Count Olaf's associates
Encyclopedia
Count Olaf's theater troupe is a group of cohorts allied with Count Olaf
and his crimes in the children's novel series A Series of Unfortunate Events
by American author Lemony Snicket
. The members are frequently referred to as Count Olaf's "associates", "assistants", "comrades", "accomplices" or "henchmen". Although nominally an acting troupe, the members' primary occupation is serving as accomplice
s to Olaf in kidnap
, embezzlement
, larceny
and, in extreme circumstances, arson
and murder
. Although Snicket states the troupe has ten members (and suggests Olaf may have between 25 and 41 henchman), five original members and three later recruits are the most consistently featured.
When the Baudelaires first meet the troupe, five members are described in detail: the one who looks like neither a man nor a woman, the bald man with the long nose
, the two white-faced women, and the hook-handed man
. When Olaf burns down the Caligari Carnival, he allows three sideshow freaks
to join his ranks: Hugo (a hunchback
), Colette (a contortion
ist), and Kevin (an ambidexter
). As the series progresses, Olaf swiftly begins to lose these accomplices: the one who looks like neither a man nor a women is trapped in the burning Heimlich Hospital; the bald man with the long nose is eaten by circus lions; the white-faced women voluntarily leave; and the hook-handed man joins his vigilante
sister Fiona in mutiny. By the time Olaf burns down the Hotel Denouement, only the circus freaks remain. Whether they survive the fire is never stated.
The women helped with Count Olaf's scheme in The Austere Academy
. Disguised as two cafeteria workers with metal masks, they watched the Baudelaires and Duncan and Isadora Quagmire during the book. At the end, they forced the Quagmires into Count Olaf's automobile and drove away with them.
In The Hostile Hospital
, they came into Violet Baudelaire
's cranioectomy late, so that Klaus and Sunny were mistaken for the two white-faced women before they arrived. Shortly after the real white-faced women arrived, the Baudelaires ran to escape all of Count Olaf's associates in the operating theatre.
Tired with Olaf's continuous treachery, in addition to feeling sympathy for Sunny Baudelaire when she was kidnapped, the two sisters left Olaf's troupe in The Slippery Slope
. The narrator states that he does not know what happened to the women after they walked away in the mountains, despite countless days of research, though there are many rumors about their fate. One rumor, told in The Slippery Slope
, said that they lived in the mountain, but the location is unknown.
of Count Olaf.
The bald man helped with many of Count Olaf's schemes. In The Miserable Mill
, wearing a white, curly wig and a surgical mask, he disguised himself as Foreman Flacutono, the foreman at Lucky Smells Lumbermill. He tripped Klaus Baudelaire
several times, causing Klaus's glasses to break. The plan continued, as Klaus was then hypnotized at the optometrist's office where Count Olaf and his associate Dr. Orwell were working. His identity was revealed at the end of the book when he fled the mill with Count Olaf.
While Klaus says the one who looks like neither a man nor a women is the scariest, Violet states the bald man is the scariest, possibly because of the threat he gave her in The Bad Beginning.
There isn't another appearance of the bald man until The Hostile Hospital
. In this book, disguised in a costume similar to his disguise in The Miserable Mill, he calls himself Dr. Flacutono. He and Count Olaf's other associates attempt to perform the world's first cranioectomy (head removal) on Violet Baudelaire
, with the intention of her death being ruled an accident. She is saved by her siblings when they stall the surgery.
The bald man met his end in The Carnivorous Carnival, when he fell into the lion's pit, and was devoured along with Madame Lulu.
, the person of indeterminate gender) is so extremely obese that he or she resembles neither a man nor a woman, is an original troupe member of Count Olaf. Both the narrator and the characters talk about this person using phrases such as "he or she", "it", "the creature", "the person", "the massive creature", "the mountainous person" and "the big one". Even Olaf's other henchmen use such language, which suggests they, too, are unsure of the person's gender. The author frequently refers to him or her as "the overweight accomplice".
He or she is often seen guarding something for Count Olaf, due to his or her size, such as the stairs to the tower in The Bad Beginning
, the keys to the sailboats in The Wide Window
, and the door to the surgical ward in The Hostile Hospital
. He or she has been shown to have the strength to swing Violet over his or her shoulder with one hand. In the books, he or she is often described as having a blank expression, making it even more difficult to distinguish his or her gender.
