Despite her success in the entertainment business, life hasn’t been all sunshine and roses — or rather, coveted roles and industry awards — for Drea de Matteo since she first found fame on The Sopranos. In fact, she endured a devastating loss in March 2015 when her home, an apartment in the East Village of Manhattan, burned down in a massive fire caused by a gas explosion.
While in Los Angeles to celebrate her series Shades of Blue, de Matteo received a call from a friend who shared the bad news. “She said, ‘Turn on the TV! Your building’s on fire!” the actress told The New York Post. “I said, ‘You’re out of your freaking mind.’ Then [my children and I] watched our house fall to the ground on television.”
Sadly, two people were killed in the tragedy and three buildings wound up being destroyed in total. “I lived most of my life in that apartment,” the actress said while discussing the home she had moved into as a young 21-year-old college graduate. Eventually, she shared her home with her daughter, Alabama, and son, Waylon (or “Blackjack,” as he’s called). “I made beautiful memories there,” she added.
Those memories will have to hold strong as everything else, including photographs, recordings, and mementos, were destroyed in the fire. However, de Matteo kept things in perspective while talking about the loss, saying, “I can live without all that stuff. I am just happy to be alive.”
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