Marco Pagot

Marco Pagot, otherwise known as Porco Rosso (ポルコ・ロッソ / マルコ・パゴット, Poruko Rosso / Maruko Pagotto) is the protagonist of Porco Rosso. He is a pilot who cursed himself into a pig, and first appeared in the short story, The Age of the Flying Boat by Hayao Miyazaki.

He pilots a red Savoia S.21 prototype combat seaplane.

Appearance
Wearing black sunglasses, a handlebar mustache, and a white scarf around his neck, Porco is a dashing man of action in spit of his paunch. When he doesn't have any work, he spends his days in his limestone cave on a desert island, smoking French Gitane cigarettes and sipping wine as he reads magazines or the papers. It's the freewheeling lifestyle of a middle-aged dandy. He is 36 years old during the events of the film.

Background
Porco Rosso is a bounty hunter of air pirates (flying pirates) who attack ships in the Adriatic Sea. The air pirates fear this valiant fighter and his bright crimson seaplane, a Savoia S.21 prototype seaplane. They call him "Porco Rosso" out of respect. In the Depression Era of the late '20s, Porco lives freely "for his pride, for his fortune, and for his lover."

History
Marco Pagot was born in 1893. In 1912, his friend Gina established a "Flying Club" with Marco and their friends. She fondly recalls flying on Marco's plane with the word "Adriano" on the side. After drifting through the water the plane took off, and the pair were mesmerized. After flying up to a high enough altitude, the wind blew Gina's dress up, embarrassing the two.

During World War I, Marco became an ace fighter during his stint as captain for the Italian Air Force. As the war dragged on, Marco attended the wedding of friend Bellini to Gina. Immediately after the ceremony, Marco, Bellini, and the rest of their unit were called into battle against the Austrian Air Force. Marco was the lone survivor, and would carry that guilt for many years to come.

He put a curse on himself and became a "pig" after the war ended. There is only one remaining photo of Porco as a human, posted on the wall in Hotel Adriano, as if indicating someone's wish that the curse will be eventually lifted, and he'll become human again.

Trivia

 * In the original The Age of the Flying Boat, Porco was born in Genova, and he has the city emblem of Genova on the vertical stabilizer of his aircraft.
 * Porco's name is a nod to Italian animator Marco Pagot, who had collaborated with Miyazaki on Sherlock Hound. Marco is the son of Nino Pagot, who along with his brother Toni formed the Pagot brothers, pioneers of Italian animation.

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