t of "slime" feeling. We soon find out that Uncle Louie lives up to his reputation: a rotten gangster. In front of Jay and Arty, Louie puts on a "Humphrey Bogart" personality, cigar in one hand and drink in the other, but in reality he is not making a splash. "That's what life is all about, making a big splash. Otherwise you die a nobody. And I ain't dying till I'm somebody." (LOUIE TO ARTY). Louie continues by exaggerating about the times when Grandma was her dictator self. "What prison? Grandma's closet. She used to lock me in there, two, three hours at a time. No light, no water, no food. Just enough air to breathe." (LOUIE TO ARTY) Except he didn't only try to make himself look so macho, he would also make fun of the boys' father. As if they really wanted to hear their father being called a chicken, essentially. "Did Grandma ever put my father in the closet? Not a chance. She used to open up the closet door; he'd tie himself to the radiator." (ARTY TO LOUIE)
             Simon portrays Louie in a very negative way and it is really hard to like his character. Louie is an egotistical, backstabbing gangster who is only looking out for himself. He does, however, blame his mother for making him this way, "Till I realized I could survive without her, or anybody else. Hell of a teacher, Ma was". (LOUIE TO ARTY) At this point of the play we almost feel bad for Louie, but I stress "almost" because he continues to use Jay and Arty as a means of escape from his pursuers. "
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