Cold Stones

"Cold Stones"
The Sopranosepisode
Episodeno.	Season 6 Episode 11
Directed by	Tim Van Patten
Written by	Diane Frolov Andrew Schneider David Chase
Cinematography by	Phil Abraham
Production code	611
Original air date	May 21, 2006(2006-05-21)
Running time	56 minutes

"Cold Stones"is the 76th episode of theHBOseriesThe Sopranosand the 11th of the show's sixth season. Written byDiane Frolov,Andrew Schneider,andDavid Chase,and directed byTim Van Patten,it originally aired on May 21, 2006.

Starring

• James GandolfiniasTony Soprano
• Lorraine BraccoasDr. Jennifer Melfi
• Edie FalcoasCarmela Soprano
• Michael ImperioliasChristopher Moltisanti
• Dominic ChianeseasCorrado Soprano, Jr.*
• Steven Van ZandtasSilvio Dante
• Tony SiricoasPaulie Gualtieri
• Robert IlerasA.J. Soprano
• Jamie-Lynn SiglerasMeadow Soprano
• Aida TurturroasJanice Soprano Baccalieri*
• Steven R. SchirripaasBobby Baccalieri
• Frank VincentasPhil Leotardo
• Sharon AngelaasRosalie Aprile
• Joseph R. GannascoliasVito Spatafore
• Dan GrimaldiasPatsy Parisi

* = credit only

Guest starring

• Drea de MatteoasAdriana La Cerva
• John Bianco asGerry Torciano
• Elizabeth BraccoasMarie Spatafore
• Ron Castellano asTerry Doria
• John CostelloeasJim "Johnny Cakes" Witowski
• Tony Cucci asDominic "Fat Dom" Gamiello
• Louis Gross asPerry Annunziata
• Geraldine LiBrandi asPatty Leotardo
• Arthur NascarellaasCarlo Gervasi
• Vinnie Orofino asBryan Spatafore
• Lenny VenitoasJames "Murmur" Zancone
• Frank Borrelli asVito Spatafore, Jr.
• Paulina Gerzon asFrancesca Spatafore
• Vincent PiazzaasHernan O'Brien
• Emily WickershamasRhiannon
• Nathalie Walker as Lori
• Alexandre Vargaas Michel
• Michel Winogradoff as Head Waiter
• Clyde Baldo as Photographer
• Anne Assante as Caterina Cella
• Doug Rand as Gendarme

Synopsis

Carmeladiscovers thatA.J.was fired from his job and has kept this a secret for three weeks. Tony watches as A.J. types on achatroomand giggles; disgusted, he tellsDr. Melfithat he hates his son. She points out that Tony wisheshis motherhad protected him as Carmela protects A.J. Tony finds A.J. a construction job and gently encourages him to "do good". But when A.J. resists him, Tony smashes the windshield of A.J.'s car, warning, "Don't put me to the test."

Meadowtells her parents she is moving toCaliforniato be withFinn.

Carmela visitsPariswithRosalie.She reacts to the ancient city with emotional intensity, and thinks about past and future, life and death. In a dream she seesAdrianawalking her dog by theEiffel Tower;agendarmesays in English, "Your friend—someone needs to tell her she's dead."

Vitounexpectedly approaches Tony at a mall and tries to convince him he is not reallyhomosexual.He asks to buy his way back into the crew, proposing to run a business inAtlantic Cityinvolvingprostitutionandmethtrafficking. Tony brings up the offer withSilvio,Christopher,andPaulie,who are not in favor. Vito has a reunion lunch with his family, telling his children that he has been working as an undercover spy inAfghanistanand that they must never speak about his return. He phonesJim,who totally rebuffs him.

Tony has already had a business dispute withPhil,who is now the acting boss of theLupertazzi family.When they meet again, Phil is angry to learn that Vito is back in town. Tony decides that he can't keep protecting Vito and begins planning his murder. However, when Vito returns that night to his motel room, he is attacked by New York mobstersFat Dom GamielloandGerry Torciano,who knock him down and duct-tape his mouth. Vito mutely pleads for his life as Phil comes out of the closet and watches Dom and Gerry beat him to death with pool cues.