The Baudelaire children never hear this person speak, even when he or she is spoken to by others. However, it apparently has some means of communication, as it informs Count Olaf, disguised as Captain Sham, that the Baudelaires stole a sailboat in The Wide Window. They do hear this person snore in the book, and later Klaus and Sunny hear him or her laugh in The Hostile Hospital. This is described as "an odd laugh that sounded like a squeal and a howl at the same time".
The character speaks a few times in the film, with a slight Scottish
accent. This person is also much slimmer in the film than as described in the books. Here, he or she is a very minor character, appearing only at Olaf's dinner party and at the wedding scene, where he or she wears half of a bridesmaid gown sewn to half of a tuxedo.
Sunny Baudelaire
refers to the person as "Orlando" at one point, a literary allusion to the Virginia Woolf
novel, Orlando: A Biography
, whose hero is a man who turns into a woman. Orlando is based on Vita Sackville-West
, who was briefly Woolf's lover. In the blooper reel of the film version
, the one who looks like neither a man nor a woman is referred to as "Liza." It is unknown whether this name was given by the author, by the director, or by Jim Carrey
(the actor portraying Count Olaf) as an improvised reference to singer/actress Liza Minnelli
. In the books, the character is never identified by name.
In The Hostile Hospital, his or her final appearance, he or she is seen as one of Count Olaf's henchpeople, disguised as a guard at Heimlich Hospital, first seen guarding a door where two more of Olaf's associates were hidden. This person does not speak even with his or her co-workers, as he or she does not speak to Esmé Squalor
or Klaus and Sunny, whom he or she thinks are the two white-faced women. It is the only one absent amongst Olaf's troupe that is trying to capture the Baudelaires in the Operating Theatre; however, as they escape, they whiz past him or her. He or she sees them, roars and chases after them, producing the third and final sound it is heard to make. The Baudelaires manage to escape from inside a closet, leaving the person inside as the hospital burns to the ground, where he or she perishes. While the hook-handed man and the bald-headed man show regret at the loss of this person, Olaf claims that he or she was a fool and was not worth waiting around for.
He or she is portrayed by actor/comedian Craig Ferguson
in the film.
, Dr. Orwell was a hypnotist and hypnotized Klaus Baudelaire. Although it is likely that she was a genuine optometrist (having fixed Klaus' glasses), it is unclear whether Dr. Orwell had recently embarked on a new career as a hypnotist, whether it is merely a hobby of hers, or whether she has always been a hypnotist in some capacity. She sides with Count Olaf, who was disguised as her receptionist, as they had agreed to split the Baudelaire fortune equally, before the Baudelaires arrived at the mill.
She was described as tall woman with blonde hair in a tight bun who wore big black boots. She was seen wearing a long white coat with a name tag that reads 'Dr. Orwell' and held a long black cane with a shiny red jewel on the top. In the same novel, she and Sunny Baudelaire had a swordfight in which Georgina pushed the red jewel on her cane, whereupon it instantly reveals a sword.
Dr. Orwell was killed just before she got the chance to slash Sunny's throat, when she accidentally backed into a saw that had been turned on for use in her and Count Olaf's conspiracy to steal the Baudelaire fortune.
Dr. Orwell's full name is Georgina Orwell, based on that of author George Orwell
. The Big Brother eye and the hypnotism plot are links to Orwell's novel "Nineteen Eighty-Four
."
She may also have been a former member of V.F.D., as the optometrist disguise described in Lemony Snicket: The Unauthorized Autobiography
matches her appearance.
, but is never seen or mentioned again.
On the audiobook's accompanying song the bald man is described as being "a long-nosed bald man with warts", perhaps indicating that Daniel Handler
later confounded the two.
He also plays a minor role by flicking off the lights at the end of the Bad Beginning which helped Count Olaf's theatre troup escape.
, first appears in The Carnivorous Carnival. He is most likely named after Victor Hugo
, the author of the well known book Hunchback of Notre Dame.
When the Baudelaires are running from the authorities, for crimes they did not commit, they disguise themselves as freaks. Violet and Klaus disguise themseveles as a two-headed freak in the Caligari Carnival, while Sunny is Chabo the Wolf Baby. They then find themselves working with Hugo, Colette, and Kevin. At the end of The Carnivorous Carnival, Hugo is bribed by Count Olaf and Esmé Squalor to join their evil troupe. Hugo also appears in The Slippery Slope as a very minor character.
Hugo the Hunchback appears again in The Penultimate Peril
, disguised as an attendant in Hotel Denouement as part of one of Count Olaf's schemes. It is unknown whether he survived the fire that consumed the hotel.
ist. She first appears in The Carnivorous Carnival, in which she is employed at the Caligari Carnival in the House of Freaks.
