Lawrence was arrogant and crass, there are subtle hints about his risky behavior up until his death
during the restaurant opening he says that Gavin putting him in charge is like a weasel in charge of the hen-house and laughs that he's already drinking up the profits.
during the '60s montage Babs glances over with a puzzled disapproving look when he yells for some betting game at the bar.
ignores, stalls, is annoyed then angry when his secretary tells him that "New Orleans fella is on the phone again"
tried to get Gavin to give him insider secrets for his betting.
when he sang his "cat's a pissin" song in the motel orgy, note his facial expression when he asks Gavin wasn't it fun tonite and says he loves him - he's not just drunk and tired, he's desperate, scared and almost in tears - watch how he looks when he says "get the gun"
Cake is shocked that Lawrence bets against his own alma-mater, than Lawrence is furious, throws the radio when they win (while at a local annual celebration)
Lawrence's character seemed to show the arrogant self-indulged privileged peter-pan (animal-house type) frat-boy of his time - Gavin would have been less likeable if he'd had those traits and Cake was the nerdy studious grown-up boy-scout dudley-do-right type. Lawrence acted like he could keep pushing the limits no matter who might be affected (and today he'd be referred to gambler's anonymous) his death showed serious unexpected loss and what it can leave in it's wake. it's usually the "bad" characters who become "expendable" for the plot point. Gavin had trusted a friend who turned out to have serious problems and make really bad choices - no one really knows what kind of lives their college besties will end up leading and the kind of person they really are or become until it happens
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Picasner
9 years ago
The one thing that's always bothered me was how could things get that bad without Gavin hearing something about it. Didn't Gavin get bank statements? Everybody knew that Gavin was the owner of the restaurant so why wouldn't the local suppliers finally go over Lawrence's head when the accounts got out of control? Why didn't they stop deliveries? In New York State, the ABC has a law that tells bars when they MUST pay (two dates every month). No liquor, no bar, no business, no restaurant.
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mswoc
9 years ago
don't know what the laws might have been back then in Louisiana, but Babs not having known about Lawrence's negligence and mismanagement is explained - when she's on the phone with the bank (while reviewing the past-due and shut-off notices) the voice on the other end says how much they respect the Ghost and perhaps they should have been more insistent about seeing him in person but Lawrence kept assuring them the "matters would be cleared up"
It's not unusual for restaurants doing poorly to only pay for the booze or food or whatever is keeping them afloat, to put-off tax filings and other monthly payments that they can get away with for a while - Lawrence himself was a drinker so he likely made sure that continued.
When Babs has her own private melt-down (right before Blue shows up with an explanation) after discovering how bad things are she mutters to herself why'd she have to be so stupid when Gavin told her don't worry Lawrence will take care of things - sounds like they might have been notified and Lawrence kept putting it off and stalling and acting like things were fine or would easily be while Gavin was pre-occupied with football and in denial that his friend would do such a thing
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Picasner
9 years ago
In other words, they were both naive, and the suppliers all had a bad case of hero worship. I suppose a real life handling of the problem would make a pretty bad movie.
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mswoc
9 years ago
as long as he was still serving paying customers, some revenue was coming in. he was behind on mortgage. bank loans and other expenses that if you start out with a decent track record (and considering the ghost's name) you can fudge, plead, negotiate, get extensions but unless you turn it around it eventually all comes crashing down. but he was likely using the money from daily sales to pay the bare necessities like food and booze.
what also wasn't clear was how well the place was doing. Restaurants with financial problems often begin skimping - buying cheaper ingredients, watering down or extra ice in drinks, cutting back on staff - service and food goes downhill so do repeat customers, becomes a downward self-defeating cycle
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Picasner
9 years ago
I was involved in supplying restaurants for a number of years, so I've seen all that happen a number of times. I've just never seen a manager completely kill a business before the owner stepped in and dealt with it. Plus, suppliers talk to each other - if he's behind with you, how long before he's stiffing me? Fame notwithstanding, I can't see it going this far, but...it's a movie.
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