Long John Silver | |
---|---|
Treasure Island character | |
Created by | Robert Louis Stevenson |
Voiced by | Various Voices |
In-universe information | |
Nicknames | Chef, Silver, Barbecue, Long John, Jack, Captain |
Gender | Male |
Occupation | |
Nationality |
Long John Silver is a fictional character and the main antagonist in the 1883 novel Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson. The most colourful and complex character in the book, he continues to appear in popular culture. His missing leg and parrot, in particular, have greatly contributed to the image of the pirate in popular culture.
Long John Silver is a cunning and opportunistic pirate who was quartermaster under the notorious Captain Flint. [1] Stevenson's portrayal of Silver has greatly influenced the modern iconography of the pirate. [2]
Long John Silver has a parrot, named Captain Flint in honor—or mockery—of his former captain, [3] who generally perches on Silver's shoulder, and is known to chatter pirate or seafaring phrases like "Pieces of Eight", and "Stand by to go about". Silver uses the parrot as another means of gaining Jim's trust, by telling the boy all manner of exciting stories about the parrot's buccaneer history. "'Now that bird', Silver would say, 'is, maybe, two hundred years old, Hawkins—they lives forever mostly, and if anybody's seen more wickedness it must be the devil himself. She's sailed with England—the great pirate Cap'n England. She's been at Madagascar, and at Malabar, and Surinam, and Providence, and Portobello... She was at the boarding of the Viceroy of the Indies out of Goa, she was, and to look at her you would think she was a baby'." [4]
Silver claims to have served in the Royal Navy and lost his leg under "the immortal Hawke". "His left leg was cut off close by the hip, and under the left shoulder, he carried a crutch, which he managed with wonderful dexterity, hopping about upon it like a bird. He was very tall and strong, with a face as big as a ham—plain and pale, but intelligent and smiling." [5]
He claims to have been the only man whom Flint ever feared. Although treacherous and willing to change sides at any time to further his own interests, Silver has compensating virtues. He is wise enough to save his money, in contrast to the spendthrift ways of most of the pirates. He is physically courageous despite his disability: for instance, when Flint's cache is found to be empty, he coolly stands his ground against five murderous seamen despite having only Jim, a boy in his teens, to back him. [6]
When Silver escapes at the end of the novel, he takes "three or four hundred guineas" of the treasure with him, thus becoming one of only two former members of Captain Flint's crew to get his hands on a portion of the recovered treasure. (The repentant maroonee Ben Gunn is the other, but he spends all £1,000 in nineteen days.) Jim's own ambivalence towards Silver is reflected in the last chapter, when he speculates that the old pirate must have settled down in comfortable retirement: "It is to be hoped so, I suppose, for his chances of comfort in another world are very small."
Silver is married to a woman of African descent, whom he trusts to manage his business affairs in his absence and to liquidate his Bristol assets when his actions make it impossible for him to go home. He confides in his fellow pirates that he and his wife plan to rendezvous after the voyage to Skeleton Island is complete and Flint's treasure is recovered, at which point Silver will retire to a life of luxury. Ironically his "share" of Flint's treasure (£420) is considerably less than that of Ben Gunn (£1,000) and what Silver boasts was his share from England (£900) and from Flint (£2,000).
According to Stevenson's letters, the idea for the character of Long John Silver was inspired by his real-life friend William Henley, a writer and editor. [7] Stevenson's stepson, Lloyd Osbourne, described Henley as "...a great, glowing, massive-shouldered fellow with a big red beard and a crutch; jovial, astoundingly clever, and with a laugh that rolled like music; he had an unimaginable fire and vitality; he swept one off one's feet". [8] In a letter to Henley after the publication of Treasure Island, Stevenson wrote: "I will now make a confession. It was the sight of your maimed strength and masterfulness that begot Long John Silver...the idea of the maimed man, ruling and dreaded by the sound, was entirely taken from you". [9]
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There have been several major stage adaptations made. [24]
Treasure Island is both an adventure and historical novel by Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson published in 1883, telling 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.
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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.
Treasure Island is a 1972 adventure film, based on the 1883 novel by Robert Louis Stevenson. The film stars Orson Welles as Long John Silver, Kim Burfield as Jim Hawkins, Walter Slezak as Squire Trelawney, Rik Battaglia as Captain Smollett, and Ángel del Pozo as Doctor Livesey.
Treasure Island is a 1934 film directed by Victor Fleming and starring Wallace Beery, Jackie Cooper, Lionel Barrymore, Lewis Stone, and Nigel Bruce. It is an adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson's famous 1883 novel of the same name. Jim Hawkins discovers a treasure map and travels on a sailing ship to a remote island, but pirates led by Long John Silver threaten to take away the honest seafarers’ riches and lives.
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.
In English-speaking popular culture, the modern pirate stereotype owes its attributes mostly to the imagined tradition of the 18th-century Caribbean pirate sailing off the Spanish Main and to such celebrated 20th-century depictions as Captain Hook and his crew in the theatrical and film versions of J. M. Barrie's children's book Peter Pan, Robert Newton's portrayal of Long John Silver in the 1950 film adaptation of the Robert Louis Stevenson novel Treasure Island, and various adaptations of the Middle Eastern pirate, Sinbad the Sailor. In these and countless other books, films, and legends, pirates are portrayed as "swashbucklers" and "plunderers". They are shown on ships, often wearing eyepatches or peg legs, having a parrot perched on their shoulder, speaking in a West Country accent, and saying phrases like "Arr, matey" and "Avast, me hearty". Pirates have retained their image through pirate-themed tourist attractions, film, toys, books and plays.
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.
Billy Bones is a fictional character appearing in the first section of Robert Louis Stevenson's 1883 novel Treasure Island.
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Treasure Island is a Soviet two-part live-action/animated adventure comedy television film adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson's novel Treasure Island (1883). It was created by order of the USSR's state television company by the studio Kievnauchfilm. It is mostly traditional animation with some live action sequences, which are largely but not entirely separate.
Treasure Island is a 1973 American animated adventure film directed by Hal Sutherland, produced by Filmation, and released by Warner Bros. In this adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson's 1883 novel of the same name, Jim Hawkins travels with sidekick Hiccup the Pirate Mouse.
Squire John Trelawney is a supporting character from Robert Louis Stevenson's 1883 novel Treasure Island.
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.
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.
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Treasure Planet is a 1982 Bulgarian animated science fiction film directed by Rumen Petkov and produced by the Sofia Animation Studio. The 62-minute movie is a science fiction adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson's 1883 adventure novel Treasure Island, and was released 20 years before Disney’s Treasure Planet, another movie with the same concept. The Bulgarian band "Tangra" did the movie's music.