Hey. Hi. Wanna know if Tony died or not at the end of The Sopranos? Do you really? Because David Chase has apparently answered the question, and it’s tucked inside a lengthy piece at Vox about the man and his motivations and influences.

Okay, here goes: Is Tony dead or what?

We were in a tiny coffee shop, when, in the middle of a low-key chat about a writing problem I was having, I popped the question. Chase startled me by turning toward me and saying with sudden, explosive anger, “Why are we talking about this?” I answered, “I’m just curious.” And then, for whatever reason, he told me. […] He shook his head “no.” And he said simply, “No he isn’t.” That was all.

There you have it. Now you know. Not dead. And all it took was seven years of badgering David Chase about it until he finally exploded in a small coffee shop and gave in. Happy now?

He also said the cut to black was based on the poem “Dream Within a Dream” by Edgar Allan Poe, which is about struggling to determine what is reality and what is fantasy. (“Is all that we see or seem / But a dream within a dream?”) So there’s that, too, if you feel like interpreting some poetry today.

This has been fun and informative. Great job, everybody.

UPDATE: Chase says his words were “misconstrued” by the writer. THE MYSTERY LIVES ON.