Appendix A - “Blemie”

Summary

The full name of the O’Neills’ Dalmatian dog was Silverdene Emblem O’Neill, which they shortened to Blemie. He was purchased at a price of 75 pounds as a puppy from a first-class breeder in England. “English bred dogs are the best,” said Carlotta. He joined the O’Neills in France on December 11, 1929, and he remained with them until his death on December 17, 1940, “a finer friend than most friends,” as Gene put it.

Thirteen is an above-average span of life for that breed, and no doubt the loving care he was provided helped prolong his life. There are stories that he enjoyed the wild areas around Tao House, also that he occasionally ventured to downtown Danville. But signs of age became increasingly evident in 1939, and by 1940 it was clear his end was near. He enjoyed a teak bed in Carlotta's bedroom, to which he had to be carried in his final weeks, and it was there he died. His demise coincided with the writing of Long Day’s Journey, and he lived less than two months beyond the completion of the initial draft of that play.

Death and obituary were on Gene's mind when he came up with the idea of a series of one-acts to be called By Way of Obit. The only play he completed from the projected series of eight was Hughie. The last play on his list of possible concepts was “Blemie one.” He added those words on December 2, 1940, and Blemie died two weeks later. So it seems Gene had some idea of creating a play from the death of Blemie before Blemie was put out of his misery by a veterinarian.

The death of Blemie was more emotionally devastating to the O’Neills than any other loss during their marriage. Gene saw Blemie's death as the turning point, after which, “Everything has gone wrong.”1 As an initial gesture to right that wrong—and, one might imagine, the wrong of his own premature aging—Gene wrote The Last Will and Testament of Silverdene Emblem O’Neill.