola in '' The Godfather Part II'' (1 ...
as
Corrado Soprano, Jr.
*
Vincent Pastore
Vincent Pastore (; born July 14, 1946) is an American actor. Often cast as a mafioso, he is best known for his portrayal of Salvatore "Big Pussy" Bonpensiero on the HBO series ''The Sopranos''.
Early life
Pastore was born to an Italian-Ameri ...
as
Pussy Bonpensiero
This is a list of fictional characters from the HBO series ''The Sopranos'', its video game '' The Sopranos: Road to Respect'' and its prequel film ''The Many Saints of Newark.''
Main characters Cast table
Main character biographies Tony Soprano ...
*
Steven Van Zandt
Steven Van Zandt (né Lento; born November 22, 1950), also known as Little Steven or Miami Steve, is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and actor. He is a member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, in which he plays guitar and mandoli ...
as
Silvio Dante
Silvio Manfred Dante is a fictional character on the HBO TV series ''The Sopranos'', played by Steven Van Zandt. He is the consigliere and right-hand man to Tony Soprano in the DiMeo crime family. John Magaro portrays a young Silvio Dante in ...
*
Tony Sirico
Gennaro Anthony Sirico Jr. (; July 29, 1942 – July 8, 2022) was an American actor. He was best known for his role as Paulie "Walnuts" Gualtieri in ''The Sopranos''. He also made numerous appearances in the films of Woody Allen.
Early life
S ...
as
Paulie Gualtieri
Peter Paul "Paulie Walnuts" Gualtieri is a fictional character portrayed by Tony Sirico on the HBO series ''The Sopranos'', one of the chief henchmen of series protagonist Tony Soprano. Sirico originally auditioned for the role of Uncle Junior ...
*
*
Robert Iler
Robert Michael Iler (; born March 2, 1985) is an American former actor. He is best known for his portrayal of A.J. Soprano on ''The Sopranos''. His film roles include ''Tadpole'' (2002), and ''Daredevil'' (2003).
Career
Iler appeared in the vi ...
as
Anthony Soprano, Jr.
*
Jamie-Lynn Sigler
Jamie-Lynn Sigler (born May 15, 1981) is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Meadow Soprano on the HBO series ''The Sopranos''.
Early life
Jamie-Lynn Sigler was born in Jericho, New York, on May 15, 1981, the daughter of S ...
as
Meadow Soprano
Meadow Mariangela Soprano, played by Jamie-Lynn Sigler, is a fictional character on the HBO TV series ''The Sopranos''. She was born in 1982. In the early seasons, Meadow is introduced as a smart but spoiled party-goer, whose over-dramatic pers ...
*
Nancy Marchand
Nancy Lou Marchand (June 19, 1928 – June 18, 2000) was an American actress. She began her career in theatre in 1951. She was most famous for her television portrayals of Margaret Pynchon on ''Lou Grant'' and Livia Soprano on ''The Sopranos''.
...
as
Livia Soprano
Livia Soprano (née Pollio), played by Nancy Marchand, is a fictional character on the HBO TV series ''The Sopranos''. She is the mother of Tony Soprano. A young Livia, played by Laila Robins and later by Laurie J. Williams, is sometimes seen i ...
''* = credit only''
Guest starring
*
Joseph Siravo
Joseph Siravo (March 11, 1955 – April 11, 2021) was an American actor, producer, and educator. He acted on Broadway in the Tony Award-winning productions of '' Oslo'' and '' The Light in the Piazza''. His roles in film and television included ...
as
Johnny Boy Soprano
*
Laila Robbins as
Young Livia Soprano
*
Rocco Sisto
Rocco Sisto (born February 18, 1953) is an Italian-American stage, film, television and voice actor.
