Tag: Major Winters

Throwback Thursday to Damian Lewis at Band of Brothers Boot Camp

‘It’s very authentic, dripping in sincerity, there’s nothing sensational about it. It had a docu-drama feel to it which people responded to. –Damian Lewis on Band of Brothers

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We blogged earlier about how a 29-year old British actor Damian Lewis got cast to play all-American WWII hero Dick Winters as well as the deft and the charisma with which Damian Lewis came to immortalize Dick Winters on small screen. However, we still have a black box between the casting and the shoot: How did Damian Lewis TRANSFORM into Dick Winters?

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Well… Once he gets the part, the two Hollywood giants Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks leave the room and Tony To, the executive producer, asks:

“Hey Damian, how’d you like to go to boot camp in March?”

Ha! The boot camp… It is, in fact, what FILLS the black box I’ve been talking about… The Transformation, quoting Damian himself, from “a rice pudding” to a “celery stalk.” Continue reading “Throwback Thursday to Damian Lewis at Band of Brothers Boot Camp”

Band of Brothers at 25: A Masterpiece That Never Gets Old

Only two days to go! Band of Brothers turns 25 on September 9—and HBO Max will mark the anniversary with a brand-new documentary, Band of Brothers: Legacy. So, let’s get in the mood by returning to the masterpiece that never gets old and celebrate!

On September 9, 2001, Band of Brothers premiered on HBO. Twenty-five years later, we are still watching it, still talking about it and still introducing it to new generations. I have written this before and I will keep writing it: Band of Brothers never gets old.

It does not matter how many times you have watched it. You know what is coming and who will make it home, and yet every episode gets you all over again. New viewers still discover a tall, pale, redheaded “American” actor, believe every word he says as Dick Winters—and then get the shock of their lives when they hear Damian speaking in his own very English accent! Some things never change.

But what makes Band of Brothers endure is not simply that it is brilliantly written, directed, acted and filmed. It endures because it never forgets that the men whose story it tells were real.

Continue reading “Band of Brothers at 25: A Masterpiece That Never Gets Old”

Throwback Thursday to D-Day’s 70th
Anniversary on Utah Beach: In Memory of Jim “Pee Wee” Martin

When Damian attended the ceremonies for the 70th Anniversary of D-Day on Utah Beach back in 2014, he met the WWII veteran Jim “Pee Wee” Martin. A member of the 101st Airborne Division, Martin got his nickname because he was the lightest man in his regiment. He parachuted into Normandy on D-Day and was also a part of the ill-fated “Operation Market Garden” and the Ardenne Forest Offensive aka “Battle of the Bulge” during the WWII. He was 93 years old on the 70th Anniversary of D-Day but this did not  hold him back from parachuting  into Normandy to re-live that day all over again! And he did it again, in Holland this time, on the 75th anniversary of Operation Market Garden. He was 98. Continue reading “Throwback Thursday to D-Day’s 70th
Anniversary on Utah Beach: In Memory of Jim “Pee Wee” Martin”

Currahee! – The Best Tattoo Story You’ll Have Ever Read

Damianista’s note: The lovely, crazy, adorable story you will read below comes from our own “Dark Horse” Vicky (well, she loves Soames!) who is one of the first, if not the first, fans that I met online the day Fan Fun with Damian Lewis was born in 2015. I remember that we exchanged a few words about Damian and she told me about how she became a fan of the “Ginger Prince.” Over the years, Vicky has written several posts for Fan Fun, participated in every Fan Fun community project, and become a friend. I know you will LOVE her tattoo story. I am thrilled to have been a little more than an extra in it and excited to share it in the D-Day week. Enjoy!

Continue reading “Currahee! – The Best Tattoo Story You’ll Have Ever Read”

Band of Brothers at 24: Revisiting Dick Winters

Damianista’s note: Band of Brothers is 24 years old. Currahee!

As one of the most iconic mini-series of all times, Band of Brothers may have turned 24 but it has never got old. People are still in love with Damian Lewis’ Major Winters and his Easy Company and thousands of families and friends enjoy a Band of Brothers marathon (multiple times!) every year.

To celebrate the the mini-series’ 20th anniversary, HBO had Roger Bennett host an official Band of Brothers 12-episode podcast that followed the Easy Company’s footsteps from Normandy to the Eagle’s Nest, episode by episode, with insight from Tom Hanks as well as actors who brought the members of Easy Company to life  – including Ron Livingston, Donny Wahlberg, Matthews Settle, Scott Grimes and our beloved Damian Lewis.

Please hear Bennett’s Band of Brothers podcast episode with Damian Lewis below…

Continue reading “Band of Brothers at 24: Revisiting Dick Winters”