Sopranos creator sued over show’s origins

Months after the award-winning mob drama The Sopranos finished its run on TV, its creator David Chase is being sued by a man who claims his ideas helped Chase devise the show. Robert Baer, a former New Jersey municipal court judge, also claims that he introduced Chase to the real-life inspiration for the Tony Soprano character and plans to bring him to court in Trenton, New Jersey as a witness.

The legal dispute centres on a trip Chase took to New Jersey in October 1995, weeks before he wrote the pilot script for The Sopranos. Baer, who he'd met through a mutual friend, arranged a three-day tour of reputed mob hangouts, including a pork store in Elizabeth and a go-go bar in Newark. He also introduced Chase to mob investigators and a waiter he claims was the role model for Tony Soprano, as played by James Gandolfini.

Baer is claiming that this help amounted to consultation and he wants to be paid for it. An expert witness for Baer testified that the 'services' provided were worth upwards of $95,000. Chase's attorneys say Baer had no expectation of being paid, and that what transpired between the two men was an exchange of favours typical in the entertainment industry.

If Chase is to defend himself successfully, he is likely to have to explain his creative process under oath, divulging juicy details about The Sopranos. Who knows, he might even shed light on the series' widely-debated, ambiguous finale. ·