Count Olaf ( or in American English and or in British English) is the primary
antagonistAn antagonist is a character, group of characters, or an institution, who represents the opposition against which the protagonist must contend...
of the children's
book seriesA book series is a sequence of books having certain characteristics in common that are formally identified together as a group. Book series can be organized in different ways, such as written by the same author, or marketed as a group by their publisher....
A Series of Unfortunate EventsA Series of Unfortunate Events is a children's book series of thirteen novels written by Daniel Handler under the pseudonym Lemony Snicket, and illustrated by Brett Helquist. It is about the adventures of three children, Sunny Baudelaire and her older siblings Violet and Klaus, after the death of...
(by
Lemony SnicketLemony Snicket is a pseudonym used by author Daniel Handler in his A Series of Unfortunate Events, as well as a character in that series. An autobiography was published, entitled Lemony Snicket: The Unauthorized Autobiography with an introduction from Handler as himself...
). He is a stage and film
actorAn actor or actress is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
as well as
impresarioImpresario Impresario Impresario (from the Italian impresa, an enterprise or undertaking Origin: mid 18th century, from Italian impresa, ‘undertaking.’ New Oxford American Dictionary.
Impresa: enterprise; deed; company...
.
One of the leaders of the Schism (a split in the secret organization of
V.F.D.The Volunteer Fire Department is a secret organization dedicated to the promotion of literacy, classical learning, and crime prevention within the book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket. V.F.D. is an abbreviation for various terms related to the organization, which helps to...
), Olaf was a former suitor of Kit Snicket. As Olaf had gained notoriety for numerous counts of
arsonArson is the crime of deliberately and maliciously setting fire to structures or wildland areas. It may be distinguished from other causes such as spontaneous combustion and natural wildfires caused by lightning for example. The study of the causes is the subject of fire investigation...
, the Baudelaire siblings long suspected that he caused the Baudelaire fire that killed their parents, but he denied it when confronted, although his credibility is questionable. The
filmLemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events is a black comedy film directed by Brad Silberling. It is based on the first three novels, The Bad Beginning, The Reptile Room, and The Wide Window, in Lemony Snicket's book series...
heavily implies that the Baudelaire murders were committed by Count Olaf.
Count Olaf is a distant relative of the Baudelaires and was once their adoptive father. He holds an unexplained fixation with the Baudelaires' inheritance in particular, and has followed them with a dogged obsession. Olaf's most distinguishing marks are one single eyebrow and a tattoo of the V.F.D. eye on his ankle. He employs his acting skills and various disguises in his plots. His disguises usually do little besides cover his eyebrow and tattoo, which is sufficient to fool most characters. The Baudelaires are able to recognize his other characteristics, such as his wheezy voice and shiny eyes, but other characters don't notice these marks, and very few of them believe the Baudelaires' claims to recognize him. He is the only character other than the Baudelaire children themselves to appear in every book in the series.
Count Olaf is guilty of
arsonArson is the crime of deliberately and maliciously setting fire to structures or wildland areas. It may be distinguished from other causes such as spontaneous combustion and natural wildfires caused by lightning for example. The study of the causes is the subject of fire investigation...
, first degree
murderMurder, as defined in common law countries, is the unlawful killing of another human being with intent , and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
, second degree murder,
attempted murderAttempted murder is a crime in some jurisdictions.-Today:In English criminal law, attempted murder is the crime of more than merely preparing to commit unlawful homicide and at the same time having a specific intention to cause the death of human being under the Queen's Peace...
,
frameupA frameup or setup is an American term referring to the act of framing someone, that is, providing false evidence or false testimony in order to falsely prove someone guilty of a crime...
,
identity theftIdentity theft is a term used to refer to fraud that involves someone pretending to be someone else in order to steal money or get other benefits. The term is relatively new and is actually a misnomer, since it is not inherently possible to steal an identity, only to use it...
,
kidnappingIn criminal law, kidnapping is the taking away or asportation of a person against the person's will, usually to hold the person in false imprisonment, a confinement without legal authority...
,
forced marriageForced marriage is a term used to describe a marriage in which one or both of the parties is married without his or her consent or against his or her will...
,
false imprisonmentFalse imprisonment is a restraint of a person in a bounded area without justification or consent. False imprisonment is a common-law misdemeanor and a tort. It applies to private as well as governmental detention...
