Table Of Content

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'$$$,$," ::: ' '::::::::::::::. ?,P,P" ::::::::': ::::: ::::::::::::::::: : : : :::::::: : : : FallinAngeles He then shared with us some rarities: a 1954 Jello TheAutumn'98meetingoftheLCSNAtookplace commercial ("Was it the smile on my Cheshire Cat or my overthe weekend ofNovember 7-8 in the Los Angeles en- Jello?"), anotherwithananimatedsequenceoftheGryphon virons. OnSaturday, afterviewingasmallexhibitwithabig and the Mock Turtle (which nevermade it into the movie), title ("Snarks, Jabberwocks, Crocodiles, & Mice Tails: and a psychedelic misch-masch of Disney animation Lewis Carroll, the Poet and the Parodist, Illuminated") at matched to the Jefferson Airplane's "White Rabbit" slated the Charles Young Research Library at U.C.L.A., we mo- for a proposed channel called "DTV" - the channel never seyed overto the Faculty centerwhere we ate lunch, which made it. Dan's clear love of the material, extraordinary soon morphed, amid the detritus ofour leftovers, into our slides, and easy wit made this a most enjoyable presenta- meeting. Dan Singer, who has been an "Imagineer" (theme tion. park designer) for ten years for the Disney organization, Michael Dylan Walsh, an editor for IDG Books gave the opening talk, "Disney's Alice in Theme Parks & Worldwide (publisher ofthe "For Dummies" titles), editor Beyond",whichwasbounteouslyillustratedwithrarelyseen ofthe poetryjournal Tundra, and assistant editorofSpring, historical photographs from Disney's slide archive. thejournaloftheE.E.CummingsSociety,presented"Trains Daniel's apologia for what is perceived by purists to Moscow: A Comparison of Lewis Carroll's Russian as "too obnoxious, too American, too un-Carrollian" is Journal and E.E.Cummings' EimF, which compared and based on Disney's being "responsible for introducing the contrasted the twojourneys and their resultant literary out- story to more people than any other source". His AWride- puts. (Eimi {eluou} is Greek for"I am".) through attraction is visited by four million people a year, "InJanuaryof1898,onehundredyearsago,apopu- and the video has been consis- lar nonsense writer we tently at the top of the family knowasLewisCarrolldied programming charts for 17 in Guildford, Surrey; he years. Dan gave ahistoryofthe was an idiosyncratic icon film, starting in 1938 with the ofthe Victorian age. Four story development meetings, years earlier and a conti- and taking us through its 1951 nent away, Edward Estlin release which he called "faith- Cummings was born in fultothespiritofthebook" and Cambridge, Massachu- "a masterpiece of the setts, spending his life animator's art". This begat overturning and escaping storybooks, dolls, parade floats, hisVictorianNewEngland rubber-headed character cos- upbringing. Both men tumes, andon and on. wrote poetry. Both wrote AsanImagineer,Dan's verse enjoyed by children. focus was of course on the Both delighted in visual theme rides — from the 1955 Excuseme,may1seeyourinvitation? poetry, word play, humor, spinning teacup ("The Mad Tea Party") through the 1958 wordinventions,andindividualisticrule-breaking. Bothalso ride-through "crude and closely tied to its carnival spook- excelledinotherarts-CarrollasoneofVictorianEngland's house roots" and its admirable upgrade in 1984 ("fully-di- preeminentamateurphotographers,Cummingsasanabstract mensional props and figures, excellent art direction, and expressionist painter...In addition to these affinities, both dazzlingspecial effects"). Thereare also awalk-throughat- men published diaries oftrips to Russia...." traction in Disneyland Paris, and Tea Party rides in Florida Dodgson's diary of his 1867 trip "is somewhat and Tokyo, which has an Animatronic show called The pedestrian and noninventive, yetremains consistently read- Mickey Mouse Review, with Alice surrounded by flowers ableandengaging";Cummings' reportofhis 1931 trip,which singing "All inthe Golden Afternoon". isaten-foldexpansionofhisoriginaldiary,isgivenamythic A small detour into the merchandising was given: framework and has been called "a tough read". Cummings after bemoaning the lack ofa "Caucus Race action-figure believed he was visiting an underworld; Dodgson wrote a play set", he did recommend two recently released items straightforward and amusing account. Dodgson came back of great interest: the laserdisk with not only the restored educated and entertained; Cummings experienced aturning print ofthe film, but concept art, storyboards, filmtrailers, point in the development ofhis art and political attitudes. television specials, and unused music and animation seg- Of course, Dodgson's experience of Czarist Russian and ments .DanspeculatedontheenduringqualitiesofDisney's Cummings' of an oppressed Communist nation are not a adaptation, and posited that they often used it "as a meta- simple contrast; similarly their preparations (Cummings phor for ajourney into the unknown" - e.g. when a theme- havingstudiedRussian), mind-sets andreligious andpoliti- parkguestis approachingan interactive computergame for cal feelings before they set out were quite different. And the firsttime, usingthe