Bye Bye Arthur! Sadly though, we will have to spend the next month suffering through dim Estelle first discussing with Mary what to do, and Mary's words of "wisdom" with muffins and Mary's recapping the entire boring story with Toby before this story line is over.
Oh man, what if Estelle walks out of this still convinced that Arthour is a real person, but one who was just too impatient for love to work? Will Mary spend another month trying to calmly explain that people are capable of lying, or will she just cut her losses and let Estelle get her therapy from Libby?
Let’s not sell Estelle short. Better, smarter women have ignored and excused obvious abuse. She may decide it’s all her fault that Arthu(e)r blew up at her. After all, he’s under a great deal of strain, and they have an enduring love. She just might send the money...and this will go on, and on, and on.
Delilah Perhaps the sixth finger is on the other side of the cell phone, gripping it like pliers. Come to think of it, maybe all cell phone users in the Worthiverse have a retractable sixth finger.
Whatever that curse adjective is, Arthur’s repeated it. Stress diminishes his beautiful vocabulary.
I suppose we’ll never learn where Arthur’s hovel actually is. I hope it’s the Other Side of the Tracks in Santa Royale, and that someday Estelle will run into him buying cigarettes at the Santa Royale Quickie Mart. Or maybe stealing cigarettes if he doesn’t find another very comfortable victim....
Estelle: "Arthur/er, do you kiss your mother with that mouth?"
Wow, this must be Arthur/er's first grift. He's losing it awful fast. He should have opened up his big book o' poems and seduced her into giving him the money that way.
I can't wait for Arthur/er to put on a pair of pants and take the bus to Estelle's house and see the look on his face when he tells her he's her 'beautiful man" and he wants his money now. Perhaps he can do to her what Stewie did to Brian on Family Guy when Brian welshed on a bet:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TruXhuAO4IY
Also, if Arthur/er comes and brings some fire power to close the deal, poor Libby's going to be an orphan. Perhaps Mr. Wynter can adopt Libby and that poor haunted eyed dog that's in Pigpen's hellhole.
Oh Artie, Artie, Artie. Tsk tsk tsk. This is no way to treat a mark. Where's that earlier charm? Where's the finesse? You have to play on her pity, not yell obscenities at her.
Your only hope now is that she's so dopey she blames herself for setting you off and she sends the money as a peace offering/apology. And Good Gawd, if that happens, you really should quit before you get caught.
Unfortunately for fans of common sense everywhere, I'm afraid the odds of Estelle slamming the phone down right now are no better than 50-50.
Artheur needs to take a deep breath, calm down and slow down. Be patient, Artheur, a little more flattery and cheesy poetry and Estelle will be begging you to take her money. It's like this is your first scam.
June started drawing Mary Worth on May 8, 2016 (Thanks google!) After almost three years - she's cracked from the insipid dialogue and mind-numbing plots. Like Uncle Joe, she is now adding her own energy to the stories.
I had given up on counting fingers. The Easter Egg hunt is back on baby!!!!
Is Arthur related to Jannie? Maybe the "plot" will follow Arthur instead of Estelle, and we'll see his next con. ... Maybe it will be ... Mary Worth! Or Dawn Weston! I can't wait.
I noticed that Mary never has Estelle over for coffee and muffins. Mary always goes over to Estelle's. What's up with that?
Because when Mary goes to Estelle’s it gives her the opportunity to stand outside the apartment eavesdropping on Estelle’s phone conversations. Keep in mind that Mary is a professional.
For all his other revolting qualities, I am happy to see that Arthu/er appoarently has all his teeth. Whether or not he brushes them is another matter, so that may not be a long term feature. Also, as far as what Arthu/er has done that's illegal, I think it's called fraud...
Wouldn’t you have thought that a more accomplished grifter would have been able to play this out longer? Hard to believe that Moy is actually cutting it short.
