Character page for Harley and the Davidsons.
Portrayed by: Bug Hall
The pitchman and sales representative of the company who presented the idea of making their own "motor-bicycle" to his friend Bill. Arthur had a natural talent for telling stories and charming people into buying his wares.
- The Idealist: Arthur firmly believes in his fledgling company, envisioning it to be the number one motorcycle manufacturer in America in spite of the adversity they have endured.
- Genius Bruiser / Hair-Trigger Temper: Significantly less so than Walt, though the three Davidson brothers do have had a share of bruises and arguments amongst each other.
- Kleptomaniac Hero: During the first episode, where he had to appropriate parts and cast an engine block and a cylinder based on his friend's plans, all without permission from the machine shop owner. It was also implied by Arthur's mother that he was involved in other cases of petty theft throughout Milwaukee, when he handed over $3 to his family for them to buy "a month's worth of groceries". Given his experience in the streets where he grew up with, it isn't that much of a surprise.
Portrayed by: Robert Aramayo
William Sylvester Harley, son of English immigrants and the brains of the operation. A talented artist and draftsman, Harley's expertise was put to good use even if they barely had the resources and precision to make their first engine. Their exploits initially conflicted with Bill's college education however, besides having to moonlight as a waiter to support his studies.
- Gadgeteer Genius: His engineering skills were first seen in the opening chapters of the show where he built a clock in his spare time at the foundry, culminating in what motorcycle enthusiasts would view as Harley's crowning achievement, the 1936 EL/61 OHV, later known as the Knucklehead, to which derivatives of the engine still continue to be used to this day.note
- Mr. Fixit
- Reclusive Artist / Intelligence Equals Isolation: More or less downplayed as despite of his introversion, he does attract the attention of his future wife Anna Jachthuber, an ice cream vendor whom he and Arthur met along the way.
Portrayed by: Michiel Huisman
Former railroad engineer and the resident daredevil and adrenaline junkie, he quit his job at the Kansas railroad to join in on the newly-established company.
- A Taste of Their Own Medicine: Walter got this when he had to deal with his rebellious son Walter C. Davidson, whose exploits earned him the ire of the local police.
- The Alcoholic: Whenever he drowns his sorrows after an altercation or just wants to clown around with a beer mug in hand, Walt certainly likes his booze well.
- Berserk Button: Walter tends to hit this quite often, having the balls to outright punch Indian Motorcycles president George Hendee at a race over what he calls a "robbery by fountain pen", for bribing dealerships into carrying Indian motorcycles exclusively.
- Genius Bruiser
- Hair-Trigger Temper
Portrayed by: Daniel Coonan
Known by his employees as "Old Bill", he is the eldest of the Davidson brothers, and a former toolroom foreman at the Milwaukee railroad prior to joining the company. As he was responsible for hiring people to work at the Harley factory, "Old Bill" was seen by workers as a fatherly figure whom they look up to and asked for advice.
- Demoted to Extra: For some reason Bill Davidson's contributions to the company were shown less in the series, often focusing more on Bill Harley and the other Davidson brothers even if "Big Bill" had been just as accomplished in the company as the rest of the founding fathers in real life.
Portrayed by: Philip Brodie
A former bicycle racing champion and one of the co-founders of Indian Motocycle Manufacturing Company.
- Corrupt Corporate Executive: In Real Life he isn't that much of a scheming executive bent at taking his rivals out of existence - both Hendee and and the Davidson brothers actually looked after each other's businesses, and when the original Indian Motocycle Manufacturing Company folded, H-D mourned over the company's demise. In the case of his depiction in the miniseries, it's exaggerated.
- Historical Villain Upgrade: As stated above, any and all rivalry between him, Harley and the Davidson siblings were played for drama; whatever competition they had would be more in the way of healthy than ruthless.
- Jerkass: When Harley-Davidson participated at an Indian-sponsored enduro race, Hendee rejected Walter's entry claiming it was overweight for "safety reasons"; he was simply trying to save his skin from being humiliated by a band of upstarts.
Portrayed by: Gabriel Luna
A motorcycle racer hailing from Waco, Texas who earned the nickname "Texas Cyclone" for his board track racing performances during the 1910s.
- Adaptation Expansion: Not much has been known about Hasha apart from his tragic death at the racetrack, and while he did sort of work for Harley in the early 1910s, it wasn't to the extent that he was depicted in the series.
- More so by the fact that when Bill and Arthur were showing the draft for their motorized bicycle to Joe Merkel, Hasha would've been 10-12 years old as he was born in the 1890s.
- The Cake Is a Lie: Having being promised of a sponsorship as a racer for Harley-Davidson, Hasha left Merkel in exchange for appropriating a carburetor, after being coerced by Walter into stealing a working one following an engine fire that razed Harley-Davidson's prototype bike. A couple or so races later and yet Eddie was never given a chance to tear up the track, at most being an assistant for the crew.
- Mistreatment-Induced Betrayal: Disenchanted by Harley's empty promises for a sponsorship, Hasha left the H-D racing team for Indian. But his stint for the latter didn't end well either, as he was tragically killed at a motordrome race in Newark, New Jersey.
- Race Lift: While the real Eddie Hasha was apparently of White descent
, he was portrayed in the show by Mexican-American actor Gabriel Luna.