Early life
Sisto was born on February 18, 1953 in Bari, Italy, and moved to Addison, Illinois at an unknown age. He attended and graduated Addis ...
as
Young Junior Soprano
* David Beach as Dr. Peter Galani
Also guest starring
Synopsis
A.J. and his friends steal
sacramental wine
Sacramental wine, Communion wine, altar wine, or wine for consecration is wine obtained from grapes and intended for use in celebration of the Eucharist (also referred to as the Lord's Supper or Holy Communion, among other names). It is usually ...
and turn up drunk at
gym class
Physical education, often abbreviated to Phys Ed. or P.E., is a subject taught in schools around the world. It is usually taught during primary and secondary education, and encourages psychomotor learning by using a play and movement explorati ...
.
Tony
Tony may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Tony (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters
* Gregory Tony (born 1978), American law enforcement officer
* Motu Tony (born 1981), New Zealand international rugby leagu ...
and
Carmela are called into A.J.'s
Catholic school, where the psychologist tells them that A.J. may have
ADD
Addition (usually signified by the plus symbol ) is one of the four basic operations of arithmetic, the other three being subtraction, multiplication and division. The addition of two whole numbers results in the total amount or '' sum'' of ...
. A.J. is tested and determined to be borderline ADD. Tony scornfully rejects this and says A.J. is behaving like a normal 13-year-old. Carmela supports his opinion and he walks out.
This incident prompts Tony to discuss incidents from his own childhood with
Dr. Melfi
Jennifer Melfi is a fictional character on the HBO TV series ''The Sopranos''. She is the psychiatrist of Mafia boss Tony Soprano. She is portrayed by Lorraine Bracco.
Character description
Melfi is an Italian-American, with her father's famil ...
:
His mother
''His Mother'' is a 1912 American silent film produced by Kalem Company. It was directed by Sidney Olcott with Gene Gauntier and Jack J. Clark in the leading roles. It was one of more than a dozen films produced by the Kalem Company filmed in Ir ...
once threatened to stick a fork in his eye if he did not stop bothering her. He saw
his father beat someone up – "You could tell he knew what he was doing." Later, the same man offered Johnny Boy a chance to move to
Reno
Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada-California border, about north from Lake Tahoe, known as "The Biggest Little City in the World". Known for its casino and tourism industry, Reno is the ...
, an escape from his gangster life; his mother said she would rather smother her children than take them to Nevada. He saw his father being arrested and felt proud to be his son. This occurred at the time of the
1967 Newark riots
The 1967 Newark riots were an episode of violent, armed conflict in the streets of Newark, New Jersey, United States. Taking place over a four-day period (between July 12 and July 17, 1967), the Newark riots resulted in at least 26 deaths and ...
.
A.J. overhears his parents talking about Tony's psychiatrist and innocently tells his grandmother, who assumes that Tony is discussing her with the psychiatrist. She is poised to pass on this information to
Junior
Junior or Juniors may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Music
* ''Junior'' (Junior Mance album), 1959
* ''Junior'' (Röyksopp album), 2009
* ''Junior'' (Kaki King album), 2010
* ''Junior'' (LaFontaines album), 2019
Films
* ''Junior'' (1994 ...
but Tony happens to walk in before she can do so.
First appearances
*
Johnny Soprano: Tony's deceased father who appears in flashbacks to his childhood. He was the long-time ''
capo'' of the original Soprano crew (which later became known as the Gualtieri crew) until his death from emphysema in 1986.
*
Janice Soprano
Janice Soprano Baccalieri is a fictional character on the HBO television drama series ''The Sopranos'' and in the film '' The Many Saints of Newark''. In ''The Sopranos'', Janice is portrayed by Aida Turturro who’s the eldest sibling of the ...
: Tony's older sister who appears as a child in flashbacks.
*
Barbara Soprano: Tony's younger sister who appears as an infant in flashbacks.
Title reference
* "Down Neck" refers to the
Ironbound
The Ironbound is a neighborhood in the city of Newark in Essex County, New Jersey, United States. It is a large working-class multi-ethnic community, covering approximately of well maintained streets and homes. Historically, the area was cal ...
section of Newark, New Jersey where Tony grew up.
