Comments on: Jeff Dowd of the Seattle Seven is the model for The Dude in The Big Lebowski

Jeff Dowd of the Seattle Seven is the model for The Dude in The Big Lebowski

y2karl — Sun, 16 Oct 2005 23:56:07 -0800

Jeff Dowd of the Seattle Seven is the model for The Dude in The Big Lebowski

By: y2karl

y2karl — Sun, 16 Oct 2005 23:58:15 -0800

By: benzo8

benzo8 — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 00:15:27 -0800

Two occurances of the word "imaged" as typo for imagined/imagining - A.P. aren't what they used to be... And I just watch Lebowski again last night - awesome film...

By: keswick

keswick — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 00:23:17 -0800

I saw the Big Lebowski for the first time this year. Can someone explain its appeal?

By: zerolives

zerolives — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 00:34:35 -0800

Keswick: It's just fun to watch. The characters are funny, it's endlessly quotable, the performances are beautiful. Plus, Sam Elliott plays a phantom cowboy that exists only in the dude's head. But, YMMV. The dude abides.

By: y2karl

y2karl — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 00:41:15 -0800

Can someone explain its appeal? Meatball Doesn't Work That Way...

By: benzo8

benzo8 — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 00:43:22 -0800

keswick: zerolives pretty much nails it, but for me, it's the fact that the Coen's managed to write a perfect "fish-out-of-water" story while insisting that The Dude was pretty much the "man of his time and place" - that dichotomy was just perfectly balanced.

By: caddis

caddis — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 00:53:19 -0800

nice tags Casualness runs deep.

By: Ethereal Bligh

Ethereal Bligh — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 00:53:42 -0800

I had no idea there was a "Seattle Seven". However, doesn't everyone who could possibly be interested already know about Jeff Dowd?

By: Ethereal Bligh

Ethereal Bligh — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 00:55:14 -0800

"Plus, Sam Elliott plays a phantom cowboy that exists only in the dude's head." I don't know why you're so sure of that. As far as I'm concerned, he's just as "real" as any other character in the film.

By: maxsparber

maxsparber — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 03:29:46 -0800

Even Knox Harrington, the video artist?

By: tizzie

tizzie — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 03:58:44 -0800

Vidiot's photos from the most recent Lebowskifest. He'll be at the NYC event this weekend, too.

By: tizzie

tizzie — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 04:09:32 -0800

This here's the Dude. Here he's admiring the Lebowskifest burlesque dancers with his special lady friend (that one is in my Flickr set from the 'fest - my third visit.) Explaining it's appeal would be like talking to a child, who just wandered in to the room...

By: funambulist

funambulist — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 04:51:37 -0800

However, doesn't everyone who could possibly be interested already know about Jeff Dowd? Well I didn't. I didn't even know there were Lebowskifests and all this cult following. So there. I approve this post.

By: anomie

anomie — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 06:32:57 -0800

Far fucking out, man!

By: Vidiot

Vidiot — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 06:52:03 -0800

Lebowski Fest. You mean, like an Irish monk?

By: Ethereal Bligh

Ethereal Bligh — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 07:10:04 -0800

Shut the fuck up, anomie.

By: stenseng

stenseng — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 07:15:27 -0800

You're out of your element.

By: gompa

gompa — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 07:53:11 -0800

I saw the Big Lebowski for the first time this year. Can someone explain its appeal? The Dude abides. I don't know about you, but I take some comfort in that. It's good knowin' he's out there - the Dude - takin' 'er easy for all us sinners.

By: fatllama

fatllama — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 08:06:32 -0800

Just excellent.

By: sonofsamiam

sonofsamiam — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 08:07:57 -0800

I saw the Big Lebowski for the first time this year. Can someone explain its appeal? Hard to say exactly why, but it's one of my favorite movies of all time, up there with The Good the Bad and the Ugly, 2001, Goodfellas, Pulp Fiction, Taxi Driver... The dialogue is great and the cinematography is just gorgeous. I could watch that slo-mo bowling for hours on end. It has an excellent soundtrack, that I was singing to myself just this morning. It's just a great movie. Most people I know that are "into" movies really like it. I don't know why you're so sure of that. As far as I'm concerned, he's just as "real" as any other character in the film. Well, here's the thing: The Dude only meets him twice, and despite the Cowboy narrating the story, the Dude never tells him about any of these events. So how does the Cowboy know? That doesn't mean he's in the Dude's head, but he sure is mysterious.

