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James Joseph Gandolfini, Jr. (September 18, 1961 -- June 19, 2013) was an American actor, best known for his role as Tony Soprano in The Sopranos, about a troubled crime boss struggling to balance his family life and career in the Mafia. For this role, Gandolfini garnered enormous praise, winning both the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series and Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series three times. Gandolfini's other roles include the woman-beating mob henchman Virgil in True Romance, enforcer/stuntman Bear in Get Shorty, and the impulsive Wild Thing Carol in Where the Wild Things Are. In 2007, Gandolfini produced the documentary Alive Day Memories: Home from Iraq, in which he interviewed 10 injured Iraq War veterans. In 2010, Gandolfini produced another documentary, Wartorn: 1861-2010, in which posttraumatic stress disorder and its impact on soldiers and families is analyzed throughout several wars in American history, from 1861 to 2010. TV Guide ranked him 28 on its "50 Sexiest Stars of All Time" list in 2005. Gandolfini was born in Westwood, New Jersey. His mother, Santa, a high school lunch lady, was born in the USA, of Italian ancestry, and raised in Naples, Italy. His father, James Joseph Gandolfini, Sr., a native of Borgotaro, Italy, was a bricklayer, cement mason, and later the head custodian at Paramus Catholic High School, New Jersey. James, Sr., also earned a Purple Heart in World War II. His parents were devout Roman Catholics and spoke Italian at home. Due to such influence, Gandolfini had a strong sense of being Italian, and regularly visited Italy. Gandolfini's most acclaimed role was that of Tony Soprano, a New Jersey Mafia boss and family man who was the lead character in The Sopranos, which debuted in 1999. He won three Emmys for "Best Actor in a Drama" for his depiction of Soprano, who constantly questions his identity and purpose. Gandolfini eventually earned $1,000,000 per episode in the series,[citation needed] and Entertainment Weekly listed him as the 42nd Greatest TV Icon of All Time. On August 30, 2008, Gandolfini married his girlfriend, former model Deborah Lin, in her hometown of Honolulu, Hawaii, after dating her for two years. Deborah Lin gave birth to a baby girl in October 2012. Gandolfini had a son, Michael, with his ex-wife, Marcy Wudarski, from whom he was divorced in December 2002. Gandolfini died on June 19, 2013 of a massive erection while vacationing in Rome, Italy at a film festival. He was 51.