Indians in “The Shining”

One of the most fascinating sideshows that accompanies this incredible movie is the Native American Indian connection. When I first started this blog I checked out several other “Shining” websites and one of the first ones I read was this one. Even though there are a lot of hidden things pertaining to Indians in Stanley Kubrick’s masterpiece for a long time I thought it was ridiculous. The Indian references are a visual lure but I still haven't found any link in “The Shining” to the Holocaust of The American Indian. I can now see where the seed for this "theory" came from though because it’s quite obvious that Stanley Kubrick wants us to notice Indians in “The Shining” the same way he wants us to notice his special set of numbers and obvious twins. Many have picked up on this and come to the conclusion that “The Shining” is a metaphor for the Holocaust of the American Indian. I’m going to go through the reasons why people believe this than tell you why I don’t. It's a different Holocaust that Stanley Kubrick is pointing us to.

In the movie we have;
1) Wendy brings up the Donner Party and Jack lovingly talks about cannibalism with Danny on their trip to the hotel. The Donner Party had nothing to do with Indians.

2) Mr. Ullman talking about two Indian tribes during the tour at the beginning of the movie and Overlook hotel is full of Indian artwork and pictures from these "Navajo and Apache" tribes. This in itself proves nothing and is exactly what you would expect to find in a hotel in Oregon.

3) The Calumet cans that appear out of nowhere behind Dick and Jack’s head in the storeroom have an Indian chief on them. Stanley Kubrick is showing us what happens when people "Shine".

4) Danny’s subterfuge in the Hedge Maze at the end of movie as he uses an old Indian trick of retracing his footsteps to fool Jack. This seems to not only be an old Indian trick and it's hard to find where the actual origins of it lie.

5) Wendy is seen in pigtails looking a little Indian-ish. I don't think so.

6) The Indian Burial ground. Mr. Ullman tells us that, “The site is supposed to be located on an Indian burial ground, and I believe they actually had to repel a few Indian attacks as they were building it.” If you read the words very closely this sentence is obvious hearsay. Mr. Ullman has no firsthand knowledge of this. In the film it’s just a rumor that was obviously included by Stanley Kubrick to keep Indians in viewer’s minds. It's not in Stephen King's novel either, Stanley Kubrick added it. He also adds this in the dialogue so you'll know it's all a joke as Mr. Ullman tells them the year that The Overlook was built, “construction began in 1907 and was finished in 1909.” There were no "Indian attacks" in 1907 or 1909 and any explanation, like the website I mentioned before, that doesn't mention this fact is either intentionally or unintentionally incomplete.

7) Wendy refers to the “Keep America Beautiful” Public Service Announcements (where Iron Eyes Cody sheds a tear over pollution) of the 1970’s as she says; “The loser has to keep America clean!”. This is another sly joke on Stanley Kubrick’s part because Iron Eyes Cody isn’t even an Indian he’s an Italian. He's a cigar store Indian.

8) July 4, 1921. It can't be overlooked, this date is meaningless in the history of the American Indian and the date July 4 is not the most important date in the Holocaust of the American Indian. The discovery of America by the Europeans would be the most important date.

9) It's Indian blood that pours up from the graves of the ancient burial ground and out of the elevator shaft. If you look closely this is not what happens as the blood pours out of the top of the left elevator, not the bottom. This blood might be from some other Holocaust or even a future Holocaust, nothing links it specifically to the Holocaust of the American Indian. I believe Danny's vision of the bloody elevators is a premonition of Dick Hallorann's death and Wendy's vision of the bloody elevators is a premonition of Jack's death. The exact same vision seen by both Danny and Wendy at different times isn't real either, “Remember what Mr. Hallorann said. It's just like pictures in a book, Danny. It isn't real.”






The idea to put hidden Indians in his movie is yet another thing that came directly from Stephen King's novel. If you didn’t read it you’ve probably never seen this line, “Can you see the Indians in this picture?” (Page 133 - Chapter 21 & Page 196 - Chapter 34). He took Steven King’s seemingly insignificant sentences and makes you “strain and squint” (Page 133 - Chapter 21), than “you could see some of them”. The source novel just can’t be ignored here.

I’ve just listed where the obvious “Indians” are “in this picture”. Then there are the hidden Indians that most people have either missed or choose to ignore because they don't fit in with a preconceived interpretation.

There’s the red "Golden Rey" (the Spanish word that we now use for the Mayan Indian's kings) box pointing to the Mayan’s. A perplexing company added in between all the other brand names in The Overlook’s storeroom.

Mayan artwork is also seen here on the office wall at the beginning of the movie and it’s not mentioned by Mr. Ullman

There’s a perfect depiction of an ancient Mayan pyramid (top, sides and stairs) hidden in Jack’s dream of the hedge maze. Nothing else in the ancient world looks like this. The top, sides, stairway, it's all there – but it shouldn’t be; it doesn’t belong in this horror movie.



Taken all together what does this spell; the Holocaust of the American Indian? Not for me; it's obvious that the hidden Indians in "The Shining" are the Mayans. They are the Indians hidden “in this picture”. And we all know what very interesting number they're famous for; and what's right around the corner in a few years.
































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Does Delbert Grady ever tell the truth in the story?

