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All through Jimmy's childhood and teenage years, Gillian would see "admirers" ("friends", in Jimmy's words) in hope that one would marry her. Some of these, at least, were aware that she was a mother and gifted her toys for Jimmy. One even took them yachting ("[[Nights in Ballygran]]"). Invariably, the men always turned out to be married and using her as a mistress, which they would only tell when they were breaking up with her ("[[Under God's Power She Flourishes]]"). 
 
All through Jimmy's childhood and teenage years, Gillian would see "admirers" ("friends", in Jimmy's words) in hope that one would marry her. Some of these, at least, were aware that she was a mother and gifted her toys for Jimmy. One even took them yachting ("[[Nights in Ballygran]]"). Invariably, the men always turned out to be married and using her as a mistress, which they would only tell when they were breaking up with her ("[[Under God's Power She Flourishes]]"). 
   
The only constant masculine presence during Jimmy's childhood was [[Nucky Thompson]], who looked after them both over the years, out of guilt for his part in Jimmy's conception. Nucky would take the child Jimmy hunting while Gillian was performing and he became his errand boy at age 12. While Jimmy would eventually see Nucky as a father figure, his relationship with Gillian remained murky. ("[[Boardwalk Empire]]", "21", "A Dangerous Mind") Nucky eventually decided to groom Jimmy as his successor to direct the [[Nucky's organization|political machine]] in Atlantic City, possibly as a result of losing [[Enoch Thompson Jr.|his only biological child]] and [[Mabel Thompson|his wife]] one shortly after another in the winter of 1912-1913. ("[[A Return to Normalcy]]")
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The only constant masculine presence during Jimmy's childhood was [[Nucky Thompson]], who looked after them both over the years, out of guilt for his part in Jimmy's conception ("[[Paris Green]"). Nucky would take the child Jimmy hunting while Gillian was performing, and became his errand boy at age 12 ("[[Boardwalk Empire]]", "21", "A Dangerous Maid"). Nucky eventually decided to groom Jimmy as his successor to direct the [[Nucky's organization|political machine]] in Atlantic City, possibly as a result of losing [[Enoch Thompson Jr.|his only biological child]] and [[Mabel Thompson|his wife]] one shortly after another in the winter of 1912-1913. ("[[A Return to Normalcy]]")
   
 
====Jimmy's Departure and Return (1916-1919)====
 
====Jimmy's Departure and Return (1916-1919)====

Revision as of 21:10, 26 November 2013

Gillian Darmody (played by Gretchen Mol), is a former Cafe Beaux-Arts showgirl, prostitute and madame of The Artemis Club brothel in Atlantic City. She is the mother of Jimmy Darmody, who she gave birth after being raped by the then town boss, Commodore Louis Kaestner, six weeks before she turned 13, and grandmother of Tommy Darmody.

Biography

Background

Before Jimmy's birth (1884-1897)

Gillian was orphaned young and raised by the Children's Society Home in Trenton, New Jersey. She has bad memories of the place and doesn't remember her parents ("Havre de Grace").

Gillian-KN

Gillian during May Day, 1897 ("Paris Green")

Gillian moved soon to Atlantic City and by age 12 she lived off the money she won selling cigarettes to the tourists on the Boardwalk. It was under the Boardwalk, on April 30, 1897, where she was kissed for the first time by a boy, a kid from out of town named James Edison that had bought a cigarette from her. They wrote their names in a pillar and agreed to see each other again the next day, before James and his family left. That day, May 1, 1897 was the "Neptune's Bounty" parade and Gillian was set to appear as one of his 'consorts'. ("Marriage and Hunting")

However, Gillian would never meet James again. During the parade she caught the eye of political boss Commodore Louis Kaestner, who ordered his right-hand man, Sheriff Nucky Thompson to bring Gillian to his house that evening for a sexual encounter. She was six weeks short of her 13th birthday and according to Nucky, the Commodore never asked her name and merely pointed at her. "The rest was understood" ("A Dangerous Maid").

Gillian initially though that the then Sheriff took her because she had donde something wrong, but he calmed her and told her to go upstairs to the Commodore's room and be "good", after the Commodore plied her with wine. She fell asleep in his bed until she awoke to find The Commodore raping her. He smelled of "whiskey and tobacco" ("What Does the Bee Do?", "Margate Sands").

Life with Jimmy (1898-1915)

The encounter resulted in Jimmy's conception, who Gillian named after James Edison and that The Commodore never acknowledged as his son. Traumatized by the event and with no parental guidance whatsoever, Gillian grew up with a warped sense of love and sexuality at the same time she was raising her son. For example, when Jimmy was an infant she kissed his genitals to show her affection ("21"). Gillian also rarely shows sadness or anger in public, presenting herself always as a smiling courtesan, though this changes as the series goes on.

