| Billy Bones | |
|---|---|
| Treasure Island character | |
 Illustration by N. C. Wyeth for 1911 edition. | |
| First appearance |
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| Created by | Robert Louis Stevenson |
| Portrayed by |
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| Voiced by |
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| In-universe information | |
| Nickname | Bill |
| Species | Human |
| Gender | Male |
| Occupation | Pirate |
| Nationality | English |
Billy Bones is a fictional character appearing in the first section of Robert Louis Stevenson's 1883 novel Treasure Island . [1] [2] [3]
Among other things, he is notable for singing the "Dead Man's Chest" sea song. [3]
 | This section needs additional citations for verification .(November 2021) |
Billy Bones appears at the very outset of the story with a mysterious sea chest, looking for a wayside inn with a view of the sea. Bones decides upon the Admiral Benbow Inn where he asks to be addressed merely as "Captain". Though his down-payment for lodgings is adequate, even generous, he stays for many months and browbeats Jim Hawkins' father out of asking for more money even when his deposit has been spent. He does, however, pay Jim fourpence a month to keep watch for "a seafaring man with one leg". Though he seems sometimes on the verge of deciding this was a waste of money, he invariably relents. Most of the daytime is spent walking the cliffs and looking out to sea. [2]
A heavily addicted alcoholic, the Captain terrorizes the customers of the Benbow with his swearing, singing and general bullying. Yet he begins to attract customers by his very notoriety, and earns some admiration from locals who consider him a "real old salt". The winter after his arrival, the Captain is visited by Black Dog, a villainous-looking man with two fingers missing from his hand. There is a noisy argument between the two, which turns into a lively sword fight and the Captain drives off a wounded Black Dog. As soon as the unwelcome visitor is gone, the Captain suffers a stroke. He is tended to by Dr. Livesey, who discovers the real name of the Captain to be Billy Bones when his arm is bared as a prelude to a surgical bloodletting and the name is found tattooed there.
The doctor saves Bones' life and tells him to lay off the alcohol, but Bones is unable to heed Livesey's warning. He is plainly weakened by his stroke and the shock of Black Dog's visit, and at one point Hawkins even hears him sing a country love song, a gentle relic of his innocent days as a youth. He admits to Jim Hawkins that he sailed with Captain Flint, the notorious pirate, and was first mate on his ship. This explains much of the mysterious circumstances and solitary behavior of the early part of the story.
A few days later, a blind pirate known only as Pew reaches the inn, and Bones is plainly terrified. Pew slips a Black Spot into Bones' hand and departs. Immediately, Bones suffers a second stroke and dies. The pirates come nonetheless and ransack the inn. The attackers fail to find the map, as it is now in Hawkins' possession, but they destroy the inn, ruining the Hawkins' livelihood. This prompts Hawkins and his companions to embark on a search for the treasure.
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Bones' account book, read by Jim Hawkins and Dr. Livesey, says that Bones was a pirate for nearly 20 years. [2]
According to the map notes of Treasure Island, Captain Flint hid his treasure in August 1750 and Bones received the Map in July 1754 while Flint was dying.
According to Long John Silver's conversation with Dick Johnson, Blind Pew spent his share of treasure in one year and that for two years until his accidental death under the Revenue Officer's horse, he was starving and murdering—thus a tentative date for Treasure Island is 1756–1757.
Treasure Island is an adventure and historical novel by the Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson. It was published in 1883, and tells a story of "buccaneers and buried gold" set in the 1700s. It is considered a coming-of-age story and is noted for its atmosphere, characters, and action.
Muppet Treasure Island is a 1996 American musical swashbuckler comedy film directed by Brian Henson and the fifth theatrical film featuring the Muppets. Adapted from the 1883 novel Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson, similarly to its predecessor The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992), the key roles were played by live-action actors, with the Muppets in supporting roles. The film stars Muppet performers Dave Goelz, Steve Whitmire, Jerry Nelson, Kevin Clash, Bill Barretta, and Frank Oz in various roles, as well as Tim Curry as Long John Silver and introduces Kevin Bishop as Jim Hawkins.
Captain J. Flint is a fictional golden age pirate captain who features in a number of novels, television series, and films. The original character was created by the Scottish writer Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–1894). Flint first appears in the classic adventure yarn Treasure Island, which was first serialised in a children's magazine in 1881, and later published as a novel in 1883.
The Legends of Treasure Island is a British animated television series. It had two series of 13 episodes each and each episode runs for 22–25 minutes.
