In this issue: Re: Re: Macaulay's speeches on Post Office espionage Today in History -- Nov 28 Re: Today in History -- Nov 28 Today in History -- Nov 29 Byrd books <WAS: Today in History -- Nov 28> Update info for "Ghost stories from the Eastern United States" website Re: Byrd books <WAS: Today in History -- Nov 28> Re: Byrd books <WAS: Today in History -- Nov 28> Today in History -- Nov 30 Re: Today in History -- Nov 30 Re: Today in History -- Nov 30 Re: Macaulay's speeches on Post Office espionage The End: Closing Words for a Millennium Etext avail: Churchill as Soldier of Fortune <WAS: Today in History -- Nov 30> Etext avail: H.G. Wells' _The chronic argonaut_ Re: Today in History -- Nov 30 Re: Chat: Sleepy Hollow Movie(spoiler): Amusing Clue Today in History -- Dec 01 Dickens v. Gaskell (fwd) Query: A. M. Burrage Re: Query: A. M. Burrage Re: Query: A. M. Burrage Query: A.M. Burrage RE: Query: A. M. Burrage Re: Query: A.M. Burrage Re: _Fanny Hill_ ==> publication ==> ? Re: Confederate dead re-interred -----------------------------THE POSTS----------------------------- Date: Sat, 27 Nov 1999 22:29:00 -0500 (EST) From: Zozie(at)aol.com Subject: Re: Re: Macaulay's speeches on Post Office espionage In a message dated 11/27/99 11:40:13 PM, Kay wrote: <<Well, I think I can make a guess after doing some poking around for a bit.>> And a fascinating guess and poking about it is! Many thanks. phoebe
===0===
Date: Sun, 28 Nov 1999 00:48:44 -0500 (EST)
From: Robert Champ <rchamp(at)polaris.umuc.edu>
Subject: Today in History -- Nov 28
Interesting things that happened November 28th:
Birthdays on this date:
In 1820 Friedrich Engels, Marx's collaborator
In 1881 Stefan Zweig, Austrian poet, essayist, dramatist, translator
In 1908 Claude L?vi-Strauss, Belgian social anthropologist
Events worth noting:
In 1853 Olympia established as capital of Washington Territory.
In 1861 Confederate congress officially admits Missouri to the CSA.
In 1895 America's first auto race starts; 6 cars, 55 miles, winner averages
a blazing 7 MPH.
In 1929 Admiral R.E. Byrd makes first South Pole flight.
Admiral Byrd, I should add, was a wonderful writer whose books on his
expeditions should be read much more widely than they are.
===0===
Date: Sun, 28 Nov 1999 08:50:03 -0500 (EST) From: Zozie(at)aol.com Subject: Re: Today in History -- Nov 28 A birthday ...Helen McGill White, educator, first US woman to earn a PhD degree (1877), born 1853. Event -- Lady Nancy Astor becomes the first woman elected to the British House of Commons, 1919. phoebe
===0===
Date: Mon, 29 Nov 1999 02:16:05 -0500 (EST)
From: Robert Champ <rchamp(at)polaris.umuc.edu>
Subject: Today in History -- Nov 29
Interesting things that happened November 29th:
Birthdays on this date:
In 1803 Christian Doppler, discovered Doppler Effect (color shift)
In 1811 Wendell Phillips, women's suffrage, antislavery, prison reformer
In 1818 George Brown (L), Canadian publisher (Toronto Globe), PM (1858)
In 1832 Louisa May Alcott, American author (Little Women)
In 1849 Sir Ambrose Fleming, inventor of the diode
In 1874 Antonio Egas Moniz, Portuguese lobotomist (Nobel 1949)
In 1876 Nellie Ross (near St. Joseph, Missouri), Wyoming governor
In 1895 William V.S. Tubman (Whig), 17th Liberian president (1943-70)
In 1907 Merle Travis, U.S. country singer
Events worth noting:
In 1847 Indians kill Marcus and Narcissa Whitman, 11 settle in Walla Walla
Ore
In 1864 Colorado militia kills 150 peaceful Cheyenne Indians.
In 1887 U.S. receives rights to Pearl Harbor, on Oahu, Hawaii.
In 1890 First Army-Navy football game. Score: Navy 25, Army 0.
In 1916 U.S. declares martial law in Dominican Republic.
