Early 1930s. Another nice color illustration from McCall, very likely by the same illustrator who did our deadly handsome Spanish Gentleman.
Pirate movies seem to have been popular from the dawn of the film age - D.W. Griffith made one in 1909. I'm not as knowledgeable about pirate movies of the 1920s and 1930s as I perhaps ought to be, so I can't tell if this gentleman is drawn from anybody specific. Victor Fleming directed an adaptation of Treasure Island in 1934, about when this pattern was issued.
However, I think that McCall's pirate is close kin to Howard Pyle's elegant pirates in his Book of Pirates. I suspect many gentlemen of the 1930s (forced by their wives to attend charity costume balls) would have known and loved Pyle's book when they were small boys swinging through the rigging of apple trees in their back yards. (I highly recommend visiting the Project Gutenberg edition so that you can see all of Pyle's wonderful work.)
This printed pattern does not appear to have been used. Note that the pattern includes pieces for not only the trousers, shirt, and vest, but also for the sash, kerchief, and splendidly floppy hat.
Happy Talk Like A Pirate Day, everybody!
