Boston Herald article on Running of the Brides

Mob scene: ‘Sopranos’ star runs with Filene’s brides
By Renee Nadeau
Saturday, February 17, 2007

Apparently, Filene’s Basement made these brides an offer they couldn’t refuse.
The Downtown Crossing bargain basement held its biannual Running of the Brides yesterday, with “Sopranos” star Steve Schirripa mired in the mob scene.
Schirripa, perhaps better known as Bobby “Bacala” Baccalieri, the brother-in-law of capo Tony Soprano on the HBO mafia hit.
“He was great,” Filene’s Basement spokesperson Pat Boudrot said of Schirripa, who hung around to sign autographs. “He interacted with everyone and he stayed a long time. He was very personable.”
The supersized made man, a regular on “The Tonight Show With Jay Leno,” was on hand with Atlanta etiquette experts Evelyn and Stephanie Matthews, herself a bride-to-be. The threesome were filming a gaffe to be run on the show on Wednesday, Feb. 28.
Yesterday’s big chill staved off some of the crowds, but 250 brides and their shopping crews were lined up and ready to go five minutes before the doors opened at 8 a.m., said Boudrot, who distributed 300 handwarmers to the shoppers, who often dress in matching costumes when shopping in packs.
Filene’s Basement offered its largest selection of wedding gowns to date, cramming its aisles with 2,680 dresses. The crusading crowd cleared the garments from the racks in only a minute and a half.
Many bridal entourages come to the Running of the Brides dressed in matching costumes, and yesterday was no different.
“There was a lot of combat gear this year,” she said of the camo-clad crews clamoring for the perfect dress. “They even had helmets with veils. . . . Anything to find each other in the crowd.”