In 1922 King Tut's Tomb is discovered in Egypt.
In 1924 Italian composer Giacomo Puccini died in Brussels.
In 1929 Richard Byrd and crew flies over the South Pole.
===0===
Date: Mon, 29 Nov 1999 09:34:28 -0700
From: sdavies(at)MtRoyal.AB.CA
Subject: Byrd books <WAS: Today in History -- Nov 28>
Bob C. wrote:
>>>
Interesting things that happened November 28th:
...
Events worth noting:
...
In 1929 Admiral R.E. Byrd makes first South Pole flight.
Admiral Byrd, I should add, was a wonderful writer whose books on his
expeditions should be read much more widely than they are
<<<
I was handling my paperback copy of Byrd's _Alone_ (c. 1931) the other day,
trying to decide whether I would ever get around to reading it or should I try
selling it off. (I only have so much room in my new Library and can't keep
every book I unpack.) Now, I can't remember what I decided to do with it!
I'll have to hunt thru the books which aren't sold and aren't shelved. The
"not yet" section of the library.
I am a little confused that Byrd flew on the 28th and the 29th of November.
Bob's entry for interesting things on the 29th, says he flew with a crew, but
his book is called _Alone_. Now I really have to find the book.
Stephen
===0===
Date: Mon, 29 Nov 1999 10:11:48 -0700 From: sdavies(at)MtRoyal.AB.CA Subject: Update info for "Ghost stories from the Eastern United States" website forwarded from NEW-LIST Digest - 22 Nov 1999 to 23 Nov 1999 (#1999-157) Topics of the day: 5. NEW: Ghost stories from the Eastern United States ***The NEW-LIST mailing list is a service of the Internet Scout Project < http://scout.cs.wisc.edu/>*** ***Archives for NEW-LIST can be found at < http://scout.cs.wisc.edu/scout/new-list/index.html>*** +---------------------------------------------------------+ | The NEW-LIST mailing list is a service of the | | Internet Scout Project -- http://scout.cs.wisc.edu/ | | | | Archives for NEW-LIST can be found at | | http://scout.cs.wisc.edu/scout/caservices/new-list/ | +---------------------------------------------------------+ - ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 23 Nov 1999 06:58:36 -0600 From: Jaybebad(at)AOL.COM Subject: NEW: Ghost stories from the Eastern United States Description: This list is used to Let you know when New Ghost stories and other modifications are made to Jayz ghost stories of the Eastern United States. You will only receive emails when I update my site which is about once a week. I will not sell or let anyone else use this list for Spamming or any other reasons. Subscription instructions: To subscribe to Ghost Stories, simply go to this URL: http://members.tripod.com/jayboy74/tales.html and click on the "Join List" Button Owner/moderator address: jaybebad(at)aol.com - ------------------------------ End of NEW-LIST Digest - 22 Nov 1999 to 23 Nov 1999 (#1999-157) ***************************************************************
===0===
Date: Mon, 29 Nov 1999 15:13:51 -0500 (EST)
From: Robert Champ <rchamp(at)polaris.umuc.edu>
Subject: Re: Byrd books <WAS: Today in History -- Nov 28>
On Mon, 29 Nov 1999 sdavies(at)MtRoyal.AB.CA wrote:
>
> I am a little confused that Byrd flew on the 28th and the 29th of
November.
> Bob's entry for interesting things on the 29th, says he flew with a crew, but
> his book is called _Alone_. Now I really have to find the book.
>
Byrd went to Pole with a crew but separated himself from them for a
prolonged period in the interest of scientific experimentation and the
greater glory of Richard Byrd.
_Alone_ is quite a read, Stephen.
Bob C.