@Miss Scarlet at 7:56 a.m., you took the words out of my mouth. Artie blew it, and if he hasn't blown through the entire $10,000 he got from Estelle, he should look into anger management counseling. Today he appears to have hairs sprouting from his ear lobe. June must be cackling with glee as she draws. Speaking of glee, Libby looks pleased as punch today - she's actually smiling. ("Finally! Now this puny human will have time to clean my litter box!")
The fact that Estelle is still on the phone with this creep makes me think the whole situation might feel familiar to her, which is way creepier than even repugnant Arthu/er's appearance. @Scotty McW, I think the dating site holds the responsibility for allowing the fraud (i.e. not vetting their applicants more thoroughly). The FBI investigates these type scams, which tells me there is liability here especially because it crosses state lines and could be considered interstate commerce (not Arthu/er's grift but SilverDaters might be liable, because they operate in cyberspace.) And finally, Arthu/er appears to be so heavyhanded and sloppy, I can't imagine his knowing enough to cover his tracks in cyberspace. I imagine the feds are lurking, armed, outside his door. Maybe THAT's why Estelle is keeping him on the phone while she records the call and the feds track it. As if....
@LouiseF, I actually caught a TV show the other night with Elizabeth Vargas, and it seems that there is a legal loophole that allows dating site proprietors to evade responsibility for anything that happens between people who meet on those sites. And that includes rape and murder. SilverDaters is likely off the hook.
As for the legal whats-its of all this, without offering any sort of legal opinion on the matter, I will note that often in cases of fraud there is a question of whether the victim's reliance on the fraudster's misrepresentation was reasonable.
Of course, the fact that Estelle doesn't seem like she'd be able to reason her way out of a paper bag may complicate the matter.
By now Estelle should be wondering if Artheur is a particularly good man, even apart from the conman thing. As soon as the love of your life begins screaming, cursing, demanding money and verbally abusing it might be time to kick him to the curb. Maybe deceased Jimmy was abusive.
Okay Estelle, how much more do you need to hear from your Formerly Beautiful Man? Suggesting Artie be "rational" after the profane screaming, demanding, and threatening is beyond ridiculous.
Remember the opening of the TV series Mission Impossible, with the self-destructing tape? Artie is self destructing before Estelle's ears and our eyes. How many more days until he's reduced to a faint, toxic green glow?
June must be having way too much fun drawing Arther. There is not a single detail of disgustingness that she misses--food stains, torn upholstery, exposed walls, food spills, beer gut sticking out, complete lack of manscaping, chain-smoking, and of course the ubiquitous green glow. And now spittle. JB doesn't do subtle.
We should take a poll on how many days Estelle will listen to this abuse before hanging up. She definitely needs to check out women's support groups in Santa Royale. She needs help.
Scottie, at first I read your comment as, "Thanks for the legal advice," like you were planning to start your own scam and wanted to know if you would actually be breaking laws. So ladies, if you're on a dating site and start getting messages from "Scotty McW," or maybe a "Scottie McM," run immediately to your local Mary Worth to ask for advice.
In typing that, I noticed that the E and the U are nowhere near each other on the keyboard, which seems to suggest the Arther actually just forgot how to spell his fake name. He should have gone with Joe.
Nance, I owe you a few Benjamens for your BFH the other day.
WHAT??? Hey, I'm completely trustworthy. Just ask my parole offi . . . uh, legal advisor. It's just that my fortune is tied up in CDs right now, and they don't mature for another month. I could cash out now, but I'd lose thousands in interest penalties. So if any ladies would like to help me out, I'll pay you back with interest in person!
If this continues any further Estelle will have moved from being the pawn of an over the top con man to being prey to an abuser. Yeah I'm taking it too seriously.
MONDAY "Call me when you've calmed down"? Are you kidding me? How about, "Don't ever call me again"? Or maybe, "I'm calling the police?" Estelle really is hopeless.
Monday: OMG, Estelle is a bigger idiot than I thought she was. If someone jhad cursed at me and demanded money after I had sent them some, I would say &^@! you before up the phone. (Also change my number.)
