Roy Cohn

Roy Cohn's is by far the most delusional, egocentric, and provocative character featured in Angels in America. The most interesting fact about Roy Cohn is that he is not just some character that was thought up and created by Tony Kushner, he was a real life lawyer who Kushner decided to incorporate into his play. The "real" Roy Cohn was a powerful New York lawyer with ties to the Republican party. He is most famous for his anti-communist investigations, most notably the espionage trial of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg, which explains why Kusher had Ethel visit Roy Cohn in his play.

Ethel's visit to Roy is remarkably brilliant. When Roy sees the figure of Ethel standing in the doorway he first asks "Who the fuck are you, the new nurse?" When he realizes who it is, he states in a strange but unconcerned manner "Aw, fuck, Ethel." It seems that Roy is unfazed by the dead figure from his past that has come to visit him. In fact what is more unusual to me is that when the ghost first came to visit Prior, he was scared and nervous, but when Ethel first visits Roy, he acts like the encounter is no big deal. Roy is by no way scared of Ethel's ghost. He even tries to turn the tables on her ghostly features and insults her. He states "What is this, Ethel, Halloween? You Trying to scare me? Well you're wasting your time! I'm scarier than you any day of the week! So beat it Ethel! BOOO!....I'M NOT AFRAID OF YOU OR DEATH OR HELL OR ANYHING(111)!" From this passage, in a sick way I have personally come to the conclude that I believe that Roy Cohn really believes what he is saying. Whether it is the fact that Roy believes that he has liver cancer instead of AIDS, or whether he feels that no man can take away his practice, his ego is able to reign supreme over the facts. I do not feel that in the back of his mind Roy knows that he has AIDS, or that Roy may be in some trouble with the bar association. He really feels that he is God's gift to the rest of us, almost like this is Roy Cohn's world and we all just live in it.

The "real" Roy Cohn died of complications from AIDS on August 2, 1986 at the age of 59. According to Roger Stone, a long time friend and mentor of Roy Cohn, Roy's goal in life was to" die completely broke and owing millions to the I.R.S," a goal in which he was able to accomplish.