In the early 1700s, a notorious English pirate known as Blackbeard sailed the seas. With his large black beard and feathered tricorne (pirate hat) and carrying swords, knives, and pistols, Blackbeard was the prototypical pirate. Despite leading a life of crime, the plundering rogue found his way in stories and films for years to come, including Blackbeard’s Ghost, released on this day in 1968. In this comedy, college track coach Steve Walker (Dean Jones) inadvertently summons the ghost of the infamous sea captain (Peter Ustinov), who only seems to create havoc for him. But have no fear, matey, because by the film’s end, Blackbeard helps Steve Walker win a track meet and a girlfriend (Suzanne Pleshette) and outwit some gangsters, thus allowing the buccaneer to belay the curse of his swashbuckling past and earn him eternal rest.
