History of The Sopranos in Timeline
The Sopranos, created by David Chase, centers on Tony Soprano, a New Jersey Mafia boss grappling with panic attacks. He seeks therapy from Dr. Jennifer Melfi, revealing the challenges of balancing his criminal enterprise with his family life. The series explores Tony's relationships with his wife, Carmela, his volatile protégé, Christopher Moltisanti, and other members of his Mafia family and rivals. Themes of family, loyalty, identity, and the psychological impact of violence are central to the show's narrative.
1977: Upstairs, Downstairs last win
In 1977, Upstairs, Downstairs won Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series
1978: Emmy Award for The Rockford Files
In 1978, David Chase won his first Emmy Award for his work on The Rockford Files.
1980: Second Emmy Award
In 1980, David Chase won his second Emmy for writing the television film Off the Minnesota Strip.
1986: Television Directorial Debut
In 1986, David Chase made his television directorial debut with the "Enough Rope for Two" episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents.
1988: Co-created the series Almost Grown
In 1988, David Chase co-created the TV series "Almost Grown".
1988: Konner co-created Almost Grown with Chase
In 1988, Lawrence Konner co-created Almost Grown with David Chase.
1990: Actors in common with Goodfellas
In 1990, there were 27 actors that appeared in the Martin Scorsese gangster film Goodfellas, that also appeared in The Sopranos.
1991: Northern Exposure wins George Foster Peabody Award
In 1991, Northern Exposure earned a George Foster Peabody Award.
1992: Directed episodes of I'll Fly Away
In 1992, David Chase directed episodes of I'll Fly Away.
1992: Northern Exposure wins George Foster Peabody Award
In 1992, Northern Exposure earned a George Foster Peabody Award.
1993: Gandolfini's True Romance clip
In 1993, James Gandolfini was invited to audition for the part of Tony Soprano after casting director Susan Fitzgerald saw a short clip of his performance in the film True Romance.
1995: Development deal with Brillstein-Grey
In 1995, David Chase signed a development deal with production company Brillstein-Grey and wrote the original pilot script of The Sopranos.
1996: Wrote and directed The Rockford Files: Punishment and Crime
In 1996, David Chase wrote and directed the television film The Rockford Files: Punishment and Crime.
December 1997: HBO orders 13-episode season
In December 1997, HBO decided to produce The Sopranos series and ordered 12 more episodes for a 13-episode season.
1997: Van Zandt Invited to Audition
In 1997, David Chase was impressed with Steven Van Zandt's humorous appearance and presence after seeing him induct The Rascals into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and invited him to audition for The Sopranos.
1997: Pilot episode shot in 1997
In 1997, the pilot episode of The Sopranos was filmed after Chris Albrecht, president of HBO Original Programming, agreed to finance it.
January 10, 1999: Series broadcast on HBO
On January 10, 1999, The Sopranos premiered on HBO, marking the beginning of its six-season run, with the pilot episode titled "The Sopranos".
1999: Positive Reviews for First Season
Following its initial airing in 1999, The New York Times stated, "[The Sopranos] just may be the greatest work of American popular culture of the last quarter century."
1999: George Foster Peabody Award
In 1999, The Sopranos earned a George Foster Peabody Award.
1999: Primetime Emmy Award Nomination
In 1999, The Sopranos was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series, marking the first time a cable TV series received this nomination, but the show lost to The Practice.
1999: Release of The Sopranos: Music from the HBO Original Series
In 1999, the first soundtrack album, "The Sopranos: Music from the HBO Original Series," was released, featuring selections from the show's first two seasons.
2000: Weiner offered job on The Sopranos
In 2000, Matthew Weiner wrote a script for the series Mad Men which was passed on to David Chase, who was so impressed that he immediately offered Weiner a job as a writer for The Sopranos.
2000: George Foster Peabody Award and Golden Globe Award
In 2000, The Sopranos earned a George Foster Peabody Award and won the Golden Globe Award for Best Drama Series.
2000: Primetime Emmy Award Nomination
In 2000, The Sopranos was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series but lost to The West Wing.
2000: Filming Permission Denied
In 2000, officials in Essex County, New Jersey, denied producers permission to film scenes in the South Mountain Reservation due to concerns about the show's depiction of Italian Americans.