It’s amazing how in “The Shining” Stanly Kubrick is able to manipulate the audience into believing that lies are the truth and that the truth is a lie. And this may be what the final picture in the movie is actually all about. Why do we believe what we believe? What I’m going to show you now has flown right over the heads of most viewers. It’s quite incredible when you think about it though. As you viewed “The Shining” have you ever thought about what Delbert Grady’s character is actually saying? Is he telling the truth? Of course he is everyone knows that Jack’s been in The Overlook before because Delbert Grady says so; no one ever asks this question about his truthfulness because we’ve been manipulated. Grady is an honest God fearing “ghost”. He may have had some problems with his family in the past but he “corrected” them. He even tries to convince Jack to kill his family but if you put all these shortcomings aside he has stellar credibility. As far as “ghosts” go he’s the top of the heap; honest and true. But it never dawns on us that something is tremendously wrong here. Dick Hallorann never lies in the movie and what he says is not believed yet Grady has no credibility at all and what he says is believed wholeheartedly. If you actually thought about it what seems right is where the truth ends up being; in the movie Grady lies about everything and Dick Hallorann never lies – it’s so obvious. But when you finally realize this it’s gonna’ make your head spin because it will change everything about how you perceive this movie.

Look closely at the conversation Jack has with Delbert Grady as there is evidence in the dialogue that everything he says to Jack is a lie. And remember that I believe that Jack is talking to his imaginary friend (his version of Danny's friend Tony) as he looks into the mirrors, not a “ghost”:

Grady: Grady, sir. Delbert Grady…. That's right, sir.
Jack: Delbert Grady?
At first this seems to be just one more of those enigmatic things that Stanley Kubrick placed in “The Shining”. Just a perplexing mystery with no real answer. But he doesn’t tell Jack his real name; it’s a lie as we know from the dialogue where Mr. Ullman tells us that his real name is Charles Grady, not Delbert Grady. In the novel there is no Delbert Grady, just Charles Grady. The name Delbert Grady is a lie.

Jack: Ah, Mr. Grady... haven't I seen you somewhere before?
Grady: Why no, sir. I don't believe so.
This is another lie as in the dialogue Jack tells us later on that he's seen his picture in the scrapbook we see opened on his desk and Grady would definitely know about the scrapbook.

Jack: Eh... Mr. Grady... weren't you once the caretaker here?
Grady: Why no, sir. I don't believe so.
Another lie as Charles Grady (as we know from the dialogue where Mr. Ullman tells us) was the caretaker of The Overlook in 1970.

Jack: You’re a married man, are you, Mr. Grady?
Grady: Yes, sir. I have a wife and eh two daughters, sir.
Jack: And, ah... where are they now?
Grady: Oh, they're somewhere around. I'm not quite sure at the moment, sir.
Another lie as Mr. Ullman tells us in the dialogue that Grady actually did hack them to death.

Jack: Mr. Grady, you were the caretaker here. I recognize you. I saw your picture in the newspapers. You ah... chopped your wife and daughters up into little bits, and ah... and you blew your brains out.
Grady: That's strange, sir. I don't have any recollection of that at all.
Another lie as Mr. Ullman tells us that all this actually happened. We also now know that the "ghost" Jack is imagining looks exactly the same as the real Charles Grady.

Jack: Mr. Grady, you were the caretaker here.
Grady: I'm sorry to differ with you, sir, but you are the caretaker. You have always been the caretaker, I should know, sir. I've always been here.
Another lie because if Delbert Grady had, “always been” in The Overlook his face would be in the picture at the July 4th ball in 1921 along with Jack at the end of the movie. They were both “caretakers” and he must be in that picture and must (like Jack) look exactly the same.

Grady: Did you know, Mr. Torrance, that your son... is attempting to bring an outside party into this situation? Did you know that?
Another lie as it’s Jack with his ability to “Shine” who alerts Dick Hallorann that something is wrong at The Overlook. If you find this hard to believe remember that Dick Hallorann knows something is wrong only when Jack walks into room 237 and not when Danny is strangled, which happened earlier. This is very important; as Jack meets the old woman he is “Shining” that image of room 237 into Dick Hallorann’s head. Danny never telepathically calls Dick Hallorann when he's attacked, in fact there is no place in the dialogue or on the screen that proves that he ever calls on him at all.

Grady: Your son has a very great talent. I don't think you are aware how great it is, but he is attempting to use that very talent against your will.
This is an obvious lie as Danny never does anything except ride around The Overlook, play with his toys, watch cartoons, and escape from his crazy ax wielding father. Stanley Kubrick hides this extremely well but we hardly ever see Danny use his special ability in the movie. If you find this hard to believe, think about this. At the end of the movie as he's running for his life Danny uses his wits rather than his "very great talent" to outsmart his father.


It’s an amazing example of manipulation we’re witnessing here and it has obvious parallels in human society. Because of the way the characters are presented the natural instinct after viewing “The Shining” is to believe all the things that the putative “ghost” Delbert Grady says and to ignore what the totally truthful Dick Hallorann says. It’s really unbelievable when you stop and think about it. Dick Hallorann never lies yet people don’t believe the obvious explanations he gives us about whether the “ghosts”in the hotel are real or not, “Remember what Mr. Hallorann said. It's just like pictures in a book, Danny. It "isn't real” yet everyone believes that Jack has been in The Overlook before because Delbert Grady says, “You have always been the caretaker, I should know, sir. I've always been here.” This ends up being a study in mass manipulation on the highest level and has everything to do with the final picture in the movie which is also not what it appears. Ask yourself this question; why do you believe what you believe?



































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Does Dick Hallorann Ever Lie in the story?

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If you truly want to understand Stanley Kubrick’s “Shining” you have to be able to decipher whether what the characters are telling you is the truth or a lie.