,
theftIn criminal law, theft is the illegal taking of another person's property without that person's freely-given consent. The word is also used as an informal shorthand term for some crimes against property, such as burglary, embezzlement, larceny, looting, robbery, shoplifting, fraud and sometimes...
, attempted theft,
fraudIn the broadest sense, a fraud is an intentional deception made for personal gain or to damage another individual. The specific legal definition varies by legal jurisdiction. Fraud is a crime, and is also a civil law violation....
, falsification of evidence,
harassmentHarassment covers a wide range of offensive behaviour. It is commonly understood as behaviour intended to disturb or upset. In the legal sense, it is behaviour which is found threatening or disturbing...
, criminal facilitation,
conspiracyIn the criminal law, a conspiracy is an agreement between two or more persons to break the law at some time in the future, and, in some cases, with at least one overt act in furtherance of that agreement...
, numerous counts of
aiding and abettingAt 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...
and according to Snicket, poor
hygieneHygiene, refers to the set of practices associated with the preservation of health and healthy living. Hygiene is a concept related to medicine, as well as to personal and professional care practices related to most aspects of living, although it is most often associated with cleanliness and...
.
Early life
Count Olaf's criminal youth is referenced several times over the course of the series, most obviously in
The Unauthorized AutobiographyLemony 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...
, in which a letter written from Sally Sebald contains a picture of the young boy who was to play Young Rölf in
Zombies in the Snow, a film directed by her brother Gustav Sebald. She says that she thinks his name might be Omar (a name that many confuse with Olaf throughout the series).
In
The Bad BeginningThe Bad Beginning is a novel by Daniel Handler, written under his pen name Lemony Snicket, and the first of thirteen books in the A Series of Unfortunate Events collection...
, Count Olaf says that when he was a child he loved
raspberriesThe raspberry is the edible fruit of a multitude of plant species in the subgenus Idaeobatus of the genus Rubus; the name also applies to these plants themselves...
. Violet remarks that she cannot picture Olaf as a child — all his features seem to be those of an adult.
In
The Austere AcademyThe Austere Academy is the fifth novel in the book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket. The Baudelaire orphans are sent to a boarding school, overseen by monstrous employees. There, the orphans meet friends, enemies, and Count Olaf....
, Duncan and Isadora Quagmire mention that a man with similar traits as Olaf strangled a bishop and escaped prison in just ten minutes and another report of him throwing a wealthy widow off a cliff. The Baudelaire children agree that it sounds like Olaf and believe him to be the man mentioned in the articles.
In
The Carnivorous Carnival Olaf says that his acting career began when he was approached by Gustav Sebald (then a "young director") because he was the "most handsome fellow at school", which would make it a very old movie, since Count Olaf himself (disguised as Stephano) watches the film in theater with the Baudelaires and Dr. Montgomery. At the end, when he notices a map of the Mortmain Mountains in Madame Lulu's tent, Olaf makes reference to a coded stain spilt on the Valley of Four Drafts, stating that he was taught to use such stains to mark secret locations when he was a young boy.. This book also reveals that Olaf at one point was also after the Snicket fortune.
In
The Slippery SlopeThe 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 powder white face women hint that Olaf may have been responsible for the fire that consumed their home and took the life of one of their siblings and perhaps the lives of their parents.
In
The Grim GrottoThe Grim Grotto is the eleventh novel in the book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket.-Plot summary:The book begins where The Slippery Slope left off, with the Baudelaires traveling on a collapsing toboggan down the Stricken Stream of the Mortmain Mountains. They are washed into...
, Count Olaf mentions that he saw
FionaFiona is a feminine given name. It may have been invented by Scottish poet James Macpherson for his 1765 work Ossian. Ossian is a poetic epic about the adventures of Fionn mac Cumhaill...
when she was an infant, which would mean that he saw her thirteen years ago. He goes on to say that he was attempting to throw thumbtacks in her cradle when he saw her.
In
The Penultimate PerilThe 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. The Baudelaires are traveling with Kit Snicket in a taxi...
, it is strongly hinted and almost outright stated by Olaf that he burned down the childhood home of Dewey Denouement and murdered almost his entire family.