When Violet
, Klaus
, and Sunny Baudelaire
were running from the authorities, for crimes they had not committed, the three children disguised themselves as freaks. This resulted in working with Colette and her co-workers. They lived in a caravan at the carnival with their colleagues and fellow freaks, Hugo, a hunchback
and Kevin, who is ambidextrous. At the end of The Carnivorous Carnival, Colette, Hugo, and Kevin joined Count Olaf's associates.
Colette appears again as a minor character in The Slippery Slope
and The Penultimate Peril
. In The Penultimate Peril, she diguises herself as a chemist to help with Count Olaf
's latest scheme. Whether she survives the fire or not is unknown.
When Violet
, Klaus
, and Sunny Baudelaire
were running from the authorities, for crimes they had not committed, the three children disguised themselves as freaks. This resulted in working with Kevin and his co-workers. They lived in a caravan at the carnival with their colleagues and fellow freaks, Hugo, a hunchback
and Colette, who is a contortionist. At the end of The Carnivorous Carnival, Colette, Hugo, and Kevin joined Count Olaf's associates.
Kevin appears again as a minor character in The Slippery Slope
and The Penultimate Peril
. In The Penultimate Peril, he disguises himself as a washerwoman to help with Count Olaf
's latest scheme. Whether he survives the fire or not is unknown.
Count Olaf
Count Olaf is the primary antagonist of the children's novel series A Series of Unfortunate Events by American author Lemony Snicket. In the series, Olaf is an actor and is known to have committed many crimes as a member of the fire-starting side of V.F.D. prior to the events of the first book in...
and his crimes in the children's novel series A Series of Unfortunate Events
A Series of Unfortunate Events
A Series of Unfortunate Events is a series of children's novels by Lemony Snicket which follows the turbulent lives of Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire after their parents' death in an arsonous house fire...
by American author Lemony Snicket
Lemony Snicket
Lemony Snicket is the pen name of American novelist Daniel Handler . Snicket is the author of several children's books, serving as the narrator of A Series of Unfortunate Events and appearing as a character within the series. Because of this, the name Lemony Snicket may refer to both a fictional...
. The members are frequently referred to as Count Olaf's "associates", "assistants", "comrades", "accomplices" or "henchmen". Although nominally an acting troupe, the members' primary occupation is serving as accomplice
Accomplice
At law, an accomplice is a person who actively participates in the commission of a crime, even though they take no part in the actual criminal offense. For example, in a bank robbery, the person who points the gun at the teller and asks for the money is guilty of armed robbery...
s to Olaf in kidnap
Kidnapping
In criminal law, kidnapping is the taking away or transportation of a person against that person's will, usually to hold the person in false imprisonment, a confinement without legal authority...
, embezzlement
Embezzlement
Embezzlement is the act of dishonestly appropriating or secreting assets by one or more individuals to whom such assets have been entrusted....
, larceny
Larceny
Larceny is a crime involving the wrongful acquisition of the personal property of another person. It was an offence under the common law of England and became an offence in jurisdictions which incorporated the common law of England into their own law. It has been abolished in England and Wales,...
and, in extreme circumstances, arson
Arson
Arson is the crime of intentionally or maliciously setting fire to structures or wildland areas. It may be distinguished from other causes such as spontaneous combustion and natural wildfires...
and murder
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
. Although Snicket states the troupe has ten members (and suggests Olaf may have between 25 and 41 henchman), five original members and three later recruits are the most consistently featured.
When the Baudelaires first meet the troupe, five members are described in detail: the one who looks like neither a man nor a woman, the bald man with the long nose
Bald man with the long nose
The bald man with the long nose is a fictional character in the children's novel series A Series of Unfortunate Events by American author Lemony Snicket. He is a tertiary antagonist in the series and a member of Count Olaf's theater troupe...
, the two white-faced women, and the hook-handed man
Hook-handed man
Fernald is a villain from Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events. He is known for having two large and sharp hooks where his hands should be...
. When Olaf burns down the Caligari Carnival, he allows three sideshow freaks
Freak show
A freak show is an exhibition of biological rarities, referred to as "freaks of nature". Typical features would be physically unusual humans, such as those uncommonly large or small, those with both male and female secondary sexual characteristics, people with other extraordinary diseases and...
to join his ranks: Hugo (a hunchback
Kyphosis
Kyphosis , also called roundback or Kelso's hunchback, is a condition of over-curvature of the thoracic vertebrae...
