Dominic Chianese

Forty-seven years of stage and small-screen work came before The Sopranos, and most of Hollywood had no idea who he was. Francis Ford Coppola spotted him early, casting him as Johnny Ola in The Godfather Part II in 1974, which led to a run of Al Pacino films. None of it made him famous. David Chase caught his performance in the 1996 TV movie Gotti and cast him as Uncle Junior at age 67. Six seasons, two Emmy nominations, and two SAG Awards later, he'd made a cranky mob boss with advancing dementia into one of TV's great character portraits.

At 95, he's still performing. Live shows at venues like Town Hall NYC mix Sopranos stories with classic Neapolitan songs, which makes sense because he's been a tenor longer than he's been a screen actor. His two albums, Hits (2000) and Ungrateful Heart (2003), predate most people's discovery of him. The singing scene in the Sopranos Season 3 finale, where Uncle Junior performs 'Core 'ngrato' at a family party, became one of the show's most affecting moments. The Alzheimer's arc turned a comedic villain into a heartbreaking figure, which is the kind of work most character actors never get the chance to do.

Before the mob boss, he was a folk singer in Greenwich Village, playing rhythm guitar and hosting open mics at Gerde's Folk City (the same club where Bob Dylan gave his first professional concert in 1961). He worked construction with his father while grinding through night school and theater auditions. The Bronx-born son of a bricklayer didn't make it to Broadway until 1965, when he played Mr. Sowerberry in Oliver! His 2018 memoir, Twelve Angels, credits the women who shaped his career. He also teaches guitar in rehab facilities and performs for nursing home residents.