Another mysterious reference to Count Olaf's childhood is mentioned in
The Penultimate Peril. In Chapter 1, Kit mentions that she was able to smuggle a box of poison darts to the Baudelaire parents before
Esmé SqualorEsmé Gigi Geneveve Squalor is a character from the book series by Lemony Snicket, A Series of Unfortunate Events. She is the city's sixth-most-important financial adviser, and portrayed as an evil woman, but not at first. She first appears in the sixth novel of the series, The Ersatz Elevator...
caught her. Through a few subtle hints, it becomes apparent that Lemony Snicket was present as well. Later in the book, when Olaf is confronting the Baudelaires and Dewey Denouement, he dares the Baudelaires to ask Dewey what happened that night at the theatre, implying that the Baudelaire parents, Dewey, and the Snickets were there for some sort of sinister purpose. Finally, in Chapter 12, Olaf reveals that poison darts were the reason he became an orphan himself, implying that the Baudelaire parents may have murdered his own parents and possibly explaining his hatred for the Baudelaires.
In
The Beatrice LettersThe Beatrice Letters is a book by Lemony Snicket. It is tangential to the children's book series A Series of Unfortunate Events, and was published shortly before the thirteenth and final installment...
, a young Snicket writes to Beatrice about someone he only identifies as 'O'; "
The only other student in [Code Class] that I know is O., who is nothing but an annoyance. As I write this he is filling his notebook with anagrams of obscene words. I'm tempted to tell him there is no such thing as 'a wet viper perm (thought to be an anagram of 'Preemptive War', although this is never confirmed) but after the incident with the bottle of ink and the root beer float, I think its better to spend my time inside 'My Silence Knot' whenever that nitwit raises his ugly, one-eyebrowed head.
" and "The brightest star cannot shine through a cloud of dark smoke, and O is the darkest of clouds I have seen in our skies. One day the world will know of his treachery and deceit, of his crimes and hygiene, but that's far too late for us."
It is hinted throughout the series that Olaf had something to do with the schism that separated V.F.D. This is hinted the most in the unauthorized biography in a letter Jacques Snicket wrote to Jerome Squalor. The letter explained that a member which he only referred to as O was acting in such a violent manner that his actions have caused the organization to split in two. As the members of the organization often use the first letter of their names to talk about one and another, it is generally assumed O stands for Olaf. Many members of V.F.D., such as Widdershins, often use Olaf's name immediately when talking about the treachery of the fire starting side of the schism. This hints that Olaf has done a great deal of harm to V.F.D. more than most of the other villains involved have, furthering the concept of him being one of the leaders of the schism.
Olaf was involved with the organization for many years and knows many, if not all, of the secrets surrounding the organization that the Baudelaire children seek to know. He is also responsible for numerous fires and deaths of V.F.D., as mentioned by Lemony Snicket himself, and plans on gaining control of all the fortunes of the members in thirst of revenge and greed. While never directly stated, it is hinted in the last two volumes that Olaf had a very troubling past and this may be the reason for his bitterness at the world. It is also heavily implied in the last book that Olaf had once loved Kit Snicket, Lemony Snicket's sister, and had told her he'd kiss her one last time before his and her death.
Guardian of the Baudelaires
In the beginning of the series, the Baudelaire orphans are sent to live with Count Olaf, their closest geographically living relative, after a mysterious fire destroys their home and kills their parents. Olaf's involvement in the fire was long suspected by the Baudelaires. When they finally confronted him and accused of him of starting the fire, Olaf did not seem surprised by the accusation but asked them "Is that what you think?" Whether this is a denial of involvement in the event or means something else is unknown.
Olaf was an actor and had an entire group of similarly evil associates who he refers to as his "
theatre troupeThe members of Count Olaf's theater troupe are fictional characters who appear in Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events. Frequently referred to as Count Olaf's associates, assistants, comrades, accomplices, or henchman, the theater troupe is a traveling group of stage actors lead by Count...
". He wrote his own plays, under the
pseudonymA pseudonym is a fictitious name used by a person, or sometimes, a group.Pseudonyms are often used to hide an individual's real identity, as with writers' pen names, graffiti artists, resistance fighters' or terrorists' noms de guerre and computer hackers' handles. Actors, musicians, and other...
"Al Funcoot" (an
anagramAn 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. Someone who creates anagrams is called an anagrammatist...
of "Count Olaf").