), Colette (a contortion
Contortion
thumb|upright|Contortionist performingContortion is an unusual form of physical display which involves the dramatic bending and flexing of the human body. Contortion is often part of acrobatics and circus acts...
ist), and Kevin (an ambidexter
Ambidexterity
Ambidexterity is the state of being equally adept in the use of both left and right appendages . It is one of the most famous varieties of cross-dominance. People that are naturally ambidextrous are rare, with only one out of one hundred people being naturally ambidextrous...
). As the series progresses, Olaf swiftly begins to lose these accomplices: the one who looks like neither a man nor a women is trapped in the burning Heimlich Hospital; the bald man with the long nose is eaten by circus lions; the white-faced women voluntarily leave; and the hook-handed man joins his vigilante
Vigilante
A vigilante is a private individual who legally or illegally punishes an alleged lawbreaker, or participates in a group which metes out extralegal punishment to an alleged lawbreaker....
sister Fiona in mutiny. By the time Olaf burns down the Hotel Denouement, only the circus freaks remain. Whether they survive the fire is never stated.
White-faced women
The two white-faced women (also frequently referred to as the powder-faced women) are original members of Count Olaf's theatre troupe. Not much is known of them, other than the fact they had another sibling who died in a fire. The women's most distinguishing feature is they always put white makeup on their faces. They consider their makeup freakish, but it is unclear why they still put it on, though it has been suggested by some that their faces might have been damaged in the fire. Their aliases are Tocuna and Flo, which, if combined, is an anagram of Count Olaf.The women helped with Count Olaf's scheme in The Austere Academy
The Austere Academy
The Austere Academy is the fifth novel in the book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket. It was released in paperback under the name The Austere Academy: or, Kidnapping! The Baudelaire orphans are sent to a boarding school, overseen by monstrous employees...
. Disguised as two cafeteria workers with metal masks, they watched the Baudelaires and Duncan and Isadora Quagmire during the book. At the end, they forced the Quagmires into Count Olaf's automobile and drove away with them.
In The Hostile Hospital
The Hostile Hospital
The Hostile Hospital is the eighth novel in the book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket.-Plot and summary:The book begins where the previous one left off, with the three Baudelaire children escaping the Village of Fowl Devotees...
, they came into Violet Baudelaire
Violet Baudelaire
Violet Baudelaire is one of the main characters in the children's book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket and appears in all thirteen books. She is the oldest of the Baudelaire orphans at 14 years old, and often helps her 12-year-old brother Klaus and her baby sister Sunny...
's cranioectomy late, so that Klaus and Sunny were mistaken for the two white-faced women before they arrived. Shortly after the real white-faced women arrived, the Baudelaires ran to escape all of Count Olaf's associates in the operating theatre.
Tired with Olaf's continuous treachery, in addition to feeling sympathy for Sunny Baudelaire when she was kidnapped, the two sisters left Olaf's troupe in The Slippery Slope
The Slippery Slope
The Slippery Slope is the tenth installment in the book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Daniel Handler under the pseudonym of Lemony Snicket.-Plot Summary:...
. The narrator states that he does not know what happened to the women after they walked away in the mountains, despite countless days of research, though there are many rumors about their fate. One rumor, told in The Slippery Slope
The Slippery Slope
The Slippery Slope is the tenth installment in the book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Daniel Handler under the pseudonym of Lemony Snicket.-Plot Summary:...
, said that they lived in the mountain, but the location is unknown.
Bald man with the long nose
The bald man with the long nose is one of Count Olaf's original troupe members. His alias is Flacutono, an anagramAnagram
An anagram is a type of word play, the result of rearranging the letters of a word or phrase to produce a new word or phrase, using all the original letters exactly once; e.g., orchestra = carthorse, A decimal point = I'm a dot in place, Tom Marvolo Riddle = I am Lord Voldemort. Someone who...
of Count Olaf.
The bald man helped with many of Count Olaf's schemes. In The Miserable Mill
The Miserable Mill
The Miserable Mill is the fourth of thirteen novels in American author Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events. It is to be released in paperback under the name The Miserable Mill; or, Hypnotism! The novel tells the story of the Baudelaire orphans continuing their adventure, but this time...
