James Gandolfini

An unlikely leading man and even more unlikely sex symbol, James Gandolfini was touted as both after his star-making portrayal of mobster Tony Soprano, a family man undergoing a mid-life crisis in the hit HBO drama, "The Sopranos" (1999-2007). Although he came to an acting career later in life, he was already a well-respected character player – one whom the audience perhaps recognized by sight if not by name – when he read the script for "The Sopranos.” Sensing the quality of the writing and responding to the well-drawn character, Gandolfini was firmly convinced he would not be cast; certain a