TIT-Gillian-Rehearse-Cafe-Beaux

Gillian during a rehearse session at the Cafe Beaux-Arts, in 1920. ("The Ivory Tower")

Gillian became a risqué showgirl soon after and continued to raise Jimmy backstage, with the help of other showgirl friends; as a result, Jimmy would often see his mother nude ("Peg of Old"). The only help The Commodore ever provided was a necklace that he gifted her, and she was forced to sell for rent money while Jimmy was a child. ("The Ivory Tower")

All through Jimmy's childhood and teenage years, Gillian would see "admirers" ("friends", in Jimmy's words) in hope that one would marry her. Some of these, at least, were aware that she was a mother and gifted her toys for Jimmy. One even took them yachting ("Nights in Ballygran"). Invariably, the men always turned out to be married and using her as a mistress, which they would only tell when they were breaking up with her ("Under God's Power She Flourishes"). 

The only constant masculine presence during Jimmy's childhood was Nucky Thompson, who looked after them both over the years, out of guilt for his part in Jimmy's conception ("[[Paris Green]"). Nucky would take the child Jimmy hunting while Gillian was performing, and became his errand boy at age 12 ("Boardwalk Empire", "21", "A Dangerous Maid"). Nucky eventually decided to groom Jimmy as his successor to direct the political machine in Atlantic City, possibly as a result of losing his only biological child and his wife one shortly after another in the winter of 1912-1913. ("A Return to Normalcy")

Jimmy's Departure and Return (1916-1919)

Main article: Under God's Power She Flourishes

In 1916, Nucky arranged for Jimmy to attend college in Princeton, New Jersey. Gillian, who had never been separated from her son during a long period of time, would call him often and sometimes late at night, leading the college matron, Mrs. Krakauer, to confuse her with Jimmy's girlfriend. At that time, though, Jimmy did have a girlfriend in secret at college: a waitress named Angela Ianotti.

Gillian-pearson-UGPSF

Gillian flirts with her son's teacher during a visit to college, in 1916. ("Under God's Power She Flourishes")

Gillian visited Jimmy at college after breaking up with her last "admirer", a married man named Arthur Henderson, and stayed in Jimmy's dorm room for a few days. Jimmy presented her with Angela and Gillian showed a bit of jealousy, calling her a "skinny girl" and asking Jimmy if he really loved her. During a night reception at college, Gillian flirted with several men within sight of Jimmy and Angela. Jimmy's literature professor, Noel Pearson, was one of them.

After the party Jimmy and Angela happened upon Gillian and Pearson. All four had drunk. Gillian walked off and implied that Pearson had tried to overstep the bounds. Jimmy demanded an explanation and after Pearson made a poor attempt to defend himself claiming that he didn't she was her mother, Jimmy punched him. Pearson offered to keep the incident secret still if Jimmy just walked out, but Jimmy beat him instead, witnessed by his mother and girlfriend.

Boardwalk-empire-recap-under-gods-power-she-flourishes-gillian-jimmy

Jimmy takes Gillian to his dorm room. ("Under God's Power She Flourishes")

Following that, Jimmy took Gillian to his room, making no secret that he had just expelled himself, but Gillian just wrote it off saying that Nucky would fix it. As they undressed, Jimmy asked Gillian why she came. She replied that she was the "loneliest person on Earth" and that Jimmy was the only man that ever loved her. Jimmy tried to get off the bed they were in but she brought him over herself, reassuring that they were doing nothing wrong, and they had an incestual encounter. The next morning, Gillian woke up first and left without saying anything. When Jimmy woke up he immediately quit college and joined the US Army as an orphan, giving Angela as his sole relation even though he didn't know her address. Only Gillian and Jimmy ever knew what happened that night.

Gillian later met again with Angela, now come to Atlantic City with Jimmy's son, Tommy. Gillian accepted Tommy and sometimes babysat him. Jimmy, however, didn't write to Angela or Gillian while he was in the Army, not even after he was shipped off to fight in France during World War I. This caused Gillian to think that he was dead, but she held some hope after a fortuneteller in the Boardwalk told her that he would come back alive. She also established some contact with the Commodore, who expressed worry about Jimmy since he lad also lost a brother in a war ("Paris Green"). When Jimmy finally returned to Atlantic City in December 1919 he rekindled with Angela and met her son, but still refused to contact Gillian for a month after his arrival. ("Boardwalk Empire", "The Ivory Tower")

Season 1

Main article: Gillian Darmody Season 1
Jimmy-reunites-with-gillian

Jimmy's unusual reunion with his mother. ("The Ivory Tower")

Jimmy resumes his life with his mentor, girlfriend and son after returning to Atlantic City, but continues to avoid his mother for a month. After taking part in the Hammonton hijacking, Jimmy buys a necklace for Gillian with his part and comes to see her at the Cafe Beaux-Arts. She is overjoyed to have her son back, but when Nucky demands a cut from the operation, Jimmy is forced to sneak into the Beaux-Arts dressing room and steal the necklace back. Gillian realizes that Jimmy has a problem and asks Nucky to help him, unaware of his part. Soon after, Jimmy leaves town again, and Gillian offers Angela to raise Tommy in her behalf while she pursues her artistic career, reasoning that Jimmy might never come back. Angela refuses.

