My deep dive into The Tempest continues.

I always thought of Prospero’s friend Gonzalo in some sort of Polonius-esque “advisor to the king” role.  He’s supposedly friendly to Prospero, yet he’s in charge of the plot to kick Prospero out:

PROSPERO
By Providence divine.
Some food we had and some fresh water that
A noble Neapolitan, Gonzalo,
Out of his charity, being then appointed
Master of this design, did give us, with
Rich garments, linens, stuffs and necessaries,
Which since have steaded much; so, of his gentleness,
Knowing I loved my books, he furnish’d me
From mine own library with volumes that
I prize above my dukedom.

So, he apparently didn’t like the idea of stranding a father and his daughter out on the open sea without food, water and supplies … but it’s not like he actually attempted to stop the plan.

Next we see Gonzalo returning from Alonso’s daughter’s wedding, so at the very least he’s still friendly with the king, if not actually in his service.

We don’t get much insight into Gonzalo’s inner  monologue (* except for one line, see below), so it’s difficult to tell how much deeper he goes than just the “talkative, ignorant old fool” he’s made out to be.

I’m thinking maybe it’s a case where he’s always been friendly with Alonso, and has helped the king out on occasion. So one day this guy Antonio shows up from Milan with a plot to get rid of his brother the duke. Alonso isn’t a fan of Prospero, and sees this as an opportunity to gain an alliance (in the “you’ll owe me a favor” sense of the word) in Antonio/Milan. Gonzalo has no real feelings for Prospero one way or the other, and doesn’t feel strongly enough to go against Alonso, so he lets it happen but uses what influence he can to ease his conscience and keep it from being a death sentence.

(*) One of my favorite “minor character moments” comes from Gonzalo. He’s asleep. Antonio and Sebastian, unbeknownst to him, are plotting to kill both him and Alonso. Ariel wakes him, and his first words are not “huh?” or “why did I fall asleep?” or “Why are you holding that sword over my head?”  His first words are, “Now, good angels/Preserve the king.” I love that. Not really sure who he’s talking to, and he’s probably too old and frail to do it himself, but it’s still the first thing he thinks of. That’s the kind of guy you want watching your back.

Mickey Rooney holds an honor that not many actors will ever accomplish. Having started his career in 1926 and worked his entire life, until his passing in 2014 at the age of 93, he worked in *10* different decades. That’s insane. He started working when he was 6 years old and never stopped.

Cruising through page after page of his IMDB profile I noticed that he did the voice for both “Year Without a Santa Claus” as well as “Santa Claus Is Coming To Town.”  Seems about right! He actually voiced or played Santa it looks like 6 different times.

But this blog isn’t about Santa Claus, or Rankin and Bass. How about some Mickey as Huck Finn, doing Shakespeare?

I’ll leave you with his very fitting final words from A Midsummer Night’s Dream.  Flights of angels sing thee to thy rest, Mr. Rooney. Thanks for the memories.

I love when I research a play, I get to ask all these questions that fall into the “no clear answer” category and we get to discuss them. Here’s my latest:

When, exactly, does Prospero gain his magical powers?

Are we to assume that he was actively studying magic before he was banished? Or that he was merely studying nature, etc… in general, and that only by the coincidence of landing on the magical island to his powers come to exist?

Here’s my dilemma:

If we assume that he was already trying to become a mage, then it’s a little weird that he just happens to land on an island populated by sprites (and once ruled by a witch) that magnifies his powers.

But if we assume that it was mostly the island that did all the magical heavy lifting, that seems like it would take a major edge off of all his “retirement” speeches and drowning his books and burying his staff. As if, by taking those things with him, he could have brought his magic back to Milan?

Bardfilm suggests the interpretation that leaving behind his books has more to do with “and now paying attention to being Duke like I should have done in the first place,” but what about the staff? Prospero numerous times refers to his staff as an instrument of his powers. Breaking his staff clearly seems to indicate his voluntary choice to terminate his power.

What does everybody else think?

When I saw a press release go by that appeared to be somebody selling a card game based on the “Shakespeare Insult Kit” my first thought was, “Really? Everybody does know that that’s freely available on the net in like a hundred different forms, right? Apps and everything?”

Everybody knows how the game works, right? You get three columns of words that Shakespeare supposedly used, and you combine a random word from each column to produce a new insult like, “Thou loggerheaded knotty-pated scullian!” or “Thou goatish elf-skinned bum-bailey!”

I had to check it out. If nothing else I wanted to see how one would win such a game.

But it’s not a game, it’s a book! A very clever book. I wish I could get Amazon to show a picture from the inside (you can see that here), but the book is in 3 vertical sections representing the original columns, and you turn to random pages “flip book” style to create your insult. Each word even comes with its definition, which is a nice touch. Although it appears like the definition is on the back of each card, and I think maybe it should be  on the back of the preceding card so that when your word is on the right, the definition is on the left. Otherwise you have to flip back and forth.

It’s a cute idea, a neat spin on an existing source of amusement, and probably a fun gift for Shakespeare fans. Wish I’d thought of it!

In a blatant effort to strike while the “Kill Shakespeare” iron is hot, Bardfilm and I have teamed up to offer you what you know you’re all waiting for…

In this fast paced Elizabethan era side-scrolling platform shooter, you play the role of William Shakespeare, the greatest writer the world has ever known. Coming at you are wave after wave of pretenders to your throne – Bacon, Barnard, Blount…Manners, Marlowe, Middleton….the list goes on and on! Will the onslaught ever end!?

Race through the events of Shakespeare’s life in real time, wracking up coin as you churn out plays that are seen again and again and again. As the neverending stream of imposters come at you hurling their mediocre verse, slash at them with your mighty quill and blot their lines by the thousand!  Beat the bonus round, collect Heminges and Condell along the way, and gain the power of the Folio Shield.

Make it past Queen Elizabeth and Henry Wriosthesley and brace yourself for the Big Boss, Edward de Vere, the Earl of Oxford!

Unless you’ve reached June 1604, in which case Oxford is already dead and you win.  You continue to write plays and enjoy success for the rest of your days.

Coming to iOS and Android devices April 1, 2014!