Ruby Gentry

Ruby Corey and Boake Tackman, from different social classes, grew up together in 1950s North Carolina. Their friendship remained unobjectionable as long as it stayed within social norms. As adults, their bond evolved into romantic attraction. Ruby desired marriage, but Boake only sought fleeting romance without commitment. He ultimately married a wealthy woman, possibly due to social status concerns or fear of his family and community. Seeking revenge, Ruby married Jim Gentry, a wealthy widower with many debts owed to him. After Gentry's death, Ruby became the town's scapegoat, and as a newly wealthy individual, she took revenge by collecting debts and loans, transforming from a girl from the swamps to the town's biggest nightmare.