I’m not uptodate with latest developments in shakespearean gossi-- er, historical research – but a surname underlining one’s inability to steadily carry a spear (i.e. unfit for military service, which was the pinnacle of valour back then) seems apt for somebody earning his livelihood in the arts (at the time, a fairly dishonourable activity, until you hit it big – not unlike present day, now that I think of it). Alas, William’s father and grandfather are well-documented as having the same surname, so whoever it was who earned this nickname, he was quite removed from the Bard.
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