Yeah, it's a major bummer...He WAS Tony Soprano. He inhabited the character so fully that it actually felt like an honor to watch his performance. Not only that, but he was terrific in his other projects and supposedly a really nice guy to boot. In my opinion, he was one of the greatest american screen actors of all time, and his performance as Tony Soprano captured one of the greatest characters of all time. RIP Jimmy. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NUT07eZoXPw
R.I.P to the big man. I'm saddened by the news! Was just watching The Sopranos last night. Great actor.
As I do not have HBO, and have never watched the show, I can't comment on his acting. His relatively early death was likely caused by being overweight and cigar smoking. There are also reports that at one time he was fond of indulging in an (non-mj) illegal substance, which is bad for the heart.
By being Tony Soprano, he built HBO into what it is today: a TV spectacle with quality programming. It's really sad, and I'm not one to mourn over celebrities I never met, but there are just certain people I plain respect -- and Galdolfini was one of them. A show marathon is in order.