FRAZIER MOORE
ASSOCIATED PRESS

NEW YORK—Steven Van Zandt, who plays Tony’s pompadoured consigliere on The Sopranos, prepared for the role with knowingness remarkable for a first-time actor.

“Little Steven,” of course, was a career rock’n'roller: a performer in his own right as well as a member of Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band.

But he transformed himself into Silvio Dante with the knack of a seasoned thespian.

On his head he swapped out his signature bandana for a full-out coifed hairpiece. Clad himself in mob-certified finery. Packed on 50 pounds. “All the outside stuff,” Van Zandt sums up.

“Then I wrote a biography of Silvio: Lifelong friend of Tony … probably the only person who’s not afraid of him and can be honest with him … kind of the ambassador and diplomat of the family.”

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Posted by: uno on May 2nd, 2006 | No comments »



Steven Van Zandt took to the stage to introduce the first garage band in a long-sleeved velvet blazer, faded jeans, dark sunglasses and a scarf wrapped around his head.

The outfit’s a far cry from the suspenders, smart suits and moussed hairdo Van Zandt sports when he plays mobster Silvio Dante on The Sopranos.

But that doesn’t keep fans of the show from recognizing him.

‘Obviously when the show is on, you get a little more of `How’s the asthma, Silvio,’ ” he said.

The afternoon sun beat down Sunday as the band took to the poolside stage, dozens of fans, mostly shirtless, crowding toward the front.

A calmer line of autograph seekers formed at a nearby cabana, hoping for a minute not with the bands, but with the man who hosted the show, a star of the HBO series The Sopranos, longtime guitarist with Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band, and the host of his radio show Little Steven’s Underground Garage.

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Posted by: uno on April 5th, 2006 | No comments »