Harold
smith was a very complex character, so it does not seem so unusal that
he committed suicide. He had some psychological issues, and as a result
nobody questions his suicide. But what if Harold never committed
suicide? What if he was murdered?
In Fire Walk With Me (FWWM),
Laura pays a visit to Harold and confides in him. She tells him that
BOB does not know about him. The Log Lady mentions that she is safe
from the owls in her cabin. In other wordas the owls (vessels for BOB
to possess) can not see what goes on in the cabin. Similarly, Harolds
house is a sanctuary from BOB, as he cannot see what goes on in there,
nor who lives in it... hence, Harold is a secret from BOB.
So,
Harold's phobia of the outdoors is not necessarily a bad thing. If
Harold was to expose himself to the outdoors then he would no longer be
a secret from BOB. And this is indeed what happens when he chases Donna
Hayward out of his house, only to falter. This is the turning point of
Harold's life. All of a sudden he is exposed to the prying eyes of the
owls, and BOB knows all about him. BOB, after seeing Harold, kills him.
The prying eyes of the owls are not the only means for BOB to
learn of Harold's existence. The psychological impact of his stepping
outside generated a great deal of fear. BOB is drawn to fear, we learn
this when he is drawn to Josie when she dies of fright!
So, we
have two logical arguments which suggest that Harold Smith was killed
by BOB. Add this to the facts that he swore he would kill again, and
that BOB had not finished spelling out his name under people's
fingernails, and the pieces gradually begin to fall intoplace. But what
would they have discovered if they had looked under poor Harold's
fingernail...?