brave character oflittle Alice helps whentheyreturned, Dodgson feltonly"relief, andhad his him or herto feel comfortable in a strange land. diary; Cummings underwent an "epiphany" and re-worked hismaterial intoan impenetrablemorassofprose. Forthose scribed these latter in great detail, and then focused on a interested in further study, Michael said that an annotated particular one, The Silver King, written in 1882 by Henry volume ofEimi is due out this year. ArthurJones, ofwhichDodgsonsawsixperformances over Next, Anashia Plackis ofState University ofNew eleven years. YorkatStonyBrook,openingwithapoignantreminderthat thiswasDodgson'sdeathcentenary("Aicouiatour\yvryn\" - "May he always be remembered!"), provided us with an extended gloss on his Russian Journeyand its implications for his personal theology. Opposed to the ritualism ofthe RomanCatholicchurch, spiritualheirtothe"purifications" ofthe Oxford Movement CLD was most curious about , the Eastern Orthodoxy, and so traveled throughout Europe and Russia at the invitation ofhis friend Liddon. Anashia traced the history ofthe Eastern branch oftheChurch, fromthe literally"underground" heterodox- ies (early Christians often having to meet in caves) and its spread through Rome and Greece, Byzantium (Constantinople) and, ultimately, Russia; alwayskeeping a paralleltrackwithwhatwashappening inthe West(Luther and Protestantism, the formation ofthe Anglican Church). Her"diversions and digressions" included Milton and his sectarian movement (the poet / author as priest); the theme ofthe usurper inSylvie andBruno (the useless- "Tothemodernreader, TheSilverKingishighVic- ness ofkings); the apostolic succession by laymen (and torian melodrama, full ofwhat we would see as unnatural CLD as deacon, not priest); Tolstoy and his championing diction, improbableevents,unlikelycoincidences,andchar- of religions freedom; why Christ Church scholars were acters who are either fully good or wholly evil. It is not "students", not "fellows"; Coleridge as the reconciler of Ibsen or Shaw, anditis certainly notMametorGurney. But faith and science; Swift and his parables; and what she to the playgoers of 1882, The Silver King represented a termed Dodgson's apologia as embodied in this "hiero- departurefromthenorminmelodrama.True,thebasicmelo- glyphic emblem", inwhich, byrejectingtheoutercostume, dramatic characteristics are there: a castmade up ofheroes he symbolically confessed his faith. and villains; a pathetic heroine with children who faces the possibility of eviction by her villainous landlord; characters who soliloquize to reveal their motives; and a sensational plot. Yet TheSilverKingwas asignificant step away fromtraditionalmelodramaandtowardstherealistic drama ofthe late 19th and early 20th centuries. The dialogue is more natural than previous pieces; sensational events such as thetrain wrecktake place offstage, rather than being ex- hibited with complicated stage machinery; and the pathos ofthe piece is realistically derived. As one historian wrote, 'Though the characters are the old stock types, they talk like people.'" Charlie's recounting ofthe plot and some ofthe Charlie Lovett, LCSNA President-emeritus and dialogwhichsoundedstilted, contrived, andsomewhatsilly author ofAlice on Stage - A History ofthe Early Theatri- toourmodernears,emphasizedhowDodgson'swouldhave calProductionsofAWandthearticle"CharlesL. Dodgson heard differently. (And among the initial London cast was and the Theatre" gave a most amusing talk titled "Lewis little Phoebe Carlo, who would originate the role ofAlice , Carroll's Favorite Play, or the Golden Don and TheSilver in Saville-Clarke's 1887 adaptation.) King - An Examination of Henry Arthur Jones' Dodgson had once proposedwritingamelodrama, Groundbreaking Melodrama and an Analysis ofits Attrac- to be calledMorningClouds, in an 1866 letterto Tom Tay- tion for Charles L. Dodgson". The talkwas illuminated by lor. It's similarities to The Silver King were apparent. He many photographs ofVictorian actors and actresses. also discussed why this latter play so touched Dodgson, Dodgson was an ardent theater-goer, who, in 42 which was particularly apparent in Charlie's dramatic reci- years,sawover500theatricalperformances,manyofwhich tationofapoignantscenewhere littleCissy sits onthe knee included more than one play. Itwas his primary leisure ac- of a kindly old man (who is actually her long-lost father, tivity. His tastes ran from Shakespeare to operettas, panto- unbeknownsttoher),whobefriendsher, allthewhileforced mimes, contemporary plays, and melodramas. Charlie de- to hidetheprofounddepth ofhisown feelingstowardher, a scene withwhich Dodgson could identifywith allhis heart. President; Fran Abeles, Treasurer (continuing); Ellie We adjourned, only to reassemble that evening in Luchinsky, Secretary (continuing), and two new Directors the Pasadena "digs" of Dan Singer, the outside of whose were proposed: Pat Griffin and Germaine Weaver. Despite house gave no indication ofthe fantastic collections ofthe- a last-minute candidature from Jesse "The Body" Ventura, atricalmemorabiliaandLewis Carrollwhichhehadondis- the new