# the Big Lebowski - How did that kid's homework wind up in the Dude's car? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 2, 2015, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-how-did-that-kids-homework-wind-up-in-the-dudes-car/726825 "2015-08-02T21:33:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Apocalypso](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@Apocalypso](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apocalypso)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2015, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-how-did-that-kids-homework-wind-up-in-the-dudes-car/726825/1 "2015-08-02T21:33:41Z")
Watched this with my wife last night. I’ve seen it a few times, she hadn’t. So this question occurred to us: What was Larry Sellers homework doing in the Dude’s stolen car? Is there a deleted scene or something that I’ve missed which would explain it? ETA: Thread title should say “How”, not “ow” ---
**Author:** ![Mr\_Shine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr_shine/32/464_2.png) [@Mr\_Shine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_Shine)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2015, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-how-did-that-kids-homework-wind-up-in-the-dudes-car/726825/2 "2015-08-02T21:45:00Z")
I don’t remember anything that indicates it’s any more complicated than the kid stole the car and carelessly left it behind. ---
**Author:** ![minlokwat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/minlokwat/32/2844_2.png) [@minlokwat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/minlokwat)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2015, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-how-did-that-kids-homework-wind-up-in-the-dudes-car/726825/3 "2015-08-03T01:14:36Z")
Side note on ensuing scene. Maybe the all-time greatest TV edits is as Walter is destroying the car, he is sceaming: “You see Larry? This is what happens when you find a stranger in the Alps!” I think that line works just as well as the original. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2015, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-how-did-that-kids-homework-wind-up-in-the-dudes-car/726825/4 "2015-08-03T01:38:25Z")
> [@Apocalypso](#): > > ETA: Thread title should say “How”, not “ow” Fixed. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2015, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-how-did-that-kids-homework-wind-up-in-the-dudes-car/726825/5 "2015-08-03T02:12:12Z")
> [@Mr\_Shine](#): > > I don’t remember anything that indicates it’s any more complicated than the kid stole the car and carelessly left it behind. Yeah, he left it behind after stealing the car. ---
**Author:** ![Accidental\_Martyr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ce7236/32.png) [@Accidental\_Martyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Accidental_Martyr)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2015, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-how-did-that-kids-homework-wind-up-in-the-dudes-car/726825/6 "2015-08-03T02:26:21Z")
> [@minlokwat](#): > > Side note on ensuing scene. > > Maybe the all-time greatest TV edits is as Walter is destroying the car, he is sceaming: “You see Larry? This is what happens when you find a stranger in the Alps!” > > I think that line works just as well as the original. Title of CD by my friends’ band. [http://www.discogs.com/Baak-Gwai-Find-A-Stranger-In-The-Alps/release/6567951](http://www.discogs.com/Baak-Gwai-Find-A-Stranger-In-The-Alps/release/6567951) ---
**Author:** ![Apocalypso](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@Apocalypso](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apocalypso)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2015, 12:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-how-did-that-kids-homework-wind-up-in-the-dudes-car/726825/7 "2015-08-03T12:09:46Z")
Wasn’t that kid like 12 or something? Seems unlikely :dubious: So I take it no one has seen a deleted scene depicting this? Just seems strange that it’s a main plot point (a red herring) but isn’t actually shown or referenced in any way. ---
**Author:** ![Blaster\_Master](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/cab0a1/32.png) [@Blaster\_Master](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blaster_Master)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2015, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-how-did-that-kids-homework-wind-up-in-the-dudes-car/726825/8 "2015-08-03T12:27:07Z")
> [@Apocalypso](#): > > Wasn’t that kid like 12 or something? Seems unlikely :dubious: > So I take it no one has seen a deleted scene depicting this? Just seems strange that it’s a main plot point (a red herring) but isn’t actually shown or referenced in any way. I’m not sure what makes it seem so unlikely, or at least any more unlikely than all the other bizarre stuff going on. The whole plot of the movie is that there never was any money in the case, it was a red herring itself, and it’s just a whole bunch of strange coincidences befalling the Dude. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2015, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-how-did-that-kids-homework-wind-up-in-the-dudes-car/726825/9 "2015-08-03T13:01:55Z")
> [@Apocalypso](#): > > Wasn’t that kid like 12 or something? Seems unlikely :dubious: > So I take it no one has seen a deleted scene depicting this? Just seems strange that it’s a main plot point (a red herring) but isn’t actually shown or referenced in any way. What seems unlikely? It seems very likely a dumb kid (flunking social studies) would do exactly something as stupid as leave his homework behind. Also, The Dude tells Treehorn that the kid was 14 years old, which is prime car boosting for thrills age. ---
