International Talk Like A Pirate Day!
Every September 19th is “International Talk Like A Pirate Day”. Today, a friend reminded me it’s coming up, and - since September 19th happens to be a Friday this year - I think it’s high time anyone who believes that it’s extremely cool that Burnsville was named after Otway Burns (who was basically a pirate - although “War of 1812 blockade runner” is the official explanation), we should have a major celebration uptown! (I was sooo smug when all over the south, monuments commemorating the Confederacy were coming down, and we got to keep our hero.)
I’m going to try retrieve from the Parkway Playhouse the wench costume I’d acquired at an Illinois renaissance fair back in the 70’s and donated to the Playhouse when I was thinking I’d have no further use for it.
I’ve been “onstage” more or less since I was about 5 years old (around 1957), when my brother Mike wrote a play about pirates and mermaids that we performed at our house for whoever would watch (Mom and Dad, I’m guessing). I was a mermaid with a tin-foil fishtail, and from what I can remember, my sole job was to shoot my brother Marty (a pirate) with a pistol.
The problem was that I had seen lots of gunfire in Gunsmoke and whatever other western series my Dad watched. So I knew it’d be super cool to “fan” the trigger. Much to my director brother’s chagrin, and that of my fellow actor brother (whom I was supposed to shoot), I would not simply pull the trigger. If I couldn’t kill him by fanning, he by God was not going to die. I was - even back then - a prima donna, apparently.
As far as talking like a pirate, all I’ve ever been able to manage is “Arrrh” or “Aye, matey!”
I was going to say “I’m going to find my petard (whatever that is) and hoist it” - but I decided to look it up first, and I’m glad I did. I’ve changed my mind.
Cheers,
Lucy