Gilbert Stern

Gilbert Hershal Stern is one of the principal protagonists of As The Orb Turns. He lives in Wacovia, DW, Orbin Federation, and attends Wacovia High School. His best friend is Rusty Crantz.

Bio
Gilbert was born on May 10, 1973 to the only Jewish family in Wacovia. Gilbert met his best friend, Rusty, sometime in elementary school, and would play Starcrushers together. He often felt leftout, especially at Christmastime, once even writing to Santa Clause after Rusty told him Santa only visit Christians.

Gilbert is a bit out-of-it, and can be somewhat easily confused or frustrated. He feels lost without Rusty by his side. Unlike Rusty, however, Gilbert isn't inherently a burnout; he mostly just slacks off and does drugs because Rusty does. He is a smart person, but doesn't quite realize it.

His girlfriend is Vivian, whom he considers "the best thing to ever happen to me in my pathetic life." She often takes the active role in the relationship, because she has so much energy, and he is usually at least a little stoned.

In "Gilbert or Gabrielle? He Changed His Sex!" Gilbert drank 49½ beers in one sitting before passing out, only to wake up the next morning and discover that the hops in the beer had turned him into a girl. He tried to find a means to turn male again, but nothing worked. He eventually settled into life as a female, only to wake up and discover it had all been a dream.

Meta-info
Gilbert Stern is named after the character Guildenstern from Shakespeare's play Hamlet. He and Rusty play very similar parts to Rosencrantz and Gildenstern.