Hello, everyone! Damianista welcomes you to a new Fan Story!
Connie, a long-time Damian fan, certainly gets the well-deserved credit in adding “Ginger Prince” to our vocabulary and never ceases to amaze me with her attention to detail, be it the way Damian combs his hair, or a missing button on his coat 😀 She is amazing!
Ok I really need to tell this story!
It starts with a comment Connie makes about a picture we post from an interview Damian has recently given to CBS Sunday News.
“I see the man still has that yellow leather coat. He has been wearing it for ages (good color for him) and I’ve noticed of late it has all its buttons. For some time years ago there was one missing.”
I had no idea! 😀 But then I find this picture from about 12 years ago. Check out Damian’s second button from the top. Voila!
We thank Connie for her constant support, for her kind words about the work we do and for her unique contribution to our fan stories series. Here is her story.
The WWII era has always been the period of history that interests me the most. This is probably because I am old enough to have a few memories of it, and because as the wife of a career US Army soldier, I accompanied him to both his overseas tours of duty, first to Germany during the 1960’s and then in Japan in the 1970’s. So, of course, when “Band of Brothers” came along in the fall of 2001, I was hooked immediately. Apparently most of the actors were unknown to the majority of American viewers, with the exception of David Schwimmer. But I never watched “Friends” so was not familiar with “Ross”.
It was apparent from episode one that most of the action featured a very quiet, charismatic fellow named Damian Lewis, portraying Lt. Richard Winters.
Of course I did not initially know he was British, due to his mastery of the American accent used. As a native Pennsylvanian, as was Dick Winters, born and raised about 50 miles from the Winters’ home, I can attest it was perfect! ( I was fortunate to have met Major Winters personally in 2004, but that is a tale for another time.)
I won’t go on about Damian’s work in BoB; so much has been said about it over the years. But I quickly found the Damian Lewis Yahoo site, and although I joined immediately, did not post for about a year. (Sometimes it does take a while for an old dog to learn a new trick!) At that time, hundreds of messages were posted each month, and this was the group responsible for the infamous knickers package, although I did not participate. There were several other sites dedicated to Damian at that time, although they are no longer in existence.
In those early years we relished every tidbit of information that could be found about him, and believe me, it was slim pickings! We spend much time trying to determine his actual birthday, his middle name if he had one and other details. Sometimes he was referred to as the Ginger Prince; this was before any mention of Ginger Bond!
As his body of work grew, it became obvious through his range of ability that he is indeed one of the foremost actors of his generation, on either side of the Atlantic. However, I know I am preaching to the choir here, so will just add that I do have a wonderful collection on DVDs of almost everything he has done, from “Hickory Dickory Dock” to “Billions”…wow, what a variety! Hopefully I will enjoy a great many of his performances in years to come. Oh yes, one other thing, I cherish the thought that I have a minor connection; my paternal ancestry is mostly Welsh!
In closing, kudos to the lovely ladies who are keeping Fan Fun alive and well. It is a pleasure to add the blog to my daily internet reading and I hope Damian continues to recognize their devotion and hard work.
Damianista, thank you so much for posting my story. I really do feel like the old one here, definitely of a different generation than most of you. In fact, as I know I have said before, my daughters are older than Damian! But I so enjoy the comments that all you young folks contribute. The coat button still puzzles me after all these years though. I wonder should we give Helen credit for taking care of that little detail? I rather doubt the man did it himself!
Connie, THANK YOU for sharing with us, not just your story but also a little bit of history of the fandom. Since I came to Damian late, only after Homeland, I do not have much idea about what fans did in the early days. The internet was not what it is right now — I understand there was not much information any way but probably whenever there was information, it was not available online that I am sure there was a lot of copying and scanning going on to share the information! Though, me being me, I find it intriguing to chase Damian’s middle name or his birthday. I understand that was a fun time, too! I wish I had known Damian earlier like you, guys. However, I also know it would be a different story for me, since I was just out of graduate school and building a new career in early 2000s that I would probably never think of starting a blog to talk about Damian. So, I am thinking, maybe everything is happening for a reason and I came to Damian at the right time! 😀
I just love your attention to detail so much that I really needed to tell the “button” story! Haha if my husband went around in a coat with a missing button, I would definitely tell him to sit down and sew it or to not wear that coat! Damian went to boarding school so maybe he knows how to take care of it himself but yeah I doubt it, too 😀
And, hey, you may be from a different generation but this does not mean we are not speaking the same language! We thank you so much for your support and kind words and your feedback, please please keep it coming!