officers were elected by acclamation. Stephanie play inside. We thank Dan for his gracious hospitality and said it would be "disrespectful to make hay out ofthe fact camaraderie. that there was a woman President" (as we had such a long The second halfofour meeting took place in the tradition ofservice from Maxine and Ellie, among others), HuntingtonLibraryinSanMarino(justoutsideofPasadena) tookus on ajourney ofwhatthings were like a centurybe- the followingday. It's a spectacularly gorgeous estate, with fore, and looked forward to leading us into the newmillen- many fine botanical gardens and art collections (although nium. their major collection ofbooks and incunabula was unfor- Thefirstspeakerwas ournewV.P., whoheldforth tunately in storage at the time, making room for a tempo- on an aspect ofpopular culture in his talk "Comic Sensi- rary exhibition on George Washington). bilities: Alice in the Funny Pages". With a slide ofboth a Aftera"hightea" attheirrestaurant,wewenttoan Pogo comic strip and Alice's Adventures under Ground elegantly-appointed meeting room, where a small exhibit showing, he said: ofCarroll material was to be seen. In the three cases were "Beholdhere: aworkofart, written and illustrated letters, rare editions, and so on. One ofthe letters was to by the same person, a product of acknowledged genius Gertrude Thompson, dated 27 January 1897, and proposed aimed somewhere between the child and the child within, a frontispiece to a book of"Original Games and Puzzles" anAesopian fairytale set inamagical realmwhere animals which would consist of"2 trees, the interval between them cantalk. Here the illustrations andthe text are intentionally being the outline of some well-known figure from Won- and inextricably intertwined; simple enough for a child to derland.Iencloseascrawl..."Hisillustration, (#HM36008) read, yetcapable ofgreatprofundities and subversivepara- reproducedbypermission ofThe Huntington Library, San digms; innocent and fragile-looking, but canny, deep, and Marino, California, is below. enormouslypopular. Mixingimages and dialogwith flights of fancy, verse, and loving commentary on the foibles of the human condition, rejoicing in the multilayered mean- ings ofwords, and delightingthe eye with sumptuous illustrations which replace or greatly enhance the narrative and descriptions ofthe text, the medium itself is often looked down upon by the soi-disant intelligentsia, yet is guaran- teed to outlast their effete ramblings by many millennia." He talked about the world ofthe comic strip itself, from its ancestry in the ancient world ofcave paint- ings through scrolls and Renaissance tapestries up to 19th century etchings, political cartoons, and picture stories in EnglandandGermanyandthroughwhatwewouldconsider comic strips "proper" and their American flowering. He dwelt on the history ofnewspaper strips and comic books, to whichAlice must be seen as aprecursor, and then talked ofher appearances in these works, from newspaper strips in 1938 to date, including straight adaptations ofthe story, parodies, "exploitations", and the use ofthe characters in other stories (such as Batman and Superman in the early On to business: Charlie Lovett ofthe Publications 1940s, Flash and ElongatedMan in the 50's and 60s), the committee made some announcements about the pamphlet horror genre, erotica, and humor. The comics in question series, the 25th anniversary booklet, CLD's uncollected were illustrated with slides depicting sample pages or the poetry, and the Warren Weaver material. Vice-President cover. He digressed a bit into the most Carrollian ofcomic Stephanie Stoffel announcedthatthe Springmeetingwould artists, WaltKelly(Pogo), andendedhistalk"Andaswesit be intheBaltimore/Washingtonarea, perhapswithatheat- thinkinguffishlyaboutthis wonderful, admirable, transcen- rical flavor, and the Fall '99 meeting is scheduled for dental, colorful, respectable, and much beloved medium, Toronto, andwewillbebackinNewYorkinY2K. Shealso what shall we conclude? In the words ofthe first strip car- talked about the fourth Maxine Schaefer Memorial read- toonist, Rudolph Topffer, circa 1800, 'The picture story, to ing, which tookplace the daybefore (see "Ravings", p.6) whichthecriticism ofartpaysnoattention andwhichrarely August Imholtz ofthe Election committee then worries the learned, has always exercised a great appeal.' presidedoverourbi-annualelections.Theslatehepresented Or,more succinctly, 'What isthe use ofabookwithoutpic- was: Stephanie Stoffel, President; Mark Burstein, Vice- tures or conversations?'" . We were then treated to a fine true-life detective quite in keeping with our Los Angeles setting - after all, a story by Hilda Bohem, retired Special Collections Librar- case couldbe madethatthese werethe firston-screen"mo- ianofU.C.L.A. Shebeganbynarratinganamusing(perhaps tion pictures". apocryphal) story from the time ofthe Paramount Alice - Maria Bodmann's "Bali and Beyond" is amodern how the director (Norman McLeod), the art director (Wil- working of an ancient ritual entertainment, the Balinese liam Cameron Menzies), and one ofthe writers (Joeseph shadow-puppetplay, wherein"lacy