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Pirate Fest, June 2014 - Put-in-Bay, OH
Chapter 2nd: Speaking
Photo: Tilted Pirate Photography
The, er, Right People.
Darin
Fisher... and His Hat
about some of the people at the event who made it what it was this year; featuring some 'locals' (it's in quotes because almost no one is truly, year-round, local) from last year along with profiles of some of the folks new to the event this year including Tim Clark, Jeremy Nichols, Abhik Bhawal, Dave Neville and Cat Kenney. And maybe some veteran pirate Put-in-Bayers tossed in (although not literally) for good measure.
I've long thought that while an event can have everything right - the right location, good facilities, nearby bars - it's the people who make it what it is. By 'people' I don't mean the folks who wander up to listen to you blather on about 17th century surgery (well, that's what they listen to me blather on about), I mean your fellow reenactors as well as - at least at an event like this one - some of the locals you see year after year.
Kelsey
Let's begin with Kelsey - the girl who works the main desk at the Park Hotel during the daytime. Per usual, I needed someone to tie my scarf. Last year, with Kelsey's help, I recruited one of the Bulgarian housekeepers to do this. This year, I enlisted Kelsey.
I chatted a bit with her during the process and learned that she was a fan of Tudor history and had dressed as Queen Elizabeth for Halloween one year. I begged her to send me a photo of this for your viewing pleasure, but she demurred. (Her excuse had something to do with her niece who also appeared in the photo.) This is Kelsey's third year working at the Park Hotel. She said that this was probably her last year working there (unless it wasn't) because she was planning attend college at Duke University to study cultural anthropology next year.
 There's Just No Way to Do This Gracefully |
 Kelsey Examines Her Work |
Tonika
I also had a Facebook appointment to see Tonika. Readers of last year's Put-in-Bay Journal may recall that she is is a friend of the twins, having come to Put-in-Bay with them from Bulgaria. They came to Put-in-Bay on some sort of work exchange program which allows them to come to a resort town in the US and work once they become juniors in college.
The twins weren't there; they had apparently graduated. This may be Tonika's last year to come over on the program unless she goes for her master's degree. (Although, as much fun as bussing tables at T&J's Smokehouse on Put-in-Bay must be, I can't see that being the deciding factor behind pursuing a master's in marketing.) Based on her Facebook posts, Tonika is thriving and was having as good a time in Bulgaria as she seems to in Put-in-Bay. She had even brought her brother with her this year.
 Tonika Agreed To Be in a Photo With Me |
 She ASKED To Be in a Photo With Mary |
 Tonika with a Pen She Pirated for Me |
The Bihary Family
Our
Mission With the Bihary Family over by the Merry-Go-Round..
(Say, I amputated their granddaughter's arm last year! If at first you don't succeed Mr. Wint...)
last visit to tales of 2013 involves the Bihary family. They had stopped by the table not once, but twice last year, which tells you something about their tolerance for aural pain. Like last year, they stopped by on both Saturday and Sunday, which tells you that they must have forgotten all of last year's aural pain. Unfortunately, they appeared on Saturday just before the battle when I was being called to take my place at the prow of the Green Black Sheep, so I didn't get much of a chance to visit with them.
Fortunately, we had more time on Sunday. They wanted me to do a little video for their two grandsons (who you can see in the photos from last year) where I held the clyster syringe and said "Boys, I missed you this year!" (When I said the word 'missed', I slammed the plunger down on the clyster syringe. I'm all about dramatic emphasis.) I discovered that they have owned a place on the island since 1961 and that they liked Pirate Fest because it was so much more kid-friendly than some of the other Put-in-Bay events. It was really nice to see them again.
Pirate People Pictures: Michael and Jessica Bagley
 Photo: Tilted Pirate Photography |
 Photo: Jessica's Camera |
 Photo: Tilted Pirate Photography |
There
Mission Dines With Some of the Medusa Crew on Friday Night: Jeremy and Angie Nichols,
Amanda Whipple
and Tim Clark
were several newcomers to the event this year. Since I had spent both Friday and Saturday dinners with the Nichols and the Clarks. I had met them last month when I stopped by the Great Lakes Pirate Gathering - Save the Santa Maria! event near Cleveland, Ohio. So I thought I'd lead off this part by introducing everyone to them. They're from Michigan and they're part of the crew of the Medusa, which is a ship that is a part of the Breathren of the Great Lakes.
See, members of the Brethren of the Great Lakes form different ship crews based on where they live, who they know or possibly just luck of the draw. OK, so I'm not entirely clear on how this works. It's probably because my crew (the Mercury) is rather loose, taking in those who are interested in being or at least moving towards period correctness without much concern for where they are, who they know and the like. So I come from a place of ignorance.