During the time the Baudelaires lived with him, the children immediately saw Olaf as a short tempered and violent man. Olaf provided them with one filthy room and forced them to do difficult chores (such as making them chop wood solely for his own entertainment) as he schemed to seize control over their fortune. Olaf once hit
KlausKlaus Baudelaire is one of the main characters in the popular children's book series, A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket....
hard for talking back to him, and picked up and dangled
SunnySunny 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...
for saying No! No! No! in response to his demand for
roast beefRoast beef is a cut of beef which is roasted in an oven. Roast beef is often served within sandwiches and sometimes is used to make hash. In England, Canada, Ireland, and Australia roast beef is one of the meats traditionally served at Sunday Dinner...
instead of the puttanesca sauce they made.
Later, Olaf had the children participate in a play in which
VioletViolet Baudelaire is one of the main characters in the children's book series, A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket. In the film she is played by Emily Browning. Violet is the eldest child of the Baudelaire orphans. Her younger siblings are her younger brother Klaus and her baby...
plays a woman who gets married to a character played by Olaf. The children learned that Olaf was using the play to disguise the fact that the marriage will be legally binding and that he will have control over the fortune once the wedding ceremony is complete. To insure that the children cooperate with the plan, Olaf kidnapped Sunny and had her tied up, put in a cage, and hung outside his tower window, threatening to murder her if the children refused to cooperate.
The plan to marry Violet Baudelaire to gain the inheritance went awry. Violet managed to thwart Olaf's plan by signing the marriage with her left hand instead of her right, which as she was right-handed, was the required one to make it legally binding. Olaf was exposed as a criminal and fled, but not before promising to Violet that he would get his hands on her fortune no matter what and then murder her and her siblings with his bare hands. The children were sent to different relatives, with Olaf following in pursuit.
Plots
Olaf's plans became more dangerous and murderous in nature as the books progressed. Many of them included the murder of the children's guardians, such as Uncle Monty and Aunt Josephine. His plans were often complicated and many of the earlier ones involved him attempting to get the orphans legally into his care. In later books, he simply wanted to abduct one child, murder the other two, and use the kidnapped one to blackmail Mr. Poe into giving over the fortune. Regardless of his tactics, Olaf's plans were always aimed at the goal of abducting the children through elaborate methods. He murders Uncle Monty by poisoning him with snake poison.
He murders Aunt Josephine by pushing her into the Lake with the Leeches.
But it is said that she probably survived.
In each of books two through eight Olaf wears a new disguise of someone who works under the guardians or works near the area, usually murdering the person who had the occupation previously, that usually fools everyone but the Baudelaires. One or two of his henchmen, also usually disguised, accompany him and aid him in executing his schemes. The following is a list his primary disguises with IPA and
AHDThe American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language is an American dictionary of the English language published by Boston publisher Houghton Mifflin, the first edition of which appeared in 1969...
pronunciations given.
- Al Funcoot Is an anagram for Count Olaf the playwright of The Marvelous Marriage.
- Stephano , an assistant herpetologist
Herpetology is the branch of zoology concerned with the study of amphibians and of reptiles .Herpetology is concerned with poikilothermic,...
with a long beard, shaved head, and no eyebrows.
- Captain Julio Sham, a sailor
A sailor or mariner is a person who navigates water-borne vessels or assists in their operation, maintenance, or service. The term can apply to professional mariners, military personnel, and recreational sailors as well as a plethora of other uses...
with an eye-patch and a wooden leg (the real Julio Sham is captain of the Prospero).
- Shirley T. Sinoit-Pécer, an optometrist's feminine receptionist
A receptionist is a person in an office/administrative support position. The work is usually performed in a waiting area such as a lobby or front office desk of an organization or business...
- T.Sinoit-Pécer is receptionist backwards.
- Coach Genghis, a gym teacher with a turban
The turban is a headdress consisting of a long scarf-like single piece of cloth wound around the head. The word "turban" is a common umbrella term, loosely used in English to refer to several sorts of headwear....
, covering his one eyebrow, and expensive looking running shoes, covering his tattoo of an eye on his ankle.