shadow images are pro- Mankiewicz)hadto be "locked in a steel vault" here atthe jected on a linen screen with a natural oil lamp or electric Huntingtonbecausetheyhadinsisted onseeingthe original light." Mariawasthe"Dalang",whomanipulatedthecolor- Alice in Wonderland(the Huntington had an 1865), notre- fully-appointed carved leather figures, and gave them life alizingthat reproductions ofit could be had for a dime. through her theatrical characterizations, songs, and articu- lations ofthe puppets themselves. She is a most talented performer, and three musicians provided live accompani- ment. "Included in the motifis a late-sixties Woodstock element, a ritually oriented culture in which Alice was re- quired reading." Instead oftraditional Gamelan music, we were treated to psychedelic renditions of"I am the Wal- rus", "Lucy in the Sky", "White Rabbit" and so on. In the latter, sheremindedus"whattheDormousesaid"reallywas ..."treacle". Itisdifficulttoconveyinprosethedelightfulmagic ofthat event, which seemed like a twilightjourney into a Mythic realm. Many ofus were seated like "children gath- ered 'round" on the floor, and —it is part ofthe tradition to wander about like restless kids even crawling around to peekbehindthescreenwheretheshowwasbeingperformed so we could seethe puppets, scripts, props, and performers in action. The first figure to appearon screenwas arawhide "boatofdreams" which ledus onthe episodicjourney. The FromParamount's.4/j'cestoryboard colorfullypainted figures, splendidvocal characterizations, Her story began with a phone call from a book and incidental music enraptured us, with the freshness of dealer friend, who had acquired a copy ofthe 1933 screen- discovery and enchantment of children seeing "where play, or perhaps more properly, the storyboard. A thick fo- childhood's dreams are twined, in memory's mystic band". lio volume bound in 3A green calfwas produced, with the Butjourneys, even "trips", must end; and so we, script typed in the lowerhalf, and a line drawing atthe top reluctantly, departed. ofevery page. A new illustratedAlice? A greattreasure in- deed, butthe question was, who was the illustrator? 1.ItisavailableatDisneystores,orbymailthroughtheWholeToon Her first suspect was the aforementioned Norman Catalog(see"Leaves",p.9) McLeodwho, she discovered, in facthad been acartoonist (Slim Pickens) before he became a director. Case closed? She thought so. However, herjourneys to, and friends at, the Spe- cial Collections of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts andSciences' Libraryserendipitouslybroughtfruit. Inread- ing over materials related to the production, and learning sucharcanaasthatCharlotteHenrywasfromBrooklyn, and hadgottenaterriblerashfromtheflamingos,theyultimately unearthed a second copy ofthe screenplay, this time with theinscription"sixhundredandforty-two illustrationsby .. William Cameron Menzies". Case, at last, closed. Meanwhile, during the course of these lectures, curiosity had been aroused bythe enormous 6' x4' screen, amplifiers,musical instruments,floodlightsandsoonwhich had been lying on the floor beside the dais. Quickly as- sembled, they now burst into life with a Balinese shadow- puppettheaterpresentationAlice in theShadows. This was FromParamount'S/4//cestoryboard 2. TheOxford, orTractarian movement, which beganabout 1833 Ravings from the Writing Desk andendedin 1845withJohnHenryNewman'sconversiontoRoman of Stephanie Stoffel Catholicism,wasfoundedonthebasisofantidisestablishmentarianism Joel Birenbaum's ravingshavebeen so veryenter- (oftheAnglicanChurchofIreland).Theirtractsargued ingeneral taining and edifyingthat I feel quite sheepish having to re- thatthetruthofthedoctrinesoftheChurchofEnglandrestedonthe placethemwith my own lunacies. I hope itwill notbe held modernchurch'spositionasthedirectdescendantofthechurches- againstme bythe readership ofthe KLthatJoel declinesto tablishedbytheApostles,addingaconservativeoptiontothelively atmosphereofVictorianreligiousdebate. TheVictorians,whoab- be President-For-Life. I was glad, though, to recall that I horredtheatheismoftheUtilitariansandtheagnosticismofthesci- have this forum, because in describing the Los Angeles entists,andwereputoffbytheenthusiasmoftheEvangelicals,found meetingto a friend in a letter, I was wishing I couldtellthe theBroadChurchtoolatitudinariantohaveanymeaninglefttoits wholeLCSNAaboutaportionoftheweekendthatonlytwo doctrineandyetcouldnotstomachgoingovertoRome,foundthese ofushadexperienced. SuddenlyIr—ememberedthatnotonly High Church Anglicans a perfect conservative solution. The could I write acolumn forthe KL I, in fact, hadto! Ecclesiologicalmovement,whichwantedmoreritualandreligious decorationinchurchesandwhichcloselyassociatedwiththeGothic Revival,wasanaturalpartnertoTractarianismforbothmovements lookedbacktotheMiddleAgesasatimewhentheChurchmetthe needs ofits parishioners both religiouslyand aesthetically. These movementshadsomeinfluence uponthePre-RaphaeliteBrother- hood,whichalsolookedbacktoRaphaelandhismedievalprecur- sorsfortheirartisticinspiration.TheOxfordMovement'smajorad- herentswereJohnHenryNewman,JohnKeble,andEdwardPusey. HenryLiddon,Pusey'ssympatheticnineteenthcenturybiographer [andDodgson's traveling companion], argued thatthe Evangeli- calrevivalwasareactionagainsttheChurch'steachingofaloose natural moralitywhichignoredJesusChrist,andittookformboth withinandoutsideoftheAnglicanChurch.Althoughcriticalofwhat heconsideredthe"one-sided"natureofthemovement,Liddontreated italmostasthesalvationofAnglicanism,describingPusey'sattitude insimilarterms:"...andtothelastdayofhislife,Puseyretainedthat 'loveoftheEvangelicals'towhichheoftenadverted,andwhichwas rousedbytheireffortstomakereligionalivingpowerinacoldand gloomyage". ForDavid Schaeferandme,thedelightfultwo-day extravaganza, which I wish all ofyou could have attended, [The abovefootnote is based on articles by Professors Glenn beganwiththefourthMaxineSchaeferMemorialChildren's EverettandHerbertSchlossbergin the "Religion" section ofthe OutreachFundprogramatthe downtownLosAngeles Pub- George Landow's wonderful Victorian Web. www.stg.brown.edu/ licLibraryonSaturdaymorning.Everythingaboutthatmorn- projects/hypertext/landow/victorian/victov.html] ing added tremendously to the quality ofmy visit to L.A., 3. Alice onStage can be ordered from Charlie'sweb page http:// both as a traveler and a Carrollian. We had left Pasadena members.aol.com/Charliel03/Pagel.htmlor 10 StumpTreeLane, early, anticipating being lost, stuck in traffic, or in search Winston-SalemNC27106; 1.336.724.5627;the"CLDandtheThe- ofparking,butnoneofthathappened,andsowewereatthe atre"articlewasprintedintheGrolierClub'scatalogoftherecent library well before Ilene Abramson, the children's librarian "C.L.Dodgson(alias'LewisCarroll')"showandcanbeorderedfrom who hosted us. ourSecretary. Thisturnedouttobeaplus,however, forthe secu- rityguardwasthe firstofseveral library employeeswe met whowereburstingwithprideovertheirwonderfulbuilding. He wound up showing us some ofits features before leav- inguswithMs.Abramson,who latergaveusatour.Itwould have made all ofyou proud to see how happy they were to haveus.Ms.Abramsonhadactuallybakeduscookies,which we enjoyed while pasting our bookplates into the copies of Alice thatwould be given away. I am sure I have never before been urgedto eat in a library by a librarian! Thechildren'sroomisabeautifulfacilitythatcom- bines an airofsophistication and specialness withwelcom- ing, child-sized fixtures. We visited the large main room, and then we passed through a smaller computer room to anotherlargerroomwithasmalltheateratoneendandeasy Aboveandopposite:basreliefsintheChildren'sCourtoftheLos chairs grouped at the other. We declined the theater forthe AngelesPublicLibrary'sCentralbranch more interactive feel ofthe chairs, which proved the right choice, as we wound up with a very interactive group! Our William Morrow/Books ofWonder edition, mainly to indi- last Outreach program had been at the Children's Museum vidual children, butalso some to hosting librariesto be cir- ofManhattan and was really an Alice-based romp for very culated. Wehavereachedchildrenandtheirfamilies inNew small children. Here, however, we had children from pre- York City, Minnesota, and Los Angeles, and promoted an schoolagethroughafourteen-year-oldgirlwhohadrecently interest in who Lewis Carroll was and what his books can written a paper on Lewis Carroll, parents who wanted to mean to us, as well as entertaining and engaging children. stayandparticipate, andagroupofadultstudentswhowere Notto inanywaydownplaythequalityorworthofLCSNA getting class credit. meetings, but I have to suspect thatwe did Lewis Carroll's We gave them a reading from—Alice as promised, reputationandfuture at leastasmuchgoodwithourvisitto but quickly moved on to the fun part taking questions theLA.PublicLibraryaswedidlateronwithourspeeches. and having a lively group discussion about Lewis Carroll Our encounter with the lively interest that "civil- the person, the story ofAlice in Wonderland, and so on. ians"bringtoadiscussionaboutAliceandCarrollleadDavid Davidand I wished forreinforcements fromthe LCSNA as and me to lament that the LCSNA as a whole isn't more we ledaconversationthatrapidlyaddressedmanydifferent awareofwhattheMaxine SchaeferFundhasbeen upto. Its Carrollian topics and operated on many different levels of governing committee, which presently consists of David, knowledge and ability. Ellie Schaefer-Salins, Whenwe calledahaltdue Mark Burstein, and me, to the time and to give urgesmembers tocometo booksto the children who thereadingsandseewhom needed to leave, we con- wearereachingandtopar- tinued with small-group ticipate in this fulfilling and individual conversa- wayto serve the Society's tions for at least another mission to promote half-hour. I wish I could awareness of Lewis convey to you how inter- Carroll. Wewould alsobe esting the questions and glad for members to con- observations were and tinue to use the fund as a how the whole event means to memorialize or crackled with energy. honor people, because we When the room would like this to be per- had almost emptied at manent activity of the noon, Ms. Abramson of- LCSNA. However, even fered to show David a—nd morethanyourdonations, me around the library we would like you to be thedowntownLAPL is,to there to see new faces, say the least, we11-worth young and old, get swept seeing. Ithadbeenbuiltin away into Wonderland. 