Nine Secrets of 'The Sopranos'

1. James Gandolfini knows he's no angel.

Ever since The Sopranos became a pop-culture phenomenon, Gandolfini has been a fixture in the New York tabloids, which report on even the slightest evidence of bad-boy behavior on his part. ''The only reason I get the New York Post is because I have to find out what I didn't do that they said I did today,'' he says. And yet, when asked if he feels like gossip columnists make up incidents because they want him to be like his TV character, he concedes, with a smile, ''No, I misbehave — but then again, I'm not sure if a guy who didn't misbehave a little bit could play this guy. I don't see a Jehovah's Witness playing Tony Soprano.''

In six seasons, Gandolfini has certainly exposed a lot of himself as Tony, both emotionally and physically. ''One thing I'm proud of,'' he says, ''is that I didn't let ego get in the way of me wearing an undershirt or showing my fat ass.''

2. You won't catch Michael Imperioli with the Sopranos DVDs.

Got some trivia questions about the young Christopher Moltisanti? Don't bother asking Imperioli, who has never revisited old Sopranos episodes. ''I very, very rarely look back at anything I've done,'' he says. ''It sounds kind of terrible, but it's dead to me once it's done. I don't like looking back. They say that's kind of an Aries trait; like, I can't sit backwards in a train or a bus or limousine, I have to look forward or I really get physically ill.''

3. Part of Edie Falco's Method: avoiding mirrors.

Edie Falco has very little in common with Carmela Soprano. But as different as their lives are, the actress has tried never to judge her high-haired, big-jewelry-laden, Gucci-clad alter-ego. ''I have found ways to cut that short, because it doesn't serve me,'' says Falco. ''Like, one of the times I tend to judge her is physically. We dress very differently. So, I go into my camper, and the clothes are laid out. I put them on, I don't look in the mirror, and I leave. If I spend too much time looking at her I'll find her amusing or horrifying, and none of those things is what my work is about.''