@Chester, I was thinking the same thing. I use to love slamming the phone down. How can I get my IPhone to do the same?
I predict another week of Estelle kvetching to Mary about how nasty Arthur/er was and Mary will again tell her that he's a fake and again Estelle, being Estelle will refuse to believe it.
I also predict that Arthur/er put the tires on his hooptie and is on his way to Estelle's with that poor, haunted dog riding shotgun. I can hardly wait to see the look of horror on her face when she see her "beautiful man" up close and personal, smelling like a dirty ashtray, sweat and mold.
45 comments:
Kudos to the artist for putting speckles on the filter of Arther’s cigarette. But I kinda miss the six-fingered Arther.
Bye Bye Arthur! Sadly though, we will have to spend the next month suffering through dim Estelle first discussing with Mary what to do, and Mary's words of "wisdom" with muffins and Mary's recapping the entire boring story with Toby before this story line is over.
Oh man, what if Estelle walks out of this still convinced that Arthour is a real person, but one who was just too impatient for love to work? Will Mary spend another month trying to calmly explain that people are capable of lying, or will she just cut her losses and let Estelle get her therapy from Libby?
Let’s not sell Estelle short. Better, smarter women have ignored and excused obvious abuse. She may decide it’s all her fault that Arthu(e)r blew up at her. After all, he’s under a great deal of strain, and they have an enduring love. She just might send the money...and this will go on, and on, and on.
Delilah
Perhaps the sixth finger is on the other side of the cell phone, gripping it like pliers. Come to think of it, maybe all cell phone users in the Worthiverse have a retractable sixth finger.
Whatever that curse adjective is, Arthur’s repeated it. Stress diminishes his beautiful vocabulary.
I suppose we’ll never learn where Arthur’s hovel actually is. I hope it’s the Other Side of the Tracks in Santa Royale, and that someday Estelle will run into him buying cigarettes at the Santa Royale Quickie Mart. Or maybe stealing cigarettes if he doesn’t find another very comfortable victim....
Holy Cannoli, Arthur is one mean guy. He knows where Estelle lives, as well.
Estelle: "Arthur/er, do you kiss your mother with that mouth?"
Wow, this must be Arthur/er's first grift. He's losing it awful fast. He should have opened up his big book o' poems and seduced her into giving him the money that way.
I can't wait for Arthur/er to put on a pair of pants and take the bus to Estelle's house and see the look on his face when he tells her he's her 'beautiful man" and he wants his money now. Perhaps he can do to her what Stewie did to Brian on Family Guy when Brian welshed on a bet:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TruXhuAO4IY
(BTW I have this as my ringtone.)
Also, if Arthur/er comes and brings some fire power to close the deal, poor Libby's going to be an orphan. Perhaps Mr. Wynter can adopt Libby and that poor haunted eyed dog that's in Pigpen's hellhole.
To Regina's point, Arthur Z (sometimes with an e!) may not quite be the sophisticated swindler we were originally led to believe him to be.
Oh Artie, Artie, Artie. Tsk tsk tsk. This is no way to treat a mark. Where's that earlier charm? Where's the finesse? You have to play on her pity, not yell obscenities at her.
Your only hope now is that she's so dopey she blames herself for setting you off and she sends the money as a peace offering/apology. And Good Gawd, if that happens, you really should quit before you get caught.
Unfortunately for fans of common sense everywhere, I'm afraid the odds of Estelle slamming the phone down right now are no better than 50-50.
-- Scottie McW.
Today's Boldface Haiku is titled
"In Which Arther Has No Patience For Platitudes".
Virtue. Waiting for?
#@%%*& selfish!
Arthur!
Stop being #@%%*& selfish!
Through!
Artheur needs to take a deep breath, calm down and slow down. Be patient, Artheur, a little more flattery and cheesy poetry and Estelle will be begging you to take her money. It's like this is your first scam.