_________________________________________________
@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@
Robert L. Champ
rchamp(at)polaris.umuc.edu
Editor, teacher, anglophile, human curiosity
Whatever things are pure, whatever things are
lovely, whatever things are of good report, if
there is any virtue and if there is anything
praiseworthy, meditate on these things
Philippians 4:8
rchamp7927(at)aol.com robertchamp(at)netscape.net
_________________________________________________
@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@
===0===
Date: Mon, 29 Nov 1999 16:36:25 +0300 From: cbishop(at)interlog.com (Carroll Bishop) Subject: Re: Byrd books <WAS: Today in History -- Nov 28> Bob, Stephen, Gaslight friends: Here's one who isn't likely to forget Admiral Byrd, since he had such a significant role in my family's life. My father, a Chicago writer, was a great admirer of the Admiral's, read everything he wrote, saw every movie or newsreel about him -- I even have vague memories of visiting the Little America, Byrd's flagship, moored in the Chicago River, probably during the World's Fair. The result was that my father's always busy imagination was ignited, and he wrote what was essentially the first version of the children's classic MR. POPPER'S PENGUINS, in which Admiral Byrd served as the prototype for Admiral Drake in the story. The book as published by Little Brown was the collaboration of both my parents, Richard and Florence Atwater. It was and continues to be a sort of miracle, and a movie is likely to happen some time early in the next millennium. There are grandparents and great-grand- parents who laughed at it as children, and ever new generations of children who love it. It's a funny funny book. And perhaps more important: it affirms the real power of a good dream, and the real effect it can have in the real world. So thank you, Admiral Byrd, and thank you, Bob and Stephen, for reminding me to celebrate him, which I do -- well, if not daily, pretty often! Carroll Bishop (cbishop(at)interlog.com ) >Bob C. wrote: >>>> >Interesting things that happened November 28th: >... >Events worth noting: >... > In 1929 Admiral R.E. Byrd makes first South Pole flight. > >Admiral Byrd, I should add, was a wonderful writer whose books on his >expeditions should be read much more widely than they are ><<< > I was handling my paperback copy of Byrd's _Alone_ (c. 1931) the >other day, >trying to decide whether I would ever get around to reading it or should I try >selling it off. (I only have so much room in my new Library and can't keep >every book I unpack.) Now, I can't remember what I decided to do with it! > I'll have to hunt thru the books which aren't sold and aren't >shelved. The >"not yet" section of the library. > > I am a little confused that Byrd flew on the 28th and the 29th of >November. >Bob's entry for interesting things on the 29th, says he flew with a crew, but >his book is called _Alone_. Now I really have to find the book. > > Stephen
===0===
Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 01:08:55 -0500 (EST)
From: Robert Champ <rchamp(at)polaris.umuc.edu>
Subject: Today in History -- Nov 30
Interesting things that happened November 30th:
Birthdays on this date:
In 1793 Johann Lukas Schonlein, helped establish scientific medicine
In 1810 Oliver Fisher Winchester, rifle maker
In 1817 Theodor Mommsen, German historian, writer (Nobel 1902)
In 1835 Samuel Clemens (a.k.a. Mark Twain) (at Hannibal, MO), author (Tom
Sawyer, Huckleberry Finn)
In 1863 Andres Bonifacio, leader of 1896 Philippine revolt against Spain
In 1874 Sir Winston Churchill (C), Brit. PM (1940-45, 1951-55) (Nobel 1953)
In 1898 Roy "Link" Lyman, NFL tackle (Chicago Bears)
In 1912 Gordon Parks, film director
In 1915 Henry Taube, chemist (Nobel 1983)
In 1920 Virginia Mayo (in St Louis, MO)
In 1923 Efrem Zimbalist, Jr., actor (77 Sunset Strip, The Untouchables)
Events worth noting:
In 1864 Battle of Franklin, Tennessee.
In 1907 Pike Place Market dedicated in Seattle.
