Royal Dano as Hector Webb
| Hector Webb | |
|---|---|
| Personal Information | |
| Sex/Gender: | Male |
| Job/Career: | Farmer |
| Series Information | |
| Played by: | Royal Dano |
Hector Webb was a widower and father of Sylvia Webb, a teenaged girl who was raped and later died as a result of injuries sustained in a fall.
As a father, he was an extraordinary martinet and distrustful of his daughter.
Biography[]
Hector Webb was the single father of Sylvia, a 15-year-old girl who physically matured faster than her classmates, a situation which attracts the attention of teenaged boys in her class, including Albert Quinn Ingalls and Willie Oleson.
One day Hector catches Albert, Willie and two of their friends spying in Sylvia's window. While three of the boys escape, Hector manages to catch Albert, who is rescued by Harriet Oleson.
Hector then confronts his daughter, accusing her of enticing the boys at school. Sylvia denies this repeatedly, but Hector is unconvinced, threatening to give her "the whipping of [her] life" if those boys return.
He then orders to "bind [herself] up tighter," meaning that she wrap herself underneath her clothing in order to conceal her breasts.
One evening, Sylvia arrives home late, bruised and battered. Hector then helps his daughter to bed. Upon learning that his daughter was raped by an unidentified masked assailant, Hector is devastated, but concerned more for his reputation than any injury to his daughter. He warns her that she must never tell anyone what happened, and leaves her to cry alone in her room.
The next day, Sylvia experiences flashbacks of the rape and begins striking Willie and two of his friends. Laura Ingalls Wilder stops her and then takes her to Dr. Baker. Hector arrives to take his daughter home. Dr. Baker expresses concern about the bruises found on Sylvia's body, which Hector attributes to a fall. Dr. Baker is skeptical, but Hector refuses to discuss the matter further and takes his daughter home.
To spend time with Albert, Sylvia tells her father that she'll be staying late to help Mrs. Wilder grade some papers after school for extra credit. While the ruse works for several weeks, eventually Hector goes to see Mrs. Wilder and learns that his daughter has been lying to him. He forbids her to see Albert and orders her to return directly home from school, as he has a new piece of land to clear.
The Ingalls note that Hector has become a recluse, and the word is that Sylvia is being severely overworked. Reverend Alden stops by Hector's home to investigate, but is quickly rebuffed.
When Sylvia is brought back to Dr. Baker following a collapse in school, Dr. Baker calls Hector, revealing that Sylvia has become pregnant. (The news is overheard by Harriet Oleson, who is Walnut Grove's telephone operator and is notorious for using her post to eavesdrop on private conversations. Harriet begins spreading the baseless rumor that Albert Ingalls is the father.)
Hector forbids Sylvia from going into town at all, and tells her that he plans on selling his farm, to move somewhere "where folks don't know us." He and Sylvia will claim that her "husband" died in an accident. When Sylvia accuses her father of blaming her for this, he replies, "You reap what you sow."
Having placed his farm on the market, Hector is showing his home to the local blacksmith Irv Hartwig, offering it to him for 1,500 dollars. After Hartwig leaves, Hector notices the mud on Sylvia's shoes and is enraged, realizing that Sylvia has disobeyed his orders to remain at home, vowing to kill anyone he sees with her.
Hartwig has agreed to purchase the farm, and Hector then buys tickets for himself and Sylvia to leave. That evening, he discovers Albert's hat in his home and realizes that Sylvia had Albert over. Hector then begins loading his shotgun to shoot Albert. Sylvia insists that he did nothing, but Hector doesn't believe her, claiming he can't take the word of a whore. Devastated by the insult, Sylvia flees the house.
Hector shows up at the Ingalls' home in a heavy thunderstorm, intending to shoot Albert, but he is tackled by Charles. Albert swears he did not get Sylvia pregnant, and Hector is at last convinced.
The next day, Charles, Hector and Albert begin to search for Sylvia. After the three split up, Albert finds her at an abandoned farm. Sylvia is unwilling to return to her father, and the two of them decide to elope. Albert goes into town to borrow money from Mr. Hartwig and to get some clothing and food from home. As Albert begs Hartwig for his help, he discloses Sylvia's whereabouts. At the abandoned farm, Sylvia's unidentified attacker arrives, attempting to rape her again.
In a frantic effort to defend herself, Sylvia swings a piece of lumber, knocking the attacker down and dislodging his mask and cap, revealing Irv Hartwig as the rapist. Sylvia attempts to escape up a ladder, and as Hartwig starts to pursue, he is grabbed from behind by Albert. Sylvia then falls off the ladder and loses consciousness. Hartwig then seizes a piece of lumber and prepares to bludgeon Albert, but is shot and killed by Hector.
Sylvia is brought to Dr. Baker, but dies from injuries sustained in the fall.
The series does not follow-up with Hector after the death of his daughter, and his fate remains unknown. (Episode 717: Sylvia (Part 1), Episode 718: Sylvia (Part 2))
Behind the Scenes[]
Hector Webb is listed in the credits as "Mr. Webb." Reverend Alden is the only one who refers to Hector by his first name.