(Photo: Lyman Gerrish/LFI)

Seven years ago, after Michael Imperioli backed a Lexus into a tree while filming the Sopranos pilot, the show’s producers forced him to get his driver’s license. Not that he’s used it much. At last week’s City Harvest benefit, the 40-year-old TV tough guy admitted he was too scared to hit the open road until three months ago. “I have the basic knowledge, but the only time I ever drove was on the show, where they close the roads for you or tow you with a camera truck,” he said. “It had become this big phobia. It was like, ‘I can’t drive! I just can’t!’ ” So, visiting his family near Miami, he decided to rent a Volvo (“I figured I couldn’t wreck it”) and conquer his fears. He won’t drive in Manhattan (too “intimidating”), but Florida driving is just his speed. “Everybody’s old. They drive slow. And I’m leaning forward, my hands at ten and two o’clock.”

Related:

• Archive: “Intelligencer”
• Articles by Jada Yuan
• Table of Contents: Apr 17, 2006 issue of New York | Subscribe!