Alex > Recent Status Updates

Gail invites Roark on his yacht for a few months, and Roark agrees. Roark tells Gail about how those who live with no self live within others, live second-hand. They do things only for the approval and acceptance of others, and therefore won’t listen to anything outside the influence of public opinion. They never do things they want solely because they want it, only because it is impressive to others

Peter runs into Katie on the streets of NYC, which surprises him since she apparently moved to DC a few years ago. She seems unsurprised and strictly polite, with no surprise. They get tea and he tells her to drop the act and about his life and how he loved her. She seems happy, but completely unsurprised or upset, as if she’s killed off that part of her past. Peter is hurt

Gail is upset when he sees the pictures of the housing since he clearly knows it’s Roarks work, but Roark tells him he’ll sue if Gail accuses him of doing it. Gail has an interaction with Alvah that makes him feel like Alvah won’t listen, and makes him think (but not enough) about his control over the company .Gail shows Roark a huge swath of land in Hell’s Kitchen that he wants Roark to build his tower on

Gail Dom and Roark are all chilling by the newly completed house. Roark is exhausted from working overtime on the housing project. Peter shows Toohey and he laughs, saying Peter accomplished what he’s been trying to do his whole life.

Roark and Peter meet for the first time in 6 years. Roark realizes Peter has changed when he asks for his help, and Peter is surprised when Roark says he’ll think about it. They meet the next day and Roark says he has been thinking about these projects for a while as a challenge and really wants to build them. With Peter as the social support and Roark as the designer they agree to secretly work together

Keatings life is becoming a failure. His office is down to one floor, after the failure of the Centuries exhibit, the resigning Guy, and the Depression. His mom moves in with him, and he starts to paint alone since it makes him peaceful. He needs one more commission, and goes to Toohey to try to get it. Toohey tells him he can have it if he succeeds but that he was always replaceable. Keating calls Roark for help

Toohey has a meeting with a bunch of rich folks who have stakes in the Banner. They talk about their opinions on society and art, and Toohey is happy to hear them repeating Banner talking points that he has control over. They express their fear over Wynand and the disdain the public is beginning to feel towards him, worried their investment in the banner is bad, but Toohey soothes them successfully and is very happy

Gail spends more time with taro, inviting him to lunch and coming to his office and home. The home comes along, and Gail and Roark talk about Roark never controlling another and about how your existence and doing something with it is proof of its worth. Dom still waits patiently as the two get to know each other more

Gail shows Dom Roarks house and says hes coming for dinner. At dinner, they talk about your soul can say yes to something it likes and how you then own it forever. Dom tries her best to stay relaxed at the dinner knowing her personal efforts are finally over. Gail visits Roark at his office and tells him through story how he makes him feel hopeful, then they go to dinner. Gail tells Toohey to never write about Roark

Roark visits the home site with Gail. Gail brings up the Temple and Roark chews him out for saying he would have done the same if he was in town and for thinking Roark cared. They reminisce on their poor childhoods. Roark brings the drawings to Gail who says Roark will for him doing what he says or he will end his career. Roark butchers the house and calls the bluff and Gail folds. Gail invites him to dinner w Dom

Roark and Gail meet. They both realize instantly that they are similar. Roark tells Gail why he’s never built himself a structure and Gail agrees. He wants Roark to build a small home for himself and Dom thats like a fortress to keep her from the world. Roark agrees to do it. Toohey finds out and says they don’t have to worry about Gail anymore. Gail asks for and reads all info about Roark and the temple trial

Roark gets a job to build a big resort, but is suspicious about it. He remains busy, as the hotel from earlier gets funds to be finished and he has a bunch of other small jobs. The resort does really well, exposing that the investors wanted it to do poorly and chose Roark because they thought he was bad. Roark becomes famous, is asked to do the world fair w a team and rejects it, so Peter does it. Gail calls Roark

Gail tells Dom she’s in love with integrity, and that he hates the presumptuous of it. He talks crushing other people to feel the power. Later he talks about his want to build a skyscraper with his name that is the final symbol. She tells him to fire Toohey and he takes offense, saying Toohey is not a threat. Later again, Dom apologizes for using Gail, and he says it’s fine since she gives him something to own

Dom stays in the penthouse for months after the wedding, and Gail starts working very hard again. A banner writer writes a story on Dom and js fired for it. Dom makes Gail go to a showing of the bad play lifted by the banner, and it made her think of the fight between people like Roark vs the power of the banner. She crashes out a bit on Gail since they both feel treasonous for their roles in having that play aired

Dom gets back from Reno and asks Gail for a massive public wedding, which he puts together without hesitation, even though he did not want it. After Dom realizes he had his papers not report on it, she lets him leave the wedding and realizes he won by being unbothered. Toohey and Alvah discuss all the mail the paper is getting about the wedding, and how Toohey also helps another magazine. Toohey says he’s loyal

Toohey supports modern architecture, even though it’s not as pure as Henry Cameron’s original work. Peter asks Toohey if he’s serious, which he says he is, about architecture being ever-changing. Keating starts work on Stoneridge but is exhausted. Francon retires and Keating has Dumont join him as a partner.