- Gunther (, gōōn′·tər), a pinstripe suit-wearing auctioneer. He pretends to come from a foreign country so people believe that he doesn't speak fluent English. Olaf constantly says "please" after and in the middle of every sentence. This is also done by Madame Lulu in "The Carnivorous Carnival". He wears horse riding boots to cover up his tattoo, and a monocle to distort his eyebrow.
- Detective Dupin, a 'famous' detective
A detective is an investigator, either a member of a police agency or a private person. The latter may be known as private investigators...
obsessed with what's cool, including ridiculous sunglasses which cover up his one eyebrow.
- Mattathias , Heimlich Hospital's new Human Resources
Human resources is a term used to refer to how people are managed by organizations. The field has moved from a traditionally administrative function to a strategic one that recognizes the link between talented and engaged people and organizational success. The field draws upon concepts developed in...
director. The only sign of his presence is his voice over the hospital intercom.
- Kit Snicket In The End
The End is the thirteenth and final book in A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket. This book is the only book in the series without an alliterative title.- Plot summary :...
, Count Olaf's disguises himself as a pregnant Kit Snicket and uses the helmet containing the Medusoid Mycelium as his false baby. But the castaways see through his pathetic attempt since, without conventional materials, his disguise consisted just of a seaweed wig, a dress and the helmet containing the Medusoid mycelium beneath the dress. Needless to say, it was less convincing than his previous disguises.
By the end of the seventh book, it is no longer necessary for Olaf to use any disguises as he murders a man, Jacques Snicket, who was believed to be Count Olaf/Omar at the time. The Daily Punctilio published articles prior to this event that entailed that the man who committed numerous crimes was Count Omar and not Olaf. This allowed Olaf to no longer disguise himself and even use his own name as everyone believed Omar was the villain's name. Even though his need for disguises was minimum, he does so one last time in the Hostile Hospital to gain entry into the area. The eighth book also starts Olaf's open obsession with fire, as he burns down Heimlich Hospital in that book and then Caligari Carnival in the ninth book. Numerous mentions of other fires he started and others he plans to do strengthen the theory that he was the one who burnt the Baudelaire Mansion down and murdered the parents.
Finally, near the end of the thirteenth book, the Baudelaires accuse Count Olaf of making them orphans, a suspicion that all three siblings had kept in their hearts for as long as they can remember. Count Olaf, however, upon asking the Baudelaires if that's what they really think and receiving Sunny's cold answer, "We know it," retorts that the orphans "know nothing,". What Count Olaf meant by his reply is never clarified, and the question of who was responsible for the deaths of the
Baudelaire ParentsThe Baudelaire family is one of several prominent fictional families in A Series of Unfortunate Events. The Baudelaire children, Violet, Klaus, and Sunny, are the protagonists of the series...
remains unanswered.
While in the earlier books Olaf only showed that he wanted the children's fortune, it is later revealed that he also desired the Quagmire sapphires, the Snicket file, and the
Sugar bowlThings commonly known as sugar bowls or the sugar bowl include:*Sugar bowl , a small bowl, generally part of a tea set, designed for holding sugar or sugar cubes*Sugar Bowl, the college football game...
, although he is repeatedly shown to have a greater interest in the Baudelaire fortune than in any of these other treasures. By the tenth book, Olaf also develops plans to gain control of numerous other fortunes from children whose parents are V.F.D. members by burning down their homes and murdering all their parents. Olaf then plans to recruit the children as new "associates" or more appropriately, prisoners, and help him destroy what's left of V.F.D. Olaf's other main goal is to destroy V.F.D in order to eliminate the last evidence of his plans so that he may execute any other scheme he wants to without the worry of the authorities. The tenth book also starts the pattern of Olaf no longer using complicated methods to obtain the children's fortune and just intends on capturing them to get the fortune. His plans were from then on usually aimed at the goal of destroying V.F.D., although his obsession with the fortune is still to him, "the greater good."
In
The Penultimate PerilThe 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. The Baudelaires are traveling with Kit Snicket in a taxi...
, Olaf finally shows signs of hesitation at committing crimes and murder. In this volume, he was about to kill one of the Denouement triplets when the Baudelaires begged him to stop and be a noble person. Olaf whispered, "What else can I do?" This gave rise to speculation that Olaf was not entirely evil, but feels obligated to continue his deeds as he has already gone too far from being noble. He is able to flee the burning Hotel Denouement by boarding the boat (then called the Carmelita) with the three Baudelaires.