One thing I never expected when writing this blog was that anyone would question the truthfulness of Dick Hallorann’s dialogue. For me it’s part of the explanation of this enigmatic movie and the meanings that Stanley Kubrick concealed in the script (like the pictures taken from the movie and the alterations he made to Stephen King’s novel) can’t be changed. Viewers will attempt to interpret things in their own ways but the words Stanley Kubrick placed in his finished film can't be altered. They are what they are. It’s like when Stanley Kubrick added this easy to miss statement in the dialogue as Dick Hallorann's explanation of why he returns to The Overlook, “Ullman phoned me last night, and I'm supposed to go up there and find out if they have to be replaced.” It’s not a mistake to take his explanation along with the other things Dick Hallorann says in the film as the truth. I believe the statement for two reasons. 1) Because of the quality of the person who says it and 2) because there is a very good chance that it is actually what happened as it’s the only explanation Stanley Kubrick gives us in the dialogue of why Dick Hallorann returns to The Overlook. Whether people like it or not; his boss ordered him back to The Overlook. It's all about character, and Dick Hallorann has character. He's the hero of this story.

In the novel Dick Hallorann lies several times about why he's going back to The Overlook. He tells variations of his story about his son being shot to the park rangers, to his boss, to the cop that pulls him over, and to Larry Durkin at the garage. They all ask him flat out the same question but he doesn't tell them the real reason for his return. He doesn't tell any of them that Danny uses the "Shine" to call him in Florida. But in the film Stanley Kubrick cleverly alters all this, his "Shining" is different from Stephen King's. If you can find any spot in the dialogue of this film where Danny calls on anyone for help please go back to my main blog and post it. You may feel in your bones that Danny is calling for help in the room 237 scene but he isn't. He doesn't call or ask for help when he's being strangled, at the end of the film when he's being chased by his father with an ax or at any other point in the story. This simply never happens in the film. In his movie Stanley Kubrick cleverly reverses what's happening and Dick Hallorann now only gives one reason for his return and it's either true or false.

There's nowhere in the movie where Dick Hallorann lies, cheats, dumbs down, exaggerates, misleads or tells any falsehood to anyone at all. Any attempt at un-explaining this explicit statement that he makes to his friend Larry Durkin about why he’s returning to The Overlook and who sends him there is pure speculation and a fabrication from the mind of someone that has another agenda, someone who doesn’t want his statement to be true. But what Stanley Kubrick has him say is very explicit and we don’t have enough information to make a wild guess that contradicts what Dick Hallorann plainly states. In the end, as in life, we either believe what he says because of the type of person he is or we don’t. There's no other information to go by in the film. But what’s even more important is; his statement is either true or it isn’t as Stanley Kubrick gives us no other explanation in the movie as to why he returns to the hotel. If it’s true, the implications of the sentence on how we view this movie are immense. His statement totally changes everything about what's actually going on under the surface of this movie because the phones are out and the only way his boss could know something is wrong at the hotel is if he sees the exact same vision of Jack walking into room 237 as Dick and Danny see. There is no other way he could know and the only information we’re given from Stanley Kubrick about this is contained in that sentence. This is what totally frustrates so many of my readers who have a certain agenda. If you don't want to believe the obvious, that Stanley Kubrick gives the "Shine" to other characters in his film than you'll fight this sentence of Dick Hallorann's vehemently. But you can't change it.

It’s obvious that this question must be answered. In the film does Dick Hallorann have any proclivity for lying? Some may think he was he lying to his friend like he did in the novel. He didn’t want to let Larry in on the exact reason for his return to The Overlook. Maybe he was afraid to tell anyone else about his supernatural ability to “Shine” and see visions. Maybe he was afraid to tell Larry about the vision he saw of Jack in room 237 because his friend would think he was completely crazy. But these are all just guesses because Stanley Kubrick only gives us one bit of information about this and it's different from the novel, “Ullman phoned me last night”, and that’s it.



A lot of what I’ve written about “The Shining” is only valid if Dick Hallorann is telling the truth as he’s the only character that knows anything about the “Shine”. We really need to know if he’s truthful or not if we ever want to truly understand this film. I was alerted to a spot in the movie where he appears, on the surface, to tell a lie so I investigated a little and ended up discovering one of the most important things about this movie that no one has ever realized. Just who and what can you believe.

Dick Hallorann: Well I think we can manage that too, Doc. Come along now. Watch your step.
Wendy: Mr. Hallorann, how’d you know we call’em 'Doc'?
Dick Hallorann: Beg pardon?
Wendy: Doc. You called Danny 'Doc' twice just now.
Dick Hallorann: I did?
Wendy: Yeah. We call him Doc sometimes, you know, like in the Bugs Bunny cartoons. But how did you know that?
Dick Hallorann: Well I guess I probably heard you call him that.
Wendy: Well, it's possible, but I honestly don't remember calling him that since we've been with you.

Later.... Dick Hallorann: Do you know how I knew your name was Doc? You know what I'm talking about, don't you? I can remember when I was a little boy; my grandmother and I could hold conversations entirely without ever opening our mouths. She called it shining, and for a long time I thought it was just the two of us that had the shine to us. Just like you probably thought you was the only one. But there are other folks, though mostly they don't know it, or don't believe it.


At first it appears he lies to Wendy by not telling her that the real reason he knows Danny’s nickname is “Doc” is because he has a supernatural ability called the “Shine”. If he’s deceptive here I can’t state that he never lies, and my belief in the sentence above, “Ullman phoned me last night...” relies on his truthfulness. But again in Kubrickland all is not what it appears to be. This quote is actually a goldmine for proving that Dick Hallorann is not a liar at all. This is just what I needed even though I never thought I would have to prove that Dick Hallorann speaks the truth, being the hero of this story. It appears that Stanley Kubrick through his dialogue was well prepared for this conundrum and he has his characters give us the answers to our questions from their own mouths.

