Quasimodo

2 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Quasimodo \Quas`i*mo"do\ (kw[a^]s`[i^]*m[=o]"d[-o]), n. [So
     called from the first words of the Latin introit, quasi modo
     geniti infantes as newborn babes, --1 Pet. ii. 2.] (R. C.
     Ch.)
     The first Sunday after Easter; Low Sunday.
     [1913 Webster]



From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Quasimodo \Quas`i*mo"do\ (kw[.a]z`[-e]*m[=o]"d[-o]), prop. n.
     (Fiction)
     The main character in Victor Hugo's novel "The Hunchback of
     Notre Dame". The novel was first published in French under
     the title [ldqo]Notre Dame de Paris". Quasimodo is a deformed
     and ugly hunchback who is bellringer at the cathedral of
     Notre Dame during the reign of Louis XI. He rescues a gypsy
     girl Esmeralda, falsely convicted of a crime and about to be
     excuted, and carries her to sanctuary in the cathedral. Near
     the end of the book he dies while again rescuing her from an
     abductor. In a movie made in 1923 Quasimodo was portrayed by
     the actor Lon Chaney, whose impressive makeup and superb
     acting drew many plaudits. His shout of "Sanctuary!
     Sanctuary!" when rescuing Esmeralda is still sometimes
     imitated for humorous or dramatic effect.
     [PJC]