Tony understands that Phil is sending a message, that he can kill one of Tony'scaposand Tony cannot do anything about it. He decides to hit back at Phil financially, noting that he has "awire roominSheepshead Bay."

While Sil and Carlo are atSatriale's,Dom arrives to make a payment and starts making crude jokes about Vito. When he begins to joke that Carlo and Vito were involved romantically, Sil and Carlo impulsively attack and kill him. Tony shows up, sees what has happened, and wordlessly exits, leaving Sil and Carlo to deal with the corpse.

When Vito's murder is reported in the newspaper,FrancescaandVito, Jr.learn about their father's occupation and homosexuality.

Title reference

• "Cold Stones" could refer to the ruins, the statues, and the old buildings that Carmela sees in Paris.
• "Cold Stones" could also refer to AJ's new construction job, which he begins in winter.

Final appearances

• Jim Witowski– Owner of a local diner in Dartford, New Hampshire, and Vito's ex boyfriend.

Deceased

• Vito Spatafore:Beaten to death with a pool cue by Dominic "Fat Dom" Gamiello and Gerry Torciano on orders from Phil Leotardo.
• Dominic "Fat Dom" Gamiello:Stabbed to death by Carlo Gervasi while being held by Silvio Dante in the back room of Satriale's.

Production

• During the shoot in Paris,Edie Falcohad thefluwhich rendered her voice almost inaudible.Sharon Angelahad difficulty reacting to Carmela's dialogue when filming the scenes, and Carmela's lines had to be replaced in post-production with Falco recording them only once she had gotten well, already back in the U.S.
• Sharon Angelais billed in an individual credit during the opening sequence for the only time. For other episodes, she is paired with another cast member. This may be due to her key role in this episode.
• The motel where Vito is beaten to death was filmed on location at the formerHoward Johnson'smotor lodge inFort Lee, New Jersey.
• Carmela believes that Adriana left Christopher but her dream suggests that Adriana is dead. In Season 2, Tony's dream reveals the truth aboutBig Pussyworking with the FBI, and in Season 5 a dream indicates that he will need to kill his cousin,Tony Blundetto.
• TheStar-Ledgerarticle reporting Vito's death contains more text than was read out by Vito Jr. to his sister. DVD freeze frame reveals that the same paragraphs are just repeated over and over with the exception of the last. The final paragraph is unique and mentions that the owner of the Fort Lee Motel where Vito is murdered is a Fort Lee resident named Miriam Shapiro who was unavailable for comment.
• Former series regularDrea de Matteomakes her final appearance asAdriana La Cervain this episode.

References to prior episodes

• Carmela mentions the time A.J. was being nihilistic and denying God's existence at the time of his confirmation, which happened in the season 2 episode "D-Girl."
• Carmela mentions the time she and Rosalie planned to travel to Italy ( "The Knight in White Satin Armor").
• Carmela reads aboutAbelardandHeloisein her Paris guidebook and then thinks for a second.Robert Weglerprominently talked to Carmela about a book about Abelard and Heloise in the season 5 episode "Sentimental Education."
• Carmela remembers what Tony spoke immediately after he woke up from his coma: "Who am I? Where am I going?" ( "Join the Club").
• In Carmela's dream, Adriana tells her that she found her dog Cosette (in the afterlife). Cosette was accidentally killed in the season 4 episode "The Strong, Silent Type."
• When Tony asks his crew's opinion on Vito's offer for silence; Silvio referencesRichie Apriledisowning his son after discovering he was gay.

