hurricane

Sorry, Ace. Didn't mean to upset ol' Jack, uh, Ace.

In 22 years no one has asked me why I have buckled shoes instead of boots. Even in Port Royal , they knew we were pirates without boots - in fact - they recognized us as pirate in civvies. Funny, isn't it.

90% of what I do as a pirate is indeed fantasy. But that doesn't stop me from separating Hollywood fiction from fact. And the people don't get bored. As I speak I'm listening to a two hour performance we did here with an orchestra. We managed to erase fiction by providing historical fact and received a standing ovation from a paying crowd. Wow! Perhaps the folks you enterain aren't as smart as those in one of the smallest communities in Florida. They didn't even ask why I was wearing buckled shoes. What were they thinking?

I again repeat that I don't get why you're so vicious in your attacks, just because I can see both sides. I'm sure you would take umbrage if one of us poked holes in your Jack Sparrow kit which you obviously put a lot of work into. So why the double standard, or to keep the genre correct, why the double edged sword?

Eh?

-- Hurricane

Don't know if it's still valid, but here's a place to get the tapes...http://www.coolstufftoys.com/bananasplits.html

Boomerang used to have the Banana Splits.

Jean Michael Vincent was in it... probably the best thing he did. :)

-- Hurricane

Wow!

Someone needs to get a sense of humor or at least know what humor is.

My statement was made in a style known as Sardonic Wit, an ancient form of mocking something cynically, to the point of absurdity. It is a classic style of humor. One that has been used since the time of the Greeks, perhaps a little later. I would have to check my historical, oh, uh hysterical documents to see when Sardonic Wit first came into fashion.

I find your anger toward me as humorous as the rest of your rant against those who want to be educated instead of pepetuating lies.

Perhaps the LexaPro dosage needs to be upped a bit, eh?

-- Hurricane

This is a great discussion. Love reading through the threads.

The term princess shoes actually derives from the source of the buckles on my shoes. They were given to me by a festival princess I was dating at the time. So they've always been referred to as the princess shoes since.

I think a Justacorps would look silly with bucket boots. The painting I saw in Jamaica was silk stockings and shoes...

Again, 10 to 20 years doesn't seem like much difference in historical perspective, but in real time it is a lot of time for things to go in and out of fashion. I go back to the arguments about skinny ties vs. wide ties or three button suits vs. leisure suits. Anyone ever see Somewhere in Time? A smaltzy movie but he made his best guess what a person would wear back in the time he wanted to go and he was 10 years out of style or something like that - and his bowler stood out among those gents with top hats.

A crummy example history wise but I think the basic logic is sound. Only so much my rum sodden head can think of after a long day at work.

- Hurricane

This was covered in the Sea Rover's Practice and I think the position was accurate.

According to the author, homosexual activity aboard a ship was no more widespread than in society. The vast majority of sailors either took care of it the traditional way or remained celebate until their return to shore when they would whore the night away or wear out their wife or girlfriend upon their return.

I seriously doubt that sailors or pirates sought out homosexual relationships just because they couldn't get any at sea. Without being too graphic, the hand is a mighty fine substitute in times of need and doesn't carry any of the complications.

The term matelot is often mistaken to infer the conjugal relationship between two sailors or pirates. But that is misconstrued. In fact, when one married the matelot had visitation rights to the wife when the other was away.

So, I would caution against making a generalization that men at sea were more promiscuous than those ashore.

-- Hurricane

I think this has been a lively discussion.

I think the preference for boots is based on looking cool. There is obviously little to support their use in GAoP. Sure, they were probably available. But think about our current fashions.

You can still buy a fedora but they haven't been fashionable since the 50s. Hats in general went out of fashion in the 60s and haven't returned to favor. I'm talking about the kind of hats ladies and gentlemen used to wear to church... not berets, stocking caps or baseball caps. Fashions change and one would tend to follow fashion. This would even be true of a pirate going to town. They wouldn't want to seem out of place, in my humble opinion. Their goal was to blend in.

I think one of the reasons guys prefer the boots is they look more authoritative or impressive than a pair of buckled shoes, which could be perceived as a bit prissy. But that was the general fashion on land then. I for one love to wear the shoes because I seem to stand out among the hundred other pirates at an event who are wearing boots. It takes a bit of daring to wear the ol' "princess shoes" as my crewe calls them. And it creates a good talking point when out in public.

