Boyd's childhood home

Boyd's childhood home in Santa Monica is an important symbol of the humble background that Boyd originates from and the extent to which he undertook a character transformation to escape it. The house is modest to the bone, something that even Angie—who is modest herself—picks up on, clearly indicating that Boyd came from a middle class or even lower-class background before he changed his name, married the daughter of a wealthy businessman, and began attempting to rise through the ranks of the journalism circuit. The house thus serves as a useful glimpse at the life Boyd left behind, serving as a means of filling in the contextual gaps in his backstory.

The rodeo

Randy's fixation on the rodeo—and specifically on riding "broncs"—is a symbol for the impractical but thorough extent to which Randy has committed himself to a kind of...