(Undo revision 68281 by 19zarood (talk)) |
|||
| Line 46: | Line 46: | ||
== Biography == |
== Biography == |
||
===Early Life=== |
===Early Life=== |
||
| − | + | In the books, Montgomery was described as a short chubby man with a round red face. He attended Prufrock Prepetory school, like all the other volunteers. He was, being on the fire-fighting side of [[V.F.D.]], a noble and kind man. |
|
He discovered the [[Incredibly Deadly Viper]], which was completely harmless, but he named it that to play a prank on his associates at the [[Herpetological Society]], showing he has a sense of humor. |
He discovered the [[Incredibly Deadly Viper]], which was completely harmless, but he named it that to play a prank on his associates at the [[Herpetological Society]], showing he has a sense of humor. |
||
Revision as of 01:08, 30 October 2019
| “ | I promise that if you take time to learn the facts, no harm will come to you here in the Reptile Room. | ” |
— Monty Montgomery, The Reptile Room
|
Dr. Montgomery Montgomery, also known as Tony "Mommy" Eggmonteror, was a brilliant herpetologist. He had a lifelong interest in snakes and reptiles, having a large collection of them in his house. He was the Baudelaire’s second guardian.
To Violet, Klaus and Sunny Baudelaire, he was known as Uncle Monty, although he was their "late father's cousin's wife's brother".
He was a kind and loving guardian. The Baudelaire's experience with him was probably the most pleasant throughout the series, as he became the closest thing of a new family to them.
Biography
Early Life
In the books, Montgomery was described as a short chubby man with a round red face. He attended Prufrock Prepetory school, like all the other volunteers. He was, being on the fire-fighting side of V.F.D., a noble and kind man.
He discovered the Incredibly Deadly Viper, which was completely harmless, but he named it that to play a prank on his associates at the Herpetological Society, showing he has a sense of humor.
Lemony Snicket: The Unauthorized Autobiography reveals that many of Monty's reptiles were trained to communicate coded messages. A ripped page from the book "The Mamba du Mal: A Snake That Will Never Kill Me" (written by Monty under his anagram pen-name Tony "Mommy" Eggmonteror) describes some phrases used by the Mamba du Mal. The Unauthorized Autobiography also contains a partial transcript of a V.F.D. meeting in which two attendees named 'M' appear. It is possible that Monty is one of these individuals.
In The End, Kit Snicket states that Monty taught her many Italian words, including Vaparetto.
At the close of Who Could That Be at This Hour?, Hector briefly mentions Monty.
The Reptile Room
Uncle Monty introducing himself to the Baudelaires
Upon first meeting the Baudelaires, he gave them homemade coconut cake. The Baudelaires quickly became fond of him. Montgomery preferred to be called Uncle Monty by the orphans. He mentioned how he had planned to take them to Peru with his assistant, Gustav and that Gustav had mysteriously "resigned" the day before the trip (he was actually drowned in the Swarthy Swamp by Count Olaf). Montgomery unintentionally hired Count Olaf, disguised as a lab assistant named Stephano, as Gustav's replacement.
The children also watched a film called Zombies in the Snow while in the care of Dr. Montgomery, directed by Dr. Gustav Sebald. The movie, written in Sebald Code, warned them about an impostor (Stephano), but since neither the Baudelaires nor Dr. Montgomery had ever learned Sebald Code, they did not realize this. The Baudelaire orphans were aware that Stephano was Olaf in disguise, but they were unable to convince Montgomery.
In the TV series, Montgomery does notice the code. He recieved a message saying, "Danger. Take the children to Peru".
Monty's Body
Montgomery does, however, notice that Stephano is not a very good herpetologist, and believes he is a spy from the Herpetological Society. He rips up Stephano's ticket to Peru and plans to tell Stephano to stay at the house to look after the specimens. Sometime during the night, Montgomery is murdered by Olaf who uses the snake venom of the Mamba du Mal to divert suspicion, making it seem as if Montgomery died from an accidental snakebite.
The next morning, the Baudelaires wake up and find their uncle's body. The children are extremely upset, yet they are determined to prove the death was a murder. They expose Stephano's true identity, however, Olaf manages to escape again
Both the villains and volunteers want possession of Montgomery's collection of reptiles and amphibians. After Dr. Montgomery's death, a man named Bruce retrieves the animals for use by the Herpetological Society. It is stated in The Slippery Slope that Count Olaf later tricked Bruce into letting him take possession of the animals. This is the last mention of them in the books.[2]
Later books
In The End, Montgomery is mentioned as "my herpetologist comrade", meaning Lemony Snicket's comrade, confirming he is a member of V.F.D.
