Pantalone

right|thumb|Pantalone, by Maurice Sand Pantalone (), spelled Pantaloon in English, is one of the most important principal characters found in commedia dell'arte. With his exceptional greed and status at the top of the social order, Pantalone is "money" in the commedia world. His full name, including family name, is ''Pantalon de' Bisognosi'', Italian for 'Pantalone of the Needy'.

==Character== Pantalone originated as part of a master/servant duo and was the original Il Magnifico stock character. Carlo Goldoni, in his memoirs, named Pantalone as one of the four primary commedia dell'arte characters. Among other things, Pantalone is a character of Venetians; one theory is that his name derives from Saint Pantaleon (San Pantalone), a popular saint in Venice. Another theory is that his name derives from Venetian merchants who were called Piantaleoni. While the theories of St. Pantaleon and the Piantaleoni are common, they are both now considered unlikely origins, and the true origin is unknown. The name Pantaloon came to generally mean 'old fool' or 'dotard'.