Now I'm really worried about the dog's welfare.
Serious question for anyone who knows the law better than I do: Is Artie technically doing anything illegal?
All he's done so far is sweet-talk Estelle and persuade her to send him money under false pretenses (which politicians and AT&T do every day).
If he is exposed as a conman, can the authorities charge him with anything? No promises have been made in writing.
Isn't this just a case of "buyer beware"?
-- S. McW.
June started drawing Mary Worth on May 8, 2016 (Thanks google!)
After almost three years - she's cracked from the insipid dialogue and mind-numbing plots.
Like Uncle Joe, she is now adding her own energy to the stories.
I had given up on counting fingers.
The Easter Egg hunt is back on baby!!!!
Is Arthur related to Jannie? Maybe the "plot" will follow Arthur instead of Estelle, and we'll see his next con. ... Maybe it will be ... Mary Worth! Or Dawn Weston! I can't wait.
I noticed that Mary never has Estelle over for coffee and muffins. Mary always goes over to Estelle's. What's up with that?
Because when Mary goes to Estelle’s it gives her the opportunity to stand outside the apartment eavesdropping on Estelle’s phone conversations. Keep in mind that Mary is a professional.
For all his other revolting qualities, I am happy to see that Arthu/er appoarently has all his teeth. Whether or not he brushes them is another matter, so that may not be a long term feature. Also, as far as what Arthu/er has done that's illegal, I think it's called fraud...
Fabulous that the cussing is in bold face! Another beautiful rendering, Nance! I particularly love the parallel cuss lines.
"Cigarettes ain't cheap, you selfish #@%%*, you!"
@LouiseF: But is it fraud in a strictly legal sense? It was a lie, but is that illegal?
I don't know; maybe it is. I'm just questioning because no binding contract was signed or anything like that.
My point being that even if Artie is exposed, there might not be anything they can do to him.
-- S. McW.
Mary goes to Estelle's to visit Libby.
Can someone explain to me why people write "Arthur/er?"
@ Sue - It's because the scammer who nominally goes by 'Arthur Z' apparently signs his text messages and, at one point, he signed his name 'Arther'.
Wouldn’t you have thought that a more accomplished grifter would have been able to play this out longer? Hard to believe that Moy is actually cutting it short.
Saturday
@Miss Scarlet at 7:56 a.m., you took the words out of my mouth. Artie blew it, and if he hasn't blown through the entire $10,000 he got from Estelle, he should look into anger management counseling. Today he appears to have hairs sprouting from his ear lobe. June must be cackling with glee as she draws. Speaking of glee, Libby looks pleased as punch today - she's actually smiling. ("Finally! Now this puny human will have time to clean my litter box!")
The fact that Estelle is still on the phone with this creep makes me think the whole situation might feel familiar to her, which is way creepier than even repugnant Arthu/er's appearance. @Scotty McW, I think the dating site holds the responsibility for allowing the fraud (i.e. not vetting their applicants more thoroughly). The FBI investigates these type scams, which tells me there is liability here especially because it crosses state lines and could be considered interstate commerce (not Arthu/er's grift but SilverDaters might be liable, because they operate in cyberspace.) And finally, Arthu/er appears to be so heavyhanded and sloppy, I can't imagine his knowing enough to cover his tracks in cyberspace. I imagine the feds are lurking, armed, outside his door. Maybe THAT's why Estelle is keeping him on the phone while she records the call and the feds track it. As if....
@LouiseF, I actually caught a TV show the other night with Elizabeth Vargas, and it seems that there is a legal loophole that allows dating site proprietors to evade responsibility for anything that happens between people who meet on those sites. And that includes rape and murder. SilverDaters is likely off the hook.
Wow, after all the profanity, anger, and disrespect, Estelle is STILL clinging to this fantasy romance of hers. She's really beyond hope.
-- S. McW.
P.S. Thanks all for the legal info.
