page 242 "[P]lease don"t start worrying about this": "[P]lease don"t start worrying about this": Roger Angell, letter to Donald Barthelme, June 9, 1964, Ma.n.u.scripts and Archives Division, New York Public Library. Roger Angell, letter to Donald Barthelme, June 9, 1964, Ma.n.u.scripts and Archives Division, New York Public Library.
page 242 "a mighty strange and disturbing piece": "a mighty strange and disturbing piece": Roger Angell, letter to Donald Barthelme, June 28, 1964, Ma.n.u.scripts and Archives Division, New York Public Library. Roger Angell, letter to Donald Barthelme, June 28, 1964, Ma.n.u.scripts and Archives Division, New York Public Library.
page 242 "I spent a happy fifteen minutes": "I spent a happy fifteen minutes": Roger Angell, letter to Donald Barthelme, August 18, 1964, Ma.n.u.scripts and Archives Division, New York Public Library. Roger Angell, letter to Donald Barthelme, August 18, 1964, Ma.n.u.scripts and Archives Division, New York Public Library.
page 242 "Dear Reader": "Dear Reader": Herman Gollob, letter accompanying the "Advance Preview" of Herman Gollob, letter accompanying the "Advance Preview" of Come Back, Dr. Caligari Come Back, Dr. Caligari, published by Little, Brown, April 1, 1964.
page 243 The book jacket, designed by Milton Glaser: The book jacket, designed by Milton Glaser: "Milt baby is the best," Don had written to Herman Gollob in an undated letter (1963); Special Collections, University of Delaware, Morris Library, Newark, Delaware. "Milt baby is the best," Don had written to Herman Gollob in an undated letter (1963); Special Collections, University of Delaware, Morris Library, Newark, Delaware.
page 243 Each story came densely layered: Each story came densely layered: Don had taken care to arrange the collection for "[c]ontinuity of...mood and attack," for "tempo and change of pace and similar glittering abstractions." He joked with Gollob, saying, "I... majored in English" (letter to Herman Gollob, July 16, 1963, Special Collections, University of Delaware, Morris Library, Newark, Delaware). Don had taken care to arrange the collection for "[c]ontinuity of...mood and attack," for "tempo and change of pace and similar glittering abstractions." He joked with Gollob, saying, "I... majored in English" (letter to Herman Gollob, July 16, 1963, Special Collections, University of Delaware, Morris Library, Newark, Delaware).
page 243 mere "entertainment"; "regiment...people"; whatever "is not physiologically necessary": mere "entertainment"; "regiment...people"; whatever "is not physiologically necessary": Henry Flynt, cited at henryflynt.org/aesthetics. Henry Flynt, cited at henryflynt.org/aesthetics.
page 244 "MAN DIES!": "MAN DIES!": This and subsequent quotes from "Marie, Marie, Hold on Tight" are from Donald Barthelme, This and subsequent quotes from "Marie, Marie, Hold on Tight" are from Donald Barthelme, Come Back, Dr. Caligari Come Back, Dr. Caligari (Boston: Little, Brown, 1964), 115122. (Boston: Little, Brown, 1964), 115122.
page 244 "minor artist": "minor artist": This and subsequent quotes from "A Shower of Gold" are from Donald Barthelme, This and subsequent quotes from "A Shower of Gold" are from Donald Barthelme, Come Back, Dr. Caligari Come Back, Dr. Caligari, 173183.
28. Old Fogey page 246 The New York Review of Books The New York Review of Books debuted: debuted: A useful source regarding New Yorkrelated cultural history is James Trager"s A useful source regarding New Yorkrelated cultural history is James Trager"s The New York Chronology The New York Chronology (New York: HarperResource, 2003). (New York: HarperResource, 2003).
page 247 "very talented young writer": "very talented young writer": Renata Adler, in an unsigned review of Renata Adler, in an unsigned review of Come Back, Dr. Caligari Come Back, Dr. Caligari, The New Yorker The New Yorker, June 13, 1964, 141.
page 247 "cratered landscape of the broken heart": "cratered landscape of the broken heart": Jack Kroll (unsigned), "Peers and Mutations," Jack Kroll (unsigned), "Peers and Mutations," Newsweek Newsweek, April 13, 1964, 9798.
page 247 " "existentialism [into] as popular an American inst.i.tution": R. V. Ca.s.sill, "Don"t Ignore a Vision," R. V. Ca.s.sill, "Don"t Ignore a Vision," New York Times Book Review New York Times Book Review, April 12, 1964, 36.
page 247 Robert M.Adams...claimed: Robert M.Adams...claimed: Robert M. Adams, "New Short Stories," Robert M. Adams, "New Short Stories," The New York Review of Books The New York Review of Books 2, no. 6 (1964). 2, no. 6 (1964).
page 247 "a member of the advance guard": "a member of the advance guard": Granville Hicks, "Sad Secrets and Absurdities," Granville Hicks, "Sad Secrets and Absurdities," The Sat.u.r.day Review The Sat.u.r.day Review, April 4, 1964, 2324.
page 247 "Mr. Barthelme has regarded each construction": "Mr. Barthelme has regarded each construction": Hilary Corke, "Come Back, Mr. Barthelme," Hilary Corke, "Come Back, Mr. Barthelme," The New Republic The New Republic, May 2, 1964, 1819.
page 247 "sold well enough to earn out its modest advance": "sold well enough to earn out its modest advance": Herman Gollob, Herman Gollob, Me and Shakespeare: Adventures with the Bard Me and Shakespeare: Adventures with the Bard (New York: Doubleday, 2002), 170. (New York: Doubleday, 2002), 170.
