Comments on: Letters from the Past

By: Ray Davis

Ray Davis — Tue, 12 Jul 2005 03:25:14 +0000

“Though I do think it only counts as Wayne’s World if it’s a rejoinder to yourself. Was that happening in Marston’s plays?”

Ah. Well. This is where my claim falls to the ground.

But can Marston at least get a little credit for launching a blank verse speech with “Um,”?

By: Ã…ka

Ã…ka — Sat, 09 Jul 2005 21:25:40 +0000

“Läst och tänkt i annien” means “read and thought in annien”, where annien is my “idioverse”, the universe as perceived through my eyes. It is mostly about fandom, books, physics and strange or peculiar things.

I was reflecting over the fact that annien seems to be inhabited by so many more men than women (i’m a physicist and sf fan), and that maybe the books i read are likewise unequally populated. at the same time I happened to see the link to you from mumpsimus, and threw it in together with the other things. i also liked the first letter, but quoted asimov because it tied in better with the science and science fiction theme. I want to avoid too long quotes.

That was it, i think. Just ask if you want to know anything more.

Thanks for making these letters available! I have sometimes read or heard about what kind of discussions that occured in the magazines, and as a piece of history it is fascinating. Now I just want to read some old letter columns about the role of science in society and literature, to see what kind of opinions people had on that.

By: Justine

Justine — Sat, 09 Jul 2005 15:04:07 +0000

More evidence of nothing new. Though I do think it only counts as Wayne’s World if it’s a rejoinder to yourself. Was that happening in Marston’s plays?

By: Ray Davis

Ray Davis — Sat, 09 Jul 2005 13:58:46 +0000

I’ve just been reading John Marston’s plays for the first time (a little tardily, since he was a contemporary of Shakespeare), and “Not.” is a frequent response or closer.

Marston wrote for a theater company of children-to-adolescents (the troupe aged as the years went on, like the Bowery Boys), so a Wayne’s World association might be made — except that the plays’ extreme filthiness reminds me more of South Park.

By: Justine

Justine — Fri, 08 Jul 2005 20:36:49 +0000

There ain’t nothing new! Not since Homer. In another Asimov letter from the late 30s, he writes something sarcastic (can’t remember what) and then follows it with: “Not!” I’d always thought that was a Wayne’s World thing.

By: JeremyT

JeremyT — Fri, 08 Jul 2005 20:28:03 +0000

I don’t know if that last letter included on the page is the final word on the discussion or not, but it looks to me as if Godwin’s Law was invoked–in 1939!