Death
In
The EndThe End is the thirteenth and final book in A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket. This book is the only book in the series without an alliterative title.- Plot summary :...
, Olaf was rejected (due to his unkind behavior) by Friday, one of the inhabitants of a remote island, which he'd named "Olaf-land" after himself, where he was marooned with the Baudelaire orphans after a vicious storm. After a pregnant Kit Snicket was also stranded in another storm, Olaf attempts to disguise himself as her, using a round diving helmet filled with Medusoid Mycelium (a poisonous fungus whose spores cause death within the hour of exposure) to make his stomach bulge as though he were pregnant.
Olaf's personality is significantly different in the final book as he is seen as more timid and depressed. This is probably due to the fact that all of his past methods and tricks fail to work on the islanders, who are not fooled by Olaf's act. Therefore, Olaf realizes that there really is not any room for him on the island. Olaf is also shown to sympathize with the children, telling them that life is unfair and a miserable place. He seems to have gained a reluctant respect for them, calling them his new henchmen and even attempting to convince them to escape with him.
Later, the island's leader, Ishmael, fires a harpoon at Olaf (as Olaf had planned) only for it to hit the encased Mycelium against his stomach, breaking it open so that its deadly spores are released into the air, contaminating all of the islanders as well as Olaf himself. The harpoon also partially impales Olaf in the process. Olaf started laughing, stating that Ishmael has murdered everyone on the island as he has just released a deadly fungus into the air.
Olaf realizes that he has nothing left to live for, having lost his parents, his true love, his henchmen, an enormous amount of money he didn't earn, the boat with his name on it. Too depressed to go on living, Olaf at first refuses to take a specially produced apple (which is mixed with
horseradishHorseradish is a perennial plant of the Brassicaceae family, which also includes mustard, wasabi, broccoli, and cabbages. The plant is probably native to southeastern Europe and western Asia, but is popular around the world today...
, the cure for the Mycelium), saying that he "lost too much to go on". However, upon finding out that Kit Snicket is going into labor, he eats the healing apple and carries her to where she can better perform childbirth, thus performing what Violet calls the one good deed in his life (during which he surprisingly kisses Kit on the lips, hinting at a past relationship between the two).
Despite being cured of the lethal Mycelium fungus, Olaf is revealed to have been fatally injured by the harpoon. Count Olaf states that he has not apologized for anything that he has done in the past, but looks at his old girlfriend and then the children in sadness and pain. Lying down on the beach without medical assistance from the Baudelaires who are helping Kit to give birth, Count Olaf's last words quote
Philip LarkinPhilip Arthur Larkin, CH, CBE, FRSL is commonly regarded as one of the greatest English poets of the latter half of the twentieth century; he was also a novelist and a jazz critic...
's short poem "
This Be The Verse"This Be The Verse" is a lyric poem in three verses of four iambic tetrameter on an alternating rhyme scheme, by the English poet Philip Larkin...
" -"Man hands on misery to man./It deepens like a coastal shelf./Get out as early as you can,/and don't have any kids yourself." After quoting the poet, Count Olaf laughs and finally dies. Along with Kit, he is buried on the island and his grave is occasionally visited by the Baudelaires but he is not as embraced as Kit.
Physical appearance
Olaf is described as tall, thin, unkempt and often dirty. Lemony makes frequent reference to Olaf's poor hygiene and in The Carnivorous Carnival
Olaf mentions that he often goes ten days without a shower. His lack of personal hygiene worsens as the books progress although in The Slippery SlopeThe 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:...
Sunny Baudelaire is shocked to see that Olaf has bathed and changed into a new suit.
When not in disguise, his other distinguishing features include shiny eyes that frighten the Baudelaires, pale skin, a
unibrowA unibrow is a "confluence of eyebrows"; i.e., the presence of abundant hair between the eyebrows, so that they seem to converge to form one long eyebrow. The condition of having a unibrow is synophrys....
, and a tattoo of an eye on his ankle which is a mark for members of VFD, the organisation to which Olaf belonged before becoming a self-described "individual practitioner." In his numerous disguises, Olaf attempts to hide his most distinctive features, but the Baudelaire children are never fooled. However, most of the other characters remain utterly oblivious. In both the illustrations of the books and the film, he is depicted with white, receding hair, a goatee, and a hooked, prominent nose.
