Reading the Signs....

Da Stranger · August 24, 2010, 02:31:30 AM

New shit has come to light dudes, I just noticed the sign on Walter's van when he picks the Dude up on Shabbos, says SOBCHAK SECURITY. So i guess Walter runs a security company.
That's fucking interesting man, I did not know that.

What about other signs? Anybody notice any?

The pancake place...uh.... that the nihilists ate at....uh.... its called "Stacks".....but I could not read the name in the window of the "family restaurant" where Walter and Dude met?

brother_erwin · December 26, 2010, 10:50:46 AM

Hi Da Stranger,
when the dude picks Walter up for the hand-off, Walter stands in front of his shop. You can see his firm sign (red letters on white neon lights if I remember correctly, reading "Sobchak Security".

Not much hope for the name of the family restaurant, though.

Cheers,
Bruder Erwin

brother_erwin · December 26, 2010, 11:19:08 AM

Also, the sign reads: SS (which is not a preferred nomenclature exactly) and it has three small ticked boxes on it, signifying "Strength", "Security" "Peace of Mind".

brother_erwin · December 27, 2010, 06:27:44 AM

Strange, had posted this before but ...

@Da Stranger: On the right window (when viewed from the bar) you can read "Johnie's", I suppose this is the name of the family restaurant where Walter and the Dude discuss the toe-issue.
Anybody in a position to confirm or disconfirm that?

Cheers
Bruder Erwin

cakebelly · December 27, 2010, 01:04:44 PM

Just a quick aside to save you some time, brother erwin; Da Stranger hasn't visited the site in a long while. There was a big (well, medium) disagreement about certain issues and Da Stranger rode off into the sunset . . perhaps to start his own branch of Dudeism.

DigitalBuddha · December 27, 2010, 08:37:59 PM

Shit that has come to light................

As The Dude enters his apartment, having left Ralphs, a stage hand can be seen in a window of another apartment. The stage hand ducks quickly.

When the Nihilists are ordering food at the restaurant, you can see the reflection of the camera and cameraman in the window behind them. Watch as the scene pans around and you can see the camera and the cameraman move as well.

As The Dude enters his apartment, having left Ralphs, a stage hand can be seen in a window of another apartment. The stage hand ducks quickly.

In the beginning of the movie, Jeff Bridges walks into the bowling alley and takes his bowling ball out of his bag. After a few moments, they show Jeff Bridges again and he again takes the ball out of his bowling bag.

When they exit the bowling alley with the dog, the dog is never put in the car, only the cage.

When Bunny drives back to the mansion, the close-up of her feet shows a clutch pedal, but the Jaguar XJS she was driving was only available with an automatic transmission.

Near the beginning of the movie, the Dude is shopping at Ralph's. He is writing a check, and dates it September 11th, 1991. At the same time he looks up to see a TV with President Bush saying "This aggression (against Kuwait) will not stand." The incident against Kuwait started in the summer/fall of 1990, not 1991. The Stranger (Sam Elliot) and Walter also mention the Gulf War in the present tense.

When the kidnappers hang up on the Dude before the money drop, you hear a dial tone. Cell phones don't have dial tones.

brother_erwin · December 28, 2010, 04:02:36 AM

Quote from: cakebelly on December 27, 2010, 01:04:44 PM
There was a big (well, medium) disagreement about certain issues and Da Stranger rode off into the sunset . . perhaps to start his own branch of Dudeism.

Bummer, man, that's a bummer.... but thankee for letting me know anyway.

Faithfully yours
Bruder Erwin

DigitalBuddha · December 28, 2010, 05:28:14 AM

Quote from: cakebelly on December 27, 2010, 01:04:44 PM
Just a quick aside to save you some time, brother erwin; Da Stranger hasn't visited the site in a long while. There was a big (well, medium) disagreement about certain issues and Da Stranger rode off into the sunset . . perhaps to start his own branch of Dudeism.

One a those days, huh. Wal, a wiser fella than m'self once said, sometimes you eat the bar and sometimes the bar, wal, he eats you.

Not to worry, the dude will abide.

brother_erwin · December 28, 2010, 06:12:06 AM

@db,

yeah, man, that's interesting, that's fucking interesting! There's just one thing...

Quote from: digitalbuddha on December 27, 2010, 08:37:59 PM
Shit that has come to light................

In the beginning of the movie, Jeff Bridges walks into the bowling alley and takes his bowling ball out of his bag. After a few moments, they show Jeff Bridges again and he again takes the ball out of his bowling bag.