===0===
Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 08:17:55 -0500 (EST) From: Zozie(at)aol.com Subject: Re: Today in History -- Nov 30 And happy birthday Shirley Chisholm, first black US Congresswoman and Presidential candidate. Born 1924 phoebe
===0===
Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 09:05:40 -0600 From: athan chilton <ayc(at)UIUC.EDU> Subject: Re: Today in History -- Nov 30 > In 1835 Samuel Clemens (a.k.a. Mark Twain) (at Hannibal, MO), author (Tom > Sawyer, Huckleberry Finn) but...but... Bob, say it's not so! He was born at Florida, MO, wasn't he? athan ayc(at)uiuc.edu
===0===
Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 09:02:25 -0700 (MST) From: John Woolley <jwoolley(at)dna420.mcit.com> Subject: Re: Macaulay's speeches on Post Office espionage Kay Douglas, in an interesting, um, post, writes: > Postal clerks at this time were hired on the basis of merit testing; > the appointments were made on an individual basis and such appointments > were subject to political influence. Anthony Trollope, who worked as a > clerk for the General Post Office (and wrote just a few novels on the > side!) lampoons this corrupt Civil Service in his novel The Three Clerks > (1858). (And an interesting factoid: we apparently have Trollope to > thank for the invention of the pillar box). So suffice it to say that > postal security was not what it is today, nor, indeed was the Civil > Service; in 1854 the Northcote-Trevelyan report spurred a comprehensive > reform based on merit, rather than patronage. Trollope, incidentally, strongly opposed "merit testing" for hiring and promotions. He pointed out, over and over, that it gave the whiz-kid (not Trollope's word!), who might be able to ace the test, a leg up over the good employee with years of experience and good character. The civil service should always hire and promote qualified people, he argued, but it was wrong to try always to hire or promote the *most* qualified individual. There's a volume "Miscellaneous Essays and Reviews" that contains some of his papers making this point; it comes up, too, in more than one novel. Trollope travelled sometimes on Post Office business, notably to the West Indies and to North America. These trips usually resulted in short stories (collected in the two series of "Tales of All Countries") and travel books. He thought his "The West Indies and the Spanish Main" was one of his best books; he was wrong about this. In one of the later novels, _John Caldigate_, a very fine book by the way, a mystery is cleared up by the detective work of a postal clerk, using his expert knowledge of stamps and cancellations! - -- Fr. John
===0===
Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 09:21:30 -0700
From: sdavies(at)MtRoyal.AB.CA
Subject: The End: Closing Words for a Millennium
I was listening to Definitely Not The Opera (DNTO) on CBC Radio last
Saturday, and caught a not great, but very interesting documentary about the
last turn of the century.
There was much debate about when the 19th century would end, and
governments finally had to pass a decree that the end of the century would be
the mathematically correct one, 1900-dec-31. Germany was the only exception,
having celebrated on 1899-dec-31. This probably makes it the only country where
it really will be the new millenium in a months;s time.
This is the DNTO blurb:
4-5pm.
*We turn the opera stage over to Mark Morton, whose usual DNTO
gig is discussing the
history of words. This week, he takes a trip back to 1899 for
a fin de siecle look at pop
culture at the end of the last century. We'll see how our
interests and concerns have
changed, and what remains the same.
You can read about Morton's book at
http://www.uwinnipeg.ca/~morton/The_End/end.htm
The book is called _The End: Closing Words for a Millennium_ (1999), and it
" explores what people living at the ends of previous centuries did and wrote
to mark the end of their century."
Stephen D
mailto:SDavies(at)mtroyal.ab.ca
===0===
Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 10:06:03 -0700
From: sdavies(at)MtRoyal.AB.CA
Subject: Etext avail: Churchill as Soldier of Fortune <WAS: Today in History --
Nov 30>
- --0__=c0eZ34sGhmDJMQogl1uAu1tA2ZV08MkzDSy4DUqWLttwMxbF3VPwmv5i
Content-type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Disposition: inline
Bob C. notes that it's Churchill's birthday. Here's an etext about the young
Churchill who had lived enough interesting episodes to fill several average
lives.
(CHURCHILL.HTM) (Nonfic, Chronos)
Richard Harding Davis' "Winston Spencer Churchill" (1911)
churchill.non
Richard Harding Davis collected some of his reportorial work in a volume
about soldiers, _Real soldiers of fortune_ (1911). He included in this
book a chapter on that scamp Churchill.
Here is an excerpt where Churchill has just returned from fighting on the
Spanish side in Cuba.
>>>
After this campaign, on the first night of his arrival in London, he made his
maiden speech. He delivered it in a place of less
dignity than the House of Commons, but one, throughout Great Britain and her
colonies, as widely known and as well
supported. This was the Empire Music Hall.
At the time Mrs. Ormiston Chant had raised objections to the presence in the
Music Hall of certain young women, and had
threatened, unless they ceased to frequent its promenade, to have the license of
the Music Hall revoked. As a compromise, the
management ceased selling liquor, and on the night Churchill visited the place
the bar in the promenade was barricaded with
scantling and linen sheets. With the thirst of tropical Cuba still upon him,
Churchill asked for a drink, which was denied him, and
the crusade, which in his absence had been progressing fiercely, was explained.