**Author:** ![Ponch8](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponch8/32/9883_2.png) [@Ponch8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponch8)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2015, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-how-did-that-kids-homework-wind-up-in-the-dudes-car/726825/10 "2015-08-03T13:22:58Z")
Arthur Digby Sellers is not exactly a lightweight. And yet his son is a fucking dunce. ---
**Author:** ![Double\_Foolscap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/85e7bf/32.png) [@Double\_Foolscap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Double_Foolscap)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2015, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-how-did-that-kids-homework-wind-up-in-the-dudes-car/726825/11 "2015-08-03T13:24:06Z")
I seem to remember that the twist in this scene is that the kid _didn’t_ steal the car. Hence the confusion - it’s not about why the kid made the mistake of leaving his homework in there, but how it got in there at all. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2015, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-how-did-that-kids-homework-wind-up-in-the-dudes-car/726825/12 "2015-08-03T13:26:00Z")
Why do you think he didn’t steal the car? Also, Larry was 15, not 14, my mistake. [The Dude: Your money is being held by a kid named Larry Sellers. Real f\*\*\*ing brat, but I'm sure your goons can get it off him. I mean, he's fifteen. The Dude: Flunking social studies.](http://www.quotes.net/mquote/9354) ---
**Author:** ![Blaster\_Master](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/cab0a1/32.png) [@Blaster\_Master](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blaster_Master)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2015, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-how-did-that-kids-homework-wind-up-in-the-dudes-car/726825/13 "2015-08-03T13:30:05Z")
> [@Double\_Foolscap](#): > > I seem to remember that the twist in this scene is that the kid _didn’t_ steal the car. Hence the confusion - it’s not about why the kid made the mistake of leaving his homework in there, but how it got in there at all. He definitely took the car. The twist was that he didn’t take the money, because there never was any money. They thought he’d taken it because they thought he used it to buy that nice car, but that belonged to his neighbor. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2015, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-how-did-that-kids-homework-wind-up-in-the-dudes-car/726825/14 "2015-08-03T13:40:53Z")
If Larry didn’t steal the car, who did? Do you have any leads? ---
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2015, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-how-did-that-kids-homework-wind-up-in-the-dudes-car/726825/15 "2015-08-03T14:12:49Z")
> [@madmonk28](#): > > If Larry didn’t steal the car, who did? Do you have any leads? The car probably stole itself, Dude. ---
**Author:** ![FollowMeDown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/6a8cbe/32.png) [@FollowMeDown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FollowMeDown)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2015, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-how-did-that-kids-homework-wind-up-in-the-dudes-car/726825/16 "2015-08-03T14:20:32Z")
“…Leads, yeah sure. I’ll uh, just check with the boys down at the Crime Lab. They uh, got uh, four more detectives working on the case. They’ve got us working in shifts. Leads! Wooo…Leads!” I remember reading that some parts of the movie are based in truth. The part about the stolen car and the homework being one of them. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2015, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-how-did-that-kids-homework-wind-up-in-the-dudes-car/726825/17 "2015-08-03T14:54:07Z")
I’d read that too. Also both Walter and the Dude are based on real people. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2015, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-how-did-that-kids-homework-wind-up-in-the-dudes-car/726825/18 "2015-08-03T15:59:46Z")
I always found it odd that the kid stole the car too, but I haven’t heard any information to the contrary. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2015, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-how-did-that-kids-homework-wind-up-in-the-dudes-car/726825/19 "2015-08-03T16:52:02Z")
> [@FollowMeDown](#): > > “…Leads, yeah sure. I’ll uh, just check with the boys down at the Crime Lab. They uh, got uh, four more detectives working on the case…” _Top_ men. I always assumed the kid stole the car and was dumb enough to leave his homework behind. Then he just played stoneface when Walter and the Dude showed up to brace him. ---
**Author:** ![Barkis\_is\_Willin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a183cd/32.png) [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barkis_is_Willin)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2015, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-how-did-that-kids-homework-wind-up-in-the-dudes-car/726825/20 "2015-08-03T17:12:55Z")
Of course the kid stole the car. And his homework fell out of his bag during the joyride. It’s not that hard to believe. In fact, the stolen car subplot is based on real events that happened to the man who served as the basis for Walter Sobchak. > **[Breaking: Real-life inspiration for Lebowski’s Walter Sobchak and Larry’s...](https://seesdifferent.wordpress.com/2007/05/05/saturday-big-lebowski-roundup-8/)** > > This stuff is Over the Line, Smokey! image of Lewis Abernathy, inspiration for the Walter Sobchak character Here is a fascinating story out of North Texas: According to insider info, Goodman’s char… [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-how-did-that-kids-homework-wind-up-in-the-dudes-car/726825.md?page=2)