I would encourage everyone here to branch out and try the shoes too. You may be surprised at the response you get. And they good pair of shoes costs a lot less than a good pair of boots.

-- Hurricane

Diosa and I are heading down to Port Royal to meet with Julie and Finbar of the Schooner WOLF and Jackie, manager of the Morgan's Harbour Resort in June. Should have more then!

-- Hurricane

Our crewe will be there in farce, uh, force.

-- Hurricane

My fiancee took me to Faravilla - the local, how do I say, "love shop." She took me on a carte blanche shopping spree in the store, which has all sorts of lovely things and toys.

Needless to say, I made her a lovely dinner featuring steak and she returned the gift with a fashion show (and demonstration) of the stuff I picked out.

Ahh.... love Valentine's Day!!!!!

-- Hurricane

(sorry, little tapped. Can't type correctly with my brain scrambled).

I like the period on the cusp of governorship. In 1674, he returned to Jamaica, as a knight and took up his posts as deputy-governor, senior member of the Council, lieutenant-general of all armed forces and judge-admiral of the Admiralty Court.

At the age of 45 (1680), Sir Henry had risen to the rank of acting governor of Jamaica, Vice-Admiral, Commandant of the Port Royal Regiment, Judge of the Admiralty Court and Justice of the Peace. Plus he had the savvy to become a major landholder.

It was during this time that he rode the fence so to speak. He was a stalwart defender of his own captains from previous raids, spending long periods at the Port Royal rum houses telling stories. There's little doubt that he was heavily involved in their activities. But he also was the one who judged and hung pirates captured near Jamaica. town. It is the ideal complex character... a loyal captain still dabbling in the sweet trade who uses his new found position of authority and reputation as a national hero to protect his friends and persecute their competitors, so to speak.

A buccaneer who became governor. What better story to tell...

-- Hurricane

Well, that would probably make sense. Morgan never considered himself a lover of the sea. He preferred the land and thought more of himself as a soldier than a sailor. So the boots would be an obvious choice.

I want to make it clear that I'm not trying to raise the issue of boots on pirates. That's been beaten to death on this site. Morgan was not of that era. So let's try to leave the GAoP arguments out of this discussion.

I am far more interested in the clothing and whether it would fit the time. Morgan came from a time when bucket boots were fashion as well as practical. Plus, as I said, he was a brilliant commander on land, not on sea. After all, he sank many of his own ships during his lifetime.

-- Hurricane

I know the 1650's to 80's is a little out of the realm of many of you who are specialist in GAoP, but I came across this in a book I have on Morgan written in 1947. There are very few impressions of Morgan and I want to see how his clothing stacks up against what would be historically accurate for the time.

Thanks for any help you can provide.

-- Hurricane

I'm not a fan of the rating system because I would miss out on the whys, which are important to me. If something isn't right in general or right for a period, I want the insights.

Thanks Kass! I really appreciate the dating of the garment. I learn so much from you all.

-- Hurricane

Thanks Foxe and GoF. That would probably place it about right time wise there. I think, but am not sure, that it is a painting of one of the governors or other aristocrats of Jamaica. I just can't remember. But it is a striking painting, almost lifesize in the dining room of the Devon House. Everytime I go there I just gawk at it, not only for the magnificent attire, but the artistry of the guy who painted it and the patience of the subject to stand there in the tropical heat for hours on end in the outfit.

It is obviously someone of great fortune as that coat would have taken eons to embroider. But I appreciate the detail your point out to narrow down the time. I knew I had come to the right place.

-- Hurricane

On a related unrelated note. I have this photo of a painting at Devon House in Jamaica. Now, I know for a fact that it is authentic and period. But I don't know which period. Can my costuming experts help me out? The hat appears on the far right - it has a very high crown, almost pilgrim like.

Thanks!

Hurricane

Because if THAT is a pirate coat. Then this is too

GoF

Hey, my mother has this pirate coat. You mean it isn't period? What will I tell her? She's sure Phyllis Diller wore the same one in a pirate skit on TV in the 60s so it must be accurate.

