Zhou Xiaochuan, the governor of the Bank of China, must sympathize with the plight of poor Raoul, the waiter whose good service is rewarded with a brick to the back of his head.
In a 2004 episode of the US cable network series The Sopranos , New Jersey mafia boss Tony Soprano takes the senior leadership of his crime family to an expensive dinner at a casino restaurant in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
There they enjoy multiple rounds of the best cuts of steak, lobster and the finest beverages; it is Tony's nephew and heir apparent, the sobriety-, impulse-control-, fidelity- and literary-talent-challenged would-be part-time Hollywood screenwriter and full-time thug Christopher Moltisanti who gets stuck with the US$1,184 check.
Christopher is none too happy with this situation; he is particularly enraged that his fellow goomba Paulie "Walnuts" Gualtieri sent over an expensive bottle of Cristal to two young ladies he classified as "skanks" at an adjoining table. He leaves a $16 tip, for an even $1,200. The waiter, Raoul, is none too pleased with this, and he comes out to the parking lot to complain to Christopher about his stinginess.
There was no problem with his service; he feels he deserves more. Standard American tipping protocol calls for gratuities to amount to about 15% of the check, which, in this case, would have called for a $177.60 tip.
Christopher is in no mood for interlocution. As in most scenes in The Sopranos up to and including solemn religious observations, the situation rapidly descends to exchanges of rank obscenities. As Raoul turns away to return to work, Christopher throws a brick that hits the waiter in the head.
Also see, Saudis take fright.
Father, mother, sister, brother,
Uncle, aunt, nephew, niece,
Soldier, sailor, physician, labourer,
Actor, scientist, mechanic, priest
Earth and moon and sun and stars
Planets and comets with tails blazing
All are there forever falling
Falling lovely and amazing
- Nick Cave
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