- Born
- Birth nameSteven Lento
- Nickname
- Little Steven or Miami Steve
- Height5′ 7½″ (1.71 m)
- Steven Van Zandt (né Lento; born November 22, 1950), also known as Little Steven or Miami Steve, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, producer, actor, activist and author. He is best known as a member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, in which he plays guitar and mandolin. He is also known for his roles in several television drama series, including as Silvio Dante in The Sopranos (1999-2007) and as Frank Tagliano in Lilyhammer (2012-2014). Van Zandt has his own solo band called Little Steven and The Disciples of Soul, intermittently active since the 1980s. In 2014, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the E Street Band. Van Zandt has produced music, written songs, and had his own songs covered by Bruce Springsteen, Meat Loaf, Nancy Sinatra, Pearl Jam, Artists United Against Apartheid, and the Iron City Houserockers, among others.- IMDb Mini Biography By: Bonitao
- SpouseMaureen Van Zandt(December 31, 1982 - present)
- ParentsNicholas Malafronte
- RelativesBilly Van Zandt(Half Sibling)Kathi Van Zandt(Half Sibling)
- Known for wearing a bandana on his head
- Real-life wife Maureen Van Zandt plays the wife of his character, Silvio Dante, on The Sopranos (1999).
- He and wife Maureen Van Zandt were married by (Reverend) Little Richard, with a wedding reception band consisting of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Gary U.S. Bonds, Little Milton and the wedding band from The Godfather (1972).
- Told "People" magazine that he had no desire to act in any other roles in spite of rave reviews for his portrayal in The Sopranos (1999).
- Is a member of Bruce Springsteen's E-Street Band.
- At his wedding to Maureen, not only was the classic marital song "When a Man Loves a Woman" performed, it was sung live by Percy Sledge who had a hit with the record in 1966.
- [on being in the cast of The Sopranos (1999) and a member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band] "I am having the experience two times in my life of doing something that makes New Jersey fashionable. What are the odds on that?"
- [on auditioning for 'The Sopranos'] So David [Chase] goes, 'Sorry - any other part you want, you can have it'. I said, 'You know what, now that I think about it, I feel kind of bad taking another actor's part here. I'm a guitar player. These guys, they go to school, they go Off Broadway, they work for 5, 10 years honing their craft and being waiters and whatever'. He says, 'All right. I tell you what. I'll write you a part so you're not taking anybody's job'. I said, 'Well, I have a couple of treatments. I've written one about an independent hit-man that had retired. Silvio Dante.'
- We lost Vinny Pastore [playing Sal 'Big Pussy' Bonpensiero] and that was the most difficult day up to that point. The only day on the set I can remember, you know, out of the whole ten years, where it was very uptight, a lot of tension on the set. I remember people yelling at each other and really pissed off, which you never saw. Why? Because we were losing Vinny. He was a beloved friend of ours, and you're not going to see him anymore.
- [on the closing episode of the 'Sopranos'] I had to go on one of those nationally syndicated shows the next morning, so I heard from the whole country how upset they were. So I just started asking people, Okay, what's your ending? Does the family get wiped out? Is that what you want? You want the kid to get killed? Tony to get killed? The wife? Okay, so what? And nobody could really say. I said, 'I'll tell you exactly what happened. The director said cut, the actors went home. That's what happened.' It's a TV show. It's a fucking TV show, okay?
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