Behind the scenes
- In the film adaptation, he was portrayed by Billy Connolly.
- In the video game, he was voiced by Jay Gordon.
- In the Netflix series, he was portrayed by Aasif Mandvi.
Etymology
It is unknown where the name Montgomery came from, as there are many stories of its origin.
It is possible that the name "Montgomery Montgomery" is a reference to Monty Python, a British comedy group. The children call him uncle "Monty" and him being a herpetological scientist that specializes in snakes may refer to "Python", a type of snake.
It is also possible that the dual name, "Montgomery Montgomery" relates to Vladimir Nabokov's seminal novel, Lolita, in which the narrating character's name was Humbert Humbert.
It is possible that the name "Uncle Monty" is a reference to the 1987 British cult film Withnail and I, in which there is a character named Uncle Monty, also portrayed as a fat, short man with a round, red chubby face.
Trivia
- In the book, Uncle Monty reveals he never had children or a wife, because he had no time for it and was leaving the idea for later. However, in the film, he said that had he a wife and children, but they died in a fire.
Monty locked inside the piano.
- In the TV series, Montgomery Montgomery's mustache resembles that of Clash Royale's Electro Wizard.
- In the TV series, it is revealed Monty was locked in a piano with the Baudelaire parents, and Count Olaf took a picture of it.
- In the TV series, The Daily Punctilio claims Montgomery Montgomery had "snake allergies" and died from them, and that he "hated snakes". It also tries to push the narrative that the Baudelaires murdered their parents, Montgomery Montgomery and Josephine Anwhistle because they want their fortune all to themselves.[3]
- In the TV series, Montgomery was also shown to have a ticket taker ally who spliced the footage of Zombies in the Snow so that he can copy down the remaining message. In addition, Count Olaf had the White-Faced Women try to capture him to no avail.
Family
Books/TV Series
| Grandparents (unknown if adoptive or biological) | Grandparents | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Unknown | Unknown | Unnamed Guardians | Biological Parents † | Parents | Unknown to which Anwhistle parent | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Monty Montgomery † | Monty Montgomery's sister | Bertrand's Cousin | Bertrand Baudelaire † | Beatrice Baudelaire † | Unnamed Mother † | Unknown | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Violet Baudelaire | Klaus Baudelaire | Sunny Baudelaire | Gregor Anwhistle † | Ike Anwhistle † | Josephine Anwhistle † | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Beatrice Baudelaire II | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Film
| Wife † | Monty Montgomery † | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Children † | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Violet Baudelaire | Klaus Baudelaire | Sunny Baudelaire | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Appearances
- Who Could That Be at This Hour? (first mentioned)
- Why Is This Night Different from All Other Nights? (mentioned only)
- The Reptile Room (first appearance)
- The Wide Window (mentioned only)
- The Miserable Mill (mentioned only)
- The Slippery Slope (mentioned only)
- The End (Mentioned only)
- The Beatrice Letters (mentioned only)
- Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events (film)
- Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events (video game)
- A Series of Unfortunate Events (TV series)
Gallery
Books
Movie
.PNG "Montgomery Montgomery (Movie).PNG (113 KB)")
Video game
TV series
Sources
- ↑ In the reprise of That's Not How The Story Goes in The Penultimate Peril: Part 2, a copy of the Daily Punctilio on the accident at Lucky Smells Lumbermill is labelled as "LOCAL CITY NEWS AUGUST 23 ACCIDENT AT LUCKY SMELL" with the rest of the words cut off. This confirms that the accident that killed Georgina Orwell occurred on that date. The Baudelaires spent only a few days at the Lumbermill meaning that Josephine died on the 21st. Monty mentions that they're going to Peru "in a week" and dies on the day they were supposed to leave, meaning that the Baudelaires came to stay with him, at the latest, eight days before Josephine died - that being August thirteenth - to accommodate for the week and at least one day to find them a new guardian, placing Monty's death no later than August 20th - assuming there's only one day between his death and their arrival at Josephine's.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 PROSE: Lemony Snicket: The Unauthorized Autobiography
- ↑ The Hilarious Made-Up Tabloid in A Series of Unfortunate Events Is Fake News That's Worth Reading, Slate