Lou Shaw is a journalist at Manhattan Magazine.
History[]
Vivian's Pitch[]
When Vivian told Lou, Maud, and Barry that she had a story, they all encouraged her to go pitch it to Landon. She did, but got shot down and told to do another story she didn't want to do. Despite this, they quickly figured out that Vivian was working on that story anyway. Lou was impressed with her for defying their editor, Paul. When Vivian struggled to find people connected to Anna, Lou suggested seeing if the ADA would talk. He also suggested calling the asset managers at the banks. They also passed around other ideas for how Vivian could get information, leading Maud to suggest she look at the one hotel that didn't file charges: 12 George, where Anna lived for months. When Vivian learned that Anna had been offered a plea deal, Lou agreed that if Anna took the deal, it would kill the story because she would no longer be able to talk to Anna.[1]
As Vivian started to work on her story, Barry, Lou, and Maud showed her the timeline they'd put together, tracking Anna's movement as she left Germany and went first to London, and then Paris, before finally coming to New York. They used this and Instagram to figure out that Anna was connected to Talia Mallay and had dated Chase Sikorski for a time.[2]
Lou continued to help Vivian research her story, including helping her call hotels in Dubai to find Chase. When Vivian looked into Anna's timeline, she wondered why Anna would work so hard to secure Nora's mentorship only to cut Nora off as soon as she had it. Lou and Barry wondered if she was just a lone wolf, but Vivian thought it was more than that. This conversation led to Vivian going to the prosecutor and finding out that Anna had stolen from Nora, but Nora decided not to press charges.[3]
Vivian learned that Anna was attempting to lease 281 Park, which was owned by Aby Rosen. She had a whole business plan for how to start ADF and it was extremely detailed. All she had to do was secure the financing. Barry expressed doubt that anyone would give Anna that much money until Vivian showed him the box of paperwork she had that showed that they came very close to doing just that. They reviewed the paperwork and were shocked to find that Alan Reed, an experienced Wall Street lawyer, had checked the box on her application that said she had the money to pay for services, even though she definitely didn't.
Maud, Barry, and Lou later told Vivian that Anna had stolen a jet. She'd chartered a flight to Omaha and never paid the $35,000 bill. Vivian determined that she'd used the flight to get to Berkshire Hathaway.[4]
American Investigated[]
When Vivian came into the office and noticed everyone staring at her, she asked if she'd missed breaking news. Maud, Barry, and Lou informed her that the new America Investigated promo had come out and Donovan Lamb was going to be on it, for their episode on bad journalism. The three of them looked after Vivian as she continued her work, though she insisted she was fine.[5]
Finding Rachel[]
As Vivian got closer to finishing the research for her article, she became frustrated that she still couldn't find Rachel for an interview. Barry, Maud, and Lou tried to convince her that she didn't need Rachel for the story, but Barry reluctantly admitted that it would be better with her. He, Lou, and Maud argued over if Kacy's part would be enough to make up for not having Rachel until they finally told Vivian to start writing and they'd find Rachel.
Maud found out that they weren't able to find Rachel because she'd sold her story to Vanity Fair. Barry reassured her about it, saying it didn't mean her story was dead. Vivian knew that it might well be depending on who was writing the story. Despite knowing the article could come out online later that day, they all agreed not to tell Landon or Paul. Vivian waited until the article came up, at which point she learned that Rachel had written it. She said it didn't meant she'd been scooped because it wasn't real journalism. Once Landon cleared it, Vivian continued work on her article. While she worked, Barry, Maud, and Lou kept trying to figure out Anna's timeline.
Vivian worked for twelve hours. While she worked, Maud, Lou, and Barry discussed the story that led to Vivian's reputation being ruined. Barry thought she should have been more on top of things, but Maud reminded him he'd made mistakes before and not lost jobs or his reputation over it. They all waited as Vivian finished her article and then read it. Legal said they couldn't publish it without Kacy's okay, so Vivian stayed at the office despite being in labor, calling Kacy for her okay. Once Kacy gave permission, Jack led Vivian out of the office as everyone else applauded.[6]
Anna's Trial[]
Barry, Lou, and Maud came to the courthouse for Anna's trial. They were most eager to see Rachel's testimony.
After closing arguments, Barry, Lou, and Maud waited back at the office for the verdict to come in, hovering around Maud's computer, where she had the Scriberia Slack chat pulled up. When she announced that Vivian was typing, Lou and Barry gathered behind her. She sent them the ruling on each charge as it was read. In total, she was found guilty on all but two charges.[7]
Relationships[]
Professional[]
Career[]
He is a journalist at Manhattan Magazine.
Notes and Trivia[]
- Netflix Bio: Dubbed the unofficial king of Scriberia — the group of writers at the magazine deemed too old and out of touch to do "real work" and yet too esteemed to fire. Lou's personal life is a mess but his awards keep him warm.
Gallery[]
Episodic[]
Episode Stills[]
Appearances[]
| Inventing Anna | |||||
| #01 | "Life of a VIP" | #04 | "A Wolf in Chic Clothing" | #07 | "Cash on Delivery" |
| #02 | "The Devil Wore Anna" | #05 | "Check Out Time" | #08 | "Too Rich for Her Blood" |
| #03 | "Two Birds, One Throne" | #06 | "Friends in Low Places" | #09 | "Dangerously Close" |