, wearing a white, curly wig and a surgical mask, he disguised himself as Foreman Flacutono, the foreman at Lucky Smells Lumbermill. He tripped Klaus Baudelaire
Klaus Baudelaire
Klaus Baudelaire is one of the main characters in the children's book series, A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket who appears in all thirteen novels. Klaus is the middle child of the Baudelaire orphans; he has an older sister named Violet and a younger sister named Sunny...
several times, causing Klaus's glasses to break. The plan continued, as Klaus was then hypnotized at the optometrist's office where Count Olaf and his associate Dr. Orwell were working. His identity was revealed at the end of the book when he fled the mill with Count Olaf.
While Klaus says the one who looks like neither a man nor a women is the scariest, Violet states the bald man is the scariest, possibly because of the threat he gave her in The Bad Beginning.
There isn't another appearance of the bald man until The Hostile Hospital
The Hostile Hospital
The Hostile Hospital is the eighth novel in the book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket.-Plot and summary:The book begins where the previous one left off, with the three Baudelaire children escaping the Village of Fowl Devotees...
. In this book, disguised in a costume similar to his disguise in The Miserable Mill, he calls himself Dr. Flacutono. He and Count Olaf's other associates attempt to perform the world's first cranioectomy (head removal) on Violet Baudelaire
Violet Baudelaire
Violet Baudelaire is one of the main characters in the children's book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket and appears in all thirteen books. She is the oldest of the Baudelaire orphans at 14 years old, and often helps her 12-year-old brother Klaus and her baby sister Sunny...
, with the intention of her death being ruled an accident. She is saved by her siblings when they stall the surgery.
The bald man met his end in The Carnivorous Carnival, when he fell into the lion's pit, and was devoured along with Madame Lulu.
One who looks like neither a man nor a woman
The one who looks like neither a man nor a woman (also called the Brobdingnagian creature, the person of unknown gender and great girth or, in the filmLemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events
Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events is a 2004 black comedy film directed by Brad Silberling. It is an adaptation of the The Bad Beginning, The Reptile Room, and The Wide Window, being the first three books in A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket...
, the person of indeterminate gender) is so extremely obese that he or she resembles neither a man nor a woman, is an original troupe member of Count Olaf. Both the narrator and the characters talk about this person using phrases such as "he or she", "it", "the creature", "the person", "the massive creature", "the mountainous person" and "the big one". Even Olaf's other henchmen use such language, which suggests they, too, are unsure of the person's gender. The author frequently refers to him or her as "the overweight accomplice".
He or she is often seen guarding something for Count Olaf, due to his or her size, such as the stairs to the tower in The Bad Beginning
The Bad Beginning
The Bad Beginning is the first of thirteen novels in American author Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events. It was later released in paperback under the name The Bad Beginning; or, Orphans! The novel tells the story of three children, Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire, who are orphaned...
, the keys to the sailboats in The Wide Window
The Wide Window
The Wide Window is a children's novel and the third novel in the book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket. It was later released in paperback under the name The Wide Window; or, Disappearance! In The Wide Window, the Baudelaire orphans are sent to live with their third...
, and the door to the surgical ward in The Hostile Hospital
The Hostile Hospital
The Hostile Hospital is the eighth novel in the book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket.-Plot and summary:The book begins where the previous one left off, with the three Baudelaire children escaping the Village of Fowl Devotees...
. He or she has been shown to have the strength to swing Violet over his or her shoulder with one hand. In the books, he or she is often described as having a blank expression, making it even more difficult to distinguish his or her gender.
The Baudelaire children never hear this person speak, even when he or she is spoken to by others. However, it apparently has some means of communication, as it informs Count Olaf, disguised as Captain Sham, that the Baudelaires stole a sailboat in The Wide Window. They do hear this person snore in the book, and later Klaus and Sunny hear him or her laugh in The Hostile Hospital. This is described as "an odd laugh that sounded like a squeal and a howl at the same time".
The character speaks a few times in the film, with a slight Scottish
Scottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
accent. This person is also much slimmer in the film than as described in the books. Here, he or she is a very minor character, appearing only at Olaf's dinner party and at the wedding scene, where he or she wears half of a bridesmaid gown sewn to half of a tuxedo.
