In Tommy's version of events, the father survived the war in a POW camp and returned, only to engage his wife's new husband in a fight to the death, which traumatized Tommy and made him enter into a near-catatonic state. When cured of this state, he briefly becomes a quasi-religious figure, protected by guards that assault Sally Simpson when she tries to get up on stage with him. In Pink's version of the events, the father died, and Pink's many negative experiences led him to build a "wall" around himself to keep others out. As he descends deeper into psychosis, he imagines himself as a fascistic dictator. This sequence grew out of Roger Waters' concern at having once spit at a disruptive fan at a concert, similar to the incident with Sally Simpson depicted in The Who's rock opera.