Something About Evaristus

Eye Opening Trivia, Part 1.

This site has mentioned some strange-sounding names John Bellairs used for characters over the years.  One name I touched on several months ago was Remigius.  It's the name of a 6th Century bishop and later saint; our interest is it's seemingly the name origin of Father Remigius Baart, from The Curse of the Blue Figurine (1983).

There's also Evaristus (d. c. 107), a 2nd Century bishop and later saint – and even later, pope.  For those keeping track, he was the fifth pontiff on the list.  That's about all we know about him, except he was likely born in Bethlehem and died a martyr.

Bellairs seemingly borrowed the name for the blacksmith and inventor and villain, Evaristus Sloane, in The Eyes of the Killer Robot (1986).

So that's where the character's first name originates.  If you remember the book, you may remember where Bellairs found his surname.  That's next.