The lie appears to be here; “Well I guess I probably heard you call him that.” He doesn’t tell Wendy that he has the ability to “Shine”. A lie of omission? Thinking his explanation is false is understandable because we know, or at least we think we know, that what he said can’t be true. We’ve been watching the movie from the start and we never actually see him hear Wendy call Danny “Doc”.

But I thought about it for a while and it dawned on me; how on earth can anyone after watching the first few minutes of this movie know that he’s lying from that statement alone? We know Dick has the ability to “Shine” but when he uses his special gift this early in the story we don’t know yet how it actually works. And they do call him “Doc” all the time. When he "Shines" does Dick read Wendy’s mind or did it actually happen the way he said, “I guess I probably heard you call him that.” It has to be one or the other. If he’s able to read her mind than he’s lying but if he actually heard her call him “Doc” then he’s not. And if he actually heard her call him “Doc” then not telling her about his ability to “Shine” is not a lie of omission either as he answered her question simply yet truthfully. There was no implication in her question as to whether or not he possesses a supernatural ability, or which of his many supernatural abilities he might be using on that particular day.

For these characters “Shining” is an unusual gift but I can’t think of anywhere in the movie where one of them uses it to read someone’s mind. It doesn’t mean it’s not there I just can’t think of any. It doesn’t matter anyway, it’s undeniable that there are several times in the film where people use it to hear conversations that are happening elsewhere. At 1:45 into the movie Danny, sitting in their apartment, is able to use his ability and listen to his parents conversation before Wendy clobbers jack with the bat. When Jack, inside the hotel, has his vision of Danny and Wendy walking in the center of The Hedge Maze at 00:39 he not only sees it but he’s also able to hear what they’re saying outside the hotel.

Stanly Kubrick gives us plenty of evidence that people who possess the “Shine” can hear conversations that occur out of earshot so what Dick Hallorann tells Wendy is the truth. Dick did hear her call Danny, “Doc” before they met and Stanley Kubrick cleverly puts this into the dialogue so there’s absolutely no confusion as to when Dick hears her use the nickname “Doc”. She says, “I honestly don't remember calling him that since we've been with you”. His perfectionism is unbelievable as Stanley Kubrick has all the bases covered. Wendy obviously knows she said it earlier in the hotel before they all met.

We know Dick Hallorann can hear conversations out of earshot but do we know for sure if he’s able to know the nickname "Doc" by reading Wendy’s mind? Well, rigorous logic won’t work here but it seems that Stanley Kubrick has also addressed this problem for us, and the answer is again in the dialog he wrote. This simple line is so easy to pass up as being unimportant. Jack says, “Mr. Hallorann, I'm Jack, and this is my wife, Winifred.” In the movie (and novel) it's her real name and Jack never uses the nickname Wendy inside The Overlook before they meet Dick. Not only do we never actually hear the name but Stanley Kubrick shows us that example of how she's introduced and there’s no evidence that Jack doesn’t introduce her to everyone they meet in exactly the same way. Jack says, "Hey Babe" when he calls her up after the interview, and even Mr. Ullman never calls her Wendy as we always hear him call her Mrs. Torrance. The nickname Wendy is simply never heard in The Overlook until later. Knowing all this helps to explain this seemingly meaningless fluff sentence Stanley Kubrick added to the dialogue, “Mrs. Torrance, your husband introduced you as Winifred. Now are you a Winnie or a Freddie? - I'm a Wendy.” It’s obvious that Dick Hallorann doesn’t know her nickname is Wendy and there’s only one reason for this; when he “Shined” he simply never heard anyone call her Wendy in the hotel. He doesn’t read her mind at all. There should be no confusion here; Stanley Kubrick alerts us to this by bringing up the two nicknames, Doc and Wendy and Dick heard only one, not the other; he knows Danny's nickname and doesn't know Winifred's. "Now what kind of ice cream do you like Doc? - Chocolate. - Chocolate it shall be." It's so obvious, he doesn't read Danny's mind or he would have known the answer to that question.

The dialogue is clear. We’re talking about Stanley Kubrick, a director who's inhumanly precise and in his movie (unlike in real life) Dick Hallorann never lies to anyone. Not Danny, not Wendy, not the forest rangers and definitely not his friend Larry Durkin. In asking for the Sno-cat he doesn't have to make up any story at all for Larry as to why he’s going up to The Overlook in a snowstorm. Not mentioning “The Shine” to Larry means nothing; it’s not a lie. Larry's question was, “What’s the big deal about getting up there today” and he answers truthfully. Larry didn’t ask about what supernatural ability Mr. Ullman possesses.

He doesn’t lie to his friend and anyone that believes he does, is entertaining pure un-provable speculation as any proclivity for lying cannot be found in him in this story. He's the same as Olivia de Havilland's character in "Gone With The Wind". The purest soul in movies. Someone that doesn't exist in real life. But in film we find people like this. The only person who lies in the film is Jack. Anyone who puts forth another explanation as to why Dick Hallorann would lie by saying that his boss ordered him back to The Overlook (such as nonsense like we never actually see him get Mr. Ullman's phone call or he's confused or was scared to tell Larry that he “Shines”) are wrong. These are just wild unsubstantiated guesses by people who have other agendas to uphold. Like I said before, if you find a place where he lies or exaggerates post it on my blog otherwise he doesn’t and I believe him at his word. We have a movie about people who possess a supernatural ability enabling them to communicate with each other over great distances. I can't imagine how anyone cannot see that in “The Shining’s” reality another of Dick Hallorann’s lines "there are other folks" is true and Mr. Ullman is included in that very small crowd (5 main characters) inhabiting this film's reality. It appears that Mr. Ullman knows something is very wrong at The Overlook. Something that could only be known if he uses the exact same supernatural ability that enables Dick Hallorann to know the exact same thing. There's no violation of the movie's reality in what I believe. Mr. Ullman "Shines" and sees the exact same vision of Jack in room 237 with the old woman as Dick and that’s how he knows what’s happening in “The Overlook”. Don't forget the phones are all out. The implications of this in the film are far reaching yet the dialogue Stanly Kubrick wrote is precise and cannot be altered - it's part of the explanation of this movie. It’s hard not to take Dick Hallorann’s statements as gospel truth when you can’t point to a single lie that he ever tells! “Ullman phoned me last night.” If he isn't lying then he's telling the truth. If you have concrete notions and all this rocks your perception of this movie, well that’s just to bad because you can’t change it and you'll have to live with it, even though you might never fully get it. But why doesn't Mr. Ullman, if he can "Shine", just talk telepathically with Dick Hallorann rather than phoning him? Again from the pen of the director who is ready for that question, "But there are other folks though mostly they don’t know it, or believe it. That's Mr. Ullman. The answers are all in the dialogue, Stanley Kubrick left nothing out.


