Peter Biskind's Portrait of The Sopranos' David Chase: Guarded and Controlling
In his book, Peter Biskind depicts David Chase as a difficult and controlling figure. The book describes Chase as a depressive who jealously guarded his reputation as a creative genius, particularly from his writing team, a number of whom were dispatched without ceremony.
That portrait fits the Guardian writer's own visit to The Sopranos set at the height of the show's success, where he interviewed a dispirited Chase who had scarcely a good word to say for anybody.
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A controlling figure is a familiar villain, but the more revealing detail is the writing team being cleared out without ceremony.
The clashes with James Gandolfini suggest the pressure wasn't only Chase's to manage; Biskind writes that Gandolfini sometimes went missing for days on drink- or drug-fuelled breaks from the pressure of being Tony Soprano.