[close] Growing up in the Appalachian Mountains in the 1950s, Donald Davis heard his parents and grandparents tell tales about Jack. It seemed they were always talking about old Jack. As a child, Davis figured Jack to be some distant relative or other-side-of-the-mountain neighbor. In fact, he asked to visit Jack on numerous occasions but was repeatedly turned aside with one of those incomplete answers adults save especially for curious offspring. [close]