Sunny Baudelaire
Sunny Baudelaire
Sunny Baudelaire is one of the protagonists of Lemony Snicket's novel series A Series of Unfortunate Events. Sunny is the youngest of the three Baudelaire orphans, and is described as an infant through much of the series...
refers to the person as "Orlando" at one point, a literary allusion to the Virginia Woolf
Virginia Woolf
Adeline Virginia Woolf was an English author, essayist, publisher, and writer of short stories, regarded as one of the foremost modernist literary figures of the twentieth century....
novel, Orlando: A Biography
Orlando: A Biography
Orlando: A Biography is an influential novel by Virginia Woolf, first published on 11 October 1928. A semi-biographical novel based in part on the life of Woolf's lover Vita Sackville-West, it is generally considered one of Woolf's most accessible novels...
, whose hero is a man who turns into a woman. Orlando is based on Vita Sackville-West
Vita Sackville-West
The Hon Victoria Mary Sackville-West, Lady Nicolson, CH , best known as Vita Sackville-West, was an English author, poet and gardener. She won the Hawthornden Prize in 1927 and 1933...
, who was briefly Woolf's lover. In the blooper reel of the film version
Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events
Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events is a 2004 black comedy film directed by Brad Silberling. It is an adaptation of the The Bad Beginning, The Reptile Room, and The Wide Window, being the first three books in A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket...
, the one who looks like neither a man nor a woman is referred to as "Liza." It is unknown whether this name was given by the author, by the director, or by Jim Carrey
Jim Carrey
James Eugene "Jim" Carrey is a Canadian-American actor and comedian. He has received two Golden Globe Awards and has also been nominated on four occasions. Carrey began comedy in 1979, performing at Yuk Yuk's in Toronto, Ontario...
(the actor portraying Count Olaf) as an improvised reference to singer/actress Liza Minnelli
Liza Minnelli
Liza May Minnelli is an American actress and singer. She is the daughter of singer and actress Judy Garland and film director Vincente Minnelli....
. In the books, the character is never identified by name.
In The Hostile Hospital, his or her final appearance, he or she is seen as one of Count Olaf's henchpeople, disguised as a guard at Heimlich Hospital, first seen guarding a door where two more of Olaf's associates were hidden. This person does not speak even with his or her co-workers, as he or she does not speak to Esmé Squalor
Esmé Squalor
Esmé Gigi Geniveve Squalor is the secondary antagonist of the children's novel series A Series of Unfortunate Events by American author Lemony Snicket. She is Count Olaf's girlfriend. Prior to the events of the series she was a professional stage actress and member of V.F.D. Esmé is distinguished...
or Klaus and Sunny, whom he or she thinks are the two white-faced women. It is the only one absent amongst Olaf's troupe that is trying to capture the Baudelaires in the Operating Theatre; however, as they escape, they whiz past him or her. He or she sees them, roars and chases after them, producing the third and final sound it is heard to make. The Baudelaires manage to escape from inside a closet, leaving the person inside as the hospital burns to the ground, where he or she perishes. While the hook-handed man and the bald-headed man show regret at the loss of this person, Olaf claims that he or she was a fool and was not worth waiting around for.
He or she is portrayed by actor/comedian Craig Ferguson
Craig Ferguson
Craig Ferguson is a Scottish American television host, stand-up comedian, writer, actor, director, author, and producer. He is the host of The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, an Emmy Award-nominated, Peabody Award-winning late-night talk show that airs on CBS...
in the film.
Dr. Georgina Orwell
Dr. Georgina Orwell was an optometrist living in the town of Paltryville. In The Miserable MillThe Miserable Mill
The Miserable Mill is the fourth of thirteen novels in American author Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events. It is to be released in paperback under the name The Miserable Mill; or, Hypnotism! The novel tells the story of the Baudelaire orphans continuing their adventure, but this time...
, Dr. Orwell was a hypnotist and hypnotized Klaus Baudelaire. Although it is likely that she was a genuine optometrist (having fixed Klaus' glasses), it is unclear whether Dr. Orwell had recently embarked on a new career as a hypnotist, whether it is merely a hobby of hers, or whether she has always been a hypnotist in some capacity. She sides with Count Olaf, who was disguised as her receptionist, as they had agreed to split the Baudelaire fortune equally, before the Baudelaires arrived at the mill.
She was described as tall woman with blonde hair in a tight bun who wore big black boots. She was seen wearing a long white coat with a name tag that reads 'Dr. Orwell' and held a long black cane with a shiny red jewel on the top. In the same novel, she and Sunny Baudelaire had a swordfight in which Georgina pushed the red jewel on her cane, whereupon it instantly reveals a sword.
Dr. Orwell was killed just before she got the chance to slash Sunny's throat, when she accidentally backed into a saw that had been turned on for use in her and Count Olaf's conspiracy to steal the Baudelaire fortune.
