Friday, January 4, 2008

RIP George MacDonald Fraser

George MacDonald Fraser passed away on Wednesday, Jan. 2. He is best known for his Flashman books but he gets mention here for his 1983 book, Pyrates. Like all of Fraser's books, this one was very well researched. Unlike the others, it was also a complete farce. The book followed several pirates, all based on historic ones but with their traits exaggerated. For example, where Blackbeard fastened burning slow match to his beard (or wore it under his hat), Fraser's version was Firebeard who attached firecrackers to his beard and set them off during battle.

Fraser also wrote the screen play for the 1970s version of the Three Musketeers and Four Musketeers - the best and most accurate versions of the novel.

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