Narrative Web
Object

House-Library Bible Stamped 'Donnie's Motel'

Charlie sprints from Capitol backstage to the House library and returns breathless with this battered Bible, resolving the crisis of the stranded ceremonial prop. Its cover carries a faded 'Donnie's Motel' stamp noted earlier in Oval Office inspection. Bartlet accepts it amid staff bickering and Will's illness, then uses it for the oath as Abbey, Ed, Larry, Toby, and C.J. stand by. The retrieval punctuates limousine frustrations over frozen Metroliner tracks.
8 appearances

Purpose

Bible for swearing presidential inauguration oath

Significance

Charlie's delivery turns logistical panic into resolution, humanizes the team through quick improvisation, and shifts focus from trivia like ball order to the oath's gravity. It contrasts pomp with practicality during backstage tension.

Appearances in the Narrative

When this object appears and how it's used

8 moments
S4E14 · Inauguration Part I
Balls, a Bible, and a Leaked Doctrine

Charlie produces the battered House Library Bible stamped 'Donnie's Motel' and hands it to Bartlet, relieving the last-minute logistical problem about which bible to use. The object functions as a practical ritual prop that injects levity and humility into an otherwise high-stakes moment.

Before: Held in or en route from the House Library; not yet in the President's possession.
After: In the President's hands; opened and read briefly for the inscription before being accepted for the oath.
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S4E14 · Inauguration Part I
Leak in the Lobby: Doctrine, Khundu, and the Missing Bible

Charlie produces the battered House-library Bible stamped 'Donnie's Motel' and hands it to Bartlet; it functions as the immediate practical solution for the oath and as a humanizing, slightly comic counterpoint to the political drama unfolding.

Before: Stored in the House Library; not yet in the President's possession.
After: In President Bartlet's hands; opened and inspected, ready for the swearing-in ceremony.
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S4E14 · Inauguration Part I
Found: The Donnie's Motel Bible

A battered House-library Bible stamped 'Donnie's Motel' is produced by Charlie as the substitute for the unavailable George Washington Bible. It functions as the tangible fix for the immediate ceremonial problem, supplies a comic human detail, and briefly humanizes the high-pressure atmosphere before the oath.

Before: In the custody of the House Library stacks; unavailable for the President until Charlie retrieved it.
After: In President Bartlet's hands and ready for use in the swearing-in; about to be used in the public ceremony.
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S4E15 · Inauguration Part II: Over There
Too Cold for a Parade / The Missing Bible

The House-Library Bible is invoked as the immediate contingency: Charlie asks if the House Library has a Bible and then runs off to fetch it, transforming the object into the story's near-term solution to the ceremonial failure.

Before: Located in the House Library, not yet in the President's possession.
After: Being retrieved — physically in the House Library but in the process of being fetched by Charlie (not yet presented).
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S4E15 · Inauguration Part II: Over There
Missing Bible, Quick Fix

The House-Library Bible is identified as the likely immediate replacement for the missing ceremonial Bible. Charlie runs to the House Library to fetch it; the object functions narratively as the practical solution to a ceremonial problem and as a comic contrast to the lost, stamped ceremonial copy.

Before: Located in the House Library; unused as a ceremonial prop but available as a backup.
After: Still in the House Library at the moment of this scene, but in the process of being requested and likely to be retrieved by Charlie (pending).
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S4E15 · Inauguration Part II: Over There
Order of the Balls — Bartlet's Exasperation

The battered 'Donnie's Motel' stamped Bible functions as the crucial ceremonial prop; its absence threatens the oath's optics until Charlie retrieves it. The Bible's arrival resolves a tangible crisis and redirects the group's attention from protocol squabbles to the impending public ritual.

Before: Missing from the President's possession; Charlie is searching for it through the building.
After: In Charlie's hands as he runs down the hallway, en route to return it to the President for the oath.
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S4E15 · Inauguration Part II: Over There
Sick with the Stakes

The House-Library Bible is the missing ceremonial prop whose absence creates urgent backstage tension; Charlie appears running with it, declaring 'I've got it,' which instantly resolves the procedural crisis and allows the staff to pivot back toward the public ritual.

Before: Missing from the President's immediate vicinity; Charlie is actively searching for it.
After: In Charlie's hands, in transit down the hallway toward the oath; crisis resolved.
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S4E15 · Inauguration Part II: Over There
The Missing Inauguration Bible — Charlie's Sprint

The battered House-Library Bible functions as the missing ceremonial prop that crystallizes backstage anxiety; it is sought urgently, retrieved by Charlie, and returned into the procession, symbolically restoring procedural legitimacy before the oath.

Before: Absent from the President's possession and unlocated where it was expected, producing a last-minute logistical gap.
After: In Charlie's hands and carried back toward the President; possession transferred to staff for use in the oath.
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