....which is that after having taken out the ball the first time, he also takes a hair pin out of the same bag, and then puts the ball back into the bag immediately. So, taking it out again makes a whole lot of sense to me.

And as for "appearances": After they have scattered (more or less) Donny's ashes there appears, for a short moment, a person on the cliff to the right.

And, here's three more issues to dude time on:

In the first scene in the bowlin alley, Donny is wearing a shirt with "Park Cleaners Southside" printed on its back. (Walter, giving his ash-scattering speech says: "He loved the outdoors";

) Are there any more clues about what Donny is doing when he is not bowling?

The Dude's Ralphs credit card's number is: 8503 900 213. Any unspoken message in here?

Dito: On the desk mat of the reactionary police chief of Malibu you can read:
2.30 pm flight 207. That's an allusion to something? Maybe another movie?

What do you think?

Faithfully yours
Bruder Erwin

DigitalBuddha · December 28, 2010, 06:22:11 AM

Quote from: brother_erwin on December 28, 2010, 06:12:06 AM

@db,

yeah, man, that's interesting, that's fucking interesting! There's just one thing...

Quote from: digitalbuddha on December 27, 2010, 08:37:59 PM
Shit that has come to light................

In the beginning of the movie, Jeff Bridges walks into the bowling alley and takes his bowling ball out of his bag. After a few moments, they show Jeff Bridges again and he again takes the ball out of his bowling bag.

....which is that after having taken out the ball the first time, he also takes a hair pin out of the same bag, and then puts the ball back into the bag immediately. So, taking it out again makes a whole lot of sense to me.

And as for "appearances": After they have scattered (more or less) Donny's ashes there appears, for a short moment, a person on the cliff to the right.

And, here's three more issues to dude time on:

In the first scene in the bowlin alley, Donny is wearing a shirt with "Park Cleaners Southside" printed on its back. (Walter, giving his ash-scattering speech says: "He loved the outdoors"; ) Are there any more clues about what Donny is doing when he is not bowling?

The Dude's Ralphs credit card's number is: 8503 900 213. Any unspoken message in here?

Dito: On the desk mat of the reactionary police chief of Malibu you can read:
2.30 pm flight 207. That's an allusion to something? Maybe another movie?

What do you think?

Faithfully yours
Bruder Erwin

Far out shit you have brought to light, BE. Fucking eh. I'll have to go back and check the Malibu chief's desk to check it out. Haven't noticed that before.

As for the dude's balling ball, going to check out the leads you posted on that too.

All good shit, man. Sounds like you had the boys in the crime lab working in shifts.

brother_erwin · December 28, 2010, 06:38:30 AM

Yeah, man, got four or five more detectives working on it!

cckeiser · December 28, 2010, 01:23:15 PM

Quote from: brother_erwin on December 28, 2010, 06:38:30 AM
Yeah, man, got four or five more detectives working on it!

Maybe you can have your detectives that a look at when did Donny die?
http://dudeism.com/smf/index.php?topic=1491.0
and
http://dudeism.com/smf/index.php?topic=1487.45

DigitalBuddha · December 28, 2010, 07:58:18 PM

Quote from: brother_erwin on December 28, 2010, 06:38:30 AM
Yeah, man, got four or five more detectives working on it!

You're a good dude and thorough.

brother_erwin · December 29, 2010, 05:30:00 AM

Thanks, DB and CC!

Waow, CC, that's what I call thorough (your inquiry into Donny's dying day). I don't think I stand a chance to come up with anything like this, not with my outdated entertainment electronics outfit anyway.

As for dates and set preparations in general. I think we have to accept that the Coen brothers were, well, CC, I wouldn't say lazy, cause what is lazy, ... but sure they were a bit dudeist about their set preparation. Yeah, what do you think?

cckeiser · December 29, 2010, 02:38:56 PM

I have the 10th Anniversary Edition of TBL with the Bonus disc. In a few of the bonus clips they show the clap board with the date the scene was shot. Most were shot in Feb of 1997. Since the Coen Bros didn't make an effort to hide some of the evidence as to when the movie was shot...like late model cars passing by the window in the diner...it makes it a little difficult to actually nail down when certain scenes were Supposed to have taken place.
I think the best we can do is try and eliminate when they could not have taken place.
But having said that, it looks as if it's a dudeist consensus (at least here on the forum) that Donny Died on March 5th, which I guess is just as good as any other date.