Dr. Orwell's full name is Georgina Orwell, based on that of author George Orwell
George Orwell
Eric Arthur Blair , better known by his pen name George Orwell, was an English author and journalist...
. The Big Brother eye and the hypnotism plot are links to Orwell's novel "Nineteen Eighty-Four
Nineteen Eighty-Four
Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell is a dystopian novel about Oceania, a society ruled by the oligarchical dictatorship of the Party...
."
She may also have been a former member of V.F.D., as the optometrist disguise described in Lemony Snicket: The Unauthorized Autobiography
Lemony Snicket: The Unauthorized Autobiography
Lemony Snicket: The Unauthorized Autobiography was first released on May 1, 2002. The book's content relates to the author Lemony Snicket and his series of books, A Series of Unfortunate Events...
matches her appearance.
Wart-faced man
The wart-faced man (not to be confused with the pimpled man) is a character who functions as a part of Count Olaf's troupe during the second half of The Bad BeginningThe Bad Beginning
The Bad Beginning is the first of thirteen novels in American author Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events. It was later released in paperback under the name The Bad Beginning; or, Orphans! The novel tells the story of three children, Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire, who are orphaned...
, but is never seen or mentioned again.
On the audiobook's accompanying song the bald man is described as being "a long-nosed bald man with warts", perhaps indicating that Daniel Handler
Daniel Handler
Daniel Handler is an American author, screenwriter and accordionist. He is best known for his work under the pen name Lemony Snicket.-Personal life:...
later confounded the two.
He also plays a minor role by flicking off the lights at the end of the Bad Beginning which helped Count Olaf's theatre troup escape.
Hugo
Hugo, a hunchbackHunchback
Hunchback may refer to one of the following.*A derogatory term for a person who has severe kyphosis*The Hunchback of Notre Dame*Hunchback , an arcade and computer game from the 1980s*The Hunchback, a 1914 film featuring Lillian Gish...
, first appears in The Carnivorous Carnival. He is most likely named after Victor Hugo
Victor Hugo
Victor-Marie Hugo was a Frenchpoet, playwright, novelist, essayist, visual artist, statesman, human rights activist and exponent of the Romantic movement in France....
, the author of the well known book Hunchback of Notre Dame.
When the Baudelaires are running from the authorities, for crimes they did not commit, they disguise themselves as freaks. Violet and Klaus disguise themseveles as a two-headed freak in the Caligari Carnival, while Sunny is Chabo the Wolf Baby. They then find themselves working with Hugo, Colette, and Kevin. At the end of The Carnivorous Carnival, Hugo is bribed by Count Olaf and Esmé Squalor to join their evil troupe. Hugo also appears in The Slippery Slope as a very minor character.
Hugo the Hunchback appears again in The Penultimate Peril
The Penultimate Peril
The Penultimate Peril is the twelfth novel in the book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket.-Plot:The book starts off where The Grim Grotto left off...
, disguised as an attendant in Hotel Denouement as part of one of Count Olaf's schemes. It is unknown whether he survived the fire that consumed the hotel.
Colette
Colette is a contortionContortion
thumb|upright|Contortionist performingContortion is an unusual form of physical display which involves the dramatic bending and flexing of the human body. Contortion is often part of acrobatics and circus acts...
ist. She first appears in The Carnivorous Carnival, in which she is employed at the Caligari Carnival in the House of Freaks.
When Violet
Violet Baudelaire
Violet Baudelaire is one of the main characters in the children's book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket and appears in all thirteen books. She is the oldest of the Baudelaire orphans at 14 years old, and often helps her 12-year-old brother Klaus and her baby sister Sunny...
, Klaus
Klaus Baudelaire
Klaus Baudelaire is one of the main characters in the children's book series, A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket who appears in all thirteen novels. Klaus is the middle child of the Baudelaire orphans; he has an older sister named Violet and a younger sister named Sunny...
, and Sunny Baudelaire
Sunny Baudelaire
Sunny Baudelaire is one of the protagonists of Lemony Snicket's novel series A Series of Unfortunate Events. Sunny is the youngest of the three Baudelaire orphans, and is described as an infant through much of the series...
were running from the authorities, for crimes they had not committed, the three children disguised themselves as freaks. This resulted in working with Colette and her co-workers. They lived in a caravan at the carnival with their colleagues and fellow freaks, Hugo, a hunchback
Hunchback
Hunchback may refer to one of the following.*A derogatory term for a person who has severe kyphosis*The Hunchback of Notre Dame*Hunchback , an arcade and computer game from the 1980s*The Hunchback, a 1914 film featuring Lillian Gish...
and Kevin, who is ambidextrous. At the end of The Carnivorous Carnival, Colette, Hugo, and Kevin joined Count Olaf's associates.