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Treasure Island is a 1950 adventure film produced by RKO-Walt Disney British Productions, adapted from Robert Louis Stevenson's 1883 novel of the same name. Directed by Byron Haskin, it stars Bobby Driscoll as Jim Hawkins and Robert Newton as Long John Silver. Treasure Island was Disney's first completely live-action film and the first screen version of Treasure Island made in color. It was filmed in the United Kingdom on location and at Denham Film Studios, Buckinghamshire.
Treasure Island is a 1990 British-American made-for-television film adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s 1883 novel of the same name, written and directed by Fraser Clarke Heston, and also starring several notable British actors, including Christian Bale, Oliver Reed, Christopher Lee, Julian Glover and Pete Postlethwaite.
Dr. David Livesey is a fictional character from the 1883 novel Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson. As well as doctor, he is a magistrate, an important man in the rural society of southwest England, where the story opens; his social position is marked by his always wearing a white wig—even in the harsh conditions of the island on which the adventure takes place.
Treasure Island is a Soviet Ukraine two-part live-action/animated adventure comedy television film adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson's novel Treasure Island (1883). It was created by the studio Kievnauchfilm in between 1986 and 1988. It is mostly traditional animation with some live action sequences, which are largely but not entirely separate.
Treasure Island is a 1920 silent film adaptation of the 1883 novel by Robert Louis Stevenson, directed by Maurice Tourneur, and released by Paramount Pictures. Lon Chaney played two different pirate roles in this production, "Blind Pew" and "Merry", and stills exist showing him in both makeups. Charles Ogle, who had played Frankenstein's Monster in the first filmed version of Frankenstein a decade earlier at Edison Studios, portrayed Long John Silver. Wallace Beery was supposed to play Israel Hands, but that role went to Joseph Singleton instead. The film was chosen as one of the Top Forty Pictures of the Year by the National Board of Review.
Treasure Island is a 1999 film adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson's 1883 novel. It was written and directed by Peter Rowe and stars Kevin Zegers as Jim Hawkins and Jack Palance as Long John Silver.
Treasure Island is a 1977 television adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson's 1883 novel. It was filmed in 1977 on location in Plymouth and Dartmouth (Devon), and in Corsica, and also at BBC Television Centre at Wood Lane, London.
Benjamin "Ben" Gunn is a fictional character in the 1883 novel Treasure Island by Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson.
Jim Hawkins is a fictional character and the protagonist in Robert Louis Stevenson's 1883 novel Treasure Island. He is both the protagonist and the main narrator of the story.
Pirates of Treasure Island is a 2006 American comedy-drama film produced by The Asylum, loosely adapted from Robert Louis Stevenson's 1883 novel Treasure Island.
Treasure Island is a two-part British television drama adaptation of the novel Treasure Island (1883) by Robert Louis Stevenson. The screenplay was written by Stewart Harcourt, produced by Laurie Borg and directed by Steve Barron. It was made by BSkyB and first shown in the United Kingdom on Sky1 on 1 & 2 January 2012. It was re-released a year later on Pick on the 14 February 2013 and 21 February 2013.
Treasure Island is a 1918 American silent adventure film based on the 1883 novel of the same name by Robert Louis Stevenson. This is one of many silent versions of the story and is noteworthy because it is almost entirely acted by child or teenage actors. The film was co-directed by brothers Sidney and Chester Franklin. The film is one of Fox's Sunset Kiddies productions following in the wake of previous Kiddie productions like Aladdin and his Wonderful Lamp. This is a lost film.
Treasure Island, original title Die Schatzinsel, is a German-French mini-series, produced for German television station ZDF in 1966. The screenplay by Walter Ulbrich, who also co-produced the film, remains largely close to Robert Louis Stevenson's classic 1883 novel Treasure Island.
Doctor Livesey is a side-character from the 1988 Soviet film adaptation Treasure Island produced by Soviet animation film studio Kievnauchfilm and based on the novel character of the same name by Robert Louis Stevenson. He is voiced by Soviet actor Evgeniy Papernyy in Russian and Steve Bulen in the English dub. His primarily role throughout the film is diagnosing the other character's health conditions as well as assisting Jim Hawkins and Squire Trelawney in their hunt for Captain Flint's Treasure. Livesey is primarily recognized for his smile, optimism and infectious laugh which became the subject of an internet meme in the 2020s, especially in 2022.