Any one else would have taken no for his
answer, and have sought elsewhere for his drink. Not so Churchill. What he did
is interesting, because it was so extremely
characteristic. Now he would not do it; then he was twenty one.
He scrambled to the velvet-covered top of the railing which divides the
auditorium from the promenade, and made a speech.
It was a plea in behalf of his "Sisters, the Ladies of the Empire Promenade."
"Where," he asked of the ladies themselves and of their escorts crowded below
him in the promenade, "does the Englishman
in London always find a welcome? Where does he first go when battle-scarred and
travel-worn, he reaches home? Who is
always there to greet him with a smile, and join him in a drink? Who is ever
faithful, ever true
- --0__=c0eZ34sGhmDJMQogl1uAu1tA2ZV08MkzDSy4DUqWLttwMxbF3VPwmv5i
Content-type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
Content-Disposition: inline
Content-transfer-encoding: quoted-printable
? the Ladies of the Empire
Promenade."
The laughter and cheers that greeted this, and the tears of the ladie=
s
themselves, naturally brought the performance on the
stage to a stop, and the vast audience turned in the seats and boxes.
They saw a little red-haired boy in evening clothes, balancing himsel=
f on the
rail of the balcony, and around him a great crowd,
cheering, shouting, and bidding him "Go on!"
Churchill turned with delight to the larger audience, and repeated hi=
s appeal.
The house shook with laughter and applause.
The commissionaires and police tried to reach him and a good-tempered=
but very
determined mob of well-dressed gentlemen
and cheering girls fought them back. In triumph Churchill ended his spe=
ech by
begging his hearers to give "fair play" to the
women, and to follow him in a charge upon the barricades.
The charge was instantly made, the barricades were torn down, and the=
terrified management ordered that drink be served to
its victorious patrons.
<<<
To retrieve all the plain ASCII files send to: ftpmail(at)MtRoyal.AB.CA
with no subject heading and completely in lowercase:
open aftp.mtroyal.ab.ca
cd /gaslight
get churchill.non
get escapeXD.non
N.B. in this case, I haven't shortened the filename to 8 characters or=
less.
or visit the Gaslight website at:
http://www.mtroyal.ab.ca/gaslight/churchill.htm
You can reread what John Buchan had to say about Churchill in South Af=
rica in
his A BOOK OF ESCAPES AND HURRIED JOURNEYS (1925)
http://www.mtroyal.ab.ca/gaslight/escapeXD.htm
I've just started reading a fascinating book by Anthony Cave Brown=
called
_Bodyguard of lies_ (1975) which is a very thoro history of the decepti=
on and
stratagems practiced by Churchill and a secret department under him in =
WWII.
Stephen D
mailto:SDavies(at)mtroyal.ab.ca
=
- --0__=c0eZ34sGhmDJMQogl1uAu1tA2ZV08MkzDSy4DUqWLttwMxbF3VPwmv5i--
===0===
Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 10:10:38 -0700
From: sdavies(at)MtRoyal.AB.CA
Subject: Etext avail: H.G. Wells' _The chronic argonaut_
From: Stephen Davies(at)MRC on 11/30/99 10:10 AM
To: Gaslight-announce(at)mtroyal.ab.ca
cc:
Subject: Etext avail: H.G. Wells' _The chronic argonaut_
(CHRONARG.HTM) (Fiction, Chronos, Scheds)
H.G. Wells' _The chronic argonaut_ (1888)
chronarg.nvl
From the pages _The Science Schools Journal_ (1888) comes an
incomplete but fascinating serial: _THE CHRONIC ARGONAUT_ by
tyro author H. G. Wells.
This is the story for this week's discussion, starting tomorrow, Wed.
99-dec-01.
Sorry to have been delayed by the flu.
To retrieve all the plain ASCII files send to: ftpmail(at)MtRoyal.AB.CA
with no subject heading and completely in lowercase:
open aftp.mtroyal.ab.ca
cd /gaslight
get chronarg.nvl
or visit the Gaslight website at:
http://www.mtroyal.ab.ca/gaslight/chronarg.htm
Not all the links on this file are working yet.
Stephen D
mailto:SDavies(at)mtroyal.ab.ca
===0===
Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 12:19:42 -0500 (EST)
From: Robert Champ <rchamp(at)polaris.umuc.edu>
Subject: Re: Today in History -- Nov 30
Alright, Athan--it ain't so. Twain was indeed born in Florida,
Missouri.