“Larry, just between you and me, we've got a very serious problem with the people who are taking care of the place. They've turned out to be completely unreliable assholes. Ullman phoned me last night, and I'm supposed to go up there and find out if they have to be replaced.” Dick tells us exactly why he’s going back to the hotel and it isn't because Danny called - which he never does.

“But, there are other folks though mostly they don’t know it, or believe it”. Dick tells us that others have the same ability that he has, and some don't know it.

“No, I'm scared of nothing here. It's just that you know some places are like people, some shine and some don't. I guess you could say the Overlook Hotel here has something about it that's like shining.” He isn't scared because he's lived there and knows of nothing (especially in room 237) that can hurt Danny. If he did he would have told him so.

“You're scared of Room 237, ain'tcha?”
“No I ain't.”
“Mr. Hallorann, what is in Room 237?”
“Nothing. there ain't nothing in Room 237.” He never lies to anyone; there is absolutely nothing that he knows of in room 237.

"Not things that anyone can notice, but things that people who shine can see. Just like they can see things that haven't happened yet. Well, sometimes they can see things that happened a long time ago.” All of the Torrances see the same spook show because they all possess the same "Shine". They also have the ability to see the future and the past.

“Remember what Mr. Hallorann said. It's just like pictures in a book, Danny. It isn't real.” The visions they're seeing in The Overlook aren’t real. Not one vision in particular, not every other vision, not just visions on Saturday or Thursday, but every vision they see.

“Well I guess I probably heard you call him that.” They can hear conversations that occur well out of earshot.

“The Overlook Hotel here has somethin' about it that's like 'shining'." "Somethin' about it that's like 'Shining' again isn't the same thing as "Shining" - it's different. The Overlook doesn't "Shine".

Dick Hallorann is the only character in the "The Shining" that knows anything about the special supernatural power that they possess. These statements are all from a board certified expert on the subject. A person who never lies or exaggerates, and in the framework of this movie's reality; I believe everything he says - his dialogue is not only the explanation of the "Shine", in it is the explanation of the entire movie itself.




Click here and go back to my blog with over 500 interesting pictures from the movie, and read more.

Is Grady real or just in Jack’s imagination?

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This is a difficult question to answer. Either he’s a real spirit haunting The Overlook with the power to open a storeroom door or he’s a figment of the Jack Torrances’ own imagination. There is no in-between. I believe he's a vision produced in Jack's irrational mind but It’s hard to definitively prove this. Stanley Kubrick hides the answer to this question very well. But if you think about these seven points that he put into the movie it will help you to come to your own conclusion and you'll see why I believe Delbert Grady is a figment of Jack’s imagination. Click on each point for an explanation.



1) It’s well hidden but if you look at the dialogue Stanley Kubrick and Diane Johnson put the answer to this question right in the script and it can’t be changed.

2) Every time Jack sees a “ghost” he’s looking at himself in a mirror.

3) Who let Jack out of the storeroom if Grady is not real?

4) Why didn’t Grady “correct” Danny and Wendy himself?

5) Grady is not in the final photo.

6) How did Stanley Kubrick alter Stephen King’s novel?

7) We see him and hear him speaking to Jack.

8) What does Stanley Kubrick have to say about Delbert Grady?

Click here and go back to my blog with over 500 interesting pictures from the movie, and read more.

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Is there an explanation of the July 4th 1921 picture?

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The one question everyone who views “The Shining” wants to know is what does the black and white photo at the end of Stanley Kubrick’s film mean?

The answer to the question of what the final July 4th, 1921 photo represents is found in the novel. There’s only one important black and white photo in Stephen King’s novel. It’s Jesus and you can read the excerpt from his novel if you click here.

What he did to Stephen King’s novel is quite remarkable and has to be understood. In the film Stanley Kubrick is showing us the reverse of the novel as if it were being viewed in a mirror. It's exactly like the word, "Redrum". He was so bold in what he did that it starts in the very first shot of the film and no one ever noticed. The most obvious clue is in the colors he chose to use. Jack has an old red VW in the novel and it becomes a new yellow VW in the film. In the novel they’re saved in a yellow snowmobile and in the film it becomes a red Sno-cat. Danny plays with his red ball in the novel and it becomes Jack’s yellow ball in the film. The colors being reversed is only the beginning of an incredible hidden alteration of the source novel. Stanley Kubrick chose to create a mirror image of Stephen King’s novel and he altered Stephen King’s black and white photo of Jesus exactly the same way. In the film we’re viewing the opposite of Jesus. In the July 4th, 1921 photo Stanley Kubrick has Jack posed as the devil (click here).



