musings about the actor and the characters he brings to life
Another year, another birthday. Damian Watcyn Lewis turns big 5-0 this week! We celebrate the occasion all week long on Fan Fun and today we are offering a gift of quotes! Fifty of them to be precise. From all the people Damian has worked with, loved, and touched through the years.
ENJOY!
Hello everyone!
Fan Fun with Damian Lewis is six years old today!
Here we are, a bunch of inspired fans, 2192 days, 1127 blog posts and over 2.34 million views from 224 countries later… absolutely thrilled and totally beaming about how far we have come!
Time flies.
I vividly remember the conversation I had with Lewisto as I was pondering, in the last weeks of 2014, whether it would be worth keeping an online fan diary about Damian Lewis. Being the rational guy that he is, Lewisto suggested I run with this only if I thought I could commit for at least two years so it would be worth the effort. Continue reading “Six Years with Damian Lewis”
Being a (somewhat) musician, I am always on alert for the effect of music on a show. I work in musical theater when not teaching, so the music there is often integral to the plot. But for regular movies and TV shows, the music still can add an element of drama and emotion that would hard to obtain otherwise. Think of movies like Star Wars, Raiders of the Lost Ark, ET (sensing a John Williams theme here??) and the impact the music played there in the emotional moments of those shows.
Brian Koppelman gets this. He has been around music all his life, and if you follow him on Twitter you know he has very strong opinions about music. (Don’t ever ask him about the Sammy Hagar era of Van Halen – trust me, just don’t.) He and I both grew up in the 80’s alternative music scene. We are both REM fans, although where he prefers “Automatic for the People” I go with “Life’s Rich Pageant”, which leads me to my first musical choice for my playlist, and the one that early on got me paying attention to the song choices. Continue reading “Top Billions Songs: The Tail That Wags The Dog’s Playlist”
I have news!
So… I sat down and wrote a book 🙂 And, I mean, I knew it was happening but I felt that it was really happening when I saw the book on the publisher’s website with my name on it!
So I give you…
Appetite for Power – Eating, Drinking and Dealmaking in NYC: A Billions Guide
If everything goes according to the current production plan, Appetite for Power Guide to Eating, Drinking and Dealmaking in NYC: A Billions Guide will be out on November 3, 2020 – yes, on Election Day of all days! You can check the book out and pre-order a copy on the publisher’s website or on the usual suspects Amazon or Barnes & Nobles.
Update 10/24/2020: Well, I was right saying “if everything goes according to the current production plan…” since I just heard from my publisher that the book release will coincide with the return of Billions Season 5 to Showtime – hopefully sooner than later in 2021.
Now, if you are interested in the extraordinary journey I have had, writing a book about my favorite TV show that is, here it is. Continue reading “Appetite for Power – Eating, Drinking & Dealmaking in NYC: A Billions Guide *UPDATED release date*”
Times have changed and times are strange
Here I come, but I ain’t the same
Mama, I’m coming home
Mama, I’m Coming Home – Ozzy Osbourne
TGIF and welcome to The Trader’s Desk. As has been the pattern the last few weeks, I’ll give a brief explanation of what an Opportunity Zone is, some quick observations, and then focus on Axe and why “stinking” of Yonkers is a double-edged sword for him.
What is an Opportunity Zone? (The WSJ review of Billions gives a really great explanation – I use some of it here)
Opportunity zones are real. The idea is part of the 2017 tax overhaul (however the Treasury Department just finalized rules for them in late 2019). Investors who have significant capital gains can take that money and invest it into an opportunity fund, for which they get a tax break. The fund in turn invests in businesses in designated disadvantaged neighborhoods. There’s no limit on how much you can invest, but you need to keep it invested for at least 10 years to get the tax benefit. That makes it less attractive for hedge funds, which likely won’t want to tie up their capital for that long. Consequently, in the real world, hedge funds have not moved aggressively into opportunity zones. There is also the question of just throwing money at these areas. While building shopping malls, business complexes and some housing is nice, if you don’t address the root of the issues, then in a few years all you have are empty shopping malls and business complexes. Continue reading ““From the Trader’s Desk”: Home is Where the Heart Is? Billions S5E4 “Opportunity Zone””