Watch out - might tick those of less thicker skins....

-- Captain

Wow! A lot of venom being shared here. I find it interesting that those who want to be fantasy/Hollywood pirates would take such offense when those who are interested in the historical aspects of the subject point out errors in thought. Are the fantasy/Hollywood types feeling inferior somehow and venting anger because of it? That certainly isn't the intent.

Having traveled extensively to other lands, it has become very apparent that Americans are the least interested in history at any level. Americans are Revisionists; we love to rewrite World History to fit our own ethnocentrisms and remold it to be fact through the media - movies, TV shows and pop culture. And it seems to play out here in this forum just as it does in any large gathering. Go to a party sometime and ask those in attendance what their favorite subject was. Bet you won't find two hands go up when you ask if it was history.

And so that general disdain carries on here. We can't possibly allow the historians a chance to educate us. Instead, we take offense and either fire back at them or we simply dismiss their expertise with the famous "well there has to be an exception somewhere - history is open to interpretation or it's just plain wrong."

There is nothing wrong with pointing out that things aren't as presented on this forum. I appreciate the fact that these folks time and time again seek to educate us when all they do is get piddled on. I sometimes wonder why they just don't give up on all the venomous naysayers here.

My stuff is probably 50% accurate at this time. Until I stopped bashing these guys and actually started listening, I was maybe at 10%. Someday, I hope to be at 90% because I can still do everything I do as an entertainer/edutainer while being a bit more accurate. And oh, I was a great flamer for a long time until I actually started to pay attention, do my own research and try to improve my interpretation which was very heavily Hollywood influenced.

So perhaps you should take their counsel with an open mind. You may learn something.

And stop having such thin skins... not very damned piratical at all.

-- Hurricane

I think Petee showed us some evidence that it wasn't unknown to wear boots, and I am inclined to believe boots make better feetwear for a person in a pirates' life. especially the style most referred to with the cuffs that come down. As a grunt, I couldn't imagine that lifestyle in shoes, even if we do have evidence stating otherwise.

"History be damned." Particularly if it doesn't fit into what I want to do.

I think I'm going to start doing WWII re-enactments and wear flip flops because Army boots just aren't me.

- Hurricane

They'd have to be mighty tiny spurs. Do ya ride those things bareback?

-- Hurricane

We should really stir the pot and get into the use of spurs.... :)

-- Hurricane

This subject has seem to run aground... All hands abandon ship for the nearest beachhead before it comes to fistacuffs.

-- Hurricane

"I think that if you were doing an earlier period, it would be more feasible to have boots. Hurricane is doing a pre-GAoP Morgan impression, and since Morgan seems to have been “the MAN” when it comes to piracy, privateering, and Govnor’ing, it would be plausible to have a nice set of boots.

ASIDE to HURRICANE

Way cool signature photo dude! I like your Morgan site too. Good luck with that venture."

------

Thanks much for the kind words. I should have mentioned in my missive that I use my boots primarily for pre-GAoP these days and have a nice set of buckled shoes for GAoP. And hopefully I'll be upgrading those once the Group Buy project here is ready to go...

My first pair of pirate boots (which I still have) have been with me now for 20 years. Can't beat the investment in your footwear, both for quality and comfort.

-- Hurricane

If you got the coin, there's no other choice than caboots.com - $250 to $350 will get you boots that will last a lifetime. You absolutely get what you pay for. I have a pair and wouldn't trade them for my brother, sister or mother.

Think long term - if you're a pirate for 10 years that's $25 to $35 a year.

-- Hurricane

Find the tavern... got it!

I am sure the pyrates will come up and introduce themselves! 

Sorta hard to miss me!  6ft tall and yeah... you can't miss me!

Sorry, lass you won't be alone.

I have me own 6' scantily clad wench (in leather no less) and a 6' 5" long blond I'm bringin' along, plus a bevvy of other Pyrates of the Coast beauties (did I mention one of our crew's a professional model?). Ah, they make them pretty here in Florida...

-- Hurricane

I would contact No Quarter Given - they did a two volume treatment of weddings of the period... go to http://www.noquartergiven.net for cotnact info.

-- Hurricane