The second wife in the movie “[name]Rebecca[/name]” by [name]Alfred[/name] [name]Hitchcock[/name] is never named. The character is played by [name]Joan[/name] Fontaine. [name]Laurence[/name] [name]Olivier[/name] simply calls his second wife “Dear” and “Darling”. The character is never named in the book “[name]Rebecca[/name]” by [name]Daphne[/name] du Maurier either. If you’ve seen the movie, what would you name the second wife? She is the main character and the narrator in both the movie and the book. If you haven’t seen “[name]Rebecca[/name]”, it’s a great movie and worth getting at the video store.
I always wanted to call his second wife [name]Lucy[/name]! [name]Lucy[/name] DeWinter has a nice ring to it, no?
[name]Florence[/name], [name]Cecilia[/name] or [name]Frances[/name] round out the things I’ve thought over the years watching “[name]Rebecca[/name]”.
You know, that movie made my Pop want to name me [name]Rebecca[/name]. Mom said “If I can’t name her [name]Lucy[/name], you can’t have [name]Rebecca[/name]” Which is how I got [name]Laura[/name]. Mom was Watching “Dark Shadows” on afternoon, while pregnant with me and lo and behold! [name]Diana[/name] [name]Millay[/name] was playing [name]Laura[/name] and Mom liked it. Sigh Named for a soap character!
I had a neighbor friend named [name]Cathy[/name] when I was little who loved “Dark Shadows”. I never could understand what was so great about it. I loved “Bewitched” and “I [name]Dream[/name] of [name]Jeannie[/name]”. But [name]Laura[/name] is a lovely name! [name]Lola[/name] fits you better though. I love the name [name]Quentin[/name] from “Dark Shadows”. I think when I was little I didn’t think “Dark Shadows” was funny or ironic. My friend [name]Cathy[/name] was so serious about it.
I like [name]Lucy[/name] DeWinter! And [name]Frances[/name].
I think she looks kind of like an [name]Ellen[/name], too. [name]Ellen[/name] DeWinter doesn’t sound that pretty though. I love that character so much. And the old lady at the beginning of the movie is so funny!
Dark Shadows was different from everything else on tv at the time. It’s still different from almost everything else on tv! A Gothic Horror Soap [name]Opera[/name]. I think Passions tries something like that today, with a witch, but Dark Shadows had all sorts of monsters! If you can watch some of it (it’s on DVD now), it’s a bit tedious attimes, but the original take on the monsters was awesome! I mean, They did [name]Adam[/name], a Frankenstein like monster, um, a werewolf ([name]Quentin[/name]! that’s where we are now, watching it), a sympathetic vampire, you name it, they did it. [name]Dan[/name] [name]Curtis[/name] was a small genius.
I agree, [name]Ellen[/name] fits her looks, as does [name]Helen[/name]. [name]Helen[/name] DeWinter sounds better than [name]Ellen[/name] DeWinter, to me. Maybe [name]Helen[/name]?
I agree, [name]Ellen[/name] fits her looks, as does [name]Helen[/name]. [name]Helen[/name] DeWinter sounds better than [name]Ellen[/name] DeWinter, to me. Maybe [name]Helen[/name]?
[name]Helen[/name] nn [name]Nell[/name] would be fabulous! What do you think of [name]Joan[/name]?
[name]Ah[/name], but don’t forget this tease from the hero himself: “You have a very lovely and unusual name.”
So [name]Lucy[/name]'s out. And [name]Helen[/name]. And [name]Frances[/name]. 
I’m thinking: [name]Glynnis[/name]. Or perhaps [name]Naomi[/name]. [name]Ellis[/name] (a spin on [name]Ellen[/name]).
[name]Ah[/name], but don’t forget this tease from the hero himself: “You have a very lovely and unusual name.”
So [name]Lucy[/name]'s out. And [name]Helen[/name]. And [name]Frances[/name].
I’m thinking: [name]Glynnis[/name]. Or perhaps [name]Naomi[/name]. [name]Ellis[/name] (a spin on [name]Ellen[/name]). Hmm…
I don’t remember when he says that. I’ll have to watch “[name]Rebecca[/name]” again! Maybe her name is [name]Ailsa[/name]. Is she English or Irish or what?
I haven’t seen the movie, but it’s definitely in the book. Their second meeting, where they have lunch with Mrs. [name]Van[/name] [name]Hopper[/name] present.
What’s even more intriguing is her response: “My father was a lovely and unusual person.” Later [name]Maxim[/name] says, “It becomes you as well as it became your father.” Oh, wicked [name]Daphne[/name] du Maurier! Does this mean they share the same name? Or that his choice of name for her is a reflection of his character?
And earlier, when he sends her a note, she is surprised that her name is on it, “spelt correctly, which an unusual thing.” Argh-- what a tease!
Sorry for all the snotty quoting, but this has always driven me wild-- I want to know the lovely and unusual name!!
Now I remember what you’re talking about. It’s in the movie. I always assumed it was her last name since she shares it with her father. Ho, Ho! Then she could be [name]Helen[/name]!
Ooh, good point, [name]Susan[/name]! I guess we’re back to [name]Lucy[/name] and [name]Helen[/name] after all. 
I was talking with my husband about this dilemma last night at dinner. He was fascinated because he loves [name]Hitchcock[/name] movies. He said that he thinks our poor second wife didn’t have a name so that [name]Rebecca[/name] would seem all the more powerful even though she is dead. It was like [name]Rebecca[/name] was trying to swallow up the second wife. We talked about whether the unusual name that the second wife and her father share is their surname or their first name. [name]Kent[/name] and I are thinking it’s their first name, because most fathers and daughters have the same last name. Why would [name]Maxim[/name] comment on that? Back then, a lot of names that are completely feminine now could be unisex. Like [name]Beverly[/name] or [name]Jocelyn[/name]. Maybe it could be a name like that. In a [name]Hemingway[/name] novel, the heroine is named [name]Brett[/name], I think. Could be something like that. Or [name]Emlyn[/name].
I think your husband is spot-on in his analysis. Last night I came up with a list of initially male-names she might have shared with her dad:
[name]Meredith[/name]
[name]Jocelyn[/name]
[name]Christy[/name]
[name]Laurence[/name]
[name]Leslie[/name]
[name]Merrill[/name]
[name]Hollis[/name]
[name]Sidney[/name]
My favorite possiblity is [name]Laurence[/name]; so firmly masculine, but lovely on a girl. It also makes sense with that “spelt correctly, which was unusual” line. 
I think your husband is spot-on in his analysis. Last night I came up with a list of initially male-names she might have shared with her dad:
[name]Meredith[/name]
[name]Jocelyn[/name]
[name]Christy[/name]
[name]Laurence[/name]
[name]Leslie[/name]
[name]Merrill[/name]
[name]Hollis[/name]
[name]Sidney[/name]
My favorite possiblity is [name]Laurence[/name]; so firmly masculine, but lovely on a girl. It also makes sense with that “spelt correctly, which was unusual” line. ;)[/quote]
[name]Laurence[/name] does sound right, but my fave on your list for [name]Joan[/name] Fontaine’s character is [name]Hollis[/name]. I really like that name!