In the novel, Rosemary finds that during her pregnancy, putting even a tiny bit of salt on her food makes her so nauseated that she can't eat it. Salt is known as a symbol of good and protection against demons and other evil supernatural forces in many of the world's religious traditions, including Christianity. This may also be why eating the chicken heart makes her sick when other raw meat does not. Chickens are traditionally regarded as symbols of goodness and the Resurrection, and their presence repels demons.
The miniseries debuts on May 11, Mother's Day.
The Antichrist is born on June 25 - exactly the opposite of Christmas - in 1966. His birth is honored as "The Year One," much like the year of Jesus' birth. Jesus' ministry is believed to have ended when he was 33. The Antichrist's 33rd year will be the year 2000 - which many people thought would be the end of the world, or the dawn of a new world order.
A novel with a major character named Roman Castevet goes on to have a film adaptation directed by RomanPolanski and co-starring JohnCassavetes. Polanski even mentioned this to Ira Levin and proposed that the name might've been an unconscious Shout-Out, but Levin denied it.
The "shaped-all-wrong booties that Laura-Louise is knitting". Laura-Louise is such a klutz that the reader assumes she's just a bad knitter. Then it hits you. This is typical of the clever little underhanded one-liners that Levin keeps throwing you all the way through the first book.
In the final sequence in which Rosemary strikes out to save her baby, the camera lingers as she puts on a blue robe over her long white nightgown, echoing the Virgin Mary she admired in the department store window at Christmas. The Virgin Mary has long been depicted as wearing a blue wrap over a white gown, with the shade of blue even becoming known as "Marian blue."
Minnie telling Rosemary at the end that Satan chose her to give birth to the Antichrist: was that just an off-the-cuff attempt to reassure Rosemary and calm her down? Or did she mean that literally—Satan rejected Terry and somehow knew about Rosemary, then acted as The Chessmaster to manipulate her into the clutches of the Castevets?
Sapirstein seems to have some sort of hold on Dr. Hill. Notice he seems to be taking Rosemary seriously until she mentions Sapirstein's name, then notice his facial expression changes. Is it just that Sapirstein is a renowned obstetrician who is so respected that he couldn't possibly be involved in something like this? Or is it something else?
