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Ben Slovak is the best friend of Griffin Bing and the deuteragonist in Swindle as well as its 2013 film. Slovak always helps with Bing's plans even when he doesn't want to, because they're friends. When he is on Bing's team, he is usually a tight-spaces specialist.
Biography[]
Early life[]
Born in Cedarville, New York, Ben Slovak has known his best friend, Griffin Bing, "as long as he could remember". His best friend was well known for formulating the plans for his friends' schemes and became known as 'The Man With The Plan'. Slovak, who considered this to be the best and worst thing about him, became annoyed because Bing always claimed that his latest plan was the most important, until the next one came to be.
Ben Slovak suffered from narcolepsy, a physical disorder that caused him to sleep inconsistently, regardless of the time of day. He would circumvent it by going with the nurse for "allergy medication", when he was in reality taking a fifteen-minute nap.
Sixth grade[]
Camping in the Rockford House[]
Near the beginning of sixth grade, in October, Ben and his friends, with help from their teacher, created a presentation regarding how the abandoned and allegedly haunted Rockford House could be turned into a skate park. He had heard several rumors about the mansion being allegedly haunted from his peers. For example, Darren Vader (Bing's archenemy) claimed that Old Man McLeach had left the mansion because he was imprisoned for murdering his wife via chainsaw, though Marcus claimed the weapon was actually a railway spike and Antonia Benson claimed it was a wild dog and Savannah Drysdale even claimed it was a baby ghost. Unfortunately, the government turned them down and even refused to watch the presentation.
Bing was enraged, knowing they had only been cast aside because they were underage. Knowing the Rockford House would be demolished in the morning, Bing planned a sleepover there. To give them an excuse to come, he arranged two fake sleepovers. Thirty people agreed to participate, but only Ben wound up coming, much to Bing's outrage. Lying next to him on a sleeping bag, Ben asked Griffin what it mattered how many people were there, since the campout was a complete secret. Griffin pointed out that they would know, that they would prove to themselves that "[they’re] more than a mouse caught in a trap". Ben pointed out that the others were scared of the house's status as being possibly haunted. He proceeded to explain several rumors, such as Old Man Rockford being in jail for murdering his wife via chainsaw, though Marcus claimed the weapon was actually a railway spike. After explaining several other factors he had heard, Ben was assured by Bing that his friend did not even believe in haunted houses.
A gust of wind blew through the eaves, and an odd moaning sound echoed around them. Paling slightly, Bing checked his watch and spread out his bedroll and lay back, standing his flashlight on its base as he told Ben they should get some sleep so the trip will not feel like it lasted as long. Ben agreed, though he and Bing agreed that if he woke up a victim of any of the rumors, Bing would owe him twenty dollars. They lay there in the silence for a while, until Ben fell asleep. Bing let out a low whistle of admiration at Ben's ability to sleep through his fears.
Escape and business deal[]
In the morning, Ben Slovak awoke to hear the beginning of the building's destruction and hastily awoke Griffin Bing. Together, they made a narrow escape as the mansion collapsed around them, spurred on by explosions and crashes behind them. They were halfway across town when Bing sounded the all-clear. As they slowed to a walk, Bing revealed the Bambino to an irate Slovak and suggested they take it to Palomino's Emporium of Sports and Memorabilia to discover how much it was worth.
At the museum, the assistant Tom Dufferin refers them to S. Wendell Palomino. After Bing turned over the last remnant of the Rockford House, he paid them one hundred twenty dollars. Palomino then goaded them into lifting the safe before revealing that it was bolted to the ground, much to their embarrassment. Leaving the store, Bing gave Slovak half of the money because, in his own words, Slovak "stuck to the plan when everyone else bailed".
Uncovering the truth[]
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Ben Slovak returned home, but he never ended up spending the money. On the playground, Griffin Bing approached him and explained that Swindle had conned him, as the Bambino was actually worth a fortune. He planned to steal it back, and implored Slovak's help. Ben refused, considering it immoral, unachievable, irrational, and an unreasonable means to achieve wealth. He disappeared to get his "allergy medication", but when he arrived in class, Bing begged him to become involved in the heist he was planning. Their argument became loud enough for Blue to forcibly separate them, with Bing begging for Slovak's help one last time. Ben adamantly shook his head.
Downtrodden, Bing explained that his father became so obsessed with one of his creations, the SmartPick, self-described "fruit picker of the future", that he quit his engineering job to buy time to develop it, leading to a severe financial crisis, and that their reason for moving was "to make ends meet". Feeling an overwhelming wave of understanding and pity, Slovak realized his best friend's fear was losing him and everything else, not being rich for the sake of being rich. Together, they planned to embark on the greatest plan of their lives.
Suddenly, Luthor, Palomino's puppy doge, burst out of nowhere, causing Bing to crash into Slovak, making Slovak scrape his arm on the cement. Bing hauled Slovak upright, and they scrambled back across 9th Street to the cover of their bush. Slovak was shaken, but Bing suggested they pay Savannah Drysdale a visit.
Infiltration of Palomino's Emporium[]
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Bambino Heist[]
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Personality[]
Ben Slovak is perhaps best characterized by his fierce loyalty and protectiveness over those he cares about. He is very loyal to his best friend, Griffin Bing, as shown by willingly participating in all of his plans in spite of his occasional reluctance through the years, and being the sole student to accompany him to the Rockford House, but he is by far the more reasonable of the two and this puts them at odds.
Portrayal in the film[]
In the film, Ben's surname is Dupree. It is said that he is "only a pair of glasses and suspenders short of tipping the scale" when it comes to being classified as a nerd. Much like in the novel, he spends most of his time with his best friend, Griffin Bing. However, his deepest desire is for Amanda Benson (called Antonia in the film) to become his girlfriend. Dupree is the only person in Bing's life who doesn't want anything from him, and though he doesn't have any talents in anything noticeable, he has the potential to come in handy when it matters most. He is portrayed by Chris O'Neal.[1]
References[]
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