Jason McGuire

"If I can get it, I want it. And if I want it, I get it." - Jason McGuire
Jason McGuire (1918-1967) was a seafaring man who came to Collinsport in the mid 1940's. He was a friend of Paul Stoddard and later friend of Willie Loomis. After he returned to Collinwood, he had a plan to blackmail the mistress of Collinwood, Elizabeth Collins Stoddard, for her money in 1967.
==Biography ==
===Background ===
Jason McGuire was born in 1918, to an Irish family. According to Paul, He had “indisputable connections”. (272). Jason had a shady past, and was wanted in several different countries such as Hong Kong, Marseille and Rio de Janeiro for smuggling, swindling and extortion, but often left the country before the authorities could get sufficient evidence on him. (269) During that time, he developed close ties with a man named Paul Stoddard, and the two would run scams together. Paul was hinted by Jason to be a ladies man; as he didn't understand the word "permanent".
Jason read in the newspaper of Paul and Elizabeth's wedding. He eventually figured out that Paul was looking to scheme to get the Collins fortune and went to Collinsport to get part of his share. (201) The two schemed afterwards.
In 1949, Paul struck a deal with Mr. Strak to leave Collinsport with a fortune. He attempted to finally pack his bags and leave Collinsport. Before he left, his wife Elizabeth, hit him over the head; a blow which she thought was fatal. When Jason arrived looking for Paul, he found Elizabeth distressed and begging him for help. When Jason checked in Paul's body, it turned out he was very much alive, and the two quickly hashed out a scheme for their escape. He faked burying Paul's body in the basement of Collinwood, and told Elizabeth never to let anyone into that room (272). He later lost contact with Paul in Hong Kong.
Jason continued his various schemes around the globe, traveling to Naples and Madagascar. He eventually befriended a young boy named Willie Loomis and they ran scams in every port they landed in, including Singapore and Jamaica, but their luck turned bad after Jamaica ( "Echoes of Insanity" ).
===Return to Collinsport ===
Low on funds, in 1967, he returned to Collinsport, and stayed in Collinsport Inn, for a short period of time. Upon hearing about Elizabeth Stoddard in the Collinsport Inn restaurant, and how she hadn't left Collinwood for eighteen years, he decided to pay her a visit. (196).
He came to Collinwood, to blackmail Elizabeth. This allowed him to move into Collinwood, threatening that he would go to the authorities about Paul's "disappearance" unless she allowed him to stay (196). Willie Loomis, who was aware of the blackmail (but not the reasons behind it) (199), started causing issues for Jason, even going as far as to invite himself over to stay at Collinwood (202). Though very much against it, Jason eventually begrudgingly agreed.
A prime opportunity to further his manipulation of Elizabeth presented itself when Carolyn asked him about her father. He sang his praises and even told her that the two of them were very much alike (202).
Jason continued to blackmail Elizabeth and extorted vast sums of money from her. He also forced her to give him a position in the family business (228) and to sell him Collins-owned property. By this point the rest of the Collins family knew that Jason had some kind of hold over Elizabeth, but she refused to entertain the notion. He knew she was willing to do whatever he wanted, so long as he never revealed her grave secret. To seal the deal, he proposed marriage (243) which horrified everyone involved, including Barnabas Collins, who was new in town.
Carolyn, in an attempt to figure out what exactly Jason held over her mother, searched through his room. He caught her and told her in no uncertain terms that once he was married to her mother, she would no longer be allowed to stay at Collinwood. This being the last straw, Carolyn decides the best course of action is to kill him during the ceremony.
On the day of their wedding, instead of saying "I do," Elizabeth finally declared that she had killed Paul and Jason helped her do it (270). Jason, realizing he couldn't smooth talk his way out of this one, decided to flee. However, he was brought back to the house by the police (271). Jason then revealed that she never actually killed Paul, he was just unconscious. He showed them the trunk in the basement that allegedly contained Paul’s remains. only for it to be completely empty.
===Final Fate===
With the truth now out in the open, the sheriff ordered him to leave the area within 24 hours—but Jason wasn’t going to leave empty-handed. As dusk began to fall, he broke into the Old House, hoping to find some Collins family jewels like the ones he knew Barnabas was in possession of. He went into the Old House cellar and discovered the coffin of Barnabas Collins. Willie tried to give Jason more jewels, but it wasn't enough to satisfy him. He warned Jason that Barnabas wasn't "alive" and that he would kill him for intruding, but Jason still refused to listen to him. He opened the coffin, still believing that there were jewels hidden there—only to find Barnabas who woke up and strangled him to death (275). Barnabas later had Willie transfer Jason’s remains to the secret room in the Collins family mausoleum (276).
Jason McGuire's murder was never discovered—as far as everyone else was concerned, Jason had fled town to avoid charges over Paul Stoddard's "death" and the resulting blackmail attempt. Oddly—given the manner of his death—Jason's ghost does not seem to have manifested. 
When the coffin is opened by David Collins while playing with Sarah Collins (306), the coffin was empty, suggesting someone could have taken his remains elsewhere (although it is never shown or mentioned in the show). 
==Memorable Quotes ==
Jason McGuire: "Now you made one beautiful blunder by getting involved in that fight."
Jason McGuire: "One more blunder like that and you'll blow the whole deal and none of us are gonna get anything out of it."
== Appearances==
193, 195, 196, 197, 198, 199, 200, 201, 202, 203, 204, 205, 206, 207, 208, 209, 210, 211, 213, 215, 216, 217, 218, 219, 220, 224, 228, 232, 233, 237, 242, 243, 244, 246, 249, 254, 257, 259, 264, 266, 269, 270, 271, 272, 273, 274, 275, 276
McGuire, Jason
McGuire, Jason
Category:Males
Category:1949 Characters
Category:Deceased characters
Category:People not from Collinsport