Gillian-Jimmy-close

Gillian and Jimmy ambush Lucky Luciano. ("Belle Femme")

Lucky Luciano comes to Angela's house while Gillian is babysitting Tommy and asks for "James", claiming that they are friends, but Gillian realizes that he is lying and closes the door on his face. He later goes to the Cafe Beaux-Arts and after that night's performance, Gillian approaches him. The two soon begin an affair, with Luciano at first believing that she is Jimmy's wife, that continues after he is informed that she is his mother. Gillian is, however, under phone contact with Jimmy, who is at exile in Chicago, and informing him about Luciano. The two set Luciano for a trap when Jimmy comes back to Atlantic City.

In September 1920 Gillian tells Jimmy that The Commodore is terminally ill and he has asked to meet him. She encourages Jimmy to remain by his side, arguing that nobody deserves to die alone, and reveals to Jimmy that it was Nucky who took her to The Commodore they day he was conceived, shattering the image he had of his mentor. Jimmy discovers that the Commodore is not ill but being poisoned by his maid, and after he recovers the two device a plan with Sheriff Eli Thompson to seize power from Nucky.

Season 2

Main article: Gillian Darmody Season 2

Season 3

Main article: Gillian Darmody Season 3

Season 4

As season 4 opens, Gillian is living in her now empty brothel and ostensibly showing the home to prospective male borrowers but in reality is prostituting herself for survival. She has become a functional heroin addict which is becoming more problematic.  Her grandson, Tommy, has been living with Julia Sagorsky and her father, following the shooting at the Artemis Club. Gillian and Julia are currently engaged in a custody battle over Tommy.  Gillian has begun dating a businessman who is visiting Atlantic City.

Relationships

Family

Personal Life

Racketeering

Staff

Victims

Memorable Quotes

  • Gillian: "I was under the impression that you could do anything"
  • (to Angela, about Jimmy) "You know, when he was a baby and I would change his diaper... I used to kiss his little winkie." ("21")
  • "I didn't spend my life getting groped by a bunch of drunks to wind up in a goddamn poorhouse." ("What Does the Bee Do?")
  • Eli Thompson (to Gillian): "Jimmy and you. That's exactly... the two of you, and... him?! None of that is normal. It never was!" ("What Does the Bee Do?")
  • (to The Commodore, after being paralysed by a stroke) "Do you remember when we met? I'll never forget your smile. Jimmy sometimes, he has it. I look at him and I see you. That first night, how you plied me with wine... Why, I'd never felt such a sensation. We were downstairs. And I'd fallen asleep on the divan. You carried me to the bedroom, went to say good night to your guests. And I laid there in bed, dreaming of the waves. I'd been on the beach that day. Suddenly I felt a crushing feeling. I couldn't breathe. I opened my eyes to find you atop me. Your breath smelling of whiskey and tobacco. One hand covering my mouth and the other groping at me. Do you remember that? Still, sometimes when I sleep, it wakes me with a start. Do you remember that night? (Gillian slaps The Commodore) I asked you a question." (Gillian slaps him repeatedly) ("What Does the Bee Do?")
  • Angela Darmody: "You know, most women are proud to be called a grandma"
    • "Yes well, not while the peaches are still in season" ("Anastasia")
  • (to Lucky Luciano) "Maybe he's up your ass. Have you tried looking there?"
  • "I'm feeling just the tiniest bit greasy." ("Sunday Best")
  • "You belittle my business. Break bread with my enemies..."
    • Lucky: "Who the fuck you think you are?"
  • "My dearest James, I am compelled to write to you due to my constant concern over expenses, which are more than I can bear alone. I miss you terribly every day. Life is nothing without you and there is no one who understands me. Please. Please. Please come home. Your eternally devoted mother." ("You'd Be Surprised")

Appearances

Season one appearances
Boardwalk Empire The Ivory Tower Broadway Limited Anastasia
Nights in Ballygran Family Limitation Home Hold Me in Paradise
Belle Femme The Emerald City Paris Green A Return to Normalcy
Season two appearances
21 Ourselves Alone A Dangerous Maid What Does the Bee Do?
Gimcrack & Bunkum The Age of Reason Peg of Old Two Boats and a Lifeguard
Battle of the Century Georgia Peaches Under God's Power She Flourishes To the Lost
Season three appearances
"Resolution" "Spaghetti and Coffee" "Bone for Tuna" "Blue Bell Boy"
"You'd Be Surprised" "Ging Gang Goolie" "Sunday Best" "The Pony"
"The Milkmaid's Lot" "A Man, A Plan..." "Two Imposters" "Margate Sands"
Season four appearances
"New York Sour" "Resignation" "Acres of Diamonds" "All In"
"Erlkonig" "The North Star" "William Wilson" "The Old Ship of Zion"
"Marriage and Hunting" "White Horse Pike" "Havre De Grace" "Farewell Daddy Blues"