El Morro, Old San Juan, Puerto Rico. Photo by Jeff Gunn on Flickr.

Sure, the Caribbean pirates of yore were a cutthroat crew: They plundered, pillaged, and sent many a scurvy dog to Davy Jones’ Locker — then squandered their booty on rum and loose women.

But nearly two centuries after their last victims walked the proverbial plank, those swashbuckling scoundrels still command rock-star power.

Maybe it’s the devil-may-care attitudes flaunted by fictional pirates like Treasure Island’s Long John Silver, Peter Pan’s Captain Hook and Pirates of the Caribbean’s Jack Sparrow — hoisting their Jolly Rogers on the mainmast, unfurling their cryptic treasure maps, sporting their earrings and puffy shirts in an otherwise overstarched age.

Maybe it’s the colorful monikers of real-life pirate captains — Blackbeard, Calico Jack Rackham, Black Sam Bellamy — whose crimes reflected little of the Hollywood image.

Whatever the reason, if you’re hooked on the… Continue reading →