The photo is a purposeful paradox; a true visual enigma on the screen and audiences have been wondering about it for a very long time. Without looking at Stephen King’s source novel it’s an enigma with no possible correct explanation, and when you first view “The Shining” you'll leave with the impression that Jack Torrance has been in The Overlook before. But this assumption is way to simple and it’s also quite wrong. The July 4th photo is the most perplexing image in the history of cinema and everything we’re looking at in it is the opposite of what’s true. Not only is it the mirror image of the photo in the novel but several things about it must be pointed out and addressed before you realize the true extent of what’s been done here. The key line that Stanley Kubrick took from Stephen King’s novel about the photo is this, “It was a big fake…”.



Click on each line for a more detailed explanation.

1) Stanley Kubrick has it say “Overlook Hotel” but the photo obviously is somewhere else. It’s not The Overlook Hotel.

2) The picture is not a July 4th party like it says. It’s a New Years Eve party.

3) The final photo simply doesn’t exist until after Jack’s death. Stanley Kubrick has it magically appearing, “Shined”, on the wall only in the last shot of the movie. It’s not there at any other time in the movie.

4) Jack Torrance is not the caretaker in the picture, he’s the manager.

5) Jack doesn’t belong in that picture.

6) Delbert Grady must also be there with Jack in the final photo; but he isn't.

7) Jack Torrance is not a reincarnation of the person in the photo.

8) The party in the 1921 picture can't possibly have anything to do with the party Jack imagines in the Gold Room.

9) Jack and Charles Grady were obviously both alive at the same time in 1970. You can’t be the reincarnation of someone who is alive at the same time you are.

10) Where are all the other caretakers?

11) Stanley Kubrick has Jack singing a special song from the year 1921 just before he dies.

12) Who are the people in the photo with Jack?

13) The photo is a vision.



Stanley Kubrick took Stephen King’s quote and has truly created, “a big fake…” in that final July 4th photo. Jack isn’t the caretaker and shouldn’t be there, and what’s printed on the photo is totally wrong; it isn’t The Overlook we’re looking at, it isn’t July 4th, it isn’t 1921 and Jack isn't the caretaker. The entire photo was produced as a fake and we know this from Stanley Kubrick’s interview with Michel Ciment. Jack Nicholson's face was airbrushed onto someone else’s body. To quote Danny's imaginary friend Tony again, “it's like pictures in a book “, "it isn't real".

The July 4 photo is exactly the same as the most famous fake photo in history. Lee Harvey Oswald with his face purported to be airbrushed in by the CIA. When someone's face is airbrushed onto another body there’s only one way to describe the photo; it's an obvious fake and this is what Stanley Kubrick did.

The photo is a fake and is not proof that Jack has ever been in The Overlook Hotel in a previous life. 14) Take one last look. Jack is posed in the final picture and it’s an obvious clue from Stanley Kubrick as to what the July 4th photo represents.


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Examples of how meticulous Stanley Kubrick was in altering the novel.

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Here’s a closer look at how meticulous Stanley Kubrick is as he inverts the entire scene with Danny and the pediatrician. It’s from chapter 17 “The Doctor’s Office” in Stephen King’s novel and it’s easy to spot how even the smallest details are reversed.

• 1st off, in the novel Danny blacks out in their bathroom in The Overlook, Stanley Kubrick reverses this and now it’s the bathroom at their apartment in Boulder before they get to The Overlook.

• Tony tells Danny to lock himself in the bathroom. In the movie he doesn’t.

• Danny’s pediatrician has a name, Doctor Bill Edmonds where in the movie this is reversed and we have an unnamed female Doctor.

• The three have to go down to Sidewinder to see Doctor Edmonds in his office. In the movie this is reversed and the Doctor makes a house call.

• Danny is “Stripped to his underpants, lying on the examination table”. In the movie Danny wears his “Bugs Bunny, what’s up Doc” sweatshirt.

• Doctor Edmonds gives Danny a thorough examination with an EEG and TB test. In the movie the Doctor does the reverse and just asks him a few simple questions.

• Doctor Edmonds seems to know something about “Shining” as he asks Danny if he smelled, "a funny smell, maybe like oranges”. In the movie the Doctor seems to know nothing about “Shining”.

• Danny tells Doctor Edmonds all about Tony. In the movie this is reversed and he will not talk about Tony to the Doctor.

• Danny “Shines” and reads Doctor Edmonds’ mind. In the movie this doesn’t happen.

• Danny even tells Doctor Edmonds about “Redrum”. In the movie this is reversed and he doesn’t tell the Doctor or anyone else about “Redrum”.

• Jack discuss Danny with Doctor Edmonds. In the movie only Wendy does.

• Jack tells Doctor Edmonds the story about how Danny, “spilled some beer on a bunch of papers I was working on”. In the movie it’s Wendy who tells the Doctor that Danny, “had scattered some of his school papers all over the room”.

• Jack, “broke his arm turning him around to spank him”. In the movie he doesn't break his arm he, “dislocated his shoulder”.

• When they talk to Doctor Edmonds they both realize that Danny is able to read their minds as they never discussed “divorce” in front of him. In the movie this never happens and neither Wendy nor Jack has the faintest clue about his ability.

• Doctor Edmonds points out to Wendy and Jack why Danny’s imaginary friend is named Tony (his middle name). In the movie the Doctor doesn’t do this.

• Wendy knows that Danny has “second sight” and he demonstrates it to Doctor Edmonds. In the movie we have a total inversion as Wendy doesn’t know much and Danny doesn’t demonstrate anything to anyone.

• Doctor Edmonds says this, "Does the phrase 'the shining' mean anything to you?" In the movie the Doctor doesn't say anything about it as only Dick Hallorann knows about or utters that word.

