This Day in History: English playwright William Shakespeare died on this day in 1616. Shakespeare is one of the most influential figures in English literature. "If you really think about it, he is probably one of the most well-known, enduring authors of all time. He wrote plays and poetry that are, hands-down, the most discussed, debated, taught, read, analyzed, criticized, enacted, dramatized, spoofed, and quoted pieces of literature that exist today. From junior high to a doctorate's level, students study Shakespeare. It is nearly impossible to not encounter something that has been influenced by Shakespeare's writing, even if it's as little as a quote ('To be or not to be, that is the question' is used ALL the time, even in commercials--'To eat a taco, or to not eat a taco, that is the question'), or as immersed as an entire course that extensively studies his plays."~Mrs Campbell
Did you know that there are about 80 different spellings of Shakespeare, ranging from "Shappere" to "Shaxberd." The Bard never spelled his own name "William Shakespeare," he instead used variations and abbreviations such as "Willm Shakp," "Willm Shakspere" and "William Shakspeare" instead. Other spellings are Shakespere, Shackspeare, Shakespear, Shaxspere, Shaxper, Shackespeare, Shackspere
Shackespere etc.
No one knows exactly how Shakespeare died, but it appears that his skull has been stolen from his grave.
Also, there are thirteen explicit suicides in Shakespeare's plays.
Shakespeare also lived through a pandemic in his own lifetime.
See also: Who Really Wrote Shakespeare's Plays? 50 Books on CDrom
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