Easy Company Medic Eugene Roe

James Madio as Perconte

Easy Company Medic Eugene Roe: The Mini Series: The Cast and Crew: Cast: James Madio as Perconte

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By Chrisdfw (Chrisdfw) (209.246.135.69 - 209.246.135.69) on Saturday, October 13, 2001 - 02:14 pm:

James Madio

Photo Credit: David James

By Chrisdfw (Chrisdfw) (209.246.135.69 - 209.246.135.69) on Saturday, October 13, 2001 - 02:16 pm:

Madio Helmet

Photo Credit: David James

By Chrisdfw (Chrisdfw) (209.245.229.153 - 209.245.229.153) on Saturday, October 13, 2001 - 08:12 pm:

Interview from The Green Room

Welcome to our special "Band of Brothers" issue where we talk with four of the stars of the Tom Hanks/Steven Spielberg mini-series. For the record, we should never forget those that fought and fell for our country during times of war and we hope that by watching "Band of Brothers" you too will be moved on some level by what went on. The stories…the men…the cause.

James and the Giant
Mini-Series:
James Madio

By: Jason M Burns

James Madio may not be the tallest person in the world but he stands the tallest when speaking about the men he and his cast mates portray in Band of Brothers. His passion for the subject is apparent in every sentence that spurts from his mouth and admittedly he loves to talk.

James plays Frank Perconte, the man that kept the morale high by being himself amongst a group of young soldiers of Easy Company. While researching the role of Mr. Perconte, James has found a friend and then some in his real life character…a man he speaks of with only the highest regard.

James was first discovered in Steven Spielberg's Hook. From there he went on to star in films like Hero opposite Dustin Hoffman and The Basketball Diaries along with Leonardo DiCaprio and Mark Wahlberg. My nephew also thought I should mention that he starred in the USA series USA High, which could be considered Saved by the Bell overseas.

James as a person is impressive. His enthusiasm for his work and for the men that were Easy Company is something that I have never seen in an actor. Speaking with him is like talking with an old high school buddy.

He has already proven himself as an actor and during our conversation he proved himself to be an honorable man, much like the character he searched to embody in Band of Brothers. We wish him the best of luck in all future endeavors that he looks to conquer.

JB: James?
JM: Yeah, speaking.
JB: Hey, it's Jay Burns from the Green Room Magazine.
JM: Hey, I was just thinking about you. I just looked at my clock and said, "Any minute he should be calling." So what's happening?
JB: Not too much. How about yourself?
JM: Very good. I'm doing good. I just did some last minute shopping. I've got my girl coming in town tonight so I'm going to make it real special for her, you know? Tomorrow we've got the premiere so I'm gonna set her up real nice. Get her hair and nails done. Plus it's our anniversary so I went and got her a gift plus I'm setting up the whole house with food. You know…the works.
JB: So you guys are living on separate coasts?
JM: Right now yeah. She's at school in upstate New York. A little long distance.
JB: That's why you have to make it extra special.
JM: Yeah. Exactly! People ask us how we do it and it's hard. We do see each other a lot…not as much as we'd like to, but every time we see each other, and I know it sounds cheesy but it's like everything is new again.
JB: I agree with you 100%.
JM: It kind of keeps it fresh if that makes any sense.
JB: No, I definitely agree. Well, congratulations on everything building up to Band of Brothers. It looks like it's going to be a huge deal.
JM: Man, right outside my house there's a big billboard and I'm just like, "Whoa, what am I a part of?" (Laughter) And last night they had the making of Band of Brothers on and I was just like, "Man, this is out of control."

Outside of my window there is a billboard for the Marlboro Man and he winks at the side of my building when the wind blows. I assure you he is not winking specifically at me.

JB: Oh yeah. It seems everything HBO touches is golden.
JM: They don't slack. The project itself…you need somebody like HBO to do it. Of course, Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg too.
JB: Hey, you can't go wrong.
JM: Yeah, and especially with the subject. It means a lot to a lot of people. So what's up man? The Green Room! Does this have anything to do with marijuana?
JB: No, no, no.
JM: (Laughter) I know. I'm only busting on ya.
The jig is up. All personnel please evacuate the premises. This building will self-destruct in nine minutes.