Jeremy Nichols
Jeremy
Photo: Jessica Bagley
Jeremy and Angie Nichols on the Niagara
Nichols got his introduction to pirates at Halloween in 2012. He told me that he started going out to dinner with friends dressed as a pirate, although I got the impression that this was after Halloween. (At this point, his wife Angie must have known she was in trouble.) He hooked up with the Brethren of the Great Lakes and attended his first "formal" pirate event in 2013 - the Michigan Pirate Festival in Grand Haven. (I put formal in quotes because, let's face it, no pirate event is all that formal. I have proof - see my account of the 2012 MPF.)
Jeremy explained that he had been a fan of pirates since he was a kid, his interest starting with Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean Ride. In addition to the Great Lakes Pirate Events, he was at the September Santa Maria Talk Like a Pirate Day event in Columbus in 2013 and the Great Lakes Pirate Gathering I mentioned previously. He said the event he'd most like to attend that he hasn't yet is St. Augustine's Searle's Raid. (This is a splendid event, provided you don't go out on the town drinking with Ivan Henry.)
Jeremy seemed particularly interested in achieving a period correct pirate look (rather than a more Hollywood pirate look), so I asked him about it. He explained, "I wasn’t happy with the pirate costume items that were generally available so I started looking into what pirates would have actually worn to try to modify items we acquired from thrift stores or making our own clothing. Internet searches related to the types of clothing and material used led me to some of the conversations on Pyracy.com which is where I got quite a bit of information. I also looked at a lot of pictures and was always drawn to the more authentic look. I remember looking at pictures of Clint and Billie Beach and thinking that they really looked like pirates and that led me in this direction. We met the Beach brothers at the MI Pirate Festival and Clint suggested that we talk to Mark Gist about the event at the Santa Maria in Columbus, OH the following month and it has been full steam
Iron Fist vs Many, Many Blades
(He'll escape. They always do.)
ahead since then."
One of the things he liked about the Put-in-Bay event was access to folks who were interested in golden age of piracy, "as well as getting tips on making period clothing from the Bagley’s and Mary Diamond. There are not a lot of people out there that make clothing for this period, especially for women, so it was nice to be able to ask lots of questions of people who have."
He also noted that his pirate name ("that I do not use very often") is Iron Fist, named after the famous Marvel comic book character. (No, I didn't know who that was either. I had to go look him up. You see him there at left.) Jeremy explained that he reads Daredevil, Punisher and Moon Knight regularly. (I collected Moon Knight back in the early 80s myself. Not because I was or wasn't a fan, but because I couldn't see buying a comic book unless I started with issue number 1. So when MN #1 appeared on the stands, I bought it and followed it for awhile.)
Jeremy also said that he and Angie have five kids aged 5-17, so we can look forward to seeing them in garb at a future event because I'm SURE Angie would just love to sew reenactment garb for five growing children. (Well, maybe not the 17 year old. Nothing your parents do is cool enough for you to want to also do it when you're 17. Even I remember that.)
 Photo: Jim Shipley Jeremy on the Columbus Santa Maria, 9/2013 |
 Photo: Tilted Pirate Photography Jeremy on the Merry-Go-Round |
 Photo: Mission Jeremy at the Great Lakes Pirate Gathering |
Pirate People Pictures: Joshua Douglass and Faith Stahl
 Photo: Tilted Pirate Photography |
 Photo: Tilted Pirate Photography |
 Photo: Jessica Bagley |
Tim Clark
Tim Clark is also a member of the Medusa crew. Tim has been friends with Jeremy for several years. As he tells it, Jeremy joined Tim and his wife for a pirate dinner trip in Myrtle Beach. They "decided to dress like pirates. We got some stuff from the local thrift store that we thought looked piratey and went to the performance. After the show we were constantly getting asked to pose for pictures. It just sort of grew from there."
Now, not to get stuck on a point here, but this pirate dinner trip thing puzzles me a bit. When I asked Tim about the other events he had attended he glibly revealed "Our group will often go to dinner in pirate garb." As if everyone climbs in their garb and shoots off to the local eatery to strap on the feed
Photo: Jessica Bagley
Tim and Amanda Whipple Clark Aboard the Niagara
bag. Then again, why not? Although it does have a Jake and Elwood vibe to it...
Tim's interest in pirate reenacting began where most modern folk's interest did: the entertainment facet of the sport. As he learned more, he became more interested in the actual history of the golden age of the pirates. "The history of piracy is full of larger than life characters, political intrigue, epic heists, heroes and villains."
