John Winchester

{{RecurringCharacters

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|name= John Winchester |actor= Jeffrey Dean Morgan
Matt Cohen (young) |dates= ? 1954 - July 19, 2006 |location= Lawrence, Kansas;
Nomadic |occupation= Marine, Mechanic, Hunter |episodes= 1.01 Pilot
1.09 Home
1.11 Scarecrow
1.16 Shadow
1.18 Something Wicked
1.20 Dead Man's Blood
1.21 Salvation
1.22 Devil's Trap
2.01 In My Time Of Dying
2.22 All Hell Breaks Loose: Part Two
4.03 In The Beginning (young) . }}

• Full name given on the tombstone in the alternative reality of episode 2.20: John E. Winchester
• At Comic Con 2008, Eric Kripke confirmed that John's middle name was... Eric.
• Widower of Mary Winchester; father of Dean & Sam
• John served in the Vietnam war with the US Marines. See below for John's military history.
• He worked as a mechanic and was co-owner (with Mike Guenther) of a garage in Lawrence, Kansas until the death of his wife in 1983.
• Blood type: AB
• Religion: his dogtags categorize him as "non-religious"
• Kept a lock-up where he stored weapons, including landmines, Curse Boxes and mementos from Sam and Dean's childhood.
• In one version of the pilot script, Sam and Dean found John dead on the ceiling.^S1Com,p.11
• Until he was eight, Sam thought John was a travelling salesman. ^{3.08 A Very Supernatural Christmas}

Age speculation

• A draft script of the Pilot places John's age at 30 when Mary dies (therefore early 50s at present).

• John's email address, jwinchester1246@gmail.com, could be read to refer to his birthdate - December 1946. This fits with the use of Mary's date of death throughout the show (it is used as a lock combination, or referred to as 110283 or 1183). This would place John at age 60 in 2006.

• John cannot plausibly have been born any later than 1957 (so as to have been 18, and in the Marines, in 1975). Considering the notes below about Vietnam force reduction, the likelihood is high that he turned 18 before 1971 (in which case his birth year would be 1953 or earlier).

• In the alternate reality experienced by Dean in 2.20 What Is and What Should Never Be, John's gravestone indicates he was born in 1954.

John's Military History

In 2.09, Dean says that John was a Corporal in the Marine Corps, with company 'Echo 2/1' (2nd Battalion, 1st Marines, Echo company).

In 2.19 Folsom Prison Blues (episode), we meet Deacon, who served in the Corps with John, and saved his life.

Speculation on dates

It's unlikely John graduated from high school. The badges/medals/photos in his journal (see below) suggest he was a rifleman. High school graduates were almost always sent to aviation or communication schools, rather than combat arms.

The Tet Offensive took place in January 1968. It is possible that this got John all fired up with patriotic fervour and he decided to screw school and enlist in the Marines. If he joined with his parents' permission, he could have been seventeen at this point. At that stage in the war, recruits were given four months of training then booted straight out to Vietnam, so he would have been out there by June 1968, by which time American bombing was already being curtailed and negotiations were beginning. Even so, it would be another year until troop withdrawal began.

(speculation care of Derry)

Dog Tags

WINCHESTER
JOHN
306-00-3894
TYPE AB
NON-RELIGIOUS

John's social security number suggests he was born in, or obtained his first job in, Indiana (source) (Although most children born today receive a SSN at birth or within their first year, this was not common practice when John was a child.)

Medals in The Journal

• USMC Expert Rifle Badge
• Bronze Star (fourth highest award for bravery, heroism or meritorious service)
• Purple Heart (wounded)
• Vietnam Service Medal (served more than thirty consecutive days, or 60 non-consecutive days, in the Republic of Vietnam between the dates of November 15, 1961 and March 28, 1973.)

'Nam information

These are all the official military campaigns for the Marines in Vietnam from 1970-73:

• Vietnam Winter-Spring 1970 : November 1, 1969 to April 30, 1970
• Sanctuary Counteroffensive : May 1 to June 30, 1970
• Vietnam Counteroffensive, Phase VII : July 1, 1970 to June 30, 1971
• Consolidation I : July 1 to November 30, 1971
• Consolidation II : December 1, 1971 to March 29, 1972
• Vietnam Cease Fire : March 30, 1972 to March 28, 1973

Although the Marines were in Vietnam until the end of the war (assisting in the evacuation of US embassies, for example,) ground force reduction begins in July of 71.

USMC units in Vietnam

Random Nam facts

• 25% of the total forces in country were draftees
• 82% of veterans who saw heavy combat strongly believe the war was lost because of lack of political will
• 91% of actual Vietnam War veterans and 90% of those who saw heavy combat are proud to have served their country

John meta and relationships with:

Meta on John from SPN HeavyMeta

Dean

'The Good Son'

Dean has a lot of respect for his father and rarely ever questions his motives, as compared to his brother who feels that John has taken away their childhood innnocence. In some episodes, Dean seems to share the same view but when all is said and done, he believes that John does what he feels is best for them.

Sam

'The Prodigal Son'

Sam's conflicts with his father seem to stem at least in part from their similarities. Stubborn, dogmatic at times, but from 1.20 Dead Man's Blood they started to come to a sense of understanding or empathy over their similar situations with Mary & Jess, and their common enemy, The Demon.

Other Hunters

• John tended to work alone, and avoid other hunters, although many appeared to know him or of him, and he seemed to have a good reputation as a hunter.

• From 1.22 Devil's Trap, on John:
  

Dean: Well, yeah, but last time we saw you, I mean, you did threaten to blast him full of buckshot. Cocked the shotgun and everything.
Bobby: Yeah, well, what can I say? John just has that effect on people.
Dean: Yeah, I guess he does.

The Roadhouse Crew

• According to Jo's Journal, John used to visit the Roadhouse before William Anthony Harvelle's death in 1995.
• In 2.06 No Exit (episode), Ellen infers that W.A.H.'s death was John's fault - they were both usually solo hunters, hunting together, when W.A.H. died.