Best history movie questions of 2008

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The Other Boleyn Girl picture

Question: On the corrections page for this movie, someone stated that Henry was the father of both of Mary's children. How? Didn't he stop seeing her while she was still on bed rest during the pregnancy of their first child?

Answer: The information on the corrections page is inaccurate. Mary Boleyn married William Carey in 1520. Because her exact birth date is unknown, no one knows how old she was when she married. It was shortly after her wedding that she began her affair with Henry VIII. It is also unknown if either of the two children she bore during this time were fathered by Henry, though there was certainly a high probability that he sired one or both. However, Henry never publicly acknowledged either child, unlike the illegitimate son he had with another mistress. The events in the film and book are fictional, and they vary from the historical facts. It is never mentioned in the film that Mary had a second child, either by Henry or William Carey.

raywest

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Cadillac Records picture

Question: Did Little Walter really shoot a person who was posing as him, as portrayed in the movie?

Answer: From what I have read, this is total fiction, apparently to show his real-life alcoholism and short temper.

raywest

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The Duchess picture

Question: When the Duke says that he "cannot" ask Lady Bess to leave his home (after the Duchess discovers their affair), does he simply not want to or is there some reason that he feels he cannot?

Answer: He is ignoring the Duchess' request by saying that he cannot ask her to leave. He does not want her to go, nor does Lady Bess wish to leave.

raywest

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Valkyrie picture

Question: Why did Stauffenberg have to put in his prosthetic eye whenever he had to be in Hitler's presence?

Answer: In real life, Stauffenberg regularly switched from wearing his glass eye and an eye patch. He wore the glass eye when meeting with senior officers, not only Hitler. At other times, he used the eye patch. This was attributed to the glass eye probably being uncomfortable. Presumably, he did not want to appear handicapped or weak to his superiors. He may also have felt the eye patch was a distraction or looked less dignified.

raywest

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