Other cultural references

• Carmela wanted to rentCinderella Man.
• A.J. callsBlockbuster"religious fanatics," probably in reference to the store's refusal to stockNC-17films; Blockbuster also famously refused to rent outThe Last Temptation of Christ.
• Tony jokes that Blockbuster hasRhesus monkeysworking as managers.
• A.J. and friends drinkCristal.
• When he and his crew are in the Bing, Tony points outMickey Rooneyon TV as a very hyper band leader in the movieStrike Up the Band.He calls him a "walyo," from theNeapolitanguaglione,"boy."
• Phil and Tony meet at theLou Costellostatue inPaterson.
• In the same scene above, Paulie mentions how ashamed "Salvatore Lucania" would probably be of him and his cohorts. This was the birth name of Mafia bossLucky Luciano.
• When Carmela tells Tony about her plans to visit Paris, he is watchingIs Paris Burning?(1966) on television. Later, when Carmela calls from Paris, Tony jokes, "Is Paris burning?" When he hears it's been raining over there, he replies "When it drizzles!", a line from the 1953Cole Portersong "I Love Paris."
• She notes that the French callFrench toastandFrench friesby other names (pain perduandpommes allumettesrespectively).
• Tony calling Phil "Carnac the Great" is a reference toCarnac the Magnificent,a comedic, soothsaying character played byJohnny Carsonduring his tenure as host ofThe Tonight Show.
• The sights seen in Paris besides theEiffel Tower:The taxi is driving Carmela and Rosalie on theChamps-Élyséestowards theArc de Triomphe.Later,Notre Dame Cathedralis shown in the background. ThePalais-Royalgardens and thePont Alexandre IIIbridge are visited. The church where the candles were lit isSt. Eustache.The women have dinner atLe Grand Véfourrestaurant. Rosalie consoles Carmela at theThermes de Cluny.Additionally, Carmela says they should visit theLouvre.Later they discussChloé,DiorandKelly bags.Rosalie buysHenri de Toulouse-Lautrecplacemats.
• Carmela is mockingly compared toNapoleon.
• Tony mentions the1010 WINSstation. Later he listens toQ104.3.
• Carmela says that Tony was likeRicardo Montalbánwith his Spanish.
• Phil wears Zanella slacks.
• Rosalie Aprile sees a ferry in the Seine and says, "Look! Just likeCharade!"
• Silvio Dante reacts to the repeated news of Vito's death by responding that Carlo Gervasi is a "regularJimmy Olsen,"a reference toSuperman's photographer friend at theDaily Planet.
• Tony tells Silvio that "Joe Bananas"fought a Mafia war withCarlo Gambinoof retribution killings for seven years. This probably refers to the conflict of 1963–68, triggered byJoseph Bonanno's attempt to assassinate several members of theMafia Commission.Tony also uses the expression "on the mattresses," derived fromThe Godfather.
• Silvio refers tobleachasBiangaline.
• Ramon Navarro's murder is mentioned as being similar to Vito's.

Music

• "Summer Rain" by Gritty Kitty plays as Vito and Marie Spatafore talk while their kids skate at theRockefeller Center.
• "Ouvre Les Yeux" by PM (from their 2000 albumLes Petits Chefs), a French rap group from the Paris suburbs, plays during the first scene in Paris.
• "Knights in White Satin"byGiorgio Moroderis played while Tony is in the Bada Bing!
• "Back In Black"byAC/DCis playing on the car radio while Tony is receiving fellatio from a stripper while driving. That song was followed immediately byLynyrd Skynyrd's "Simple Man" as Tony speaks to Vito on the phone.
• The melody to "La Vie En Rose"is hummed by Rosalie as she consoles Carmela at the Gallo-Roman baths.
• The ringtone of "Fat Dom" 's phone isFür ElisebyLudwig van Beethoven.
• "Home" byPersephone's Beesplays at the beginning of the credits.
• "As Time Goes By"fromCasablancaplays through the rest of the closing credits. The city of Paris plays an important role in bothCasablancaand this episode. This particular rendition is sung byDooley Wilson.

External links

• "Cold Stones"Archived2016-08-18 at theWayback MachineatHBO
• "Cold Stones"atIMDb