Catherine's Mannly Men

We're so excited to begin this new chapter of great discussions on eHarlequin!

this is gonna be really exciting. :)

Good morning!  I'm on my way to take dd to school, but thought I would chime in with a quick warm up chat...  We most definitely need some heroes around for inspiration.  Who are some of your all time favs?  (any author, any genre)  I would say make a top ten list, but sometimes I have a tough time confining myself to just ten, lol!  I'm going to think about my list while I'm out carpooling.... Looking forward to hearing from you.....

I do believe I'll leave Rhett Butler from GONE WITH THE WIND here to share coffee w/u and keep u company.... I still recall reading GONE WITH THE WIND in the 6th grade and KNOWING I'd found something in that romantic/relationship focused kind of story that called to me... other than the fact I wanted to re-write the ending with a happily ever after!

Hi everyone--

I love new threads and this one is starting off great.

Cathy--I will be thinking about my favorite heroes and why they are but meantime you've left my favorite here already! Rhett Butler has been a part of my life as long as I can remember. GWTW is my favorite all time book and movie! It was my late mom's favorite movie also.

Back later with the hero list.

Mary

::::waving::::  Hey there, Wayne, Dream, Mary, Carlobee and Anju!  :-)

P.S. - You think Edward is the modern Almanzo? ;-)

Cathy, thanks for my prize, I'm so happy!

I agree with you girls, Rhett Butler, Heathcliff and Juan del Diablo are my favorite heroes ever. Gosh! I do have a thing for bad boys!

Since I sung the praises of bad boy alphas, I decided I needed to think of a beta hero I enjoyed too.... I'm a theater major, actually, and promptly the muscial MY FAIR LADY (adapted from George Bernard Shaw's PYGMALION) came to mind.  I still enjoy watching how Eliza Dolittle works her way past Henry Higgins' reserved, academic exterior.  Ah, what a perfect pair they make!

Rhett Butler was the first and still makes my heart skip a beat when I re-read my well worn copy of the book or watch the movie again.   There have been so many heroes over the years, it's hard to remember them all.  While I loved the Professor in Little Women I never could get past the fact that Lousia May Alcott never got her own real life happily ever after.  I love my crime drama heroes too.  I have quite a crush on Alex Cross, Harlen Coben's Myron Bolitor is lots of fun too but my current favorite "hero" would have to be John Sandford's Lucas Davenport.  They all have their flaws but they all fall into the Hero category in my book.

Darlene

My first romances were the gothics...I guess as a middle schooler that flair for the dramatic was just my speed.  Rebecca, by Daphne du Maurier, was one of my faves.  I also loved Victoria Holt.  The heroes were always enigmatic and mysterious, often tortured, yet they always managed to come through.

I still love tortured heroes.  Guess the drama queen in me lives on.

Steph

Loved the Phillipa Carr series.  What great books.  Suspense, Romance.  I have a ton of her books many of which I've had since high school.  That woman could write. 

Darlene

hey ladies

This is a hard one for me to choose from ladies. Ive fallen in love with most of the hero's from the books that Ive read over the years.

But four come to mind off the top of my head.

 Nicholas Stafford from A knight in Shining Armor by Jude Deveraux. I fell for this character the minute I started the book.He came to the heroine from the past to help her out and ended up for falling in love wit her. I love the last line in the book when Nicholas tell her right before she goes back to the modern world. My soul will find yours. I think thats how that line goes.

Another one was from another Jude Deveraux books.  Michael Taggert from Sweet  Liar!!! What can I say fell in love with him from the minute I started the book. He came in to save the day too.

The other two men are from Debra Webb books Colby Agency. Simon Ruhl and Ian Michaels. These two men are everyday hero's and then some.

More to follow later!!!

patsy

Guess, its my day, so I can post only now ;) Hence Cathy, your night is not officially night ;) But please do take rest, come back refreshed since you have to keep this going for months to come :)

Heroes ! Tough question..

My first hero was, Dr Who - the time lord, whose books I started reading first when my friend lended it when I was in school. I was awed by the fact that someone can travel space, time and fight monsters ;) etc.. I always loved the idea of adventure. No romantic thoughts there...mind you ;)

Then my first "big" book that I read was "The Almighty" by Irwing Wallace, when I was say 16, where I was like taken in by the whole story itself and well.., liked the hero - but loved the heroine more ;) Got pulled into his novels - read "The Miracle", "the Prize" etc all gifted by my uncle to me since he had purchased those during his time ! ;)

Then when I was in graduate, I got the "Acceptable Risk" by Robin cook.. Through out the whole book, whom I thought was the hero turned out to be okay-okay and the guy whom I did not like much turned out to be the hero !!! Hence no preference here but later was hooked to reading Medical thrillers - 'Coma', 'Brain', 'Shock' 'Vital Signs' and so on.. I think I have read most of his books..

When I was in hostel - was the first I laid my hand on a harlequin book - The secret seduction by Susan Napier.. Wow.. man, that was like the first ever 'perfect' HEA (Ryan was wow!) and got me completely into the world of harlequin. I cant name a specific hero here..since so many I love. One who stands out is 'Sebastin' from 'Black Ice' by Anne Stuart.

Rest they say is history !

If I had to define a hero I would want to be, it's be Harvard in HARVARD'S EDUCATION.  He's a proud black man who knows how to treat his lady.

wj

What about some more on movie heroes?  Which movie heroes over the years still bring a dream sigh?  Is there a particular defining scene for that hero that stands out in your mind?

There's this awesome moment in the Russell Crowe movie, GLADIATOR, where Russell Crowe's character is battle weary and in his tent.  He has small statues of his family.  He cradles them and says, "I live only to hold you again."

Oh my.  That intense blending of the internal struggle of callings for a military man/family man....I was moved.