August 2001: PublicMind Survey
In August 2001, Fairleigh Dickinson University's PublicMind conducted a national survey, where 37% of respondents watched the show regularly, and 65% of this group disagreed that the show negatively portrayed Italian Americans.
2001: Primetime Emmy Award Nomination and American Film Institute's Drama Series of the Year Award
In 2001, The Sopranos was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series but lost to The West Wing. The show also won American Film Institute's Drama Series of the Year Award in 2001.
2001: American Psychoanalytic Association Award
In 2001, the American Psychoanalytic Association presented the producers and writers of The Sopranos with an award for "the artistic depiction of psychoanalysis and psychoanalytic psychotherapy" and also presented Lorraine Bracco with an award.
2001: Release of The Sopranos – Peppers & Eggs: Music from the HBO Series
In 2001, the second soundtrack compilation, "The Sopranos – Peppers & Eggs: Music from the HBO Series," was released, featuring songs and selected dialogue from the show's first three seasons.
2002: TV Guide Ranked The Sopranos Fifth
In 2002, TV Guide ranked The Sopranos fifth on their list of the "Top 50 TV Shows of All Time", while the series was only in its fourth season.
2002: Columbus Day Parade Injunction
In 2002, organizers of the New York City Columbus Day Parade won an injunction preventing Mayor Michael Bloomberg from inviting cast members of The Sopranos to participate in the parade.
2003: Joe Pantoliano wins Emmy Award
In 2003, Joe Pantoliano won an Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actor for his role in The Sopranos.
2003: Primetime Emmy Award Nomination
In 2003, The Sopranos was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series but lost to The West Wing.
January 2004: Nielsen ratings for cable networks
Prior to January 2004, Nielsen reported aggregate numbers for cable networks, meaning that people included in the ratings estimates were watching other HBO channels than the main one on which The Sopranos aired.
October 2, 2004: James Gandolfini on Saturday Night Live
On October 2, 2004, James Gandolfini appeared on Weekend Update as a "New Jersey Resident" on Saturday Night Live to comment on the resignation of New Jersey governor Jim McGreevey.
2004: Michael Imperioli and Drea de Matteo win Emmy Awards
In 2004, Michael Imperioli and Drea de Matteo won Emmys for their supporting roles on The Sopranos.
2004: Primetime Emmy Award Win
In 2004, The Sopranos won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series. This win marked the first time a series on a cable network won the award.
2005: Pinball Machine Release
In 2005, Stern Pinball released a Sopranos pinball machine designed by George Gomez.
November 2006: Video Game Release
In November 2006, The Sopranos: Road to Respect, a video game based on the series, was released by THQ for the PlayStation 2. It was developed by 7 Studios and features the voices and likenesses of key Sopranos cast members.
2006: No Acting Emmy Award
In 2006, The Sopranos did not win any Emmy Award for acting.
2006: Sixth Season Release on Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD
In 2006, the sixth season of The Sopranos was released on Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD.
December 19, 2007: Jury Dismisses Baer's Claims
On December 19, 2007, a federal jury ruled against Robert Baer, dismissing all of his claims in his breach of contract lawsuit against David Chase regarding the creation of The Sopranos.
2007: Channel 4 named the show the greatest television series
In 2007, Channel 4 (UK) named The Sopranos the greatest television series of all time.
2007: Influence on Cable TV Series
In 2007, Hal Boedeker stated that The Sopranos was "widely influential for revealing that cable would accommodate complex series about dark characters", and mentioned shows such as Six Feet Under, The Shield, Rescue Me, and Big Love.
2007: The debut season crowning achievement of American television
In 2007, Roger Holland of PopMatters wrote, "the debut season of The Sopranos remains the crowning achievement of American television."
2007: No Acting Emmy Award
In 2007, The Sopranos did not win any Emmy Award for acting.
2007: Sixth Season Release on Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD
In 2007, the sixth season of The Sopranos was released on Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD.
2008: Complete Series DVD Box Set Release
In 2008, a complete series DVD box set of all six Sopranos seasons was released.
December 2009: Named best series of the decade
In December 2009, many television critics named The Sopranos the best series of the decade in articles summarizing the decade in television.
