By DON KAPLAN, New York Post
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R.I.P., PAULIE? This "Sopranos" promo shot shows Paulie Walnuts (in heavenly white) with his back to the camera. Is that a hint he's a goner? Annie Leibovitz for HBO.

August 16, 2002 --

Is Paulie Walnuts gonna get whacked on the new season of "The Sopranos"?

Is the marriage of Tony and Carmela doomed?

Fans of the popular mob opera are in such a frenzy waiting for the new season to begin on Sept. 15 that they're picking apart the ads for clues to the storyline.

Here is the incredible photo HBO commissioned to promote the show's return after more than a year and a half - shot by famed celebrity photographer Annie Leibovitz in April.

"Every expression tells a story," said Eric Kessler, HBO's executive vice president of marketing. "It's one of those spreads you'll stare at."

The picture features the 12 main characters of the show - including family boss Tony (played by James Gandolfini) and wife Carmela (Edie Falco) - in various poses around a small nightclub table covered with nine glasses holding champagne, beer, wine and water.

No one in the picture is making eye contact - and Carmela and Tony are looking in opposite directions, an ominous sign for their troubled marriage.

But one of the most striking aspects of the photo is how Paulie "Walnuts" Gaultieri (played by Tony Sirico) is the only character with his back to the camera. He's also wearing white - a heavenly color.

Further bolstering the theory is that in at least one episode of the show last season, an image of deceased capo Salvatore "Big Pussy" Bonpensiero (who was bumped off at the end of Season 2) appeared in a mirror - just like Paulie Walnuts in this photo.

Fans have already begun to speculate that the producers of the show - who have gone to great lengths to keep secret the show's notoriously twisted plot turns - are trying to send a message.

Last season ended with Paulie in trouble after trying to whack a Russian mobster - so is the photo meant to telegraph that this upcoming season might be the last for the capo with white-wall hair?

Leibovitz used stand-ins to set up the picture the day before the cast showed up at her studio for the shoot. Once they arrived, it took about an hour to get the set-up just right.

Sources say Leibovitz based the picture on character descriptions and was not privy to any scripts from the new season.

The show, which debuted in 1999, is heading into its fourth season. David Chase, its creator and executive producer, has said he's leaving the show at the end of its fifth season.

Most cast members have said they'd probably leave the show when Chase does.

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