* Tony pretends he is going to squirt whipped cream down the back of A.J.'s T-shirt.
Cultural references
* While being tested for ADD, A.J. mentions the animated series ''
South Park''. He specifically mentions the first episode, "
Cartman Gets an Anal Probe."
* Dr. Melfi slightly misquotes
George Santayana
Jorge Agustín Nicolás Ruiz de Santayana y Borrás, known in English as George Santayana (; December 16, 1863 – September 26, 1952), was a Spanish and US-American philosopher, essayist, poet, and novelist. Born in Spain, Santayana was raised ...
's words: "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it."
* With Melfi, Tony mentions the murderers
Leopold and Loeb
Nathan Freudenthal Leopold Jr. (November 19, 1904 – August 29, 1971) and Richard Albert Loeb (; June 11, 1905 – January 28, 1936), usually referred to collectively as Leopold and Loeb, were two wealthy students at the University of Chicago ...
.
References to past episodes
*When Carmela mentions Meadow's suspicions about Tony's true occupation, flashbacks from "
College
A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offerin ...
" appear briefly which include Meadow asking him if he's in the Mafia and Tony killing
Febby.
Music
* The song played on the television during Tony's flashback to 1967 was a live performance of "
I've Been Lonely Too Long" by
The Rascals
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
on ''
The Ed Sullivan Show
''The Ed Sullivan Show'' is an American television variety show that ran on CBS from June 20, 1948, to March 28, 1971, and was hosted by New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan. It was replaced in September 1971 by the '' CBS Sunday Night M ...
.'' During the scene, Tony's mother implies her husband was arrested because he's Italian. "They're always picking on Italians," she says. The irony in the scene is, three of the four members of the Rascals—Dino Danelli, Felix Cavaliere, and Eddie Brigati—were Italian Americans.
* The song played while Tony takes his
Prozac
Fluoxetine, sold under the brand names Prozac and Sarafem, among others, is an antidepressant of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) class. It is used for the treatment of major depressive disorder, obsessive–compulsive disorde ...
and remembers his childhood is "
White Rabbit
The White Rabbit is a fictional and anthropomorphic character in Lewis Carroll's 1865 book ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland''. He appears at the very beginning of the book, in chapter one, wearing a waistcoat, and muttering "Oh dear! Oh dear! ...
" by
Jefferson Airplane. It is also played when he makes ice-cream sundaes with A.J. and into the end credits.
* The song played when young Tony misses the bus and sees Johnny and Junior beating up a man is "
Don't Bring Me Down
"Don't Bring Me Down" is the ninth and final track on the English rock band the Electric Light Orchestra's 1979 album ''Discovery''. It is their highest-charting hit in the United States to date.
History
"Don't Bring Me Down" is the band's s ...
" by
The Animals
The Animals (also billed as Eric Burdon and the Animals) are an English rock band, formed in Newcastle upon Tyne in the early 1960s. The band moved to London upon finding fame in 1964. The Animals were known for their gritty, bluesy sound and ...
.
* The song played when young Tony plays catch with Junior while Janice leaves with Johnny for the carnival is "
Carrie Anne
"Carrie Anne" is a song written by Allan Clarke, Graham Nash, and Tony Hicks and released by British pop rock group The Hollies. The song was recorded on 1 May 1967 and was released as a single in the same month by Parlophone Records in the Un ...
" by
The Hollies
The Hollies are a British pop rock band, formed in 1962. One of the leading British groups of the 1960s and into the mid-1970s, they are known for their distinctive three-part vocal harmony style. Allan Clarke and Graham Nash founded the band ...
.
* The song played when young Tony hides in the trunk of Johnny's car and follows him and Janice to the carnival is "
Mystic Eyes
A mystic is a person who practices mysticism, or a reference to a mystery, mystic craft, first hand-experience or the occult.
Mystic may also refer to:
Places United States
* Mistick, an old name for parts of Malden and Medford, Massachusetts
* ...