Although I know the details of the movie versions of pirates lives are wrong in many ways, I myself have always been sort of fascinated with how interesting their exploits really were. Tim also had Jeremy working on moving him into the more period correct areas of reenacting. "Jeremy’s interest in history was contagious and myself and others in the group began working on becoming more historical."
Tim apparently has a creative side - he designed the Medusa's flag. He told me they needed a crew name to belong to the Brethren of the Great Lakes. "I picked the name Medusa because it was what I named all the vessels in any video game I played." He noted that the design was a riff on the Hydra symbol from Captain America, something Jeremy suggested. "I made the tentacles into snakes and moved them from the jaw to the head of the skull." (Dan Needham will appreciate the CA reference.)
Tim is a pastor at the Ross Bible Church in Port Huron. This fascinated me so I asked him about it. "I guess a pastor becomes interested in hobbies the same way anyone else would. I like spending time with friends and meeting the other reenactors. The people I have met have been friendly, interesting and generous. I look forward to seeing them again at each event because it feels like a reunion. Also, black powder…. I really like the black powder." So does his wife Amanda, apparently. She has her own flintlock.
Yakface and Blue Snaggletooth.
(Yes, this is what
excites us SW figure collectors...)
Tim want on in an appropriately enlightening fashion. "Everyone at church knows I dress like a pirate at every opportunity and it seems to amuse them. I do think there is an interesting correlation between Christianity and pirate reenacting. Pirate reenactors are often frustrated by the pop culture image of pirates. They often feel the need to correct the misconceptions forwarded by Hollywood. It gets old explaining why our group does not include a parrot, peg-leg and eye patch. As a Christian I often feel the same way. Many people base their opinion of me based on a pop culture caricature. The media often presents Christianity in the most extreme, unflattering, simplistic and inaccurate light." Like Tim, I find it odd that people who are so concerned that others respect their life philosophies are often quick to sum other's life philosophies up with overly broad and unflattering stereotypes and dismiss people who subscribe to them as being wrong.
The other important thing I learned about Tim is that he displays his nearly complete set of vintage Star Wars action figures in his office. The only two figures he says he is missing is the blue Snaggletooth and Yakface. (Nobody has Yakface unless they paid too much for him. He was only available via a mail-away campaign that Kenner put together as a last gasp to revive the dying interest in the vintage line. (I have two blue Snaggletooths... Snaggleteeth... Snagglestooth...whatever. But no Yakface.) (Darn it.)
 Photo: Tilted Pirate Photog Tim Looking Jaunty |
 Photo: Jessica Bagley Tim Waving the Medusa Flag on the Niagara |
 Photo: Tilted Pirate Photography Tim Doing Something He Loves - Firing His Pistol |
Pirate People Pictures: Trish and Shannon Gallatin
 Photo: Tilted Pirate Photography |
 Photo: Jessica Bagley |
 Photo: Jessica Bagley |
Abhik Bhawal
Abhik is a newcomer to the sport, his first event as a pirate being this one. He became interested in pirate reenacting through Jim Shipley, whom he "randomly friended" on Facebook after finding a photo of Jim in pirate garb that appealed to him. He told me that he'd been involved with non-pirate reenacting since 2012, although his participation in events has "been rather few and far in-between due to college life, idiot priorities of a young adult".
Photo: SoS Boss
Abhik Ponders the Pirate Life
He contrasted college party outings with the reenacting outings, preferring reenacting because he "greatly enjoyed the sea shanties and rum with people who have a real appetite for life and an enthusiasm for history, but are also mature and responsible in life."
Some of the other reenactment groups include Pittsburgh steampunk groups (such as Airship Hypatia) - where he wears European and Arabic-themed outfits - and Legio VI Victrix in Los Angeles. He explained that Legio VI Victrix reenacts a Roman legion in Britannica and have a gladiator fitness school. (The mind reels at some of these things, doesn't it just?) He told me, "I’ve only recently realized how much I love this, and how much there is out there."
I asked him what he liked about pirate history and he said that it all started when his grandfather told him historical stories using "the most excellent storytelling skills, adding excitement and emotion to history." Pirates appealed to him because he liked tall ships, naval warfare, the East India Company, the extent of globalization and controversial people. "I am largely curious to see what their [the pirates] motivations were, what was their life like, and so on." He further explained that there is "much romanticism in pirates in the young minds of those who have the luxury of reading about them without going through the hardships those seamen endured. There is still the allure of the bad-boy rebel, the raiders and thieves creating their own society and going on long sea adventures full of danger and desperation."