By: anomie

anomie — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 08:52:38 -0800

Ethereal Bligh, is that some kinda eastern thing?

By: nyxxxx

nyxxxx — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 09:21:08 -0800

The Cowboy is God. He knows all. The Dude is a sort of slacker Jesus. He slacks off for our sins. But mostly the Cowboy is the narrator because someone has to tell the fucking story. It doesn't matter if he's real or not. The Dude won't do it. He's not really interested in talking about himself, and besides, it's too much work.

By: maryh

maryh — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 09:49:58 -0800

You can read it here, or even perform it with your co-workers. This movie never gets old for me...

By: small_ruminant

small_ruminant — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 10:17:51 -0800

The first time I watched it I thought it was the stupidest movie I ever saw. Then I ended up watching it again and it had somehow transformed into a work of genius. I think it has to do with the mindset you have going into it.

By: muppetboy

muppetboy — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 10:31:51 -0800

stenseng: "You're out of your element." I'm calmer than you are.

By: splatta

splatta — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 11:34:03 -0800

calmern'youare dude

By: iron chef morimoto

iron chef morimoto — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 11:50:54 -0800

Dowd: A lot of the body language is 110 percent spot on. That's very, very similar. Some of the dress is pretty close. Well, that's mildly disturbing. I wonder if he used to own a pair of those jelly shoes..

By: muppetboy

muppetboy — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 12:22:37 -0800

calmerenyouare

By: soiled cowboy

soiled cowboy — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 13:16:17 -0800

I didn't know about Jeff Dowd before, either. But I did know that Walter Sobchak was based on John Milius.

By: CunningLinguist

CunningLinguist — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 15:01:03 -0800

Nice marmot.

By: mwhybark

mwhybark — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 16:52:43 -0800

these men are cowards, donnie.

By: luckypozzo

luckypozzo — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 17:41:44 -0800

Not the compromised second draft.

By: SPrintF

SPrintF — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 18:19:47 -0800

"This is not Nam. This is bowling. There are rules."

By: Chrischris

Chrischris — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 18:19:49 -0800

Thanks for this post. I was not (you know--in the parlance of our times) privy to all the new shit.

By: Lebowski

Lebowski — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 19:30:34 -0800

This post really ties the blue together.

By: graventy

graventy — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 20:24:18 -0800

I saw the Big Lebowski for the first time this year. Can someone explain its appeal? Watch it again. Then watch it a third time. This movie really grows on you. Well, it did for me, at any rate.

By: Jon Mitchell

Jon Mitchell — Mon, 17 Oct 2005 20:34:50 -0800

True. I've watched it four or five times now, and it is the only movie I've ever seen that has consistently improved on every single repeat, to my unending surprise. Apparently this is a relatively common experience, judging by this entry at Everything.

By: maryh

maryh — Tue, 18 Oct 2005 00:11:18 -0800

It's such a dopey gag, but I love the scene at Jackie Treehorn's where the Dude tries to decode Jackie's scribble. It's such a great homage/slap at North by Northwest. And I didn't know Walter was based on Milius (makes perfect sense, tho') or that Bunny was played by Tara Reid.... I'm a richer woman for reading this thread. And proud I am of all of you.

By: tizzie

tizzie — Tue, 18 Oct 2005 03:57:17 -0800

Maryh, this guy had a great shirt based on that scribble.

By: goofyfoot

goofyfoot — Tue, 18 Oct 2005 11:47:00 -0800

Say what you want about the tenets of Metafilter, at least its an ethos.

By: splatta

splatta — Tue, 18 Oct 2005 19:42:28 -0800

Metafilter: at least it's an ethos

By: Vidiot

Vidiot — Wed, 19 Oct 2005 09:57:35 -0800

and Bunny's license plate, by the way, is "LAPIN." I'm just sayin'.

By: muppetboy

muppetboy — Wed, 19 Oct 2005 12:59:18 -0800

you can imagine where this thread goes from here...