JB: Let me start off asking some questions to build up to Band of Brothers. Is it true that your father got you into acting to keep you out of trouble?
JM: Yeah. He did.
JB: Did it work?
JM: (Laughter) Yeah it did. It definitely did. When I was 14 I got into typical trouble, not bad stuff. I never stole or messed with drugs. I have five beautiful sisters. I'm small for my size and with five beautiful sisters I was chasing guys around with baseball bats all of my life. So I guess my father was like, "Alright, I need to think of a new thing for this kid to do." (Laughter) We'd have parents coming over, knocking on my door saying, "Your son chased my kid with a bat." (Laughter) You know when you snap on each other…like "Your sister is so…"
JB: Yeah.
JM: Well, I didn't take those very well. If it wasn't for my father, I've got to say none of this would have happened. And we're talking 10, 11 years ago. It was amazing because he's just a low-key guy. He's got seven kids, two jobs and he's a nice man. If you needed to put it into perspective, he's Robert De Niro from "A Bronx Tale". Just trying to keep us out of trouble, wanting to be a good father and he worked all of the time. Steven Spielberg loved him. He always wound up talking to my father. I remember when I went to the audition for Band of Brothers. It had been ten years since I'd seen Steven Spielberg and the first thing out of his mouth was, "How's your father…tell him I said hi." I was like, "Oh my God, you've got to be kidding me." If it weren't for him to start me, none of this would have happened.
JB: You were actually playing hooky when you found out you got the part in Hook?
JM: Yup.
JB: Kind of ironic, "Hook"…hooky?
JM: Yeah, yeah. I was across the street playing video games and my sister just runs over and tells me that my mom wants me. I was like, "How does she know I'm here? YOU RAT!" She's like, "You're not in trouble…come!" Now I'm walking over to my house, I'm not in trouble so what the hell is going on? She didn't even bring up the school she just yelled out, "You're going to California and you're meeting Steven Spielberg."
JB: Was that your first audition?
JM: That was my first anything. I remember going to the audition and I had like a long tail, lines in my head, spiked hair and earrings. I looked like a Lost Boy. That was it and then it just took off from there.
JB: Looking back on your things now, would you like to have started your career as an adult rather than a kid?
JM: No. I think from the age of 14 until now were like vital learning years.
I wouldn't take back anything in my career right now. There are times within the past that maybe I said, "I wish that, I wish that, I wish that." But, because of Band of Brothers and because of the full circle I've come…working with Spielberg again 10 years later and just re-sparking everything in my career…I wouldn't change a thing. It was the way it was supposed to happen. It's a perfect time for me. I'm 25 years old and I would think I'm in my prime. I don't even know. It's like a baseball player. Right now I've got a good batting average and I'm playing for a good team, baby. (Laughter)
JB: From the time you started to now…things have changed. More films are being released and television, like HBO has become a respected medium. Do you see the differences?
JM: Yeah, it's crazy. Just look at the job on television I got. That's why I feel so privileged to have done Band of Brothers. It's the biggest epic mini-series about the biggest cause and it will open up people's eyes around the world towards me. People ask, "What's next for you?" How do I answer that question? I worked with Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks on an HBO epic mini-series and I played a real life hero who is still alive today who has now become my grandfather…my best friend. I played a real life hero. I didn't play a comic book hero. "What do you do next?" It's like; "I'm retiring." I'm not gonna but you can go and become Brad Pitt or Tom Cruise, that's what everybody is hoping for…go make 20 million dollars a movie. But, could you work for these two people, on the scale of a picture this big, for this cause and play a real life hero? No…it's not gonna come again. This is something that's going to be with me for the rest of my life and no one is ever going to be able to take it away from me.
JB: So this obviously touched you emotionally and as I can tell, you probably don't look at it as just a regular job?
JM: Yeah! I grew up so fast in the last year and a half, since we started boot camp until all the way up to now. I went from being a kid who is not so serious about things to being like, "Wow, look at these men!" They just inspired me. You've got to see what HBO did for these guys. I don't know if they told you Jay, but they flew out all of the remaining veterans of Easy Company to Paris, which is like maybe 40 of them. They put them on a podium on Normandy Beach, 57 years later and on D-Day.
JB: And this was the first time most of them had been back?
JM: First time most of them had been back in 57 YEARS! They had all Heads of States come up and give speeches and then they sang the National Anthem. Tom Hanks gave this emotional speech to these guys and then jets roared over. (He makes jet noises. Swoosh.) There was not a dry eye. It was amazing. And then we got to sit down with them at all of these functions that we've been having and you don't say a word. You just sit down and listen to these guys talking and you listen to these stories.
There are no longer men in the world like these guys. The courage…you just can't explain it. You just really have to meet these guys and just see how humble they are.
JB: Are they open about what they experienced during the war?
JM: A lot of them you open up old wounds. It takes a lot to talk about it. They're really good guys. They're a special group of guys and it takes Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg to put together something like this for these guys so they get the recognition they deserve. Not that they wanted it because they're not like that to be honest with you Jay. When I found out that my character was still alive and I started talking to Frank Perconte…I couldn't get a thing out of him about himself. All he did was talk about someone else and that's when I realized in order to get information about Frank, I had to talk to Donnie Wahlberg's character, Carwood Lipton because Lipton and Frank were best friends. And Donnie had to go to Frank to get information about Carwood. That's just the way they were. They never spoke about themselves. They were all about the man to the left or to the right of them whatever was taking place.
JB: Which had to be pretty odd for you after growing up around actors.
JM: Yeah, well you know what? The boot camp was the best thing that ever happened to us. That was just absolute brilliance to send us to boot camp. They shipped us out to London. I grabbed all of the American guys and we had a dinner at my house. I cooked macaronis at my house and then we left the next morning. We got on a bus, they brought us to a hangar, shaved our hair, took our clothes of and put these green clothes on us and then shipped us off on a bus again to a British commando base. I got off this bus and the sergeant came running up to me.
(In commanding voice) "Oh, I got myself a short mutherfucker in this platoon. I'm going to tear you a new asshole shorty. GET IN LINE…GET IN FORMATION!" I'm just like, "Holy shit, this is the real deal." I didn't think it was going to be like that. 19 hour days, Jay…19 hour days! You woke up and you jogged five miles. You went back to the barracks and you grabbed your weapon and then you geared up. You went back out into the field and did tactical maneuvers, weapon training and then you marched back to the barracks. AND THEN you had breakfast. That's what you did before breakfast. And then when we went on night maneuvers we were out until two or three o'clock in the morning. Sometimes we stood overnight. You're stuck out there and it's cold in the woods with nothing but you and the guy next to you. And that's when you realized…you know what, you can't go nowhere without the guys to the left and the right of you. You realized how much these guys must have meant to each other for two years fighting a war together. You went there as an actor. "Oh, I'm like actor boy. I'm going to be the best actor soldier you're ever going to see. Watch me." You got shot down in a minute. You realized that it wasn't about you. You realized that it was about a company of men and you just wanted to be the best soldier that you could be for Frank Perconte, the guy you're playing. And that's all.
JB: You really seem like you are passionate about every word you speak regarding this project.
JM: It's something that is never going to leave me. I don't really know what else to say. I've been doing interviews every morning for two months straight now so I probably sound like a broken record. I try to mix it up but that's just the truth.

