Lorraine Bracco Wears Red For A Cause

"Sopranos" star Lorraine Bracco will walk the red carpet in a red silk taffeta dress Thursday evening at the Woman's Day Red Dress Awards in Manhattan. But make no mistake, the dress is not just any dress.

Bill Blass will help Bracco ring in American Heart Month which began Thursday with the frock — designed by renowned fashion designer Michael Vollbracht — which will be auctioned off on Feb. 5 with all proceeds going to "Go Red For Women" campaign, the American Heart Association's nationwide movement to wipe out heart disease.

Bracco, who plays Dr. Melphi on "The Sopranos," has a personal connection to the disease.

"Both of my parents have been afflicted with heart disease, and I was shocked by the numbers I couldn't believe that half a million women die of heart disease here in the United States," she told The ShowBuzz on Thursday. "The first thing that really shocked me was, both my parents smoke, both my parents had high cholesterol numbers, so to start to work on those things we found out that diet and exercise was the biggest prevention of (this)."

Vollbracht made the actress "a gorgeous red gown," Bracco says. "It's very beautiful, it's red silk taffeta, it's a shirt and a skirt, it's light as a feather."

Campbell's Soup got involved and has pledged $1.5 million to the cause. Anyone can bid on the dress by visiting the Web site GoRedWithCampbells.com

With all of the information she's learned about the disease in recent years, Bracco says that her health comes first now.

"I've been paying attention; considering I have both parents (with heart disease), heredity is definitely there," she says. "I stopped smoking a couple of years ago, I'm very happy to say. And I'm careful, I read all my labels. That's another big thing."

By Amy Bonawitz