2009: First Season Release on Blu-ray
In 2009, the first season of The Sopranos was released on Blu-ray.
2010: Opening Title Sequence Ranked
In 2010, the show's opening title sequence ranked No. 10 on a list of TV's top 10 credits sequences, as selected by readers, in TV Guide.
2013: Breaking Bad Creator Statement
In 2013, Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan said, "Without Tony Soprano, there would be no Walter White."
2013: Ranked number 2 in greatest dramas of all time
In 2013, TV Guide ranked The Sopranos No. 2 in its list of The 60 Greatest Dramas of All Time, In the same year, the Writers Guild of America named it the best-written television series of all time and TV Guide ranked it as the greatest show of all time.
October 1, 2014: Blu-ray Release
On October 1, 2014, The Sopranos was released on Blu-ray.
2014: Complete Series Box Set Release
In 2014, a complete series box set of The Sopranos was released.
2015: Hollywood Reporter Survey
In 2015, a The Hollywood Reporter survey of 2,800 industry people named The Sopranos as their #6 favorite show.
2016: Rolling Stone Ranked First
In 2016, Rolling Stone ranked The Sopranos first on the magazine's list of 100 Greatest TV Shows of All Time.
2016: TV (The Book)
In 2016, television critics Alan Sepinwall and Matt Zoller Seitz included The Sopranos in their book titled TV (The Book) as the 2nd greatest American television series of all time, behind only The Simpsons and ahead of The Wire.
March 2018: New Line Cinema Purchases Film Rights
In March 2018, New Line Cinema acquired the rights to produce a film centered around the backstory of The Sopranos, focusing on the Newark riots during the 1960s and 1970s.
September 2019: The Guardian Ranked First
In September 2019, The Guardian ranked The Sopranos first on its list of the 100 best TV shows of the 21st century, stating that it "hastened TV's transformation into a medium where intelligence, experimentation and depth were treasured".
March 13, 2020: Made Women Podcast Launch
On March 13, 2020, Drea de Matteo and Chris Kushner began hosting a re-watch podcast called Made Women.
April 6, 2020: Talking Sopranos Podcast Launch
On April 6, 2020, Michael Imperioli and Steve Schirripa began hosting a podcast called Talking Sopranos.
September 2020: Talking Sopranos Podcast Downloads
By September 2020, the Talking Sopranos podcast had reached over five million downloads.
September 17, 2020: Book Deal Signed
On September 17, 2020, Michael Imperioli and Steve Schirripa signed a deal with HarperCollins book imprint William Morrow and Company to write an oral history of The Sopranos.
September 25, 2020: Initial Release Date of The Many Saints of Newark
The film The Many Saints of Newark was initially scheduled to be released on September 25, 2020, but was delayed.
May 2021: Webby Award for Talking Sopranos
In May 2021, the Talking Sopranos podcast won a Webby Award for Best Television & Film Podcast by method of "People's Voice Winner".
October 1, 2021: Release of The Many Saints of Newark
On October 1, 2021, The Many Saints of Newark was released in theaters and on HBO Max.
November 2, 2021: Book Release
On November 2, 2021, the book "Woke Up This Morning: The Definitive Oral History of The Sopranos" by Michael Imperioli and Steve Schirripa, was released.
2021: Release of The Many Saints of Newark
In 2021, "The Many Saints of Newark" was released, a film written by Chase and Konner, directed by Taylor, and starring Michael Gandolfini as a young Tony Soprano. The film details the show's background story set in the 1960s and 1970s during and after the Newark riots.
2021: Empire Ranked First
In 2021, Empire ranked The Sopranos at number one on their list of The 100 Greatest TV Shows of All Time.
2022: Chevrolet Commercial
In 2022, Jamie-Lynn Sigler and Robert Iler reprised their roles as Meadow and A.J. Soprano in a Chevrolet television commercial initially broadcast during Super Bowl LVI, directed by David Chase as a continuation of The Sopranos story.
2022: Rolling Stone Ranked First
In 2022, Rolling Stone ranked The Sopranos first on the magazine's list of 100 Greatest TV Shows of All Time.
2023: Variety Ranked Third
In 2023, Variety ranked The Sopranos #3 on its own list of the 100 greatest TV shows of all time.
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