David Chase facts for kids

Quick facts for kids David Chase
Chase at the U.S. embassy in Dublin, 2015
Born	David Henry Chase (1945-08-22) August 22, 1945 (age 79) Mount Vernon, New York, U.S.
Education	New York University (BA) Stanford University (MA)
Occupation	Screenwriter showrunner director producer
Years active	1974–present
Known for	Creator of The Sopranos
Spouse(s)	Denise Kelly Chase
Children	1

David Henry Chase (born August 22, 1945) is an American writer, producer, and director. He is famous for creating, writing, and producing the TV show The Sopranos. This popular drama aired on HBO for six seasons, from 1999 to 2007.

Chase also worked on other well-known shows. These include The Rockford Files, I'll Fly Away, and Northern Exposure. He also created his own series called Almost Grown in the late 1980s. David Chase has won seven Emmy Awards for his work. He also directed movies like Not Fade Away (2012) and The Many Saints of Newark (2021). The latter is a movie that tells a story before The Sopranos TV series.

David Chase's Early Life

His Family Background

David Chase was born in 1945. He was the only child of Norma and Enrico "Henry" Chase. Both of his parents came from Italian-American working-class families.

His mother, Norma, was one of twelve children. Her parents had moved to the U.S. from Italy. His father, Henry, was one of seven children. Henry's biological father was an Italian immigrant named Giuseppe "Joseph" Fusco.

Growing Up in New Jersey

Chase grew up in New Jersey. He lived in Clifton, New Jersey, and later in North Caldwell, New Jersey. His father owned a hardware store. As a child, David enjoyed watching crime movies. He was known for being a very creative storyteller.

He has shared that he had a difficult relationship with his parents. He said his father was often angry. His mother was described as a nervous person who worried a lot. Chase later based the character Livia Soprano in The Sopranos on his mother.

School and Health

As a teenager, Chase sometimes felt very sad and worried. These feelings continued into his adult life. He finished high school in 1964. He then went to Wake Forest University in North Carolina. His feelings of sadness became worse there. He once said he slept 18 hours a day.

During this time, he also played the drums. He hoped to become a professional musician. After two years, he moved to New York University. There, he decided to study film. This choice was not popular with his parents. He later earned a Master of Arts degree from Stanford University in 1971.

David Chase's Career

David Chase began his career in Hollywood. He worked as a story editor for a show called Kolchak: The Night Stalker. He then produced episodes for shows like The Rockford Files and Northern Exposure. He also wrote many episodes for The Rockford Files. He worked on that show for over four years.

He won several Emmy Awards early in his career. One was for a TV movie called Off the Minnesota Strip (1980). This movie was about a young person who ran away from home. His first show that he created was Almost Grown in 1988. Critics liked the show, but only 10 episodes were made.

Creating The Sopranos

Chase with Lorraine Bracco, who played Jennifer Melfi, receiving the Peabody Award for The Sopranos in 2000

David Chase was not widely known before The Sopranos started. The idea for The Sopranos began as a movie. It was about a fictional character with connections to organized crime who was seeing a therapist. Chase decided to turn it into a TV series.

He signed a deal in 1995 and wrote the first script for the show. He used many details from his own life. He also used his experiences growing up in New Jersey. He said he tried to use his own "family dynamic" for the characters in the show. For example, the difficult relationship between the main character, Tony Soprano, and his mother, Livia Soprano, was partly based on Chase's relationship with his own mother. He was also seeing a therapist at the time. He based the character of Jennifer Melfi on his own therapist.

Chase had always been interested in stories about organized crime. He grew up watching classic gangster movies. The show was partly inspired by real-life families in New Jersey. He also mentioned that famous playwrights and directors influenced the show's writing and style. The show was named after some of his high school friends.

Chase and producer Brad Grey offered The Sopranos to several TV networks. Fox was interested but decided not to make it. They then showed it to Chris Albrecht at HBO. HBO decided to pay for a pilot episode, which Chase directed in 1997.

After the pilot was finished, HBO waited several months to decide. Chase thought about making it into a movie instead. But in December 1997, HBO decided to produce the series. They ordered 12 more episodes. The Sopranos first aired on HBO on January 10, 1999.

Chase is credited with writing 30 episodes of The Sopranos. However, as the show's creator and head writer, he helped with all the scripts. He also directed the first episode and the final episode. The show's final scene, which aired on June 10, 2007, was left open to interpretation. Chase said he had no interest in explaining it further.

In 2022, Chase helped create a Super Bowl commercial. It featured two characters from The Sopranos. In September 2024, HBO released a two-part documentary. It was called Wise Guy: David Chase and the Sopranos.

Not Fade Away Film

Not Fade Away (2012) was David Chase's first full-length movie. It was released on December 21, 2012. The film is about a teenage rock 'n' roll band in 1960s New Jersey. It stars John Magaro as the lead singer. James Gandolfini, who was in The Sopranos, also appears in the movie. He plays Magaro's father.

Chase described the film as a story about a father and son. The father grew up after the war and the Great Depression. He gave his son many advantages he never had. But he felt a little jealous of his son's more free and adventurous life. Another actor from The Sopranos, Steven Van Zandt, helped with the music for the film.

The Many Saints of Newark Film

Chase was not sure about making a prequel movie for The Sopranos for a long time. But in March 2018, it was announced that a script he wrote was bought by New Line Cinema. The movie is called The Many Saints of Newark. It tells a story that happened before the TV series.

Chase said he was interested in the city of Newark and life there in the 1960s. He used to visit his grandparents there. But he was most interested in exploring the childhood of the character Tony Soprano. Chase was a producer for the film. Alan Taylor, who directed episodes of the TV series, directed the movie.

The movie was first planned for release in September 2020. But because of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, it was delayed. It was finally released on October 1, 2021. In October 2021, Chase made a deal with WarnerMedia for his production company. In March 2024, it was announced he would direct a horror movie for New Line Cinema.

Personal Life

After finishing college in 1968, David Chase moved to California. He married his high school girlfriend, Denise Kelly. He has a daughter named Michele DeCesare. She is an actress and appeared in some episodes of The Sopranos as Hunter Scangarelo.

Chase once said he did not like watching TV shows. He only watched The Sopranos and movies. However, he later said he watched Boardwalk Empire and Mad Men. These shows were created by writers who had worked on The Sopranos. He explained that his earlier comments were because he felt limited by TV rules in the 1990s.

In 2023, David Chase was honored. He was inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame.

Select Filmography

Television

Film

Other Credits

Awards and Recognition

See also

In Spanish: David Chase para niños