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Schirripa and his famous Dachshund WillieBoy team up for “WillieBoy Eats the World.”
The public is star-struck when they see him walking down the street.
They ask for photos when he dines out, from Rhode Island to California.
There’s a one-off Marc Jacobs bag with his image.
He’s been invited to the grand opening of a yoga studio in Soho, the hottest restaurants in New York City, and baseball stadiums around the country.
Fans send him custom clothes.
He just did “The Today Show” and “The Kelly Clarkson Show.”
He stands 6 inches tall. He is a 13-pound dachshund. He is Steve Schirripa’s son.
Sorry, Taylor Swift: the biggest star in Westerly, R.I., may be Willie “WillieBoy” Schirripa.
“I love this dog like a son,” Schirripa, 68, tells me in our recent phone interview from his New York home.
While I talk to Schirripa, Willie the birthday boy (he just turned 7) is “laying in his bed in the sun. He had a big day yesterday. He can be a little cranky. I guess he takes after me– he likes to eat and he’s cranky. Sounds familiar,” the proud pop tells me with a laugh.
The part-time Westerly, R.I., resident played Detective Anthony Abetemarco on CBS’s “Blue Bloods” with co-star Donnie Wahlberg three times as long as he was on “The Sopranos” — but he’ll always be Uncle Junior’s model-train-loving right-hand man Bobby “Bacala” to fans of the HBO groundbreaking drama.
He’s also #dogstagram sensation WillieBoy’s dad. All three jobs are on his Insta bio.
“Lauren, I’m not kidding you,” Schirripa says. “If we’re in a restaurant, people go, ‘Is that Willie?’ ‘Is that WillieBoy?’ ‘Can I take a picture?’ Lauren, it’s like they just met Taylor Swift.”
Willie shot to internet fame a few years back after sticking his head into a bag of popcorn. (More on that below)
He’s now a regular feature on Schirripa’s grid – the teeny hot dog eating hamburgers, pizza, apples and anything else he can nibble with Dad.
Willie now has his own account @willietheweenieofwallstreet. (Insta bio: “Willie Schirripa…smooth red boy. Living the weenie life.”)
Now the Westerly besties have co-written a book with Philip Lerman, and with charming illustrations by Kirk Parrish. Yes, Willie has his own official author’s page.
“WillieBoy Eats the World,” on shelves now, sees the hungriest pup in New York (and New England) doing what he does best: gobbling every food he can gobble. Nutshell: Willie’s friend Steve only likes Italian food. So Willie takes him on a cultural culinary journey through the Big Apple — from Korean food to Peruvian fare. The lesson for kiddos: Try new things.
And Willie’s been on a whirlwind press tour. People who preordered his book got his paw-tograph. “They weren’t stamps, either. That’s his paw. It took him a long time,” Schirripa says with a laugh.
No wonder the little dude is tuckered out. My interview with Willie will have to wait. For now, I interviewed the next best thing: His dad.
As I’ve noted before, Steve Schirripa is a real one. Down-to-earth, friendly and candid, Schirripa very much feels like what he calls himself: “a blue-collar guy.” He’s apt to ask about me (“How’s work going?” “Hey, have you ever been to [insert any restaurant name]” almost as much as I ask about him.
In a wonderfully wide-ranging interview, Schirripa — who has two daughters with his wife Laura — talked WillieBoy, New England life, the new book, “Sopranos” tattoos, the Knicks and Celtics, Uncle Junior, Bad Bunny, hosting Westerly’s Soupy Fest — and more.
Boston.com: I love this book. But let’s go back a bit—how did Willie first get Internet famous?
Schirripa: It started by accident with “Blue Bloods” videos. On Fridays, most of the cast, we’d make announcements [on Instagram] “Hey, watch ‘Blue Bloods’ tonight,” that kind of thing.
One Friday, I was at my house in California eating popcorn near the water, and just said, “Let’s do it now.” As soon as I said, “All right, folks,” Willie shoved his whole head in the popcorn bag, came out, then shoved it again.
[laughs] Gold.
It got a million and a half views! It was like, “Wow.” People loved it. So we did another and another. Now he’s got over 100 million views on Instagram, he’s eaten everything from tacos to zeppoli.
On Thanksgiving, we did turkey leg– that got a million views. For the Super Bowl, he ate one end of a big sandwich, and we played Bad Bunny music. That got, like, 2 million views. He likes Bad Bunny.
[laughs] I love it. So how did the idea for a kids’ book come about?
A couple of years ago, I had an idea for a book. I just said, “We’ll have some fun.” This is my eighth book. I got a small independent publisher [Akashic] that’s fantastic. [Co-author] Phil Lerman, I did two other books with him — “Big Daddy’s Rules” and “Woke Up This Morning” (also with Michael Imperioli). So Phil’s my guy, delightful guy to work with. And we have an idea for a sequel.
