James Gandolfini gets New Jersey street named after him

Dec. 2 (UPI) -- A stretch of Park Avenue in Park Ridge, N.J. was named after the late James Gandolfini on Sunday.

Friends and family members of the Sopranos star attended the unveiling by the Ridge Diner -- a place where Gandolfini would hang out on Friday nights as a kid -- located between his boyhood home and his high school.

Gandolfini was 52-year-old when he died of a heart attack last June, but on Sunday he was remembered as "the skinny kid who would perform at the 'Little Theater' at Park Ridge High School."

Mayor Terence Maguire joked that he thought "we were going to get a mob," at the event.

"It looks like we did," he added.

County Executive Kathleen Donovan and Assemblywoman Holly Schepisi were among the speakers during Sunday's celebration. They spoke of Gandolfini's generosity with philanthropic causes, such as the Wounded Warrior Project, which helps veterans.

Michael, the actor's 14-year-old son, also spoke at the event. He said that he would "never forget going to the Park Ridge diner and eating there."

“He just told me every story about every place here,” Michael said of Park Ridge adding that his father, "definitely made a point of coming here."

Besides dedicating the street to the late actor, the Borough Council declared Sunday “James Gandolfini Day” in Park Ridge.

[North Jersey]