Villain of the Day: Jody Joad (Earthquake)

Yesterday, when it was announced that child evangelist-turned-actor Marjoe Gortner had passed away at the age of 82, nearly every article mentioned his role as Jody Joad, the homicidal National Guardsman from 1974’s Earthquake. Now, personally, I think Marjoe’s best role was playing himself in the creepy but compelling 1972 documentary Marjoe. My second-favorite Marjoe Gortner performance was his turn as Akton, Stella Starr’s partner in crime in Starcrash.

That said, Earthquake was apparently the most commercially successful film in which he appeared. And it must be said that Jody is an absolutely horrifying villain. When we first meet Jody, he’s the guy no one respects. He’s a grocery-store manager who takes a good deal of pride in being a member of the National Guard. His three housemates make constant fun of him, both for being so uptight and for all of the posters of male bodybuilders that decorate the walls of his room. From the first minute we see him, it’s obvious that Jody is someone who has been waiting his entire life for a chance to be in charge and to put everyone else in their place. Jody gets that chance when an earthquake hits Los Angeles and the National Guard is called out to maintain order. In his uniform, Jody has no hesitation about executing his former roommates for looting. He also has no hesitation about kidnapping Rosa (Victoria Principal), the model who used to shop at his grocery store.

What makes Jody such an effective villain is that he’s thoroughly plausible. Everyone probably knows someone like Jody. He’s the guy who has a big opinion of himself and who is upset that others don’t seem to share it. He’s someone who feels that he deserves more than he’s gotten in life and who spends most of his time trying to hide the resentment that burns within him. He’s exactly the type of person who lets the least amount of power go to his head. In Earthquake, he assumes the role of judge, jury, and executioner toward anyone he feels is failing to respect his authority. In the real world, he would have been the guy searching through your old tweets to find examples of wrongthink. He would have been one of the people who spent his time snitching on neighbors who stepped outside without wearing a mask during the COVID era. Indeed, the last few years have revealed that there are many Jodys among us.

Marjoe Gortner brought Jody to terrifying life. In the documentary about his life, Marjoe Gortner famously said that he was “bad, but not evil.” Jody Joad, on the other hand, is a very recognizable evil.