Hey Catherine!  And a big thank you to Patsy for loving Colby Agency heroes!  Makes my week!

Daniel Craig as James Bond.   I love the fact that they've shown a sensitive side to him.  In Casino Royale when he he holds her in the shower and they are both all wet.  Ohhhh My.  He does make my heart go pitter patter. 

 Darlene

Joanne, LOVE Edward Ferrars as well. And yes, Hugh is dreamy as Edward. *sigh* Actually, I think Austen writes a lot of incredible heroes mostly because they have a lot of growing to do, and have to make what would be difficult choices for the time. I don't think she's written a hero I don't like. She has a way of capturing real people and throwing them into fiction that transcends time. It's amazing how, when trying to describe a person now, if you say, for example, "oh, she's a lot like Fanny," if you've read Austen, you know EXACTLY the kind of person I'm talking about.

 Okay, UPS Man just showed up with a delivery and I totally lost my train of thought. What were we talking about? Oh yeah, movies.

Cathy, I loved 50 first dates as well. Such a good love story of true love and devotion. I have to admit, that made me a Sandler fan forever. He's dorky and crude, but that movie made him a hero in my eyes forever. :) 

Looking at the 50 first dates hero as well as looking back at my love of Austen heroes, I think I see a pattern in the heroes I love. I love the unlikely heroes. The ones who, at first seem to be the last sort of man you could fall in love with, but as he grows and changes, he becomes someone larger than life. In the beginning of 50 first dates, you'd never see the hero as someone capable of such love and devotion, but in the end, that's what makes his sacrifice so beautiful.

 In my opinion, a man who begins the journey as a hero already is less interesting because there is less room to grow and see the man he becomes. Maybe that's why I love rake stories so much. I think it was in a Stephanie Laurens book, where one of the duchesses made the comment that "reformed rakes make the best husbands." I think there's a lot of truth to that one, at least fictionally speaking. Can't say for sure in real life, since I married the guy who was a "nice guy" from the get-go. Though I still think he's pretty terrific.

Dream

Darlene

I agree.  Daniel Craig is a great hero...and the sensitive side is a plus.  I also like that fact that he's not the usual pretty boy handsome, but has a rugged manly look about him..the kind of hero I like to give my heroines.

Wayne

An independent friend Dot was standing in pouring rain at a bus stop in Dublin, Ireland when a fancy car pulled up beside her and offered her a lift.

Dot was 84 and had her weeks grocerys in a pull along trolley. The driver jumped out of the car in the rain and put her trolley in the boot. Dot took her position by the driver and in Irish fashion began to interrogate him.

You've a very familiar face, Would I know your family, Are you from around here? We Irish like to know the seed breed and generation of a person. Anyway all through the journey Dot asked the driver questions.

My mother and I were waiting to help Dot up her apartment stairs with her grocerys. We stood like village idiots as the driver helped her out, picked up her grocerys and waved a smiling goodbye. My Mom and I never moved. Such a lovely man shouted Dot. there's something very familiar about him. Do you know his face?

Did we know his face!!!!  We remained static as PAUL NEWMAN drove away with a wave. He was in Ireland to open one of his Hole in The Wall camps. Now that people in my opinion is a hero.

I will mention my favorite book hero - Gage Dalton from Miss Emmaline and The Archangel by Rachel Lee.  He was scarred both physically and emotionaly and had to grow to understand that life still went on and he could love again.  He is still growing in the other books in the Conard County series and you see how he has changed from the very first.

Also another of my hero's from a book is Jackson Rule from Jackson Rule - by Sharon Sala( Dinah McCall).  Once you find out the complete story you realize how much he gave for his family and realize what a wonderful person he is. 

I'm also a big fan of heroes who are willing to step out with random acts of kindness like that. It's funny, a long time ago, it was considered common courtesy, and yet these days, it's a rare quality to find. But wonderful when it happens. :)

Congrats on your deadline Cathy! I was shocked you were still up when I emailed last night, but now I see why! Go celebrate with that blue-eyed man of yours. :)

I'm a sucker for blue eyes too. My hubby has them as well, and I have to say, isn't dark hair with blue eyes the sexiest combo ever? Hubba hubba. I used to joke about marrying him for his blue eyes so we could have a blue-eyed kiddo, but I have to say, I'm beginning to regret that.

My 5yo has her daddy's eyes, and oh, is she a little dickens. She can wrap just about anyone around her finger when she bats those baby blues. She's been getting into a lot of trouble at school and even her teacher commented, "I don't know how you do it. She's in trouble, she knows it, but she looks at you with those beautiful eyes, and she's so cute, you feel just awful for punishing her!" This is a woman who's taught kindergarten for over 20 years! I seriously have my work cut out for me. *shaking head* We keep saying this little girl is capable of great things, and she can either use her powers for good or evil. We're trying really hard to get her to focus those powers on doing good!

Dream 

Hi everyone--

Yes, Dream dark hair and blue eyes are yummy. My dh has them. His black hair is graying now but he still has those killer blue eyes that spell disaster for the heart! And he is half Italian too. Our dd has the blue eyes as do both of our grandchildren. I had to LOL about your dd. Our granddaughter is only two and she knows how to use those eyes already!

Cathy--congrats on making your deadline.

Gemma--I loved the Paul Newman story. He was one of the good guys.

Elaine--I agree that Jackson Rule is great hero material.

Another wounded bad boy hero I thought of today is Johnny Cain in The Outsider by Penelope Williamson. He is a real bad boy but he turns out to be a hero in the end. I love the book and the movie.

Mary  

Sam Shepard as Chuck Yeager in THE RIGHT STUFF walking through the desert dragging his parachute.

Wowsa.

'Nuf said.