Comments on Musings on Michael Crichton: Pirate Latitudes - Matanceros

Just a comment to point that "matanceros"...

2011-08-24T03:08:02.937-05:00

Just a comment to point that "matanceros" is not used at all in spanish (at least the one spoken in Spain). It could be said that, despite being included in the dictionary, it sounds pretty strange.

The usual word meaning the person who works in the slaughterhouse is derived from "matanza" too but is "matarife" instead of "matancero".

Hope it helps

"Matanceros" itself is not a Spanish wor...

2010-09-11T21:55:48.170-05:00

"Matanceros" itself is not a Spanish word but it does have a Spanish sound, good enough that even though Spanish is my first language he had me wondering if it indeed existed at some point. Didn't remember there was another "Matanceros" island from The Lost World. Too bad it's not the same made-up island, would have been cool to have some sort of link between the two stories.

Nice catch, Ken! You can see the shape on this
2010-04-05T11:25:40.094-05:00
Nice catch, Ken! You can see the shape on this map of Matanzas, Cuba

I've poked around a little on your theories an...

2010-03-27T20:19:02.599-05:00

I've poked around a little on your theories and suspect you're all on to something. One thing I did notice in my research is that the Cuban province of Matanzas is shaped much like the isle he describes with a U-shape facing east -- this being the port on the island; in other words, if Matanzas were an island it would be shaped like Matanceros.

Thank you, FCEtier! I remember reading an intervie...

2010-02-02T15:19:13.552-06:00

Thank you, FCEtier! I remember reading an interview with Michael Crichton in which he mentioned that he liked diving in the Caribbean.

Another question--did Crichton ever dive at Port Royal, Jamaica? The city was struck by a horrific earthquake in 1692, and two-thirds of the city sank into the sea. It was excavated by marine archeologists in the early 1960s, and people are allowed to dive there with permission from the local authorities.

In my post Origin of Pirate Latitudes, I noted that the John Lange novel, Grave Descend (published in 1970 and republished in 2006), reflected a thorough knowledge of the island of Jamaica. Even more telling is that the main character, James McGregor, is a professional diver who explores sunken wrecks.

I like your theory! It certainly fits in with Cric...

2010-01-26T21:01:42.165-06:00

I like your theory! It certainly fits in with Crichton's stories from "Travels" and you're probably right. He most likely did enjoy diving in that area, if not to the remains of the ship you mentioned!