The Sopranos Join With C.A.O. to Make a Cigar

Posing at the head table, standing, from left: James Gandolfini, Rudolph and Judith Giuliani, Jeff Greenfield, Marvin R. Shanken, John Salley, Joel Surnow, Michael Milken. Seated, from left, Alden and Emeril Lagasse, Hazel Shanken and Rush Limbaugh.

It’s a cigar fit for the Don — C.A.O. The SopranosSM Limited Edition Tony Soprano Signature Series Cigar. The special smoke is going to debut at the Retail Tobacco Dealers of America trade show on July 17.

The 6-inch-long, 60-ring-gauge cigar is a limited-edition addition to the C.A.O. line of cigars made in honor of the hit HBO mob show. The smokes come in an individually numbered humidor, each of which holds 48 cigars.

A Night To Remember with „The Sopranos“ and cigar industry leaders.

Business icons, celebrities and many of the world’s greatest cigarmakers joined stars from the hit show „The Sopranos“ in Manhattan Tuesday night to raise money in the fight against prostate cancer.

It was Cigar Aficionado’s 14th annual Night to Remember, an evening of fine dining, stellar wines and the greatest cigars of the year. The dinner, featuring a charity auction conducted by host Marvin R. Shanken, editor and publisher of Cigar Aficionado magazine, raised more than $1.4 million for the Prostate Cancer Foundation, which hopes to eradicate the disease, a major killer of men.

Since the inaugural dinner in 1994, Cigar Aficionado Nights to Remember have raised nearly $13 million.

„The „Sopranos“ stars sat at a large, rectangular table by the bubbling waters of the Four Seasons Restaurant pool room, where dinner was served. The cast members in attendance included series star James Gandolfini, who plays Tony Soprano; Dominic Chianese, the actor who portrays Tony’s uncle (and recent adversary) Junior; Steve Van Zandt, who first gained fame playing guitar with Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band and is now known as the consigliere Silvio Dante; Tony Sirico, a.k.a. Paulie Walnuts; Vince Curatola; John Ventimiglia and others. The TV mobsters came with Tim Ozgener of C.A.O. Cigars, and a cherry red box of C.A.O. The SopranosSM Edition cigars adorned each table.

Gandolfini, a shy man in real life despite his celebrity and outgoing on-screen persona, was convinced by Shanken to briefly take the stage. „I came from a blue-collar family,“ he said. „I look around this room and I’m amazed by the amount of generosity and power that is here. I think we have to remember those who are less fortunate, and what a great country this is.“

The Sopranos“ wasn’t the only hit show represented on Tuesday night: Joel Surnow, the co-creator and executive producer of the thriller „24,“ which was recently featured on the cover of Cigar Aficionado, joined the dinner, as did „24“ actor Peter Weller and co-creator Howard Gordon. A walk-on role on the show would later become one of the prized gems put on the block.

 James Gandolfini, star of „The Sopranos,”
spoke about the importance of giving to the less fortunate.

Speakers included former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, a frequent Night to Remember attendee and a former co-host of the dinner, who spoke about his love of cigars and shared tales of going up against one of his former foils, real-life gangster „Fat“ Tony Salerno. CNN’s Jeff Greenfield gave Giuliani lighthearted political advice that he guaranteed would endear him to cigar-smoking voters–ending the Cuban embargo. If Giuliani were signed in as president, said Greenfield, it would be done with „one hand on the Bible, and one hand clutching a now-legal Romeo and Julieta.“

Co-host Rush Limbaugh, the radio celebrity, has never missed one of these dinners. Decked out in a „24“ smoking jacket–cum–tuxedo jacket, Limbaugh bought the first „mystery wine,“ which turned out to be a 1961 Château Pétrus, which he shared with his guests at the head table.

„Fourteen years ago, Rush said to me, ‘This is the greatest evening of the year,'“ said Shanken from the dais. „‘As long as I’m alive, I’ll never miss this dinner.'“

Milken spoke about the progress being made in the war on cancer, and spoke of a recent milestone. „This is a great night for cancer research,“ he said. „For the first time in 70 years, fewer people passed of cancer than in the year before.“ He said it was the goal of his organization, and others fighting cancer, to eliminate it as a cause of death by 2015.

Star chef Emeril Lagasse was in attendance, along with John Salley, the former Chicago Bull and Detroit Piston; Bo Dietl, the renowned former police officer; and a who’s who of American business leaders, including Facundo Bacardi, chairman of Bacardi & Co.; Ed Rabin, former president of Hyatt Hotels Corp.; Richard P. Torykian Sr., director of Lazard Fréres & Co.; Jim Taylor of Cadillac and Mike Jackson of General Motors; Philip Geier Jr., chairman emeritus of Interpublic Group of Cos.; David Pecker of American Media Inc.; restaurateur Drew Nieporent and wine store magnates Don Zacharia and Michael Goldstein.

Photos by Thos Robinson and Fernando Leon/ Getty Images

Source: cigaraficionado.com

[email protected]