Richie? God, what a scumbag! I forgot just how hateable he was. David Proval, who is one of the sweetest guys you'll ever meet, did an outstanding job with the character.
I think Richie lacked any diplomacy whatsoever, which would have made him a lousy boss. He was an animal, an essential characteristic for a street guy, but not really cut out for more than that.
Yes, Proval did a magnificent job palying Richie. He made you love to despise him.
I think that the Richie Aprile character came out of jail a bitter man. And he became even more bitter when he realized that no one in the Soprano Family, especially the younger wiseguys, was about to do flips and cartwheels for him upon his coming back on the scene. What he probably envisioned while awaiting his release from jail about how things would be turned out totally different for him. And that's what probably made him the bitter son of a bitch that he was.
Phil's attitude was in a way, almost identical to Richie's in the sense that he felt that he did his time on behalf of that thing of theirs and kept his mouth shut. And then upon his release saw that the younger guys, the newer generation of wiseguys were not of the same mindset as the older wiseguys when it came to giving tribute and respect to a fellow mobster who served time in the joint. They both saw that the younger wiseguys really didn't give a shit that the older founders had done their time.
Don Cardi
Five - ten years from now, they're gonna wish there was American Cosa Nostra. Five - ten years from now, they're gonna miss John Gotti.