The film
Count Olaf was portrayed by actor
Jim CarreyJames Eugene "Jim" Carrey is a Canadian-American actor and stand-up comedian. Carrey is best known for his performances as multiple characters in the sketch comedy show In Living Color, as the title character in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective and Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls, as the unlucky TV...
in the film adaptation of the books,
Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate EventsLemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events is a black comedy film directed by Brad Silberling. It is based on the first three novels, The Bad Beginning, The Reptile Room, and The Wide Window, in Lemony Snicket's book series...
. Handler states in the DVD commentary that Jim Carrey's physical appearance of Olaf was spot-on.
The darkest areas of Olaf's personality were toned down considerably for the film. Rather than being a sinister and amoral
mastermindMastermind is another word for genius. Mastermind or Masterminds may also refer to:In psychology:* Mastermind , one of the 16 role variants that the Keirsey Temperament Sorter is based on...
with a taste for black humor (as in the books), Count Olaf appears as a melodramatic, egotistical buffoon. Nonetheless, Olaf remains a scheming murderer, killing remorselessly several times.
A big change in the film was the strong suggestion of Olaf's direct responsibility for the Baudelaire fire. Whereas Olaf's role in the Baudelaires' parents' deaths remains uncertain at best in the books, the implications of his involvement are far stronger in the movie. At the climax of the film, a giant spyglass possessed by Count Olaf is pointed at the smoking ruins of the Baudelaire mansion, presumably through which it was set alight. Thus implicating that the Baudelaires' parents were actually murdered by Olaf, rather than an unexplained freak accident. Also, when Snicket listed some of the orphans triumphs he states 'solving the mystery of the Baudelaire fire'.
Appearances
- The Bad Beginning
The Bad Beginning is a novel by Daniel Handler, written under his pen name Lemony Snicket, and the first of thirteen books in the A Series of Unfortunate Events collection...
- The Reptile Room
The Reptile Room is a children's novel and the second of A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket aka Daniel Handler. Having just escaped from the greedy and evil Count Olaf in the first book, the Baudelaire children are now taken to live with another relative, Dr. Montgomery. While the...
- 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. In The Wide Window, the Baudelaire orphans are sent to live with their third guardian, Aunt Josephine The Wide Window is a children's novel and the third novel in the...
- The Miserable Mill
The Miserable Mill is the fourth novel in the book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket. Mr. Poe sends the orphans to live with the owner of a lumbermill, who makes them work alongside the other lumberjacks...
- The Austere Academy
The Austere Academy is the fifth novel in the book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket. The Baudelaire orphans are sent to a boarding school, overseen by monstrous employees. There, the orphans meet friends, enemies, and Count Olaf....
- The Ersatz Elevator
The Ersatz Elevator is the sixth novel in the book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Daniel Handler under the pseudonym of Lemony Snicket. The Baudelaires are sent to live with the wealthy Esmé and Jerome Squalor.-Plot summary:...
- The Vile Village
The Vile Village is the seventh novel in the book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket. After escaping Olaf once again, the Baudelaire orphans are taken into the care of a whole village, only to find lots of rules and chores, evil seniors, and Count Olaf lurking nearby.This book...
- The Hostile Hospital
The Hostile Hospital is the eighth novel in the book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket.-Plot:Having previously escaped V.F.D. in the previous book, the three Baudelaire children are walking alone and hungry...
- The Carnivorous Carnival
- 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 Grim Grotto
The Grim Grotto is the eleventh novel in the book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket.-Plot summary:The book begins where The Slippery Slope left off, with the Baudelaires traveling on a collapsing toboggan down the Stricken Stream of the Mortmain Mountains. They are washed into...
- 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. The Baudelaires are traveling with Kit Snicket in a taxi...
- The End
The End is the thirteenth and final book in A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket. This book is the only book in the series without an alliterative title.- Plot summary :...
See also
- Count Olaf's theater troupe
- Esmé Squalor
Esmé Gigi Geneveve Squalor is a character from the book series by Lemony Snicket, A Series of Unfortunate Events. She is the city's sixth-most-important financial adviser, and portrayed as an evil woman, but not at first. She first appears in the sixth novel of the series, The Ersatz Elevator...
External links