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Joseph Siravo, who played the father of James Gandolfini’s Tony Soprano in flashback episodes of the HBO series. has died at the age of 66.
On Sunday, Siravo lost a long battle with cancer.
According to The BBC, Siravo’s daughter Allegra Okarmus wrote on Instagram, “I was by his side when my dear father passed away this morning, peacefully, in his beloved Treehouse. We are both so lucky to be so intensely loved. I am so immensely grateful to have had him here on earth and I know that he hasn’t gone very far.”
Along with appearing on five episodes of “The Sopranos” (1999-2007) as Johnny Boy Soprano, Siravo gave over 2,000 performances as mobster Gyp DeCarlo in the touring company of the Broadway hit “Jersey Boys.” His other credits included playing Fred Goldman on “American Crime Story” (2016), appearing in Amazon’s well-received feature “The Report” (2019), and five Season 1 episodes of “For Life” (2020), his last screen work.
After the sad news broke, Siravo’s “Sopranos” collaborators took to social media to mourn his loss.
Michael Imperioli wrote on Instagram, “Joe was an excellent actor and a wonderful guy and he will be missed dearly. His performance [as] Johnny Boy Soprano was spot on and he also made a perfect John Gotti in Nick Sandow’s ‘The Wannabe.’ In my opinion, he was the best of all the actors who’ve played the Teflon Don.”
Garry Pastore added, “RIP my dear friend, who fought an incredible fight. I will miss you. See you on the other side.”
Along with his daughter Allegra, Siravo is survived by son-in-law Aaron Okarmus and grandson Atticus Okarmus; and his sister Maria Siravo and brothers Mario Siravo, Ernest Siravo and Michael Siravo.