1908,andhadexperienced We've been there so long adevastating fire in 1986. Tbe Maxine Schaefen MemoHial wemayhave forgottenthe At thattime, they added a Children's Outneach Fund delightoffallingdownthe o second building which rabbit hole for the first merged into the repaired " time. originalbuildingbymeans down of a slanting, three-story down down atrium. The original building has magnificent mosaic ceil- In othernews, the Spring '99 meeting will be on ingsandlarger-than-lifeBrandywine-ishmurals,andthenew May 8th atthe College ofPreachers on the grounds ofthe tbbhureiarlredyiwtnhagastofwafaepsressrmofoobdreemauartnnicfefualcgiaolinitndigess,oonif.nulcTllyoudisinenuegseaaotdhnoewaatneStraotwwuhnredraliey- NiantgironoaolmCtahtahteAdruaglusitn Wsaaysshiisng"rtiognh,t oDu.tC.ofWCehrhisatveChaurmcehe"t,- andwewillarrangeagrouplunchintherefectory.Genevieve mouorrnmionrgniAandsgd,wedeanerdvaechneodmwoofrtfheetotMoUatCxhiLenAee,xcSiDctahevamieedfnetarnoFdfuoInuddrishdcaauyss.seexd- wSimliltahswkiollnebeofsptheeakcianngonosnt"oLeswpeiaskCtaorruosllbraienfdlyD,rIeaamms"w,orwke- tcheeedfealdlaollfe1x9p9e6c.taTtihoensdetcheisBioonartdohuasdewthheenmowneesyetthitatuphaidn Ailnigcet,hianngdswoeutarweistehekRionbgeartthiPhridlslpiepas,kere.diWtoerwoifllAbsepeacrtrsango-f beencontributedtotheLCSNAinhonorofMaxinetobring ing a Maxine Schaefer Outreach event, ofcourse. Lewis Carroll to children and their families was an excellent one. We have given away at least 250 copies ofthe Leaves from the Deanery Garden namewasLouisa: she is inprofile in 'Apple Blossoms'}."), I have just received my copy ofthe latest Knight Letter hewasobviouslydeeplyattractedtosuchmelancholyscenes , andread itwiththe usual interestandpleasure, plusthe ex- reminding the viewer ofthe fleeting oftime and the inevi- tra one offindingmy lecture atthe Christ Church (Oxford) tability ofdeath, one ofthe major themes in his "serious" centenary conference favourably mentioned in it, though I poetry (which Dr. Selwyn Goodacre most rightly defended should perhaps correct Cindy Watter's "Montesquieu" (the and praised at Oxford this summer): one ofhis favourite XVIIIth century philosopher who wrote Les Lettres paintingsbyArthurHughesatthe 1865RoyalAcademywas Persanes) into "Montesquiou" (Robert, comte de "The Mower" (diaries, Tuesday4th July 1865, colourplate Montesquiou-Fezensac, 1855-1921, symbolist writer and 37 p.78 inLeonardRoberts'sbook),which depictsamower paragon ofthe Frenchfin-de-siecle dandy). sharpeninghisominousscytheabovetheheadsofthreelittle girls! Regarding Gary Brockman's query inthe same issue n° 58, p. 12, 1wouldliketoaddtoyourverywellinformedanswer Butthepicturemostakinto"SilverandGold" inthemeand that before Leonard Roberts's fascinating and long waited- treatment which he singled out a quarter ofa century later for catalogue raisonne of the works of Arthur Hughes was Walter Firle's "Spring and Winter", which struck him {Arthur Hughes, his Life and Works, Antique Collectors' as the loveliest picture at the 1888 French Gallery, where Club, Woodbridge, Suffolk {UK}, hehadtakenIsaBowman:it 1997, ISBN 1-85149-262-3, £45), depicted"anoldwomanand very few (if any) of us knew that a beautiful girl playing to "The Lady of the Lilacs" (oil on heronharmonium"(unpub- panel,44.5 x22.5 cm, 17'/2x9 in., lished diaries, Wednesday arched top) was in fact either are- 29thAugust 1888),andwas worked preliminary study for, or a favourablyreviewedby The partialcopycommissionedbyC.L. Graphic , which statedthat Dodgson himself from, a larger "the 'naive' simplicity of work entitled "Silver and Gold" the young girl playing the (1862-4, oil on canvas, 99 x 67.5 pianobesideawidewindow cm, 39 x26'/2 in., exhib. as n° 486 andthesympatheticinterest at the 1864 Royal Academy sum- ofthe aged matron seated mer exhibition), which contrasted beside her are admirably the younger character (wearing—a expressed" (n° 956, 24th crimsondressmuchmoredaring March 1888, p.311) andby and, to my mi—nd, ill-suited to the The Athenaeum, which girl'sredhair thanthewhiteand wrote that "the chiaroscuro emerald tints of C.L.Dodgson's and even the effect and more virginal protagonist's gar- colour, though rather sad, ments) to an old lady inblack. Ad- aresuitedtothesubjectand ditional itemsrelatingthatpainting C4//Jy*v*<» pathetic in themselves" (n° to the traditional vanitas theme, 3152, 24th March 1888, such as a peacock, the first-name p.377). Unfortunately, I "Amy"carvedintoatree-trunkbehindtheduenna,andscat- have not been able to trace any reproduction, either as a teredwhiteflowersonthegroundattheirfeet, areofcourse photograph oracontemporary engraving, ofthatworkbya omitted in the much more innocent smaller version. (Cf. quite obscure painter ofGerman origin. colour plates 41, 42 & 43 o&n pp. 80-1; catalogue numbers I hope those bits of information will be of interest to the 59, 59-1, 59-2, 59-3, 59-4 59-5 pp. 157-9). readers ofa future issue oftheKnightLetter, and congratu- Though