If a broken record has a message like the one you are trying to get across there is no reason in not giving her a spin on the turntable.

By Erin Bingham (Bingham) (210.50.171.72) on Thursday, December 26, 2002 - 11:59 pm:

Hey all,

I just finished watching Hook on TV.
Ha!
James is sooo cute in it. I couldn't help but giggle and yell "Perco!" every time he was on...my family now thinks i'm crazy!

Crazy Erin

By leanne clarke (Lan) (195.93.48.7) on Friday, December 27, 2002 - 04:52 pm:

who does he play in Hook?
is this the hook that had Robin Williams in it?

leanne

By Erin Bingham (Bingham) (210.50.172.151) on Friday, December 27, 2002 - 09:13 pm:

Hey,

Yeah this is that Hook. James plays, 'Don't Ask', a lost boy. As far as i can tell this was James's first film, he was 15/16.
I wonder if his connection with Spielburg helped him get the part in BoB.
I think it was prolly more his personality, apparently he talks a lot, as does the real Perconte.

Erin

By leanne clarke (Lan) (195.93.32.7) on Sunday, December 29, 2002 - 10:37 am:

i never knew that,
i love Hook aswell. dear of him thats so cool

By Marigold Papa (Marigold) (203.160.183.79) on Sunday, December 29, 2002 - 10:16 pm:

I have seen Hook but i don't recall seeing James there. Hmm...looks like i must rent it again, if it's still available. thanks for the info everyone

gold

By Caroline 'tree' Fallin (Carolinefallin) (216.12.62.238) on Friday, January 10, 2003 - 02:32 am:

You should see 'Hero' as well! I loved it!

And James' new show 'Queens Supreme' premieres Friday (today!) Jan 10 on CBS at 10pm.