" by
Them.
* The song played when young Tony sees Junior, Johnny, and friends arrested at the carnival is "
The Blue Danube
"The Blue Danube" is the common English title of "An der schönen blauen Donau", Op. 314 (German for "By the Beautiful Blue Danube"), a waltz by the Austrian composer Johann Strauss II, composed in 1866. Originally performed on 15 Februa ...
" by
Johann Strauss II.
Filming locations
Listed in order of first appearance:
*
Long Island City,
Queens
Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...
*
Newark, New Jersey
Newark ( , ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey and the seat of Essex County and the second largest city within the New York metropolitan area.[West Caldwell, New Jersey
West Caldwell is a township located in the West Essex area in northwestern Essex County, New Jersey, United States. It is located approximately west of Manhattan and northwest of Newark. As of the 2010 United States census, the township's po ...]
*
Satin Dolls in
Lodi, New Jersey
Lodi (; ) is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States census, the borough's population was 24,136,[West Orange, New Jersey
West Orange is a suburban township in Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States Census, its population was 48,843, an increase of 2,636 (+5.7%) from the 46,207 counted in the 2010 Census.]
* Below the
Pulaski Skyway
The Pulaski Skyway is a four-lane bridge-causeway in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of New Jersey, carrying an expressway designated U.S. Route 1/9 (US 1/9) for most of its length. The structure has a total length of . Its ...
in
Jersey City, New Jersey
*
Staten Island
Reception
Emily St. James of ''
The A.V. Club
''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...
'' retrospectively praised "Down Neck" as "an unusually focused episode. It rarely deviates from its central thesis about fathers and mothers and their sons." She considered the flashbacks to be "nicely constructed and handily paralleled with Tony's fears that his kids will find out what he does for a living."
Alan Sepinwall
Alan Sepinwall (born October 19, 1973) is an American television reviewer and writer. He spent 14 years as a columnist with ''The Star-Ledger'' in Newark until leaving the newspaper in 2010 to work for the entertainment news website HitFix. He ...
praised Gandolfini's acting and also stated, in reference to the scene where AJ tells Livia of Tony's therapy sessions, that the episode's two plots "make a great comic combination because AJ is so oblivious
..that he not only doesn't realize what he's telling Livia, but is invulnerable to her usual emotional manipulations. Once Livia decides that Tony goes to a psychiatrist to complain about her, she starts up the waterworks and loud self-pity, and AJ couldn't possibly be less interested in, or even aware of, this display. It's priceless."
See also
*
Host desecration
Host desecration is a form of sacrilege in Christian denominations that follow the doctrine of the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist. It involves the mistreatment or malicious use of a consecrated host—the bread used in the Eucharistic s ...
, with regard to A.J.'s theft and misuse of the sacramental wine
*
Michael B. Jordan
Michael Bakari Jordan (; born February 9, 1987) is an American actor. He is known for his film roles as shooting victim Oscar Grant in the drama ''Fruitvale Station'' (2013), boxer Adonis Creed in ''Creed'' (2015), and Erik Killmonger in ''Bl ...
, this future star appears here in one of his earliest roles playing one of the Rideland kids who chases young Tony Soprano.
*
Tim Williams, this future TV pitchman for the Trivago hotel website also appears here in one of his earliest roles as Mr. Meskimmin
*
Lorraine Senna Ferrara
Lorraine Senna (sometimes credited as Lorraine Senna Ferrara) is an American film and television director.
Career
As a television director, her credits include ''Dynasty'', '' Emerald Point N.A.S.'', ''Trapper John, M.D.'', '' Fame'', '' Falco ...
, who directed this episode, is the only woman to have ever directed one of the "Sopranos" 86 episodes.
References
External links
"Jules, Janick. "The Pear in History, Literature, Popular Culture and Art."
"''The Killers'' in a Nutshell"
External links
at
HBO
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Down Neck
The Sopranos (season 1) episodes
1999 American television episodes
fr:Pris à la gorge