Actor
Steve Schirripa, best known as Bobby Baccalieri on HBO's critically-acclaimed drama,
The Sopranos, has inked a deal that will have him hosting his own cooking series on Rainbow Media's free on-demand network, Lifeskool.
According to
The Hollywood Reporter, the show is called
Steve Schirripa's Hungry. The network has ordered nine episodes to be shown later this year. The series will feature a segment with Schirripa preparing Italian-American recipes from his book,
The Goomba Diet: Living Large and Lovin' It, which was published last year.
Coupled with the cooking aspect of the series, Steve Schirripa will introduce viewers to a number of his favorite establishments in New York City, talk with top chefs, study different slicing and dicing techniques with butchers, sample various kinds of cheeses at local cheese stores and dine at some old pastry shops.
"It's going to be a mixture of comedy, history [of foods] and of course the cooking part and the stuff about lifestyle," Schirripa told
The Hollywood Reporter. "I'm a regular guy, and this is regular food for the masses. Whether you're here in New York or in St. Louis or Ohio, you're going to relate to it."
Viewers can also expect to see celebrity guests on Steve Schirripa's latest television venture, as well as man-on-the-street interviews revolving around Italian-American culture and lifestyles.
Also keeping Schirripa busy following his successful stint on
The Sopranos is his gig on
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, wherein he serves as a late show correspondent. He also hosts Spike TV's
Casino Cinema, and is working on the ABC holiday special,
Elmo's Christmas Countdown.
Among Schirripa's other upcoming projects are the romantic comedy,
That's Amore, and the movie adaptation of his book,
Nicky Deuce: Welcome to the Family.
The Sopranos, which ended its successful run on HBO in June, is nominated for 15 Emmy Awards this year.
-Lisa Claustro, BuddyTV Staff Columnist
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
(Image Courtesy of HBO)