C.L.Dodgson never commented in length on late you forthe high standards ofthatjournal, and foryour Millais's "Autumn Leaves" and "Apple Blossoms", or very erudite answers to members' letters. "Spring", onlymentioningtheformeramongthemostbeau- Yours very faithfully, tiful works he looked forwardto seeing and laterfeltelated at having been able to contemplate at length, at James Hugues Lebailly Leathart's home in Newcastle (diaries, Tuesday 6th Oct. Reims, France 1863 & Sunday 2nd Oct. 1864) as well as at the Fine Art [email protected] Society Millais Exhibition of 1881 (diaries, Tuesday 19th Thankyouforyour beacon ofscholarly light on this topic, April 1881)andalludingtothelatterinpassing(unpublished so thematically important to understandingMr. Dodgson. diaries,Monday8thApril 1867: "I sawMrandMrsMillais, Readers are also referred to a short article with a repro- his brother (Charles?) and one of her sisters {I think her duction ofthe work in Knight Letter 31, Spring '89. 8 I'm staggered by the thoroughness and generosity ofyour page" to use a contemporary metaphor, which in this case reply to my September spoutings and inquiries. Your ef- must be taken literally. My 1971 (unabridged) OED says forts in answering my every question, asked or unasked, for mad, "5.'Beside oneself with anger; moved to un- about "Girl with Lilacs" (for it is always an effort to find controllable rage; furious" with citations going back to information, howevernimble and erudite one is) I take as a 1300, including the Bible in 1539 ("They that are mad great kindness. Your suggetion to visit Hughes' painting in vpon me, aresworne together agaynst me" Psalms 102.8). Toronto I shall obey, perhaps on my birthday (a date that I think we should here let the matter rest with the nota- appears inAW, ifI may bo—ast). The articles and references tion that we both believe Carroll undoubtedly meant "in- you noted I shall seek out perhaps even looking over an sane". And best ofluck toyou inyour crusade! adept's shoulder at the internet sites. My deepestthanks! I haveaverysmallcorrectiontoyourmention oftheArthur NeverdidIimaginethatyouendorsedthe"madasanadder" Hughes' painting"TheLadywiththeLilacs". ItisattheArt thesis orwere wrong in reporting it. I'm sorry ifI gave ei- Gallery ofOntario, in Toronto. The Canadian Society met ther impression. And I'm sorry it wasn't self-evident that there on October 24 to view the painting and learn more the word-history ofmadI presented was a summary ofthe about Dodgson's and Alice's place in the Pre-Raphaelite pertinent entry in my 1973 OED. Ofcourse I can't know circle. that mad has never meant "venemous" to any speaker of Einngalniyshcfiotrattihoenparsetpotrhtoeudsainndtyheears1.9B7u3tOIEcaDnkhnasowitthhaatdnetvheart bWehtehnTuIrwnabsuldloiinngontlhyeorneseebarocohkIacnadmneoawcrIoscasnt'htefninadmeitEaglaiizna.- meaning. To me this sufficiently falsifies the claim that Canyou help me outwith the booktitle? "venemous" hadbeen the only, or even prevalent, meaning I enjoyedthe issue, as always. ofmadbefore the Mad Hatter. DaynaMcCausland I'mconfidentthatyouwouldhaveknownthat"madasahat- Erin,Ontario, Canada twerri"ttmeen.anMta"ddemreaanngeidn"ga"tatnhgertyi"mebetgheanquaoptpaetaironisngIginavAemweerrie- [Re: Deborah Caputo in "Queries", KL 58, p.17]: Mem- mcaanryslmaenagnliantegiinntthhee UninnietteedenStthatceesntaturtyh.eIetnmdaoyftbheetthweenptrii-- bceornsfeartentchee m[teheetiLnCgSNatAStFa.lClloguadthdeurriinnggitnheMiOncnteosboetra,]1w9h9o7 eth century, butmy impression is that in England the ques- attended the session "Versions ofAlice in Early Movies" tion"Areyoumad?" stillusually means "Areyoucrazy?" (fromthecollectionofDavidSchaefer)sawtheWaltDisney Mickey Mouse adventure Through the Mirror. My speculations explaining "mad as an adder" and yours jtuostcilfoyuidnsgmuantdi'lswmeeaennicnogun"tveernecrmeoduisbl"eareevibduetnccleoutdhsatpieintnheedr ADisslniegyhthloymeedivteiddevoerTshieonSpoirfitthosffMiilcmkeisy,nonwowavfaoiulnabdlaetimnatnhye termwas ever actuallyused. Perhaps areaderwill supply a supermarkets (where I found it) and, I suppose, at video citation and Knight Letter will make lexicographical his- stores. The whole tape runs 83 minutes, which is a lot of Mickey Mouse to take at one viewing, but Through the tory! Mirroris inthe firsthalfofit, so one's endurance isnotput I'm afraid you have not persuaded me to furl my protest to the ultimate test. banner in the matter ofthe American Heritage Dictionary entry. The fact that Dean Liddell and Rev. Dodgson were Charles Stats cordial does notjustify a major reference book in identify- Oak Park, Illinois ingAlice (Dodgson'sreal friend) asthe"youngdaughterof Thank you, Charles. The tape is also availablefor $23 a friend". Friendconnotes more to me than a pleasant co- through the Whole Toon Catalog, Facets Multi-Media, worker. IwouldpreferthatAlice becalled"achildfriend". 