"Playing Pirate" Topic

"It's 9:43 a.m. on September 19, and you're eyeing the morning's deadlines when the usually reserved graphic artist pokes her head into your office and says, "Ye'll have me that copy before the sun is over the yard-arm, or I'll have ye walkin' the plank, ye swab, ye scurvy son of a sea dog." With a flourish, she whips an X-Acto knife in her teeth. You notice that she's wearing a tri-cornered felt hat with the Jolly Roger on the brim. "Harrr…" you think; it's National Talk Like a Pirate Day again…

Dave Barry, a humor columnist, popularized the holiday in 2002 and now it's officially recognized in three states. All over the country and the world (now that the observation has gone viral), people channel the Anglo-Cornish maritime dialect that came to us via Gilbert and Sullivan's operetta, The Pirates of Penzance, and especially from the performances of English actor Robert Newton who portrayed the "gentleman of fortune," Long John Silver, in Disney's version of Treasure Island. Newton played Blackbeard too, a couple of years later.

The real Blackbeard, Edward Teach, a pirate of the Caribbean if ever there were one, hailed from the seaport Bristol, where English speakers dropped their "h's" and rolled their "r's" and dropped the "l's" at the end of words. They used the infinitive for the verb "to be" as well—as in "he be a right buccaneer." In an earlier age, Sir Francis Drake, sanctioned as a privateer and knighted by Queen Elizabeth for his exploits against the Spanish, having grown up in extreme southwestern England—a haven for smugglers—spoke this way too. Despite the non-received accent, he became vice admiral of the fleet that scattered and sank the Spanish Armada in 1588. When we talk like pirates, we still talk something like real pirates talked…"
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Amicalement
Armand

Arrrrr, twas a fine dey fer carousin' an' seekin' golden treasure.

Dinst find no 'eavy metal, or doubloons, but did get me and da crew a nice, free, golden fried dinner at Cap'n Long John Silbers.

Den, we sailed ovah ta a small shack called Krispy Kreme, where we spied a whole mess a pirates plunderin' da place, an receivin' a dozen (me t'inks dats means seven) fried golden rings, which de locals call "doughnuts", in exchange fer not burnin' down de place.

Twas a fine day indeed fer a down an' out, scurvy pirate crew.

(smile)

Amicalement
Armand

You would 'ave really smiled 'ad ye seen all der 1/2 an' 1/3 scale pirate urchins scurryin' about.

Der be ah new wave o' pirates on de 'orizon………..