Most pirate careers were very short. Blackbeard was only active for about 2-3 years.

Also, Stede Bonnet, the “Gentleman Pirate”, is a true story, heavily fictionalized by the HBO show Our Flag Means Death (recommended viewing), is a true story of a wealthy man who literally had a midlife crisis in which he left his wife and kids, bought a boat, and became a terrible (as in very bad at pirating) pirate. A fun story that’s worth a read.

www.worldhistory.org/Stede_Bonnet/