Pulls Anti-Gay Sopranos Cue

MIAMI, FL -- When Tony Soprano's mobsters on HBO's hit show The Sopranos discovered Vito was gay, they did not get too happy about it. They beat Vito to death with pool cues and then sodomized him with one.

After the show, actor Joseph R. Gannascoli, who played the unfortunate gay mobster, has been profiting on the gruesome TV event, using it to market a billiard cue, which he has branded with his name, character signature, and the phrase "A Cue to Die For".

The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) condemns the use. "It's highly inappropriate that what served as a very real example of the hateful violence the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community faces is now being used as a gimmick to sell a product. The insensitive inclusion of the pool cue in the 'To Die For' marketing theme betrays the legacy of The Sopranos character and is unacceptable," said GLAAD President Neil Giuliano.

Because of the negative reactions, Rockwell Billiards has decided to pull the stick from the market.

"Rockwell Billiards has done the right thing by no longer selling a product which many deemed offensive and insensitive," Giuliano said Thursday.

Actor Joseph R. Gannascoli was less pleased to learn about the company's descicion. "I'm taking it personal that this has come so far," he told The Miami Herald. "I'm mad at GLAAD. M-A-A-D."

"Rockwell pulled the cue. GLAAD should pat themselves on the back. They've made a major f--king victory. They should be concentrating on bigger issues like gay marriage," he said. "This is such a crock of s--t that they should care about something so stupid.

Gannascoli says GLAAD doesn't care about the abuse he's taken since playing Vito. Sopranos fans have called him "f-a-g," he said, and he's been attacked in a nightclub.

"In my neighborhood! In Brooklyn! I defended it. I say it's a f--king role, morons. It's in every walk of life. Get used to it."