Gandolfini Issues

And you thought he was acting all drunk and horny in The Sopranos:

Locked in a nasty divorce battle, and in damage-control mode after a lurid tabloid story, James Gandolfini, a two-time Emmy winner for channeling Mob boss Tony Soprano's conflicted soul on HBO's The Sopranos, has gone public with his battles with drugs and alcohol.

A statement from the star's spokesman terms Gandolfini's substance abuse as "a problem that existed in the past."

"It's something from years ago...that he's taken care of," rep Dan Klores said.

Earlier this week, in the New York Daily News, another Gandolfini flack said the actor, "to [the rep's] knowledge," had never been to rehab. The National Enquirer, citing court papers, said Gandolfini began, but did not complete, a 28-day rehab stint in 2000.

By copping to past drug use, the Sopranos star's camp appears to be trying to control a story that seemingly got out of control last week when the Enquirer published estranged wife Marcy Gandolfini's allegations in court papers that her celebrity hubby was a cocaine and booze binger who had "kinky sex with multiple mistresses."

"To bring [up the drug problem] now, as an attempt to gain leverage and a better settlement during the divorce, is just reprehensible," Klores said in the statement.

A call seeking comment from Marcy Gandolfini's attorney was not returned Friday. Earlier, lawyer Norman Sheresky told the New York Post his client was "devastated by the story" in the Enquirer. (Sheresky, however, did not take issue with the tab's summary of the legal filings.)

Gandolfini, 41, filed for divorce from Marcy in March. The two wed in March 1999. They have a son, Michael, 3.

According to the Enquirer, Marcy Gandolfini's court papers include "more than two dozen names of those she believes James did drugs with, including a number of Sopranos buddies."

The tab says James Gandolfini gets in digs of his own in the legal filings. Court papers filed by his side portray Marcy as an unhinged woman who threatened suicide after he moved out of their New York City apartment last fall, the Enquirer reported.

Actors drinking, snorting and cavorting with multiple bimbos? Pretty hard to believe, although it does explain why he always sounds congested.

And his wife may be unhinged, but at least she didn't try to bite him to death.

Article Author: Eric Olsen

Career media professional Eric Olsen is honored to be the founder and former publisher of Blogcritics.org, and former publisher of Technorati.com, which both rule. He is now editor, co-founder, and CEO of The Morton Report.

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