Suzanne Shepherd, an actress known for her roles in “The Sopranos” and “Goodfellas,” died Friday morning in her home in New York City, her agent confirmed to Variety. She was 89.
Shepherd portrayed Mary DeAngelis, the mother of Carmela Soprano (Edie Falco), in HBO’s crime drama series “The Sopranos,” as well as the mother of Lorraine Bracco’s character Karen Hill in 1990’s “Goodfellas.” She also had roles in “Jacob’s Ladder” (1990), “Trees Lounge” (1996), “Lolita” (1997), “American Cuisine” (1998), “Living Out Loud” (1998), “Requiem for a Dream” (2000), “A Dirty Shame” (2004), “Harold” (2008), “The Week Of” (2018) and “The Performance” (2023), among other films.
Shepherd was born on Oct. 31, 1934. She made her acting debut in the 1988 romcom “Mystic Pizza,” starring Julia Roberts, and appeared in such films as “Working Girl,” “Uncle Buck” and “Second Sight” before working on Martin Scorsese’s “Goodfellas.”
On the television side, she guest-starred in “Law & Order,” “Third Watch,” “Ed,” “Blue Bloods,” “Deadline,” “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” and “Law & Order: Criminal Intent.”
Fellow “Sopranos” actor Ray Abruzzo paid tribute to Shepherd on Instagram, writing, “Sad to hear of the passing of Suzanne Shepherd. A force of nature. Actress, teacher.”
In addition to her acting career, Shepherd directed in theaters across the U.S. and worked as an acting coach for over four decades at her own studio in New York. The upcoming documentary “A Gift of Fire” will chronicle her career as an acting teacher.
She is survived by her daughter Kate Shepherd, son-in-law Miles McManus and granddaughter Isabelle Shepherd.