The illustrations are adorable.
We looked at, oh, man, about a dozen illustrators, and we liked Kirk. He hit it right on the head.
WillieBoy is the narrator. He takes you, his “favorite dude,” on a culinary adventure — German food, Indian, Moroccan. The lesson for kids is to try new things.
New York, not unlike Boston, you could get any kind of food. Lots of kids always eat the same thing. That was the idea: try new things. Not only food-wise, but in general. So Willie taught Steve a lesson.
This is just fun to me. It’s no big pressure. He’s got a lot of fans. It’s quite amazing, Lauren. I do my walk every day, at least an hour in New York, and not one day goes by without: “Where’s the dog?” “Where’s Willie?” Not one single day.
I bet. And he did “The Today Show.” He’s a busy little dude.
My wife says, “He’s always working!” Because making these videos is his work. The minute he hears the word “video,” he goes crazy. Crazy. Because he knows he’s going to get a treat.
[laughs] I can see that.
We just toured the UK, me and Michael, for our “Talking Sopranos” show. One guy had a big cut-out of Willie.
Amazing.
Yeah, we’d never gone to the U.K. with “Talking Sopranos” before. We were in Manchester, Liverpool, Nottingham — on and on. It’s amazing that 19 years after “The Sopranos” ended, there’s still such a hunger for it. Who’d have ever thought?
It is remarkable. It’s one of those shows, like “Mad Men,” that was a cultural phenomenon at the time, but years later, people rewatch and almost get more out of it. Or, like you said, younger people discover it because it holds up so well.
A whole new generation of younger people. And people got our faces tattooed on their legs and sh—.
[laughs] A lot of Bobbys?
A lot of Michael and Paulie Walnuts and Tony. But there was a couple of Bobbys. I just think: when I was a kid, I liked “The Munsters” and “Gilligan’s Island.” I wouldn’t want a tattoo of Gilligan on my arm now.
[laughs] Right.
But they’re very passionate, it was a lot of fun. There’s a real hunger for it there.
You’ve done Boston and Providence. Where would you take “Talking Sopranos” next?
We’re thinking Dublin, Amsterdam, maybe Germany. I don’t know. Listen, I’m 68, I’m a fat guy, but in pretty good shape. I can’t imagine how the Stones, Springsteen [age 76] and Stevie Van Zandt [age 75] are doing this. I can’t imagine it. We were gone 18 days on a tour bus, staying at hotels. They stay out for months, years.
I know. Bob Dylan is almost 85.
I don’t know how they do it, packing and unpacking. I saw [“Sopranos” alum/ E Street rocker/ Mass. native] Stevie Van Zandt two weeks ago. I said, “How do you pack your clothes? You got somebody packin’ the clothes?” He said, “No, you gotta live out of the suitcase” [instead of unpacking in every hotel room.] He said, “I used to [unpack.] No more.” That was a pain in the ass to me. I know it sounds crazy of all the things —
No, I see how that would get annoying real fast.
Packing, unpacking, taking the sh — out, sending the laundry out.
[laughs] You told me there was a time you were traveling six months out of the year.
I’d go work in California, down south, here, there. It was hard. I was on a show in LA, “Secret Life of the American Teenager,” I commuted. I’m not a hotel room guy anymore.
Since “Blue Bloods” ended, you were also on “Dexter: Resurrection.”
I don’t know if I’ll be back. I survived, and I didn’t get killed. I ran out. I think I’m only the second person that was on that table that didn’t get killed.
That might be true. And you did some Hallmark movies. “Holiday Touchdown: A Bills Love Story”
That was a lot of fun. I like the Hallmark movies. And I’ve done a few commercials.
I’m at the point: if something good comes along, I’ll do it. If not, I’m happy with what I’m doing. I’m tired of chasing it. I’ve done okay. I’ve worked and stayed busy as an actor for 26 years straight. I’ve been very lucky. That’s kind of unheard of. This is my eighth book. I’m okay money-wise. If something good comes, hey, I’d like to do it, but I’m not running around like I used to.
You mentioned commercials. You were in an ad for FreshPet dog food— but it was with a different dog, not WillieBoy.
Yeah, that was too much for him. Those dogs were professionals. They had professional trainers, and two different dogs. But Willie took some stills. And I got San Pellegrino still running — that won two awards.
Right, with Michael Imperioli. That was almost a play on “The Sopranos.”
It won [a Bronze Lion] at the Cannes Film Festival — it was like a short film. There ain’t nothing like doing a commercial. That’s why all these celebrities are doing commercials — Matthew McConaughey, Woody Harrelson, Billy Bob Thornton, Harrison Ford. I can’t imagine what they get paid.
[laughs] I know. And going back to WillieBoy’s career — he was on “Blue Bloods.”
Yeah, he had his own cast chair. He was pretty well-behaved. It was a long scene! I was worried he might get a little bored, but he was okay.