Yrs,
Bob
On Tue, 30 Nov 1999, athan chilton wrote:
>
> > In 1835 Samuel Clemens (a.k.a. Mark Twain) (at Hannibal, MO), author (Tom
> > Sawyer, Huckleberry Finn)
>
> but...but... Bob, say it's not so! He was born at Florida, MO, wasn't he?
>
> athan
> ayc(at)uiuc.edu
>
>
_________________________________________________
@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@
Robert L. Champ
rchamp(at)polaris.umuc.edu
Editor, teacher, anglophile, human curiosity
Whatever things are pure, whatever things are
lovely, whatever things are of good report, if
there is any virtue and if there is anything
praiseworthy, meditate on these things
Philippians 4:8
rchamp7927(at)aol.com robertchamp(at)netscape.net
_________________________________________________
@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@
===0===
Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 15:27:01 -0500 From: Connie Hirsch <Connie_Hirsch(at)HMCO.COM> Subject: Re: Chat: Sleepy Hollow Movie(spoiler): Amusing Clue Catching up on the list a little late -- thanks all for the clue, and the link(s) to the painting! I did not catch that, though I was sure Crane's carriage was traveling through some landscape paintings from the Hudson River Valley school! I did enjoy the movie quite a bit, though I can see how many people are disappointed in it. Burton is rather an acquired taste as a filmmaker -- he prizes emotion and visuals above all else, and if there's anything left over for logic and plot, so much the better.... - -connie. connie_hirsch(at)hmco.com
===0===
Date: Wed, 01 Dec 1999 00:50:35 -0500 (EST)
From: Robert Champ <rchamp(at)polaris.umuc.edu>
Subject: Today in History -- Dec 01
Interesting things that happened December 1st:
Birthdays on this date:
In 1800 Mihaly Vorosmarty, Hungarian poet, dramatist
In 1835 Brig. Gen. Micah Jenkins, Led Hoods Division at Chickamauga
In 1886 Rex Stout, mystery writer
In 1899 Robert Welch, founded John Birch Society
In 1902 Morris (Red) Badgro, NFL end (Yankees, Giants, Brooklyn Dodgers)
In 1911 Walter Alston, baseball manager
In 1912 Minoru Yamasaki, American architect (World Trade Center, NY)
In 1913 Mary Martin (at Weatherford, TX), actress (Peter Pan), Larry
Hagman's mom
Events worth noting:
In 1821 Santo Domingo (Dominican Rep) proclaims independence from Spain.
In 1887 Sherlock Holmes first appears in print: "A Study In Scarlet."
In 1913 First drive-up gasoline station opens, in Pittsburgh, PA.
In 1917 Father Edward Flanagan founded Boys Town.
In 1918 Iceland becomes independent state under the Danish crown.
In 1922 First skywriting over the US - "Hello U.S.A." - by Capt. Turner,
RAF.
In 1929 Bingo invented by Edwin S. Lowe.
===0===
Date: Wed, 01 Dec 1999 00:57:54 -0500 (EST)
From: Robert Champ <rchamp(at)polaris.umuc.edu>
Subject: Dickens v. Gaskell (fwd)
Last week we had a discussion on the cinematic merit of films based on
_Mansfield Park_ and _The Legend of Sleepy Hollow_. Below is an article
from the _Times_ of London in which we learn of two other
productions--television programs based on books by two first-rate authors,
Charles Dickens and Elizabeth Gaskell, that went head to head on British
tv and came up croppers with the viewing public.
Those of us in the US, Canada, and Australia wait with baited breath for
both programs to arrive on our shores.
Bob C.
Quality wins in TV's battle of the bonnets
BY PAUL MCCANN, MEDIA CORRESPONDENT
THE enduring appeal of Charles Dickens helped ITV's adaptation of Oliver
Twist to attract a million more viewers than the BBC's Elizabeth Gaskell
drama in the battle of the bonnets on Sunday night.
Both channels, however, have claimed a victory for quality television, with
almost 16 million people sitting down to watch period drama for two hours.
The ITV costume drama, written by Alan Bleasdale, attracted an average
audience of 8.4 million viewers while the BBC's Wives and Daughters, from the
team that made Pride and Prejudice, was watched by an average 7.2 million
people.
