Alistair Crane - Legacy

Legacy

Alistair's position as the head of a multi-billion dollar corporation and the patriarch of one of the wealthiest families in the world has led the contents of Alistair's will to play significantly into several of the program's storylines. From 1999—2000, Julian, as Alistair's eldest child and only known son, is the heir apparent to the Crane empire. Alistair eventually grows disgusted by Julian's behavior, however, and disinherits Julian in favor of Julian's firstborn child and son, Ethan Crane, in 2000; after Ethan breaks his engagement to Gwen Hotchkiss in order to marry Theresa Lopez-Fitzgerald later that year, Alistair also disinherits Ethan, leaving the title of heir apparent up for grabs.

As of the series finale in August 2008, Alistair has ten living biological and adoptive descendants — children Julian Crane and Sheridan Lopez-Fitzgerald and grandchildren Vincent Clarkson, Fancy Crane, Pretty Crane, Julian and Vincent's unnamed son, Miles Harris-Crane, Endora Lenox, James Boothe, and Marty Lopez-Fitzgerald. Vincent fakes his death in 2007, and, despite the fact that the tradition of primogeniture would make him, Alistair's eldest son's eldest son, the heir apparent, the fact that Vincent is African American, a hermaphrodite, and a confessed murderer, rapist, and arsonist (although these crimes were at Alistair's behest) would all likely persuade Alistair to bypass Vincent when selecting an heir. Race also prejudiced Alistair against Chad, and Alistair never seriously considers him, nor his son, Miles, as a possibility for heir. Furthermore, Julian is not publicly known to be Endora's father, though Alistair is aware of the girl's paternity and status as a half-witch, and it is therefore highly unlikely that Alistair has included her in his will.

Upon his October 2005 wedding to Theresa, Alistair disinherits all of his relatives — then including Julian, Sheridan, Beth, Chad, Fancy, Pretty, Fox, Endora, Marty, and Miles — aside from Julian and Theresa's son Little Ethan, whom he adopts, and makes Little Ethan his sole heir; his other descendants are only to receive money from their trust funds and from working at Crane Industries. A year later, Sheridan adopts a son, James, and it is assumed that James meets the same fate as his mother and is not included in Alistair's will.

Alistair's will becomes especially important once it is revealed that Little Ethan, whom Alistair adopted on the belief that he was a Crane, was fathered by Ethan Winthrop and not Julian. Should Little Ethan's paternity ever be made public, Alistair's will states that Fancy will become the sole Crane heir. However, only Alistair, Theresa, and Julian know of the will's special provisions. It is assumed that Julian becomes head of the Crane Empire with Fancy and her unborn child as heirs presumptive based on Julian's statements in the series finale.