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Intriguing Perspective on Bobby Twist's Paternity

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Jeff Wrangler:
This discussion takes me back! I remember--and participated in--a different one at IMDb before the Great Troll Uprising.

I don't remember much of that discussion, but one thing I do remember was that at some point the dates on the sign in the rodeo arena entered into it, and I'm pretty sure the concensus in the end is that we are to take it that Jack met Lureen in the same summer--1966--as Ennis took on the bikers.

I don't recall that discussion ever actually resolving anything. I do remember somebody pointing out that the baby Lureen is holding is way too big to be a newborn. It's always seemed to me to be more logical to assume that Lureen got pregnant by Jack, and that was the reason for the marriage and why L.D. Newsome hated Jack's guts. It was speculated that the screenplay moved the reunion from Annie Proulx's June to September to allow more time, but that's still not enough for the baby to be eight months old, even if Jack and Lureen's rendezvous in the back seat of the car took place on July 4, 1966, and Lureen conceived that very night.

I would think that parents would be pretty accurate about the ages of their children, but I'm not a parent. Maybe our cowboys are just a little vague about their children's ages. In the original story's account of the last fishing trip, even Annie Proulx gives an age for Alma, Jr., that doesn't jive with her given birth date of September 1964.

In earlier versions of the screenplay, Lureen's surname was Phillips.

opinionista:
Let's do some math. I'm pretty bad with numbers so If someone sees a mistake, do tell please.

So Bobby was 8 months old in September 1967 and "smiled a lot"  ;D. So he must've been born on Jan 1966 considering Lureen had a normal pregnancy and gave birth on her due time, because that's another possibility, although a silly one, that Bobby was born premature or something. Lureen then had to get pregnant by April 1966 and by May she was one month along. If she got pregnant the very same night she had sex with Jack then they met on April 1966. If she didn't, she met Jack sometime between 1965 and April 1966.

Mikaela:

--- Quote from: Daniel on June 21, 2006, 02:29:31 pm ---The word Lure is just too apparent in the first name.

--- End quote ---

That's a good point. Annie Proulx chose the names Ennis, Del Mar and Twist for a reason - there likely was a specific reason for her to name  "Lureen" too. But it may be no more than that Lureen held a lure for Jack - offered something he'd like to have - could be her money, could be companionship, could be any number of things, really. Jack himself clearly indicates to Ennis that it's her family money held the lure. Then again, in the short story he holds on to her for many years before she gets at that money. And in both story and film he has every reason to soothe Ennis into thinking the money is the (only) lure - it's a safe and non-emotional reason.They've already established earlier that "money is a good point" in doing anything.

When it comes to the filmmakers, they must have made the change from the early script's "Phillips" to the later "Newsome" for a reason - I've imagined they are hinting at Lureen representing "something new" for Jack, and in more ways than one.

Personally, I doubt that any of the names is intended as an anagram with hidden meanings, though some intrieguing ones can definitely be constructed. That just sounds like something that Dan Brown would do, rather than the down-to-earth Annie Proulx.

bbm_stitchbuffyfan:
Actually, Mikaela, I heard somewhere that Ennis means "island" in (I think) Spanish. (I think I heard somewhere that Del Mar means "of the sea.") And Alma means something too (I think "water"), if I remember accurately...

How do we even know the 4-year reunion was September 1967? Maybe it wasn't exactly four years.

And they didn't skinny-dip on that reunion. We saw them in the hotel room and then we saw them sitting by the fire (this is when Ennis recalls Earl's death...).

opinionista:

--- Quote from: bbm_stitchbuffyfan on June 21, 2006, 04:51:10 pm ---Actually, Mikaela, I heard somewhere that Ennis means "island" in (I think) Spanish. (I think I heard somewhere that Del Mar means "of the sea.") And Alma means something too (I think "water"), if I remember accurately...

How do we even know the 4-year reunion was September 1967? Maybe it wasn't exactly four years.

And they didn't skinny-dip on that reunion. We saw them in the hotel room and then we saw them sitting by the fire (this is when Ennis recalls Earl's death...).

--- End quote ---

Ennis means Island in gaelic, Alma means "soul" in Spanish, and Twist has something to do with rodeoin. I can't remember accurately but it has to do with leg muscles or something.

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