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Dr. Marvin Candle, Dr. Mark Wickmund and Dr. Edgar Halliwax are names used in different DHARMA Initiative films by the scientist narrating the films. Since the scientist in each film appears identical, it is unclear whether these are all aliases of the same man, or if there is another reason for the different names.

On Lost

Oldvsnewfilm

Dr. Marvin Candle in the Swan orientation film.

MarkWickman

Dr. Mark Wickmund in the Pearl orientation video.

Mcandle DVD

Dr. Marvin Candle in Season 2 Bonus DVD.

The scientist in each film worked for the DHARMA Initiative and narrated the films, including the Swan Orientation Film (as Dr. Marvin Candle), the Pearl Orientation Video (as Dr. Mark Wickmund), and the Orchid Orientation Film (as Dr. Edgar Halliwax) and the Flame computer videos (as ?).

In both the Swan and Flame videos, the scientist appeared to have a prosthetic left arm, while the scientist shown in the Pearl video did not. In the Barracks video, the scientist did not move his left arm, suggesting it too might have been a prosthetic. In the Orchid Orientation Film, the scientist was using both arms and claimed he was not an actor.

In the Swan film, the scientist stressed to DHARMA employees the importance of pushing the button to avoid another "incident" ("Orientation"). The scientist in The Pearl film, however, implied the button was merely a psychological experiment ("?"). This was revealed to be false ("Live Together, Die Alone, Part 1"), suggesting The Pearl was the true experiment.

The scientist also appeared in a random access video on the Flame computer (accessed by beating a chess game) which allowed the manual override of various system functions ("Enter 77"). In this video, the DHARMA labcoat the scientist wore bore a Flame logo; while in other videos, the labcoats bore the Swan logo. Notably, the scientist was wearing a suit instead of a DHARMA labcoat in the Pearl video.

An orientation video, apparently shown to new members of the DHARMA Initiative in the 1970s, was also narrated by the scientist, who cautioned the importance of remaining within the fence surrounding the Barracks for protection from the "wildlife" of the island. ("The Man Behind the Curtain")

In "The Shape of Things to Come", Ben is shown lying in Sahara Desert wearing a parka with another unidentified DHARMA logo and the name Halliwax on it.


Outside of Lost episodes

DVD bonus features

In the Lost Season 2 Bonus Features Disc, he was not shown with a prosthetic arm, although this was not necessarily canon.

Comic conventions

In late July 2007, a new orientation video was show at Comic Con and released on ABC's LOST website for "The Orchid", in which Candle appears. In this orientation film, he refers to himself as "Edgar Halliwax."


Unanswered questions

Unanswered questions
  1. Do not answer the questions here.
  2. Keep the questions open-ended and neutral: do not suggest an answer.
For fan theories about these unanswered questions, see: Pierre Chang/Theories
  • Are they different men?
  • If they are the same man:
    • what is his real name?
    • why use multiple aliases?
    • why do his aliases all refer to candles (halliWAX, WICKmund)?
  • Did he lose his arm? If so, how?
  • How did Ben get the parka bearing the name "Halliwax"?

Trivia

  • The casting sheet for "Live Together, Die Alone, Part 1" called Dr. Marvin Candle "Waxman".
  • Marvin is of Welsh origin, and its meaning is "sea friend". Variant of Mervin. Some derive this name from Myrddin, the Welsh name of King Arthur's wizardly tutor (known in English as Merlin). That name means "sea fortress".
  • The last names "Candle," "Wickmund" and "Halliwax" are linked together through their references to candles. He has worn a Swan logo coat or a Flame logo coat in every video except one in which he wore a turtle-neck and sport-coat.
  • The word "Namasté", which is spoken at the end of each of the DHARMA Initiative videos at each station on the island, along with the action of bowing with hands pressed together, can be explained in at least two ways (see also the main article):
    • 1. Namasté is the formal and traditional greeting and the way of saying both "goodbye" and "hello" in Hindi.
    • 2. "Namas" means 'I bow', and "té" means 'you'; thus, "Namasté" literally means "I bow (to) you".
  • The scenes from the Swan station Orientation film were shot on the APO set from seasons 4 and 5 of Alias in Burbank, California, by the Alias crew. The Pearl film was shot in Hawaii. (Source: Francois Chau Interview, The Tailsection, Comparisons at Lost Virtual Tour)


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