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After Black Bird
🕑 Added 2022-09-17 18:54:24 +0000 UTC
After finishing the Black Bird limited series, I started looking for facts from the story behind it. I found out the audio version of Jimmy Keene's book was included with my Audible subscription so I started listening to it in the car and while processing revisions of YouTube edits. (those can take my PC out of commission for long periods)
The timing of the story is laid out differently than in the show and I was taking notes the whole time.
Key points:
Jimmy was very honest about his bad behavior, how he got involved in selling drugs, how much money he made and how his father was willing to look the other way while reaping the benefits of the money.
The character Danny was based on a real person.
The mob boss Gigante was a real person and Jimmy did hang out with him. He also played Bocce with him but did not know how to play the game beforehand.
The map Larry drew was real. In fact they found a version of it in his van in addition to one he drew in prison.
The ineptitude of the police before Larry's imprisonment was accurate. They not only found clues like the birth control pills and the map, but they also found lists of things in code that were easily interpreted to show his stalking and cover up methods.
The dirty prison guard was about the only thing that seemed to be completely made up.
Jimmy did end up in the hole but the situation played out differently in real life. The was a confrontation with Larry but it took place in Larry's cell. Larry then reported it to his prison therapist (not the one working with the Feds) who had Jimmy thrown in the hole. There was no crazed attempts to recreate the map but he was left there for a month before the psych doctor he knew came back from vacation.
The porn mag with the horrible drawings was found in Larry's van not his cell.
Larry did not bring up anything related to hurting women until Jimmy pushed him by saying he wouldn't hold it against him if the things he was accused of were true. The conversation about Jimmy's mom did not take place.
Jimmy did beat up a guy in the TV room. He also had to sneak around to befriend Larry because the mob guy did not like him talking to the "Baby Killers".
Larry did not dig up and rob graves with his father. He and his twin brother were very spoiled at first. Things changed when his father lost his job at the cemetery because he was mixing up the bodies when burying them.
Larry and his brother did participate in Civil War reenactments. His brother Gary lost interest in it though and ended up getting married which was very hard on Larry.
Larry did lose his appeal, attempt suicide and later confess the murders to his brother and then recanted them.
Jimmy really did become a different person because of this experience.
Comments
RV Reactions
I agree. They did a great job staying true to the facts. Thanks for watching!!!
ArsTropica
Based on your research, I think that the show runners did a reasonable job of depicting the main events of the story. What I actually liked about the show's version was Jimmy's attempt to rationalize to Larry why disclosing the location of the bodies was the right thing to do. I think that it took a lot of character to look past his disgust and horror and (at first) try to treat him as a person. I was worried that show was going to parallel the childhood experiences of both men by way of an explanation for Larry's choices. But thankfully, Larry drops that line “happiness is a choice”, which has such different implications for the way both men look at life. I found the ending pleasantly surprising. The show's initial characterization of Jimmy didn't lend any faith in me that he would be emotionally mature enough to walk out of that prison unscathed, and that if he did, it wouldn't be credible. But the transformation of Jimmy's character into someone that was willing to take personal responsibility for his choices, even under threat, sounded true to me. I heard an Asian proverb somewhere: "Those who find no faults within, will surely suffer the faults of others." Although the show doesn't actively display it, I think that final scene is suggestive of his changed world view and hopefully how it informed the rest of his life choices. Great reaction and review!