Oliver Twist peaked at almost 10 million viewers, but the two-hour length of
the episode, plus Bleasdale's tinkering with the beginning of the story,
drove away some viewers. The first episode created a "back story" to explain
how Oliver became an orphan. The commercial network expects ratings to climb
slightly when the series moves to more familiar territory next week.
"I thought it was extremely well written and presented, even if he did take
liberties with the start of the book," said Brian Perkins of the Dickens
Fellowship. "He kept to the tone of the characters and the book and we have
no problem with a little artistic licence. I will be very interested to see
how he deals with the bits that he hasn't made up."
The BBC took a risk by choosing an author and story without the popular
resonance of either the dependable Dickens or their past ratings winner Jane
Austen. Dickens published Elizabeth Gaskell in his periodical Household
Words, and was often exasperated with her for refusing to end the instalments
of her stories with a cliffhanger.
Andrew Davies, the writer who adapted Wives and Daughters and Pride and
Prejudice, says Mrs Gaskell was less showy than Dickens: "There's no
melodrama," he says. "It's not flashy. It just quietly absorbs you. Dickens
and Austen come with climaxes and intervals. Mrs Gaskell is a much slower
burn." Underlining the popularity of Dickens, the BBC will screen an
adaptation of David Copperfield as part of its Christmas line-up next month.
Nicola Howson, a spokeswoman for ITV, said that she believed the scheduling
of the two series had generated publicity and helped both dramas to healthy
ratings. "I don't think anyone deliberately put them on head to head," she
said.
"Oliver Twist had been in production for two years and was always planned for
the last four Sundays before Christmas. People outside television are always
accusing us of dumbing down, but to have two high-quality dramas to choose
from encouraged 16 million people to watch."
The BBC claimed the ratings battle was not over because Wives and Daughters
will be repeated on BBC 2 next Saturday. "We're very confident that our drama
will overtake Oliver Twist by the time the viewers of the repeat are
counted," a BBC drama spokesman said.
"It's a pity they had to be scheduled together, but at least we can give our
viewers a choice by screening it again."
_________________________________________________
@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@
Robert L. Champ
rchamp(at)polaris.umuc.edu
Editor, teacher, anglophile, human curiosity
Whatever things are pure, whatever things are
lovely, whatever things are of good report, if
there is any virtue and if there is anything
praiseworthy, meditate on these things
Philippians 4:8
rchamp7927(at)aol.com robertchamp(at)netscape.net
_________________________________________________
@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@
===0===
Date: Wed, 01 Dec 1999 11:00:54 +0001 From: Ellen Moody <Ellen2(at)JimandEllen.org> Subject: Query: A. M. Burrage Although I haven't been able to read along, I have bought the Mammoth Book of Victorian and Edwardian Ghost Stories, hope eventually to be able to read, and also join in more actively. I have been enjoying many of the comments, especially those on the new film of _Mansfield Park_ as I am an unashamed confirmed Janeite. In the meantime I have a query. In my _Penguin Book of Ghost Stories_ edited by J. A. Cuddon, there's a superb short piece called 'One Who Saw' by A. M. Burrage. I am going to set it for my students to read by a week from this Friday. Usually I accompany all reading of texts by authors with a tiny life of the author. In the case of A. M. Burrage, I have been able to find out nothing. I can find no books, no essays on this author. I own and took out from the library a number of studies of ghost stories, the fantastic, the gothic. Nothing on Burrage. I went to a couple of vast compilations on CD-Roms of Contemporary Authors and have had no luck in these either. Could someone tell me where I could find some information out or provide me with a few slender facts from which I could weave a brief narrative for my little ones? Cheers, Ellen Moody Ellen2(at)JimandEllen.Org
===0===
Date: Wed, 01 Dec 1999 09:20:17 -0700 From: Deborah McMillion Nering <deborah(at)alice.gloaming.com> Subject: Re: Query: A. M. Burrage >Nothing on Burrage. I went to a couple of vast compilations on CD-Roms Yes, Ash Tree Press is in the process of printing everything Burrage has ever done. Their website is: http://www.ash-tree.bc.ca/ashtree_overview.html They have already printed 3 volumes of his work and a fourth is due out any time now. All contain biographical material. Barbara and Chris Roden are Gaslight members as well. Deborah Deborah McMillion deborah(at)gloaming.com http://www.gloaming.com/deborah.html
===0===
Date: Wed, 01 Dec 1999 10:22:25 -0600 From: Chris Carlisle <CarlislC(at)psychiatry1.wustl.edu> Subject: Re: Query: A. M. Burrage Well, it's no help with biography, but there's a nice Burrage site at: http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/authors/A_M_Burrage.htm He apparently had the intruiging pseudonym of Ex-Private X! Kiwi
===0===
Date: Wed, 01 Dec 1999 11:37:48 -0500 (EST) From: Richard King <rking6king(at)netscape.net> Subject: Query: A.M. Burrage Ellen: There is a lengthy essay with biographical information on page 111 of the ST. JAMES GUIDE TO HORROR, GHOST & GOTHIC WRITERS (Detroit: St. James, 1998). It is written by Jack Adrian (whose name seems familiar to me for some reason). I'm willing to fax it if you don't have access to this reference book. Richard King rking(at)indian.vinu.edu ____________________________________________________________________ Get your own FREE, personal Netscape WebMail account today at http://webmail.netscape.com.