A wonderful fan story – thank you for sharing Connie! As a fan from the BoB days too, I completely understand your comments about “slim pickings” of information in those days; I love how popular he is now, but I also kind of miss those times where being a Damian fan was different… haha.
onnie, I know you since I know damian, it’s been years, you’re certainly one of the oldest and faithful fan! We discussed in the forum of yahoo, what I regret is that there Has not much blog about this great actor, apart from “dragonfly Inn”, and our adorable “Fanfun with damian”, which happily keeps us up to date on what Damian is doing! He deserves to have a lot of blogs, But I am not able to create one!
I ordered and received Billions, I like less than Homeland, but as always Damian is beautiful!
It’s silly, but I do not like how he combs his hair, in this series, I think that does not benefit him!
But it’s Damian and I would still love him!
Connie I must have near your age, my two sons, are the age of Damian !!
je t’embrasse
monique
Hallo Monique, Du sprichst mir aus der Seele. Ich muss gestehen, dass mich die gesamte Serie Billions nicht ganz so anspricht. Auch ich liebe vorallem seine Arbeit in Homeland und in der Forsyte Saga. Ich würde natürlich auf keinen Fall irgendeine Folge verpassen wollen. Schon alleine aus dem Grund, ihm bei seinem Schauspiel zuzusehen, welches immer außergewöhnlich und fantastisch ist. Und ich halte es wie Du: ” Es ist Damian und deshalb, egal was er macht, es ist immer sehenswert !!”
Vom Alter meiner Kinder kann ich zwar nicht mithalten, allerdings habe ich bereits 7 Enkelkinder und von daher gehöre ich auch nicht mehr unbedingt zur jüngeren Generation. Es ist einfach nur schön, zu wissen, dass es da draußen viele Menschen gibt, ob jung oder alt, die sich nicht genieren, diesen Menschen einfach nur toll zu finden und ihn in ihr Herz geschlossen haben.
Herzlichste Grüße aus Deutschland!
I suppose you and I are of the same generation Monique. In a few months I will be 76 and I never bothered to keep age a secret, couldn’t see the sense to it. Some time ago when there was discussion about Damian in a play on Broadway, I had hopes of actually seeing him in person, despite my increasingly difficult mobility problems. One of my daughters said, “We’ll get you there Mom”, but I’m afraid I must be content with seeing him on TV and hopefully some movies. So, he had better keep himself in front of the camera, and not disappear behind it, directing or something like so many actors decide to do.
Connie
Damian occasionally talks about making a short movie and directing, and I can see him going behind the camera but not “full time” in the next 10 years or so, I think his screen career will get even more interesting in the coming years. And, Connie, I don’t know where you live in NJ, but my husband and I would happily volunteer to pick you up and bring to Broadway and back home should Damian come to Broadway. And THAT MUST HAPPEN sooner than later!
Ahhh… that’s is so sweet of you to offer me transport. I really appreciate the thought. Can I assume you are in north Jersey? I am south, Burlington County which is below Trenton, so that would be quite a jaunt for you. My husband loved to visit NYC, whereas I must confess I prefer the suburbs and could not live in a city, but I did like to go with him when we took the kids, then grandkids up for Radio City Music Hall, Christmas lights, etc. and even some shopping. It is convenient to take the commuter train and that would be easy for me. Maybe then could meet up with you guys in the city. However it is walking that is my problem . Can only manage a block at most. Of course all that is wishful thinking until the Ginger Prince does a stint on Broadway. If we went to the stage door and he didn’t feel like stopping when he came out, I could always trip him with my cane! Note, I am not shy!
Connie
We will certainly make it happen should the ginger prince agree to a stint on Broadway!
We have a funny arrangement. I always say we have a house with four bedrooms but one bedroom is in NY. We live in NC, but have a tiny apartment in NY and we get to spend a lot of time in the city. We can come pick you up, you can spend the night with us, and we can take you back.
And, no, it would not be a jaunt at all; on the contrary we could not be happier doing that! And, yes, get the cane ready, in case 😀
In fact, a fan suggested we should do a Fan Fun night at the theater if Damian comes to Broadway. Wouldn’t it be LOVELY?
Damian has just finished performing on the opening night of The Goat. Fingers crossed for stellar reviews <3
Great story Connie! Thank you for sharing it with us, and thank you for your continued support for what we do. We love doing it, and it’s great to know that others like what we do as well!! 🙂
Hermosa historia.
Thank you, Connie. I love you sharing about the coat and that you noticed it! A priceless bit of info together with the tidbits about where nicknames etc. came from. I had heard about the knickers in an interview Damian did!.
Please keep sharing with us.
Thank you for adding Ginger Prince to my vocab! 🙂