paternity disclosure. He recovered.
| Full Name | Ethan Winthrop (formerly Crane) |
| Family | Biological: Bennett. Raised: Crane. |
| Occupation | Lawyer. Heir (status: revoked). |
| Played by | Travis Schuldt; Eric Martsolf |
| Bio. Father | Sam Bennett, Chief of Police |
| Raised by | Julian Crane (coldly) |
| Love interests | Theresa & Gwen. |
Crane Heir · Identity: In Revision
Ethan Winthrop
Not a Crane. Trying to find his footing. A dumb man, by his own admission, doing his best in difficult circumstances, and this week he managed it. The Gazette is prepared to say that.
Status: ProcessingPresent Situation
Ethan Winthrop placed his hand on the Crane family bible this week and swore to destroy the life of whoever leaked his paternity to the tabloids. He packed to leave Harmony. Sheridan talked him out of it. He is now engaged to Theresa Lopez-Fitzgerald. He also revealed he used to play baseball. The Gazette is noting this.
He vowed to destroy whoever is responsible for the tabloid leak. The Gazette is tracking this vow. The Gazette also notes that this paper has some context on who is responsible, and considers the forthcoming revelation significant.
The Paternity Question
Ethan was raised as the eldest son and heir of Julian Crane, which positioned him to inherit the Crane fortune, Crane Industries, and whatever unspecified terrors Alistair left behind. This arrangement suited everyone, including Ethan, who did not know it was built on a lie. The lie was that Ivy Crane, his mother, had an affair with Sam Bennett before Ethan was born. The Cranes knew. The Bennetts did not. Harmony, broadly, suspected. This is the kind of secret this show does very well.
Now Ethan knows too. He is, at press time, no longer a Crane. He retains the Winthrop name, which comes from his mother's family by prior marriage, and a law degree, which is something.
The Theresa Situation
The central romantic entanglement of Ethan's life is Theresa Lopez-Fitzgerald, who has loved him with a fervour that polite observers describe as devoted and less polite observers describe as concerning. Ethan has reciprocal feelings. He is also married to Gwen Hotchkiss, a marriage Theresa has been attempting to resolve in her favour since approximately day one. The triangle persisted for the entirety of the show's run. When you have a triangle this committed you simply cannot lose, and the Gazette has always believed that.
Character Assessment
Ethan is one of the show's genuinely well-intentioned men operating in a town that seems specifically designed to make well-intentioned men look foolish. He is loyal. He is principled, at least in ambition. He is slow to conclusions, and the Gazette wants to be fair about that: the pacing requirements of the medium are real and we respect them.
The Gazette's senior correspondent has noted that Ethan's scenes, while not always propulsive, tend to contain the show's best performances when they contain any at all. This week was, by those standards, unusually well acted and quite emotional. It is a strong performance and this paper is giving it the recognition it deserves.