• In the novel Jack tells Doctor Edmonds that he hasn’t had a drink in 3 months. In the movie Wendy tells the Doctor that Jack hasn’t had a drink in 5 months.

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What did Stanly Kubrick do to Stephen King's novel.

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..........“A film is not a book.” - Roger Vadim


What important visual message was Stanley Kubrick telling us in this shot filmed in the same mirror that Wendy later sees "Redrum" in?



The fictitious town of Stovington, Vermont is mentioned in 4 of Stephen King’s novels, and it’s the only direct visual link in the movie to his novel. What’s printed on Jack’s t-shirt is meaningless to moviegoers but it’s a well-known name in Stephen King circles. What’s interesting is that for some strange reason Stanly Kubrick shows it to us backwards, “NOTGNIVOTS”. It’s reversed because we’re looking at it in a mirror. The inverted word is a metaphor because as I will show you we’re viewing Stephen King’s entire novel the same way, in a mirror; Stanley Kubrick’s special mirror, his version of “The Shining” where everything may turn out to be the opposite of what you think.

I can’t think of any other movie where reading the source novel was so enlightening. You cannot have a through understanding of Stanley Kubrick’s “Shining” without looking at what he did to Stephen King’s story. Viewers have often wondered why so much was changed from the novel but just exactly what did he do to alter the story? After reading it myself I discovered something else that’s been cleverly hidden in the same fashion as the numbers I spoke about in the last section. Something Stephen King has never said anything about even though he must have noticed right away. Stanley Kubrick, being one of the most intense perfectionists in modern cinema, didn’t just randomly alter things from the novel as many viewers think. He’s inverted them. It’s like looking at the image of Jack in the mirror, the image we see is the reverse of what’s real. I realized this with the colors of the two main vehicles in the story, and that's just the beginning. Stanley Kubrick meant for these color changes from the novel to be obvious and noticed and they’re a crucial part of the explanation of what’s happening in this movie. In the novel it’s not that easy to find the color of their VW as it is only mentioned once but just look at the VW in the opening credits of the movie; you’ll never forget that color. In the novel they’re brought to The Overlook in a red VW and have a yellow snowmobile at The Overlook. In the movie they’re brought to The Overlook in a yellow VW and have a red Sno-cat at The Overlook. They're also saved in a red Sno-cat. In the movie Jack plays with his yellow ball and in the novel Danny plays with his red ball. The colors Stephen King uses in the novel for these major props have been inverted by Stanley Kubrick.

He even does it with the sets. Except that they’re in the same hotel (or are they?) Stanley Kubrick was very meticulous in changing all the places from the novel where the scenes in the movie occur. The location of The Overlook has even been altered. In the novel the Torrance’s are in Colorado. In the movie The Overlook is in Oregon as we see early on when we’re shown The Timberline Lodge, which is located on Mount Hood in Oregon. Don’t let the Colorado State Flags all over the Colorado Lounge fool you. What we see in the beginning of the movie and when Dick Hallorann returns near the end is in the state of Oregon, not Colorado. Not one major thing happens in the movie’s Overlook in the same place it did in the novel’s Overlook (room 237 and 217 are different in each, the VW’s are different and change from red to yellow, Jack works in the basement in the novel and in the movie there is no basement, there’s no Gold Room in the novel and Jack meets Grady and Lloyd in the Colorado Lounge not The Gold Room. In the end of the novel Wendy and Jack have their knock down fight in the hallway not in the apartment. The final chase takes place inside The Overlook in the novel, not outside like the movie. Even Mr. Ullman's office was changed. In the novel Jack has his interview in the Manager's office and the story starts there, in the movie Mr. Ullman has been changed to the General Manager and the story starts in Jack's VW.). When he didn’t change the exact location, like Larry Durkin’s Conoco or the pantry, he alters something else about it. He did a perfect job and these inversions can’t be ignored. As I’ll discuss later, he’s also done this with the plot. He’s turned the novel inside out. Stanley Kubrick has taken Stephen King’s work and held it up to a mirror, and what we’re seeing in the movie is that reflection. A reflection where, in typical Kubrick fashion, just enough obvious changes are puzzlingly noticeable (The Hedge Maze and colors) and just enough is left alone (names and places), not being so obvious as to give it all away; the alterations are hidden exactly like the numbers he wants us to notice.

If you're interested in looking at more of the differences I've noticed between the novel and the movie, and how closely they relate to each other click here.

If you have preconceived ideas the reversals I’ve noted that he made to the novel are shocking. Especially when you think of how he was able to hide all this in plain site. But if you “go check it out” what I’ve writen is quite correct. It’s not only correct but it can’t be debated, altered or most importantly dismissed. It is what it is. In the novel he noted that readers would never know what “Redrum” meant without looking at the word in a mirror and he created a movie that can’t be truly explained without looking at it in a mirror. Red is yellow and yellow is red, a true reversal of the source material and, as I show throughout this article, these reversals are crucial to understanding many of the mysteries this movie holds.