===0===
Date: Wed, 01 Dec 1999 10:49:52 -0600 From: Andy Duncan <dunca012(at)bama.ua.edu> Subject: RE: Query: A. M. Burrage From Mike Ashley's entry on Burrage in The Encyclopedia of Fantasy, ed. John Clute and John Grant (St. Martin's, 1997): "Alfred McLelland Burrage (1889-1956), UK short-story writer who published a vast amount of fiction in popular magazines, including boys' magazines, for over 40 years, starting in 1905 [when he was 16]. Burrage's total output has never been fully assessed, and more may be hidden under pseudonyms other than the known Frank Lelland and Ex-Private X. He wrote in all genres, but is remembered today for his ghost stories, some of which are among the most effective ever written." From Everett F. Bleiler's entry on Burrage in The Penguin Encyclopedia of Horror and the Supernatural, ed. Jack Sullivan (Viking, 1986): "British ghost story writer, member of a family that specialized in writing boys' fiction. Precocious contributor to periodicals, became a professional writer before age eighteen. Author of very popular 'Tufty' series for boys and other series under the pseudonym Frank Lelland. Served in World War I and wrote bitterly about his experiences in _War Is War_ as Ex-Private X. Prolific contributor to British periodicals. Now remembered solely for his supernatural fiction." Hope this helps. -- Andy Andy Duncan Department of English Box 870244 103 Morgan Hall University of Alabama Tuscaloosa, AL 35487 andrew.duncan(at)ua.edu www.angelfire.com/al/andyduncan
===0===
Date: Wed, 01 Dec 1999 10:03:37 -0700 From: Deborah McMillion Nering <deborah(at)alice.gloaming.com> Subject: Re: Query: A.M. Burrage >It is written by Jack Adrian (whose name seems familiar to me for some >reason). Jack Adrian also edited and wrote the bio/intro to the Burrage books by Ash Tree. I'm sure you've seen his name doing this a lot in our area. Deborah Deborah McMillion deborah(at)gloaming.com http://www.gloaming.com/deborah.html
===0===
Date: Wed, 01 Dec 1999 10:04:01 -0800 From: Patricia Teter <PTeter(at)getty.edu> Subject: Re: _Fanny Hill_ ==> publication ==> ? Stephen wrote: <<I wonder if anyone can make the remote connection from the publication of _Fanny Hill_ (which was recently mentioned) to a Gaslight discussion of a few months ago about a murdering rogue.>> Okay .... my curiosity is peaked! Since no one has been able to supply the remote connection, Stephen, you can no longer leave us dangling. :-) Patricia
===0===
Date: Wed, 01 Dec 1999 13:46:15 -0500
From: "John D. Squires" <jdsbooks(at)ameritech.net>
Subject: Re: Confederate dead re-interred
Some time ago mention was made on Gaslight of the
discovery of graves of the submarine Hunley's crew, among
others, in SC. Those men were recently re-interred in Charleston.
Photographs of the ceremonies are on line at
http://www.charlotte.com/art/soldiers/index.htm
John Squires
------------------------------
End of Gaslight Digest V1 #117
******************************