The Little Prince, the Rose and the Fox by
Looking at his blog, I learned that he was a fan of one of my Top Five Favorite Books - the Little Prince, by French pilot and philosopher Alexander Saint-Exupéry. I asked him what he liked about the book and he told me, "it is just such a sweet, sentimental tale. I’ve always had a soft heart for those. Also it reminds me of my vague nostalgic time in France where I went to my first school. More importantly I like some of the philosophy. It had a huge influence on my personal outlook on life, especially the story of the fox who found new meaning in the golden wheat fields, and when the prince learns why his rose is different than all the other roses."
Abhik was born in Siliguri, India, "right near the famous Darjeeling tea gardens. It’s right between Nepal and Bhutan with China in the north and Bangladesh to the south, all within driving distance. My uncle would occasionally take me on motorcycle rides to Nepal." He only recently graduated from Carnegie Mellon University and is currently doing an internship and looking for full-time position. His goal is to find work in the marketing or consulting, or management fields that "promotes environmental sustainability would be really great." Of course, he goes on to note that when he was younger "I wanted to be a dictator." (And let's be honest... who doesn't want to be at some point in their life?) "For the first time in my life, the future seems uncertain—it has a certain feel of excitement and apprehension."
 Photo: SoS Boss Even When Pirating, Abhik Follows the Rules |
 Photo: Tilted Pirate Photography The Mediterranean Pirate Look |
 Photo: SoS Boss The Rules Don't Apply to Treasure, Of Course |
Pirate People Pictures: Jim Shipley
 Photo: SoS Boss |
 Photo: Tilted Pirate Photography |
 Photo: Mission |
Dave Nevill and the Harlot's Virtue Pirate Crew
The Harlot's Virtue Crew brought a variety of people to Put-in-Bay this year. (And I when I say 'variety', I mean variety.) Their
Photo: Jessica Bagley
The Harlot's Virtue Pirate Crew Who Were at Put-in-Bay: (back): Darin Fisher, Eric Hartman,
Dave Neville
& Rick
Ross; (front) Vinnie Mendicino, Deb Collins, Cat Kenney,
Clare Borelli & Jeffery D Vogan.
website explains that they are "Northeast Ohio's premier pirate reenactment and entertainment group" and they proved to be very much so at Put-in-Bay.
The group was founded by Dave Neville in 2006, so I talked with him. He'd been a pirate fan every since seeing Treasure Island in his Kindergarten class. (No, I don't know which Treasure Island he saw. There must be 50 of them, so pick the one you think would most likely be shown to Dave's Kindergarten class.)
He explained that at the ripe age of 10 or 11 he saw Hack & Slash perform at the Great Lakes Medieval Faire. This got him interested in performing danger and comedy, which no doubt pleased his mom to no end. In his mid 20s he and his friend Chris saw Hack & Slash perform again and decided start their own stage show. "As we told our friends about the idea, more and more people wanted in, so we decided to make the show pirate themed and formed a crew." (And here
NOT the Same Hack and Slash
(From Reboot for those of you straining to remember.)
I thought Hack and Slash were just two really stupid robot henchmen of Megabyte. So we've all learned something here today.)
Dave had a variety of stories of funny things that had happened to their crew including one where they got a cat to walk the plank into a pool at an event. (No animals were harmed in the performance of that stunt.) (As far as you know.)
However, the funniest one to Dave was when he was performing something he called the 'Incompetent Fire-Breather' act at the 2013 Santa Maria Talk Like a Pirate Day event. "Apparently my act is a little too convincing, as during the show, people (mostly other pirates) kept yelling out warnings about how I was about to burn this or set that on fire (things like my pants, my shirt, my sash, etc..), and afterwards several people told me that I need to practice more or that they'd love to teach me how to do this safely. I thought it was funny." (Yep. I can just see it. You too?)
He said that some of the weirdest things that had happened included a bachelorette party wanting to hire the crew to strip, a woman who wanted him to write a children's book about pirates for her and a couple looking for them to do a
Photo: Tilted Pirate Photography
Dave Skulking Behind a Shrubbery
pirates vs. ninjas battle at their wedding. (Dave notes, "we actually did do that [last] one".)
Their website says something about 'fighting across your boardroom' which I thought was intriguing so I asked him about it. "We've never gotten to duel across a board room (to my everlasting regret). We've fought our way through regattas, weddings and baseball games, but no boardrooms. Yet." (For you folks out there planning a board retreat, here's a unique and (apparently) as yet undiscovered twist!)