Tree

By Caroline 'tree' Fallin (Carolinefallin) (216.12.62.238) on Friday, January 10, 2003 - 08:21 pm:

James Madio website:

www.jimmymadio.moonfruit.com

I want to apologize for the url...I originally had 'jamesmadio' but there's a technical glitch with it I'm unable to fix yet.

I hope everyone enjoys it and if anyone has pictures or information you would like to share about James, please contact me at odanata@naxs.net

Warmest,
tree

By Anonymous on Tuesday, September 04, 2001 - 01:13 pm:

How is this young new actor? I hear he is going to have a good part. No one is talking about him!

By Rachel on Sunday, September 30, 2001 - 01:25 am:

I think James Madio is great in Band. It's suprising that a "teen" actor got a shot in such a historical project. Scott Grimes also does an excellent job , Donnie and all the actors are really great. My Dad and I are really hooked on this series, we can't wait until it comes out on DVD, so we can watch it all the time, over and over.

By Melissa Clay (Melissa2800) (66.166.47.71) on Wednesday, March 19, 2003 - 03:23 pm:

If anyone is interested in finding out more about James Madio, please come join this yahoo group:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jamesmadiofans/
You will meet alot of great people there, who are fans of James. Drop in & join the group.
See you there!!
Melissa

By Marigold Papa (Marigold) (203.160.161.234) on Wednesday, March 19, 2003 - 09:55 pm:

What a great moderator! Melissa's right, i'm sure you're going to enjoy the group and find pics of James

gold

By Marigold Papa (Marigold) (203.160.161.234) on Wednesday, March 19, 2003 - 09:58 pm:

What a great moderator! Melissa's right, i'm sure you're going to enjoy the group and find pics of James

gold

By Melissa Clay (Melissa2800) (66.166.47.71) on Friday, March 21, 2003 - 08:17 am:

Thanks, Gold(Col Ross)!!!
Don't cut yourself short, you have been doing a great job at the easy company group.
Jane, you made a good decision in choosing Gold.
Have a great weekend, everyone!!
TGIF!!
Melissa

By Justin (Docroe90) (205.188.209.69) on Friday, March 21, 2003 - 07:23 pm:

u too

By Marigold Papa (Marigold) (203.160.161.234) on Friday, March 21, 2003 - 10:50 pm:

Missy, it's Cpl. :P

gold

By Caroline 'tree' Fallin (Carolinefallin) (216.12.62.84) on Saturday, March 29, 2003 - 11:26 am:

Hi Guys! I've made a Perco screensaver at James' official site at

http://www.jimmymadio.moonfruit.com

with AE's spectacular screencaps!

By nancee madio (Nancee) (64.12.96.77) on Friday, April 11, 2003 - 01:24 pm:

hi everyone , just stopping by to read the new post, and see whats going on with the site. by for now. will check in soon

By Marigold Papa (Marigold) (203.160.183.79) on Saturday, April 12, 2003 - 06:37 am:

Hey nanceeeeeeeeee!!! Glad you dropped by here!!!

gold

By Janine (Janine) (139.134.63.153) on Saturday, April 12, 2003 - 10:40 pm:

Does anyone know what James Madio is doing now? (Film-wise)

By Marigold Papa (Marigold) (203.160.183.79) on Saturday, April 12, 2003 - 11:26 pm:

According to Nancee (who i'm chatting with right now) he has some prospective projects in the working...*cross fingers* for Jimmy!

gold

By Caroline 'tree' Fallin (Carolinefallin) (216.12.43.76) on Monday, April 21, 2003 - 11:01 pm:

It was cold enough to freeze a necromancer’s mammary in the streets of New York. I was accompanied by a whirlwind of a woman, a spitfire with a Bronx accent, a pixie with an attitude. All in one woman. As a matter of fact, she reminded me a bit of myself.

We whined about the lack of a Starbucks on every corner, and huddled against the cold. She had loaned me a cozy fleece jacket, as I had not packed well. I’d packed everything I owned, except of course what I would need. She pointed to the logo stitched on the jacket. ‘See where that came from?’ I looked down and saw ‘Queens Supreme’ stitched in navy script. I must admit I had a shiver of excitement when I saw the name of the series her son had starred in, and lamented its demise at the hands of a network that hadn’t given it a chance.

The son was a whirlwind on his own. An actor in his twenties, and he had been a star already for fifteen years.

I remember vividly the first time I saw him. It was in ‘Hook’, a Spielberg extravaganza also starring Dustin Hoffman, Robin Williams, and Julia Roberts. The little Lost Boy caught my eye immediately. He had an undeniable energy that outshone the others as he seized cues with relish and abandon, scampering just a few steps ahead of everyone else. He had tremendous dark eyes, a shock of black hair, and wore a charming little suit. I knew this kid was going places, so I waited until the credits to find out the kids name.

