William Shakspere Puns

I'm a new user to Gramps, and I'm wondering how to handle spelling variations in surnames. One example could be the name Lechow, which I've found also as:

Lechów
Lechiw
Lacho
Leckiw

I have the following questions:

1. Where should this additional information go? As alternative surnames in the name editor for the person?
2. How should the people be grouped? Should I remain faithful to the birth record and use the surname as it's written, or group all of these people under the dominant surname variation of "Lechow" so that the list of surnames don't get cluttered?

Thanks for the help!

You all know William Shakespeare. A wee naff from Stratford-upon-Avon who moved to London in the late 1500s, he rose through the theatrical ranks to become one of the most celebrated playwrights of all time. A man who, despite having "small Latin and less Greek" as Ben Jonson would say, managed to invent some words and arrange far more into configurations that are still loved and quoted today. If you've ever claimed "a rose by any other name would smell as sweet," that you're "cruel to be kind," or that "we have seen better days," well, you've just quoted Shakespeare.

Or, according to Anti-Stratfordians, perhaps you haven't quoted a man named Shakespeare at all.

Yep, believe it or not, there's a dedicated group of Shakespeare Truthers, out to prove that the Swan of Avon wasn't from Avon after all. The Anti-Stratfordians have counted many otherwise reasonable people among their ranks, including Mark Twain, Walt Whitman, Orson Welles, Malcolm X, Roland Emmerich, Jeremy Irons, and Sir Dereck Jacobi.

So what's up with the Anti-Stratfordians? What makes the "theory" so compelling? Well, buckle in, folks, because I'm gonna try my damnedest to cover 200+ years of conspiracy theories in one Reddit post.

Background: Bardolatry

For the first 200 years or so after his death, there was no real doubt about the identity of Shakespeare. He was a dude from Stratford-upon-Avon who wrote some plays, respected but really nobody special. It wasn't until after the Shakespeare Stratford Jubilee in 1769, 100 years after his death, that Shakespeare was seen as the leading playwright in English history and some kind of untouchable, unique genius. And it wasn't until 40-ish years after that that George Bernard Shaw coined a really useful term for our purposes, and an essential one to understand the Anti-Stratfordians: "bardolatry."

"Bardolotry," the excessive praise and worship of Shakespeare, was in full swing by the mid-1800s. Shakespeare was not just a dude who wrote some plays anymore, he was a god, the epitome of intellectual and creative genius. This, of course, caused some problems with what little was known about his biography. A lower-middle-class, barely educated guy from an unassuming market town, a businessman who was most notable in the historical record for selling grain on the side and leaving his wife his second-best bed, well, that just didn't jive with his reputation as the literal embodiment of The Art of The Theatre.

At first, it was just people

The funeral director was asking us what we think Mum should wear in her casket.

Mum always loved to wear sarongs (fabric wraps that go around the torso and drape downward a bit like a long skirt would), so my uncle suggested that she wear a sarong in there.

The funeral director looked a bit confused, as did some of our family members, to which my uncle added:

"What's sarong with that?"

I started laughing like an idiot. He was proud of it too. The funeral director was rather shocked. We assured her, and our more proper relatives, that Mum would've absolutely loved the joke (which is very true).

His delivery was perfect. I'll never forget the risk he took. We sometimes recall the moment as a way help cushion the blows of the grieving process.

--Edit-- I appreciate the condolences. I'm doing well and the worst is behind me and my family. But thanks :)

--Edit-- Massive thanks for all the awards and kind words. And the puns! Love 'em.

I would have a daughter

Capital of Ireland

It's Dublin everyday

http://m.imgur.com/ImM3RWz

But Bill kept the Windows

True story; it even happened last night. My 5-year-old son walks up behind me and out of the blue says, "hey."

I turn to him and say, "yeah, kiddo? What's up?"

He responds, "it's dead grass."

I'm really confused and trying to figure out what's wrong and what he wants from me. "What? There's dead grass? What's wrong with that?"

.

.

.

He says, totally straight-faced, "hay is dead grass," and runs off.

You officially hit rock bottom

And then you will all be sorry.

No it doesn't.

Now it’s syncing.

He replied, "Well, stop going to those places then!"

I will find you. You have my Word.

She said how do you know he was headed to work?

“thank you for your cervix.”

...sails are going through the roof.

Mods said I'm a cereal reposter...

A taxi

But now I stand corrected.

Wait. Sorry, wrong sub.

Wookie mistake.

Theoretical Fizz-ics

He thought homes were built, not born.

Because you can’t ‘C’ in the dark

I said, “That makes two of us.”

Now he’s a great grandfather