Dave said his favorite part of the Put-in-Bay event was Site B (the display camp.) "I like getting to interact with the public (when they aren't catcalling me) and spending time with and getting to know the other re-enactors." I asked him what his crew's favorite part of the event was and he replied, "If I had to guess, I'd have to say my crew's favorite part was the drinking." He told me the event he'd most like to attend is Pirates in Paradise in Key West and the Annual Pirates Ball. "I've seen pictures and spoken to people from both of these events and they just seem like way too much fun." I can personally vouch for Key West.
 Photo: SoS Boss Dave Attacks the Unprepared and Unawares |
 Photo: Jessica Bagley Dave Smokes a Pensive Pipe |
 Photo: Jessica Bagley Dave After a Long Day of Pirating |
Pirate People Pictures: Clare Borrelli
 Photo: Tilted Pirate Photography |
 Photo: Harrison Pease |
 Photo: Jessica Bagley |
Cat R Kenney
Cat
Photo: Jim Shipley
Cat at the Great Lakes Pirate Gathering (5/2014)
Kenney is a member of the Harlot's Virtue Pirate Crew and friend of Bryan Brubaker. (I've been hearing about her from Bryan for some time now, but have managed to miss her at every possible turn until this event.) She told me that she first tried reenacting when she "did Dagorhir as a teenager".
Yep, I had to look that up too. Dagorhir is a worldwide live action role playing game (LARP) although the Dagorhir folks say it's not LARP, it's wargaming, which is a lot of things that seem very LARP-like, but it is not LARP. (YMMV.) Participants create a character which they are not supposed to break so that they can engage in "full-contact, live-action combat game, and combatants engage each other in battle with foam-padded boffer weaponry and equipment." (That is from Wikipedia, which is right except when they're describing something you enjoy doing or studying.) I think the take away from all this is that someone created a weapon that they described as 'boffer'. (Say it, it's fun.)
Cat is like Bryan and me in that she seems to have dabbled in every possible form of fringe geek activity available. (I know you kids out there think geeky or nerdy things are cool, but when we were in high school, I can assure you they were anything but cool.) Like Dave Nevill and me, she collects comic books. I asked her what her favorite titles were and she answered: "Sandman/Death, Blue Beetle (because he's like Batman with a better attitude), Green Arrow (for me, justice and what is right and good will always be preferable to what is lawful and expected), Castle Waiting, Strangers in Paradise, Mage, Hellblazer, Fafhrd and The Grey Mouser, Finder, Elfquest, and The Dresden Files."
A Coven House Panel by Cat Kenney
She not only collects comic books, but she has drawn them and even has a credit in the comic book database. (It's not a very descriptive credit, but it is a credit. Bet you don't have one.) She also used to draw a comic called "Coven House" for the Evergreen State College's newspaper that (as I understand it) featured her as a character living in a sort of college dorm-like setting. One of her fans posted images of it, which you can see here. She also had collaborative comics which appeared in Renaissance magazine.
Cat has been involved with a variety of artistic endeavours, which could be explained by the fact that her first master's degree is in Theatre and Dance and her undergrad degree includes Puppet and Object Theatre, Writing, Art and Interdisciplinary Studies. She has written several plays including McInjun which she told me was about "a half-Irish, half-Seminole teen who misses the last bus and decides to walk across the city to get home, using folktales and songs to keep himself going." Her other plays include
Elf Quest: Wild Hair, Large
Eyes
and Pointy Ears
Art and Werewolves, Renaissance, Game Night, Conspiracy Theory,
Captive Muses and Chaos Theory. She also does costume make-up and loves Halloween, explaining that she usually comes up "with a wild and elaborate costume."
Cat presently teaches as an adjunct professor at a variety of universities in Pennsylvania and is working on a second graduate degree in speech and hearing therapy. She likes to travel and has been to places all over the world including Morocco, Bali, Ireland, Nepal, Turkey, England and Thailand. She noted that she " can mimic just about any dialect after listening to it for a brief period of time", which probably helps support her penchant for traveling.
I asked about her interest in pirates and she explained, "I have always liked ships and pirates. My mom tells me that from when I was a toddler up to kindergarten or so, I'd tell her about my ship, assorted islands, and crew mates." This history and lore interest her in the hobby along with the camaraderie and "abandon." She likes reenacting for similar reasons including "hanging out with people, garb/kits, swords and guns, sleeping in a tent, telling stories and singing songs around a campfire."
 Photo: Tilted Pirate Photography Cat and Bryan on the Niagara |
 Photo: Jim Shipley On the Santa Maria (9/13) |
 Photo: Jim Shipley Cat Firing on the Santa Maria while Trish Looks On |