Bronx icon Chazz Palminteri launches new ‘Bronx Tale’ cigar

From left: Paul DiSilvio, owner of La Casa Grande cigar shop and “Chazz” Palminteri, Hollywood actor, writer, director and Bronx native at the launch of Palminteri’s new “Bronx Tale” cigar on Wednesday, June 28.

Photo ET Rodriguez

It was a red-carpet affair at the Arthur Avenue Retail Market on Wednesday as dozens crowded the street. In true, old-school Italian fashion, there were sharp suits and fedoras, baggy slacks paired with short-sleeved button-down shirts, lots of swearing and plenty of friendly slaps on the face and kisses on the cheek.

And all were there to celebrate the launch of Bronx native, actor Calogero Lorenzo”Chazz” Palminteri’s new “Bronx Tale” cigar.

“To dedicate a cigar to my grandfather, Calogero, he came to this country with nothing and made a life for himself,” Palminteri, the writer and star of the critically acclaimed movie “A Bronx Tale” (1993), told the Bronx Times.

The movie was adapted from Palminteri’s autobiographical 1989 play by the same name and served as Robert DeNiro’s directorial debut.

Palminteri’s late, cigar-smoking grandfather, whom he is named after, immigrated to the U.S. from Siciliy in 1910 in search of a more prosperous life.

“I thought we could dedicate this cigar to all the immigrants who came to this country and made a life for themselves – it’s a cigar for them,” Palminteri added.

“A Bronx Tale” is the story of a young boy growing up in the Belmont neighborhood of the Bronx during the late 1950s through 1960s when organized crime ruled the city. In it, the main character, “Calogero,” experiences the typical throes of coming of age while simultaneously navigating a life where making the wrong move could get him killed.

This year marks the film’s 30th anniversary and with it, the launch of an eponymous cigar in partnership with Epic Cigars and La Casa Grande cigar shop inside the Arthur Avenue Retail Market.

“It’s an 18-year aged…