He’s been at a few Rhode Island spots recently. He was at the Ocean House eating a burger with an egg.
Oh, yeah! He’s always at the Ocean House. Ocean House is one of the most dog-friendly hotels in the country. They make him a bed and a dog dish. He likes the beach over there. That’s his spot.
And he loves Longo’s meatballs.
Oh, Longo’s! Are you kidding me? That’s his go-to. He would go five nights a week if he could. He loves his Uncle Jerry.
You told me you’ve known Jerry Longo since the “The Sopranos” days. Where else do you like to eat in Rhode Island?
We really just stay in my area— Charlestown, Narragansett, Westerly. We like Cinder and River Bar in Westerly. We like The Breachway Grill in Charleston.
What’s Willie’s favorite food?
Apples. Loves, loves, loves apples. Apples, pasta and popcorn. If my wife’s making pasta, he smells it and hangs around. He also loves cucumbers. Chickpeas.
I can’t believe how much he loves fruit and vegetables.
Oh, 1,000 percent. And if I feed him a bite of pizza, I don’t let him eat the whole slice. We’d never jeopardize him. We give him bites— the guy’s not eating a whole steak.
Right.
And he exercises. He loves running on the beach. If you throw the ball 100 times, he’ll fetch it 100 times. We’ve had other dachshunds. You throw the ball, they look at you like, “What am I supposed to do with that?” He’s a beach dog.
Is there any food he doesn’t like?
Yesterday, we finally found something he doesn’t like, believe it or not. He doesn’t like a lemon. But otherwise, I’ve yet to find anything he doesn’t like.
[laughs] Now he’s got his own Instagram.
It’s fun. I don’t monetize Instagram. He just makes people happy. People comment constantly. “Your videos make me happy.” “I look forward to your videos.” If we can make somebody smile, that’s all I care about. Everything’s so f—d up. If a little dog can make you happy, that’s our goal.
The funny thing is, I don’t know much about social media. You put something up and think, “Wow, people are going to love this!” And it’s lukewarm. Then I feed him an apple and it gets 2 million views.
I know! It’s so weird. You can’t predict what people will like, or how the algorithm works.
That’s it! Some posts you figure things out, you plan, you say, “Wow, this is gonna be really good.” And it’s a bust. Then randomly—I was feeding him an apple!
That’s how it goes.
[laughs] So it’s been fun. People love it. People send him sweatshirts, jackets, Yankees gear. He’s got an extensive wardrobe. Someone yesterday sent him a “Space Jam” jersey with the Knicks on it.
That’s awesome. And I saw that you got him painted on a Marc Jacobs bag, as part of a “Bark Jacobs activation.”
Yes, it’s amazing. And he gets invited to events all the time. If people see him at a restaurant, other restaurants message us: “Please bring Willie to our place!”
I know you and Willie are big Knicks and Yankees fans.
And I don’t hate the Red Sox.
[laughs] Thank you. How do you feel about the Celtics?
I don’t hate the Celtics, but listen, we gotta beat them. Some people hate teams — I’m not like that. But I’ve been a Knicks fan for, literally, 60 years.
I’m a Celtics fan, but I love how much you love the Knicks.
Of aaalllll the things, Lauren, that I’ve been able to do since becoming a half-assed celebrity, going to Knicks games are my most favorite thing.
[laughs] I know you see Tracy Morgan at Knicks games. You also see Edie Falco.
Edie’s a big Knicks fan. And I see Michael [Imperioli around]. I just saw Stevie Van Zandt. You run into people along the way. Dominic [Chianese] — I had lunch with him twice [recently]. He just turned 95, Uncle Junior. He’s in great shape, pretty sharp. Wonderful to see him. He’s still up and about, playing his guitar.
I love that. You were also just in Westerly to host Soupy Fest again. I interviewed you last year about that. This is your third year hosting. It seems like that’s got its own cult following, too.
It sold out in five minutes. Oh, they pack them in. It’s a wonderful local contest. Westerly is a small town and they’re very proud of their soupy.
Soupy is different from Italian sausage.
Yeah, it’s different than if you go to an Italian market in New York and buy dry sausage. This is their own version. They’re very proud, as they should be. Down South, people have their apple pie recipes; in Westerly, they have their soupy recipes. People are very passionate. It brings everybody together. That’s why I do the event. It’s a very nice town.
How do you like living in Westerly overall?
It’s great. I like going up there. It’s peaceful. People are nice. It’s my calm place.
Taylor Swift has a house in Westerly. Have you ever seen her?
No, but I met her at a Knicks game years ago. She’s very nice. I can’t imagine how she could even walk down the street. She’s the biggest star in the world. Her, Harry Styles and Bad Bunny.
And WillieBoy.
[laughs] Right, he’s up there, too. Taylor Swift, Harry Styles, Bad Bunny and WillieBoy.
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