Perfectionism without attention to detail can be a real train wreck but when a true perfectionist works average people look on in wonder at the world wind of intensity they create. When you think about the scope of the reversals here, the minute details that were altered and the time it must have taken, it’s a marvel to see and should be appreciated by all. Stanley Kubrick’s “Shining” may truly be The Eighth Wonder of the world of cinema. Here’s an interesting example of the inversions (and doubling) Stanley Kubrick made to the novel. The Grady girls, the most famous twins in history, never appear in the novel. This can't be ignored. Danny only meets up with the lonely invisible spirit of one single child in the playground in Chapter 34 (page 197). “... Now, in spite of the snow-dazzle, he thought he could see something there. Something moving. A hand. The waving hand of some desperately unhappy child, waving hand, pleading hand, drowning hand. (Save me O please save me. If you can't save me at least come play with me... forever, and forever, and forever.)” In the movie instead of one unseen child we now see two children who repeat the line together, twice, “Come and play with us. Come and play with us, Danny, For ever and ever, and ever.” Here’s another interesting example of the inversions. In the novel Danny sees but doesn’t understand what “Redrum” means and he mentions it to several people throughout the story. In the movie this is all reversed and Danny never sees “Redrum”. If you look closely at the movie it’s Tony that sees it, keeps repeating it, and writes it on the bathroom door. Totally reversed; and Stephen King’s fans never noticed. The chapters and page numbers I’ve included are all from Stephen King’s 307 page version.

It’s impossible to pinpoint when Stanley Kubrick decided to alter the source novel the way he did but Stephen King’s style of adding many details to his work may have been part of it’s appeal to him. He definitely had a brilliant source novel providing him a lot to work with. Here’s another great example indicating how Stanley Kubrick shows us inverted mirror images of plot points from the novel. Take a look at the entire scene with the old woman in the bathroom. In the novel it’s Danny who disobeys Jack and Dick Hallorann by walking into room 217 where he sees a dead women in the bathtub. In the movie we’re shown an entire reversal of this. If you look very closely Danny never disobeys anyone, as he doesn’t walk into the room. It’s Jack that walks in and sees not 1 but 2 women in the bathroom of room 237. In the novel Jack never sees anyone as he enters the bathroom only to find an empty tub with no woman in it. He only thinks he hears her after shutting the front door, and she rattles the doorknob. He never sees her. It’s obvious everything in this scene except the names of the characters has been inverted. Even the bathrooms are in different rooms. In the novel it’s 217, but in the movie they’re in 237. It’s so subtle and barely noticeable unless you stop and really think about it, and the entire movie is like this from beginning to end. Stanly Kubrick is beyond meticulous, even the person who pulls the shower curtain in the bathroom is reversed, in the novel it’s Danny but in the movie he never touches it, it’s the woman who does. The movie’s dialogue is also inverted. In the novel Dick Hallorann says this, “People who shine can sometimes see things that are gonna happen, and I think sometimes they can see things that did happen. But they're just like pictures in a book.” In the movie this line is very cleverly reversed because when Danny, after the beating, is in his catatonic state it’s Tony who says, “Remember what Mr. Halloran said. It's just like pictures in a book, Danny. It isn't real.” We never hear Dick Hallorann speak this line in The Overlook’s kitchen. In the novel the place where Danny and Dick Hallorann have this conversation is outside of The Overlook in Dick’s car, it's now been reversed to inside The Overlook’s kitchen while Danny has ice cream. It just goes on and on.

Tony is Danny’s subconscious mind that protects him just like any other normal person’s subconscious does. What’s unusual in the story is that Danny has the ability to “Shine” therefore his subconscious also has that special power. Stanley Kubrick made a huge inversion here as now Tony can’t be seen, in Stephen King’s novel he can. In the novel Lloyd the bartender and Grady never speak to Jack with a mirror present. In the movie this is also reversed as Jack speaks directly to both while looking directly at himself in a mirror. Stanley Kubrick’s attention to detail is unbelievable.

You still may not agree with me that the movie is an inversion of the novel but (click here) take a look at how meticulous Stanley Kubrick is as he inverts the entire scene with Danny and the pediatrician. It’s from chapter 17 “The Doctor’s Office” in the novel and it’s easy to spot how the details are reversed.



Not only did he alter Stephen King’s novel but it appears that Stanley Kubrick may have left a special message just for him in the middle of the movie. Click here for one of the more interesting hidden shots you’ll ever come across in a movie.




I feel this shot is a very special visual message “Shined” from Stanley Kubrick to the readers of Stephen King’s novel. He’s telling you what he did to ‘The Shining?’ Just like 'Redrum' only makes sense when seen in the reflection of Wendy’s mirror Stanley Kubrick created a movie that’s the same as the word “Redrum”. It will never truly make sense unless viewed in the genious director’s special mirror”. He even placed that reverse image of Stovington, as viewed by us, in the opposite side of the exact same mirror where we later see "Redrum" as the word murder. It's clear; we must also watch the movie's mirrors as something important is hidden in their reflection.

Sometimes it’s shocking to see how a screenwriter changes your favorite novel for the big screen. I remember reading “To Kill A Mockingbird” and being surprised to find out that Arthur 'Boo' Radley talked to the children. They changed this in the screenplay and I believe not having him speak throughout the story created a mystery that added much to the movie’s appeal. I can see how fans of the novel could be a little perplexed at what Stanley Kubrick did but you must admit he did an unbelievable job and Stephen King really couldn’d say much about the alterations.

Here’s a great clip of Stephen King talking about Stanley Kubrick on You Tube. Again after seeing it he described Kubrick’s film as “a big beautiful Cadillac, with no engine.” Recently a question was posed to Stephen King in USA Weekend (March 6-8 2009); I have always heard that you never really liked Stanley Kubrick’s version of “The Shining”. He answered; “My problem with ‘The Shining’ was never the adaptation. I certainly didn’t mind the idea that it was more psychological than supernatural. What I didn’t like was that I thought it was cold, and I always resented that. I’m an emotional writer. I think that’s why I’ve written so many things that people term “scary” or “horror”. I’m not that interested in what you think all the time, but I am interested in what you feel.” I feel both stories are brilliant in their own special ways.

I’ve looked into the rumors of where the actual Overlook Hotel from the novel is located? Click here.



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