@Tim P
Thanks
@Sue, happy to help!
As for the legal whats-its of all this, without offering any sort of legal opinion on the matter, I will note that often in cases of fraud there is a question of whether the victim's reliance on the fraudster's misrepresentation was reasonable.
Of course, the fact that Estelle doesn't seem like she'd be able to reason her way out of a paper bag may complicate the matter.
He is a fat slob! What a con artist.! She needs to dump him quick.
SUNDAY
Gaaack! Just when you think Arther has topped out on the disgust-o-meter, he starts spraying his spit around.
What will the morrow bring for Estelle, sudden clarity or continued delusion? I can heartily wait.
-- S. McW.
Arther is transforming before our eyes. I expect tomorrow we'll get to see his horns. Maybe even the forked tongue.
By now Estelle should be wondering if Artheur is a particularly good man, even apart from the conman thing. As soon as the love of your life begins screaming, cursing, demanding money and verbally abusing it might be time to kick him to the curb.
Maybe deceased Jimmy was abusive.
Yeah, this is getting pretty heavy handed even for KM.
SUNDAY
Okay Estelle, how much more do you need to hear from your Formerly Beautiful Man? Suggesting Artie be "rational" after the profane screaming, demanding, and threatening is beyond ridiculous.
Remember the opening of the TV series Mission Impossible, with the self-destructing tape? Artie is self destructing before Estelle's ears and our eyes. How many more days until he's reduced to a faint, toxic green glow?
June must be having way too much fun drawing Arther. There is not a single detail of disgustingness that she misses--food stains, torn upholstery, exposed walls, food spills, beer gut
sticking out, complete lack of manscaping, chain-smoking, and of course the ubiquitous green glow. And now spittle. JB doesn't do subtle.
We should take a poll on how many days Estelle will listen to this abuse before hanging up. She definitely needs to check out women's support groups in Santa Royale. She needs help.
Scottie, at first I read your comment as, "Thanks for the legal advice," like you were planning to start your
own scam and wanted to know if you would actually be breaking laws. So ladies, if you're on a dating site and start getting messages from "Scotty McW," or maybe a "Scottie McM," run immediately to your local Mary Worth to ask for advice.
In typing that, I noticed that the E and the U are nowhere near each other on the keyboard, which seems to suggest the Arther actually just forgot how to spell his fake name. He should have gone with Joe.
Nance, I owe you a few Benjamens for your BFH the other day.
@lmjb1964
WHAT??? Hey, I'm completely trustworthy. Just ask my parole offi . . . uh, legal advisor. It's just that my fortune is tied up in CDs right now, and they don't mature for another month. I could cash out now, but I'd lose thousands in interest penalties. So if any ladies would like to help me out, I'll pay you back with interest in person!
-- Sketchie McW.
If Artheur gets any uglier he could pass for Baron Harkonnen.
If this continues any further Estelle will have moved from being the pawn of an over the top con man to being prey to an abuser. Yeah I'm taking it too seriously.
@S McW, lol.
MONDAY
"Call me when you've calmed down"? Are you kidding me? How about, "Don't ever call me again"? Or maybe, "I'm calling the police?" Estelle really is hopeless.
When do cell phones go "Click"?
Monday: OMG, Estelle is a bigger idiot than I thought she was. If someone jhad cursed at me and demanded money after I had sent them some, I would say &^@! you before up the phone. (Also change my number.)
@Chester, I was thinking the same thing. I use to love slamming the phone down. How can I get my IPhone to do the same?
I predict another week of Estelle kvetching to Mary about how nasty Arthur/er was and Mary will again tell her that he's a fake and again Estelle, being Estelle will refuse to believe it.
I also predict that Arthur/er put the tires on his hooptie and is on his way to Estelle's with that poor, haunted dog riding shotgun. I can hardly wait to see the look of horror on her face when she see her "beautiful man" up close and personal, smelling like a dirty ashtray, sweat and mold.
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