Toohey is with his council of writers listening to a play by Ike. They all say it’s terrible, but the banners writer Jules (who Toohey got hired) says it’s great. He explains he knows it’s trash but he can make the public think it’s good. He can bring down good work by comparing this trash to it and people won’t know the difference. Keating joins and the artists realize he is their target audience.

Peter goes to Gail’s who says he’s marrying Dom. Dom goes to Mallory’s and talk, a bit about Roark too. Peter goes to Toohey and tells him the situation and Toohey crashes out. Toohey tells Alvah who crashes out. Alvah talks to Gail and Gail tells him to stfu and fire anyone who publishes anything about Dom. Dom goes to see Roark building in Ohio otw to Reno. They talk for a bit and she continues on her way

Dom and Gail start their journey. He tells her what the boat name I Do means, which he does not do. They have dinner and talk about their views on humanity, about how they’ve never felt small in nature because man has conquered it and how people don’t appreciate art enough, and realize they are the same. Gail asks her to marry him, which shocks her and it ruins her plan, but she remembers Roark and agrees

Peter goes to dinner with Gail and Dom, where Gail very obviously hints at him sleeping with Dom for Peter to get Stoneridge. Peter is shocked that Gail is asking him at the incredibly nice restaurant in public and starts tweaking. Gail and Dom say it’s not to torture him but for each other. Two days before Dom and Gail sail, he lets her visit his art gallery with no explanation other than wanting her to see it

Gail invites Dom over to talk and they both quickly realize Toohey didn’t fill them in on what each other know about who they are and the origins of the statue. Dom becomes very curt and says she’s willing to sleep with Gail for Stoneridge but really to try to learn self contempt, and Gail, understanding her now, says she’ll never achieve it. Gail buys more of Mallory’s work for his gallery.

Peter finally realizes 20 months in that Dom is fully indifferent to her feelings and just says things to please him. He finally tells her it’s like her soul is gone, and she says he’s just like everyone else reflecting each other with no purpose and that she even feels bad for him. Toohey comes over and says he can get Dom to meet (sleep with) Gail for Stoneridge so Toohey can try to fully destroy her

Gail doesn’t kill himself because he feels dread about his life. He gets a drink and remembers tooheys gift, eventually giving into curiosity and opening it. He finds the statue of Dom. He calls Toohey and invites him over and asks who the sculptor was. It’s clear he thinks it’s fantastic but Toohey thought it would make him want Dom.
Gail is happy that Toohey is dumb since he thought Toohey liked it as is

The Banner is always the first with the news, and some claim it does bad things to make news. Gail uses it to slander businesses and then take them over. He gets all the best writers because he pays them obscenely. He has a private art collection he shows no one. Once he turned 45 he started paying people to do jobs that were the opposite of what they wanted to do, seemingly for pleasure. Now at 51 he is numb

Wynand had a hard upbringing. He was in a gang, then became leader by winning a fight. He held many jobs and taught himself a lot through them. He started to read a ton, and realized to run things he needed to control info, so he went to work for a newspaper. He realizes the world has no integrity and decides to lean into that. He takes over the paper and turned it into one that was shameful but with justification

We formally meet Gail Wynand as he contemplates killing himself. He doesn’t feel any way about it so decides not to, seemingly unfeeling. He met with Toohey earlier who wants him to meet Keating to build his real estate and offers Dom, then a “gift” when Wynand refuses. That evening he breaks up with his current mistress and then goes to kill himself, but wants a reason to

The Stoddard building is redesigned by Peter and the council of builders. Katie works full time there now. Roark can’t find any work due to the fiasco but also the depression. He helps Mallory out. He goes to see the new Stoddard house and sees
Toohey. Toohey says he understands Roarks work and asks what Roark thinks of him, and Roark responds that he doesn’t

Peter was nervous Dom wouldn’t come back but she did the next day. Guy says he’ll retire in a few years but wants Peter’s approval of his work, which infuriates peter by showing their uncertainty in their worth. Peter sleeps with Dom who doesn’t move and says she can now do anything if she did that. Toohey comes over and reveals he didn’t understand doms relationship with Roark which surprises Dom

Dom goes to Peter’s apartment and asks if he wants to get married, but only immediately. He says yes, and they go get married. That evening Dom goes to see Roark and they sleep together. She tells him she’s married because she can’t stand to fight for him using “their” methods, so she has to destroy herself. They both profess their love, and Roark says he’ll wait for her since they won’t be destroyed

Dom tries to publish her testimony in the news paper and is fired for it. Katie talks to Toohey and basically admits she’s depressed because she’s starting to become jaded to working in social work and thinks she’s a bad person. Keating comes over drunk to see Katie. He says he’s messed up big time but it’s over now and that he wants to get married to Katie immediately so they don’t miss it