Colette appears again as a minor character in The Slippery Slope
The Slippery Slope
The Slippery Slope is the tenth installment in the book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Daniel Handler under the pseudonym of Lemony Snicket.-Plot Summary:...
and The Penultimate Peril
The Penultimate Peril
The Penultimate Peril is the twelfth novel in the book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket.-Plot:The book starts off where The Grim Grotto left off...
. In The Penultimate Peril, she diguises herself as a chemist to help with Count Olaf
Count Olaf
Count Olaf is the primary antagonist of the children's novel series A Series of Unfortunate Events by American author Lemony Snicket. In the series, Olaf is an actor and is known to have committed many crimes as a member of the fire-starting side of V.F.D. prior to the events of the first book in...
's latest scheme. Whether she survives the fire or not is unknown.
Kevin
Kevin is a villain in Olaf's theater troupe who is ambidextrous. He first appears in The Carnivorous Carnival, in which he is employed at the Caligari Carnival in the House of Freaks.When Violet
Violet Baudelaire
Violet Baudelaire is one of the main characters in the children's book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket and appears in all thirteen books. She is the oldest of the Baudelaire orphans at 14 years old, and often helps her 12-year-old brother Klaus and her baby sister Sunny...
, Klaus
Klaus Baudelaire
Klaus Baudelaire is one of the main characters in the children's book series, A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket who appears in all thirteen novels. Klaus is the middle child of the Baudelaire orphans; he has an older sister named Violet and a younger sister named Sunny...
, and Sunny Baudelaire
Sunny Baudelaire
Sunny Baudelaire is one of the protagonists of Lemony Snicket's novel series A Series of Unfortunate Events. Sunny is the youngest of the three Baudelaire orphans, and is described as an infant through much of the series...
were running from the authorities, for crimes they had not committed, the three children disguised themselves as freaks. This resulted in working with Kevin and his co-workers. They lived in a caravan at the carnival with their colleagues and fellow freaks, Hugo, a hunchback
Hunchback
Hunchback may refer to one of the following.*A derogatory term for a person who has severe kyphosis*The Hunchback of Notre Dame*Hunchback , an arcade and computer game from the 1980s*The Hunchback, a 1914 film featuring Lillian Gish...
and Colette, who is a contortionist. At the end of The Carnivorous Carnival, Colette, Hugo, and Kevin joined Count Olaf's associates.
Kevin appears again as a minor character in The Slippery Slope
The Slippery Slope
The Slippery Slope is the tenth installment in the book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Daniel Handler under the pseudonym of Lemony Snicket.-Plot Summary:...
and The Penultimate Peril
The Penultimate Peril
The Penultimate Peril is the twelfth novel in the book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket.-Plot:The book starts off where The Grim Grotto left off...
. In The Penultimate Peril, he disguises himself as a washerwoman to help with Count Olaf
Count Olaf
Count Olaf is the primary antagonist of the children's novel series A Series of Unfortunate Events by American author Lemony Snicket. In the series, Olaf is an actor and is known to have committed many crimes as a member of the fire-starting side of V.F.D. prior to the events of the first book in...
's latest scheme. Whether he survives the fire or not is unknown.
See also
- Count OlafCount OlafCount Olaf is the primary antagonist of the children's novel series A Series of Unfortunate Events by American author Lemony Snicket. In the series, Olaf is an actor and is known to have committed many crimes as a member of the fire-starting side of V.F.D. prior to the events of the first book in...
- Hook-handed manHook-handed manFernald is a villain from Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events. He is known for having two large and sharp hooks where his hands should be...
- List of supporting A Series of Unfortunate Events characters
- Esmé SqualorEsmé SqualorEsmé Gigi Geniveve Squalor is the secondary antagonist of the children's novel series A Series of Unfortunate Events by American author Lemony Snicket. She is Count Olaf's girlfriend. Prior to the events of the series she was a professional stage actress and member of V.F.D. Esmé is distinguished...
- V.F.D. membersV.F.D. membersIn the children's novel series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket, many characters are members of a secret organization known as V.F.D. The following is a list all of the known members of V.F.D.-Beatrice Baudelaire:...