The man who gave Indiana Jones his iconic fedora is a fascinating character with a complex history. His name is Garth, or at least that's what some sources say. But here's where it gets controversial: the character's real name is actually Fedora, named after the hat he wore. Yes, you read that right. The fedora, a symbol of women's rights, was adopted by the play's lead actress Sarah Berhardt, a famed cross-dresser, and it was soon accepted as a symbol of women's rights thereafter. So Indiana Jones, a symbol of archetypal masculine might, wears a feminist garment on his head. The character was only ever referred to as "Fedora" for many years, and was initially meant to be the same character as "Panama Hat" (Paul Maxwell), some kind of rich industrialist who hired Fedora to steal the Cross of Coronado. Early novelizations from 1989 didn't yet feature Panama Hat, as they were based on earlier drafts of the screenplay (written by Jeffrey Boam). The "Garth" name entered the Indiana Jones lexicon by accident. In 2008, author Ryder Windham wrote an updated novelization of "Last Crusade," and referred to the Fedora character as Garth. This was proof that Windham wasn't using the "Last Crusade" shooting script as a reference, but a previously published version called "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade: Original Movie Script" (now out of print). Looking close at that "Original Movie Script" reveals that it's not Boam's actual screenplay, but a transcription of the final cut of "Last Crusade." For some reason, whoever transcribed that fake screenplay decided to name the character Garth. When that Garth name was, in turn, included in novelizations, the name accidentally became official. "Garth" started to appear in subtitled versions of the movie. On the Lucasfilm website, the name "Garth" is denied explicity. There is a section on the site called "All About Indiana Jones," and it points out that the character in question was only ever named Fedora, named after his hat. Specifically, it says: "In the opening prologue, the mysterious treasure hunter (played by Richard Young) whom Indy comes to model himself on is literally called 'Fedora' in the script and end credits. More an archetypal placeholder than precise name, the moniker references the central role the character plays in giving his hat to Indy (in a handful of other sources, he is sometimes referred to as 'Garth')." That parenthetical, as well as the inexactness of the phrase "a handful of other sources," indicate that Lucasfilm never intended for the character to be named Garth, and that all mentions of "Garth" are spurious. Curiously, the character has one additional (unofficial name) thanks to a very obscure German Indiana Jones novel called "Indiana Jones und das Verschwundene Volk" or "Indiana Jones and the Lost People," by German author Wolfgang Hohlbein. In that book, Indy recalls the hunt for the Cross of Coronado from his youth, and says that his foe introduced himself as 'Jake.' This, however, is the only time the character has ever been called Jake, so it seems to be just as unofficial a name as Garth.