1517 W.Fullerton Ave., Chicago IL 60614; 1.800.331. Ifshe must be identified in relation to her (unnamed) fa- 6197. Thetapecontainssuchclassics asSteamboatMickey ther,Iwouldcallhertheyoungdaughterof"thedean",orof andThe Band Concert. But by all means, askfor the cata- "acolleague", oreven,ifneedby,of"aneighbor". OnwardI log. The Bunin, Svankmajer, and other Alices are to be march in my lonely crusade. found there, as well as the "Archive Edition" laserdisk of Thank you again for an increasingly stimulating newsletter Disney's AW, which contains seven hours ofadditional and for your gracious attention to my particular concerns. previously unreleased material. Thought you both might be interested to learn that White Gary Brockman Madison,CT Stone: the Alicepoems by Stephanie Bolsterjust won the GovernorGeneral'sAwardforpoetry(thetopCanadianLit- Youaremostwelcomeforthe"GirlwithLilacs"references; erary award). Itreceived glowingpraise. Iam verygladitmay inspireyou tovisitthe work inques- DaynaMcCausland tion, andwould be delighted to hear ofyour reaction! In the matter ofthe OED, Idon't believe we're "on the same . Deservedly so. Two poemsfrom this work have graced no reply by that time we will assume that ourpages (KL 54, p.5 and KL 57, p.18 which also has you do not wish to purchace copies. This ordering information on p.23). notice applies only to the edition listed, and may result in this edition going out of I was listening to the radio yesterday, and briefly caught print something on the news about there only being 12 books Please note that orders will not be pro- left ofthe original printing ofAlice in Wonderland. Or cessed unless any outstanding balance for something to that effect...I was wondering ifmine might books previously purchased has been paid in beworthanything? It'samediumbluebookwithpalegreen full. Such payment may accompany payment letters. It wouldn't be for sale, it was given to me by my for this order, [etc.] father, who received it from his father. I'm not sure when Thank you for your prompt attention. thefirstprintingwas,butmybookdoesn'thaveanydatesat Very truly yours, all in it. Itwaspublishedby Grossetand Dunlap. Vickie Woods Vice President and Contracts Director Thanks, [name withheld out ofmercy] Dear Vickie: please, please, prettyplease may I have the address to which this was sent? I have afew questions Ah, the unbearable lightness ofbeing.... for the author. Atidbithas fallenintomyhandswhichistoodelectablenot Queries to send to you! In recognition ofthe twenty-fifth anniversary ofour Soci- A friendisaneditoratPenguin/Putnam, andknowingofmy ety,AugustImholtzispreparingacommemorativepamphlet, loveofallthings Carroll, she sentme acopyoftheattached to be presented attheNovember '99 gathering (a copywill letter, which she came across at the office. She hastenedto go out to all current members not in attendance). Anyone assure me that this is no joke, this is an actual letter that havingmemorabilia(photographs, reminisences, andsoon) someone signed and mailed out. they would like to share should contact him at As you will see, it's a corker. I asked my friend ifI could [email protected] or usethe letteras longas I changed thenames, etc. She said I AugustImholtz didn'thavetoalterathing, andIcouldshowittowhomever 11935 BeltMsvDille Drive Ipleased. Shewassoappalledthatthishappened, Ithinkshe Beltsville 20705 feels it poetic justice ifmore people are party to the trav- In browsing "amazon.com", I ran across this rather louche esty. listing: Alice in Wonderland: A Masterpiece of Victorian Hopeyouenjoy! AndkeeptheKL issuescoming; everyone Pornography? by David Hunter, Gold Star Press, 1989; isawinner. It'sabouttheonlypublicationItrulyreadcover- ISBN: 0915153270. Has anyone read it? to-cover. Iamalsosearchingforavideocopy(PALorNTSC)ofDen- Best Regards nis Potter's ur-Dreamchild teleplay Alice (BBC1, 1965). ~ed. Andrew Sellon Brooklyn, New York Conferences and Calls forPapers Penguin Putnam Books for Young Readers TheL.C.S.Canadaisputtingtogetherachap-bookofessays. Lewis Carroll 8/20/98 Anyone interested in submitting an original 5-10 page pa- Re: Alice in Wonderland Carroll/Collins per on any aspect relating to Lewis Carroll, please send an Ladybird ISBN 0721456766 abstract or copy of the paper by March 15, 1999 to [email protected] or Fernando J. Soto, 360 Shaw Dear Lewis Carroll: Street, Toronto, ON Canada M6J 2X3 Due to a decrease in sales and lack of demand in recent months, we find it neces- Rina Litvin-Biberman ofMofet College in Tel Aviv, whose sary to reduce and sell of [sic] our inven- Hebrew translation ofthe Alice books is due this Spring, is tory of your book, as provided in your also organizing the first Lewis Carroll Conference to be contract. These copies will be sold 9/25/ held in Israel June 8 - 1Oth. Morton Cohen has been invited 98. to be the keynote speaker, but has not confirmed as yet. However, at this time, we am making copies Details will be forthcoming in futureKL issues, but anyone available to you at a special price. If you wish to order copies, for pricing interested in attending or presenting should contact her at information contact Severia Drake, Penguin rinabib@mofet. macam98.ac.il, or send a fax to Bet-Ariela Putnam Inc. [etc.] (the cultural department), c/o Mrs. Hava Liber, +972.3. Please let us know no later than 9/18/98 if 6919024. you wish to purchase copies. If we have had 10