James Madio.

Through the years, he would show up in movies such as Hero, again with Dustin Hoffman, and the Basketball Diaries with Leonardo DiCaprio. He held his own with these heavy hitters, and again when he was on the screen, he dominated the landscape.

Then came Band of Brothers, and there he was, fully adult. He had made the transition from child actor to adult actor with ease. He portrayed the real life Frank Perconte with his now familiar way of never actually appearing to be acting. Broiling with energy, his dark eyes scalding underneath black brows; alternately innocent and funny, then intense and furious. You never knew which way he was going to move, what expression his face would hold. He didn’t telegraph his blocking like so many other ‘talented’ actors.

I felt a poke at my shoulder. ‘Tree, Tree, look who it is.’ I could feel Nancees’ excitement as the moment was upon us that I would meet her son. As I raised my head, Jimmy bent down in a waft of smoky cologne to kiss my cheek. I made an immediate mental note to get some of this cologne for my husband. He presented me with a Band of Brothers cap that I plopped happily on my head.

He sat down across from me, and I realized that pictures and film simply did his looks no justice. While very handsome on film, it would never capture the golden brown of his skin, or the deep blue-black of his brows and hair. He slipped into his chair with an athletic grace I envied. Ahhh to be twenty years younger, forty pounds thinner and for that matter, to be Holly, his beautiful and dearly beloved girlfriend. I made another mental note to definitely get some of that cologne for my husband.

As we chatted, he simply became Jimmy. A helluva nice guy who valued his experience in Band of Brothers tremendously, whose eyes lit up when he talked about how beautiful his girlfriend is, and carped at his mom for drinking too much coffee. We talked about Skip Muck and how loved he was by Easy Company, and about how at a panel discussion he was embarrassed that so many questions were directed at him and not the real Frank Perconte. I was continually impressed by his depth of character and poise. He was a man comfortable in his own skin and not consumed by his own ego, and compliments made him blush.

We stood on the corner as he called a young girl named Mallory that Nancee and I chatted with and adored. We all passed the phone back and forth and her glee at speaking to Jimmy made us all smile.

I looked over at Nancee, and saw her regarding Jimmy with love and pride. I recalled seeing her give this exact same look to her other children, and realized Jimmy wasn’t the only star in the family. To Nancee, all her children are stars. One does not outshine the other, and in the man across from me, I saw the legacy of her unconditional love and down to earth attitude.

I salute all the Madios for their warmth and humor, and reminding me what family means. So much is made now about ‘me’ and not ‘us’.

A day with the Madios sent me home to hug my gramma. Repeatedly.

Caroline 'Tree' Fallin

By nancee madio (Nancee) (205.188.208.106) on Monday, April 21, 2003 - 11:14 pm:

thats a great story tree, you captured every essence of jimmy, i am very pleased, we must start working on that book lol

nancee

By Marigold Papa (Marigold) (203.190.70.251) on Tuesday, April 22, 2003 - 07:17 am:

Wheeeeeee!!! Glad you posted that here Tree!!!

gold

By Caroline 'tree' Fallin (Carolinefallin) (216.12.29.190) on Thursday, April 24, 2003 - 05:21 am:

Nancee, I'm so glad you like it, and Gold I'm glad you enjoyed it!

hmmm what should that book be about? A coupla crazy old broads and their teenage sidekick?

By Marigold Papa (Marigold) (203.190.70.251) on Thursday, April 24, 2003 - 08:24 am:

LOL! What about queenbratandsleepymonkeywithpockethottie? ;)

gold

By Melissa Clay (Melissa2800) (66.166.47.71) on Thursday, April 24, 2003 - 09:42 am:

i think it might be a little too long, gold?!?
LOL
what about "my journey to madioland" heehee
i liked that from the yahoo site.
missy ;-)

By Caroline 'tree' Fallin (Carolinefallin) (216.12.62.248) on Tuesday, April 29, 2003 - 08:31 am:

BWAH Gold I LOVE it! Ahhh you know us so well. *flopsnore*

tree

By Marigold Papa (Marigold) (203.190.70.251) on Tuesday, May 06, 2003 - 07:58 am:

let's just say i've been around you too long? *fartsnore* BWAHAHA!!!

gold

By xdfrkkahag (95.35.19.34) on Friday, March 12, 2010 - 12:43 am: