List of Boardwalk Empire characters
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The following is a list of characters from the HBO television show Boardwalk Empire. The show dramatizes the Prohibition era in Atlantic City and the early history of the American Mafia. Many of the characters on the show are fictional, but some are (loosely) based on historical figures. Some characters use the name of the person upon which they are based, while others have had their names changed for the program.
Cast
Main cast
| Character | Actor | Seasons | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | ||
| Enoch "Nucky" Thompson | Steve Buscemi | Main | ||||
| James "Jimmy" Darmody | Michael Pitt | Main | Stand-in | |||
| Margaret Thompson | Kelly Macdonald | Main | ||||
| Nelson Van Alden / George Mueller | Michael Shannon | Main | ||||
| Elias "Eli" Thompson | Shea Whigham | Main | ||||
| Angela Darmody | Aleksa Palladino | Main | ||||
| Arnold Rothstein | Michael Stuhlbarg | Main | ||||
| Al Capone | Stephen Graham | Main | ||||
| Charles "Lucky" Luciano | Vincent Piazza | Main | ||||
| Lucy Danziger | Paz de la Huerta | Main | ||||
| Albert "Chalky" White | Michael Kenneth Williams | Main | ||||
| Edward "Eddie" Kessler | Anthony Laciura | Main | ||||
| Mickey Doyle | Paul Sparks | Main | ||||
| Commodore Louis Kaestner | Dabney Coleman | Main | Recurring[a] | |||
| Richard Harrow | Jack Huston | Recurring | Main | |||
| Gillian Darmody | Gretchen Mol | Recurring | Main | |||
| Owen Sleater | Charlie Cox | Recurring | Main | |||
| Gyp Rosetti | Bobby Canavale | Main | ||||
| Roy Phillips | Ron Livingston | Main | ||||
| Dr. Valentin Narcisse | Jeffrey Wright | Main | ||||
| William "Willie" Thompson | Ben Rosenfield | Recurring[b] | Main | |||
Recurring cast
| Character | Actor | Seasons | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | ||
| Meyer Lansky | Anatol Yusef | Recurring | ||||
| Johnny Torrio | Greg Antonacci | Recurring | ||||
| Rose Van Alden | Enid Graham | Recurring | ||||
| Ethan Thompson | Tom Aldredge | Recurring | Recurring[c] | |||
| Mrs. McGarry | Dana Ivey | Recurring | ||||
| Isabelle Jeunet | Anna Katarina | Recurring | Guest | |||
| Louanne Pratt | Johnnie Mae | Recurring | ||||
| Agent Sebso | Erik Weiner | Recurring | ||||
| Mary Dittrich | Lisa Joyce | Recurring | ||||
| Pearl | Emily Meade | Recurring | ||||
| Edward Bader | Kevin O'Rourke | Recurring | ||||
| James Neary | Robert Clohessy | Recurring | ||||
| Harry Daugherty | Christopher McDonald | Guest | Recurring | |||
| Leander Cephas Whitlock | Dominic Chianese | Recurring[d] | ||||
| Esther Randolph | Julianne Nicholson | Recurring | Guest | |||
| Manny Horvitz | William Forsythe | Recurring | Guest | |||
| Dunn Purnsley | Erik LaRay Harvey | Recurring | ||||
| George Remus | Glenn Fleshler | Recurring | Guest | |||
| Katy | Heather Lind | Recurring | ||||
| Joe Masseria | Ivo Nandi | Guest | Recurring | Guest | ||
| Billie Kent | Meg Chambers Steedle | Recurring | ||||
| Gaston Bullock Means | Stephen Root | Recurring | ||||
| Andrew Mellon | James Cromwell | Recurring | Guest | |||
| Julia Sagorsky | Wrenn Schmidt | Recurring | ||||
| Sally Wheet | Patricia Arquette | Recurring | ||||
| Ralph Capone | Domenick Lombardozzi | Recurring | ||||
| Frank Capone | Morgan Spector | Recurring | ||||
| James "Jim" Tolliver | Brian Geraghty | Recurring | ||||
| Daughter Maitland | Margot Bingham | Recurring | ||||
| Arquimedes | Paul Calderon | Recurring | ||||
| Tommy Darmody/Slim | Travis Tope | Recurring | ||||
Main characters
Enoch "Nucky" Thompson
Enoch "Nucky" Thompson (Steve Buscemi) is the main protagonist of the series. He is the corrupt treasurer of Atlantic County and its most powerful political figure. The character is based on Enoch L. Johnson.[1]
James "Jimmy" Darmody
James "Jimmy" Darmody (Michael Pitt) is the secondary protagonist and antagonist of the series and a main character in Seasons 1-2. He is a former Princeton student who served in World War I. After returning home, Jimmy is hired by Nucky Thompson as his driver. The character is based on Jimmy Boyd.[2]
Margaret Thompson
Margaret Thompson (formerly Schroeder, née Rohan) (Kelly Macdonald) is a young Irish widow and mother who turns to Nucky for help, eventually becoming his lover and later his wife. The character is based on Florence Osbeck.[1]
Nelson Van Alden / George Mueller
Nelson Van Alden / George Mueller (Michael Shannon) is one of the main characters of the series starting off as an antagonist in Season 1 and a supporting main character in Seasons 2-5. He is a former Prohibition agent on the run after the murder of his former partner. Under the alias George Mueller, he inadvertently gets caught up in the conflict between Dean O'Banion and Al Capone. The character is based on William Frank.[1]
Elias "Eli" Thompson
Elias "Eli" Thompson (Shea Whigham) is a main supporting character throughout the series, being Nucky's younger brother and former sheriff of Atlantic County. The character is based on Alfred "Alf" Johnson.[1]
Angela Darmody
Angela Darmody (Aleksa Palladino) is a main character in Seasons 1–2. She is Jimmy's wife and the mother of his young son.
An art student at Princeton University, Angela began a romance with Jimmy Darmody in 1916. After Jimmy beat up a professor who attempted to grope his mother, Gillian, he was expelled and enlisted in World War I, leaving a pregnant Angela behind in Atlantic City.
During the first season, Angela struggles with Jimmy's descent into organized crime and his increasingly violent behaviour. Feeling isolated, she resumes a romantic relationship with Mary Dittrich, a photographer's wife. The two women plan to flee to Paris with Angela's son, Tommy. However, Mary and her husband abruptly abandon Angela, leaving her trapped in Atlantic City as Jimmy discovers the nature of her affair.
In Season 2, Jimmy and Angela move into a beach house, in an attempt to normalize their family life. Angela befriends and begins an affair with a novelist named Louise. Their relationship is tragically cut short when Philadelphia gangster Manny Horvitz, seeking revenge against Jimmy, breaks into their home. Mistaking Louise for Jimmy, Manny shoots her in the shower before executing a devastated Angela to eliminate her as a witness. ("Georgia Peaches")
Angela's murder deeply traumatizes Jimmy, which leads to a violent confrontation where he kills his father, the Commodore. Following Jimmy's subsequent death, their son Tommy is raised by Gillian. To avenge Angela, Richard Harrow assassinates Manny Horvitz at a later point of time. ("Resolution")
Arnold Rothstein
Arnold Rothstein (Michael Stuhlbarg) is a main character in Seasons 1-4 and a recurring antagonist throughout the 4 seasons. He is a powerful and intelligent New York gangster who enters into business with Nucky and is based on the real-life historical figure of the same name.
Al Capone
Al Capone (Stephen Graham) is a main character throughout the series. He is a low-level Chicago gangster with ambitions of leading the Chicago mob and is based on the real-life historical figure of the same name.
Charles "Lucky" Luciano
Charles "Lucky" Luciano (Vincent Piazza) is a main supporting character in Seasons 1-4 and a main antagonist in Season 5. He is a Sicilian-American gangster and close associate of Rothstein based on the real-life historical figure of the same name.
Lucy Danziger
Lucy Danziger (Paz de la Huerta) is a main character in Seasons 1-2. She is Nucky's mistress and a former Ziegfeld Follies dancer.
In Season 1, Lucy is portrayed as Nucky's demanding and superficial mistress. As Nucky becomes increasingly infatuated with Margaret Schroeder, Lucy grows jealous and acts out erratically which culminates in public confrontations. Nucky ultimately ends their relationship in favour of Margaret, which leaving Lucy desperate and isolated. Lucy seduces the married Prohibition Agent Nelson Van Alden and becomes pregnant.
In Season 2, Lucy is seen living in miserable seclusion under Van Alden's strict control until she gives birth to a daughter. She is desperate to escape and secretly secures funds from Nucky. Lucy abandons the infant with Van Alden, and flees Atlantic City to pursue a role in the Broadway musical A Dangerous Maid. ("Peg of Old")
Lucy is referenced in later seasons as well. Eddie Kessler notes to Nucky's subsequent mistress that Lucy has been entirely forgotten ("You'd Be Surprised"). Years later, her daughter Abigail only vaguely knows that her biological mother was a "dancer" ("King of Norway").
Albert "Chalky" White
Albert "Chalky" White (Michael Kenneth Williams) is a main character throughout the series. He is Nucky's counterpart in Atlantic City's black community.
Edward "Eddie" Kessler
Edward "Eddie" Kessler (Anthony Laciura) is a main supporting character in Seasons 1-4. He is Nucky's German personal assistant and valet. The character is based on Louis Kessel.[1]
Mickey Doyle
Mickey Doyle (Paul Sparks) is a main supporting character throughout the series. He is an Atlantic City bootlegger. The character is based on Mickey Duffy.[1]
Louis Kaestner
Commodore Louis Kaestner (Dabney Coleman in Seasons 1-2, John Ellison Conlee in Season 5) is a main character in Seasons 1-2 and a recurring character in Season 5. He is Nucky's mentor and predecessor in Atlantic City, Jimmy's biological father. The character is based on Louis Kuehnle.[1]
Richard Harrow
Richard Harrow (Jack Huston) is a recurring character in Season 1 and a main character in Seasons 2–4. He is a former Army marksman who allies with Jimmy and later Nucky. Disfigured during the war, he wears a mask over half of his face.
Gillian Darmody
Gillian Darmody (Gretchen Mol) is a main character throughout the series. She is Jimmy's mother and an old friend of Nucky's. She is also Luciano's former lover.
Owen Sleater
Owen Sleater (Charlie Cox) is a recurring character in Season 2 and a main supporting character in Season 3. He is an Irish immigrant and IRA member who has an affair with Margaret, while working his way up in Nucky's organization.
Gyp Rosetti
Gyp Rosetti (Bobby Cannavale) is the main antagonist of Season 3. He is a Sicilian gangster backed by Joe Masseria, who challenges Nucky.
Roy Phillips
Roy Phillips (Ron Livingston) is a main supporting character in Season 4. He is a wealthy out-of-town businessman and Piggly Wiggly executive who becomes involved with Gillian Darmody.
Dr. Valentin Narcisse
Dr. Valentin Narcisse (Jeffrey Wright) is a primary antagonist in Season 4 and a secondary antagonist in Season 5. He is a Harlem racketeer who challenges Chalky. The character is based on Casper Holstein.[3]
William "Willie" Thompson
William "Willie" Thompson (Kevin Csolak in Season 3, Ben Rosenfield in Seasons 4-5) is a recurring character in Seasons 3-4 and a main supporting character in Season 5. He is Eli's oldest son and Nucky's nephew who becomes an assistant U.S. Attorney in New York City.
Recurring characters
Introduced in season one
Meyer Lansky
Meyer Lansky (Anatol Yusef) is a recurring supporting character in Seasons 1-4 and a main co-antagonist alongside Luciano in Season 5. He is a young protégé of Rothstein and partners with Luciano. The character is based on Meyer Lansky.[1]
Johnny Torrio
Johnny Torrio (Greg Antonacci) is a recurring character in Seasons 1-4 and a secondary antagonist in Season 5 based on the real-life historical figure of the same name. He is Capone's boss in Chicago.[1]
Rose Van Alden
Rose Van Alden (Enid Graham) is a recurring character in Seasons 1-2. She is Nelson's ex-wife who is infertile.
June Thompson
June Thompson (Nisi Sturgis) is a recurring character throughout the series. She is Eli's faithful, loyal, and kind wife who is also the rock of the family as the mother to their eight children.
Ethan Thompson
Ethan Thompson (Tom Aldredge in Seasons 1-2, Ian Hart in Season 5) is a recurring character in Seasons 1-2 and in flashbacks in Season 5. He is Nucky and Eli's abusive father and Elenore's abusive husband. The character is based on Smith E. Johnson.
Mrs. McGarry
Mrs. McGarry (Dana Ivey) is a recurring character in Season 1. She is a prominent leader of the Women's Suffrage and Temperance Movements. The character is based on Susan B. Anthony.[1]
Isabelle Jeunet
Isabelle Jeunet (Anna Katarina) is a recurring character in Season 1 and a guest character in Season 3. She is a French woman who owns an haute couture shop on the boardwalk.
Louanne Pratt
Louanne Pratt (Johnnie Mae) is a recurring character in Season 1. She is Commodore Kaestner's former maid.
Eric Sebso
Agent Sebso (Erik Weiner) is a recurring character in Season 1. He is a Jewish FBI Agent and Van Alden's junior partner.
Mary Dittrich
Mary Dittrich (Lisa Joyce) is a recurring character in Season 1. She is a photographer's assistant and Angela Darmody's lover.
Pearl
Pearl (Emily Meade) is a guest character in Season 1. She is a prostitute and Jimmy Darmody's lover whilst he is in Chicago briefly.
Edward L. Bader
Edward L. Bader (Kevin O'Rourke) is a recurring character in Seasons 1-4. He is the Atlantic City mayor based on the real-life historical figure of the same name.
Jim Neary
James Neary (Robert Clohessy) is a recurring character in Seasons 1-2 and a guest character in flashbacks in Season 5 where he is portrayed by Marcus Anturri as a child in 1884 and Scott Moreau as a young man in 1897. He is one of Nucky's political cronies and ward bosses, as well as a childhood friend of Nucky and Eli.
Harry Daugherty
Harry M. Daugherty (Christopher McDonald) is a guest character in Season 1 and a recurring character in Seasons 2-3. He is a U.S. Attorney General who's based on the real-life historical figure of the same name.
Introduced in season two
Leander Cephas Whitlock
Leander Cephas Whitlock (Dominic Chianese) is a recurring character in Seasons 2-4 and in flashbacks in Season 5 where he is portrayed by Jordan Lage. He is an Atlantic City lawyer and ally to the Commodore.
George Remus
George Remus (Glenn Fleshler) is a recurring character in Seasons 2-3 and a guest character in Season 4. He is a major bootlegger based in Ohio who refers to himself in the third-person and is based on a real-life historical figure of the same name.
In Season 2 George Remus uses his pharmaceutical business in Ohio to sell good quality bootleg alcohol to Al Capone and Johnny Torrio in Chicago. He is competing directly with Nucky Thompson. At first George Remus teams up with Jimmy Darmodys group to control the market in Atlantic City. After Jimmy dies, George Remus changes sides and starts working with Nucky again. He joins a group of crime bosses from New York, Chicago and Philadelphia who are all into bootlegging.
In Season 3, Remus becomes entrenched in the corrupt "Ohio Gang", trading alcohol with political figures like Harry M. Daugherty and Jess Smith. He repeatedly conspires against Nucky and gets caught by Deputy District Attorney Esther Randolph when the government starts cracking down on the Harding administration. He makes a final appearance in Season 4 as an informant. During his prison stay, Remus details Nucky's Atlantic City empire to the FBI, which prompts J. Edgar Hoover to escalate his investigation against Nucky.
Dunn Purnsley
Dunn Purnsley (Erik LaRay Harvey) is a recurring character in Seasons 2-4.
In Season 2, he is introduced as a career criminal from Baltimore. Dunn initially clashes with Chalky White in jail. However, he eventually earns Chalky's respect after instigating a labour strike among the black culinary workers at the Ritz-Carlton. He soon rises to become Chalky's trusted second-in-command and serves as vital muscle for Chalky and Nucky Thompson, especially during their violent mob war against Gyp Rosetti in Season 3.
In Season 4, Dunn's loyalty falters after he impulsively kills a corrupt booking agent at the Onyx Club. Harlem racketeer Dr. Valentin Narcisse helps hum to hide the crime, using leverage and Dunn's growing resentment of Chalky to lure him away from Nucky's organization. Soon, Dunn becomes Narcisse's top lieutenant and drug runner in Atlantic City. When Chalky finds out about the betrayal, Narcisse orders Dunn to kill him, and during their fight, Dunn is fatally stabbed in the back by Daughter Maitland.
Katy
Katy (Heather Lind) is a recurring character in Seasons 2-3. She is Margaret's housemaid and Owen's lover.
Joe Masseria
Joe Masseria (Ivo Nandi) is a recurring character in Seasons 3-4 and a guest character in Seasons 2 and 5. He is an Italian mafia boss and bootlegger.
Manny Horvitz
Manny Horvitz (William Forsythe) is a recurring character in Season 2 and a guest character in Season 3.
He is a Russian Jewish gangster from Odessa, Russian Empire (modern-day Ukraine), who operates out of Philadelphia using a butcher shop as a front for his criminal activities. After moving to the United States in 1899, Manny partnered with Waxey Gordon in bootlegging and became friends with Polish immigrant Mickey Doyle. His relationship with Gordon, however, deteriorated into a bitter rivalry later.
In Season 2, Manny enters into a bootlegging partnership with Jimmy Darmody. Their relationship quickly turns sour when Jimmy fails to pay his debts and conspires with Waxey Gordon to have Manny assassinated. A vengeful Manny travels to Atlantic City and breaks into Jimmy's home. Intending to kill Jimmy, Manny instead accidentally murders Jimmy's wife, Angela, and her lover. Manny then aligns himself with Nucky Thompson, helping him lure Jimmy to the Atlantic City War Memorial, where Nucky eventually kills him.
In Season 3, Manny shifts to Atlantic City to manage one of Nucky's warehouses alongside Mickey Doyle. Shortly before New Year's Eve in 1922, Manny is ambushed and shot in the face outside his home by Richard Harrow, who murders him to avenge Angela's death.
Esther Randolph
Esther Randolph (Julianne Nicholson) is a recurring character in Seasons 2-3 and a guest character in Season 4. She is an Assistant Attorney General who investigates Nucky for election fraud. The character is based on Mabel Walker Willebrandt.
Introduced in season three
Billie Kent
Billie Kent (Meg Chambers Steedle) is a recurring character in Season 3. She is a young Broadway actress who begins an affair with Nucky. The character is based on Billie Dove.
Gaston Means
Gaston Means (Stephen Root) is a recurring character in Seasons 3-4. He is a con artist, FBI agent, and "fixer" for bootleggers.
Andrew Mellon
Andrew Mellon (James Cromwell) is a recurring character in Season 3 and a guest character in Season 4. He is the Secretary of the Treasury.
Julia Sagorsky
Julia Sagorsky (Wrenn Schmidt) is a recurring character in Seasons 3-4. She is Richard's love interest and later wife and Paul Sagorsky's daughter.
Introduced in season four
Sally Wheet
Sally Wheet (Patricia Arquette) is a recurring character in Seasons 4-5. She is a Speak-easy owner in Tampa, Florida who begins a relationship with Nucky.
Ralph Capone
Ralph Capone (Domenick Lombardozzi) is a recurring character in Seasons 4-5. He is Al and Frank Capone's brother.
Frank Capone
Frank Capone (Morgan Spector) is a recurring character in the first half of Season 4. He is Al and Ralph Capone's level-headed brother.
James Tolliver
James "Jim" Tolliver (Brian Geraghty) is a recurring character in Season 4. He is a ruthless FBI agent under the direction of J. Edgar Hoover posing as a corrupt IRS prohibition agent under the name Warren Knox in Atlantic City and is working for Nucky at his warehouses to finally arrest him for all the crimes him and his associates have done.
Daughter Maitland
Daughter Maitland (Margot Bingham) is a recurring character in Season 4 and a guest character in Season 5. She is a singer and ward of Dr. Valentin Narcisse who begins an affair with Chalky White.
Introduced in season five
Arquimedes
Arquimedes (Paul Calderon) is a recurring character in Season 5. He is Nucky Thompson's personal bodyguard from Spain who lives in Havana, Cuba.
Tommy Darmody
Tommy Darmody/Slim (Brady and Connor Noon in Seasons 1-4, Travis Tope in Season 5) is a guest character in Seasons 1-4 and a recurring character in Season 5. He is the son of James and Angela Darmody and grandson of Gillian Darmody and Commodore Louis Kaestner.
Characters as performers
| Actor | Performer | Episode | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stephen DeRosa | Eddie Cantor | "Boardwalk Empire", "Broadway Limited", "A Return to Normalcy", "A Dangerous Maid", "You'd Be Surprised", "Resolution" |
comedian and singer |
| Erin McGrath[4] | Edith Day | "Anastasia" | "Alice Blue Gown" (from "Irene") |
| Malachy Cleary | Warren Harding | "Hold Me in Paradise" | Senator |
| John Treacy Egan[5] | Duncan O'Connor | "Nights in Ballygran" | "Carrickfergus" |
| A'Lisa Miles | Mamie Smith | "Home" | "Crazy Blues" |
| Kathy Brier | Sophie Tucker | "Belle Femme" | "Some of These Days" |
| Remy Auberjonois | Hardeen | "Paris Green" | magician and escape artist (brother of Houdini) |
Characters as athletes
| Actor | Athlete | Episode | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Devin Harjes | Jack Dempsey | "What Does the Bee Do?" "Peg of Old" |
boxer (heavyweight champion, 1919–26) |