page 247 "so personal and so elusive": "so personal and so elusive": Roger Angell, letter to Donald Barthelme, August 18, 1964, Ma.n.u.scripts and Archives Division, New York Public Library. Roger Angell, letter to Donald Barthelme, August 18, 1964, Ma.n.u.scripts and Archives Division, New York Public Library.
page 247 "With "With The New Yorker, The New Yorker, Don found himself playing in the big leagues": Don found himself playing in the big leagues": Phillip Lopate, in a conversation with the author, October 29, 2004. Phillip Lopate, in a conversation with the author, October 29, 2004.
page 248 "What helped Don the most hurt him the most": "What helped Don the most hurt him the most": Jerome Charyn, in a conversation with the author, June 14, 2004. Jerome Charyn, in a conversation with the author, June 14, 2004.
page 248 "Barthelme was a good example": "Barthelme was a good example": Jerome Klinkowitz, Jerome Klinkowitz, Keeping Literary Company: Working with Writers Since the Sixties Keeping Literary Company: Working with Writers Since the Sixties (Albany: State University of New York Press, 1998), 196. (Albany: State University of New York Press, 1998), 196.
page 248 Don "sold out by publishing in Don "sold out by publishing in The New Yorker The New Yorker": Roger Angell, in a conversation with the author, May 27, 2004. Roger Angell, in a conversation with the author, May 27, 2004.
page 248 "Don was very aware of celebrity": "Don was very aware of celebrity": Phillip Lopate, in a conversation with the author, October 29, 2004. Phillip Lopate, in a conversation with the author, October 29, 2004.
page 248 "Q. Is purity quantifiable?": "Q. Is purity quantifiable?": Donald Barthelme, Donald Barthelme, City Life City Life (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1970), 77. (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1970), 77.
page 249 "Don perfectly matched "Don perfectly matched The New Yorker The New Yorker tradition": tradition": Phillip Lopate, in a conversation with the author, October 29, 2004. Phillip Lopate, in a conversation with the author, October 29, 2004.
page 249 "[The popular] notion of the avantgarde": "[The popular] notion of the avantgarde": J. D. O"Hara, "Donald Barthelme: The Art of Fiction LXVI," J. D. O"Hara, "Donald Barthelme: The Art of Fiction LXVI," Paris Review Paris Review 80 (1981): 187. 80 (1981): 187.
page 249 "Roger was (and still is)": "Roger was (and still is)": Mark Mirsky, in his remembrance of Robert Creeley, posted at conjunctions.com/creeleytribute.htm. Mark Mirsky, in his remembrance of Robert Creeley, posted at conjunctions.com/creeleytribute.htm.
29. Copenhagen page 250 "get [his] money for the day": "get [his] money for the day": This and subsequent quotes from "Can We Talk" are from Donald Barthelme, This and subsequent quotes from "Can We Talk" are from Donald Barthelme, Unspeakable Practices, Unnatural Acts Unspeakable Practices, Unnatural Acts (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1968), 103106. (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1968), 103106.
pages 250251 "Now I would know better" "Now I would know better" to to "One of the things that makes good fiction": "One of the things that makes good fiction": Lynn Nesbit, in a conversation with the author, July 30, 2007. Lynn Nesbit, in a conversation with the author, July 30, 2007.
page 251 "He called and invited me for a drink" "He called and invited me for a drink" to to "Either he would cook": "Either he would cook": Renata Adler, Renata Adler, Gone: The Last Days of The New Yorker Gone: The Last Days of The New Yorker (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1999), 78. (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1999), 78.
page 251 "triumph": "triumph": This and subsequent quotes from "The Police Band" are from Barthelme, This and subsequent quotes from "The Police Band" are from Barthelme, Unspeakable Practices, Unnatural Acts Unspeakable Practices, Unnatural Acts, 7376.
page 252 "gigantic with gin": "gigantic with gin": This and subsequent quotes from "A Picture History of the War" are from ibid., 131144. This and subsequent quotes from "A Picture History of the War" are from ibid., 131144.
page 252 "an angry man dragg[ing] his father along the ground": "an angry man dragg[ing] his father along the ground": Gertrude Stein, Gertrude Stein, The Making of Americans The Making of Americans, in Selected Writings of Gertrude Stein Selected Writings of Gertrude Stein, ed. Carl Van Vechten (New York: Vintage Books, 1972), 261.
page 253 commas that "tiptoed into "The Police Band" ": commas that "tiptoed into "The Police Band" ": Roger Angell, letter to Donald Barthelme, August 26, 1964, Ma.n.u.scripts and Archive Division, New York Public Library. Roger Angell, letter to Donald Barthelme, August 26, 1964, Ma.n.u.scripts and Archive Division, New York Public Library.
page 253 "travel because he "had not been anywhere" ": "travel because he "had not been anywhere" ": Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme: The Genesis of a Cool Sound Donald Barthelme: The Genesis of a Cool Sound (College Station: Texas A & M University Press, 2001), 151. (College Station: Texas A & M University Press, 2001), 151.
page 253 "get away from Lynn": "get away from Lynn": Roger Angell, in a conversation with the author, December 6, 2006. Roger Angell, in a conversation with the author, December 6, 2006.
page 253 "I was ready to have children" "I was ready to have children" to to "Anyway, he and my friend Carol": "Anyway, he and my friend Carol": Lynn Nesbit, in a conversation with the author, July 30, 2007. Lynn Nesbit, in a conversation with the author, July 30, 2007.
page 254 "He was vacationing in Europe": "He was vacationing in Europe": Anne Barthelme, in a conversation with the author, June 19, 2004. Anne Barthelme, in a conversation with the author, June 19, 2004.
pages 254255 "small but pleasant flat" "small but pleasant flat" to to "a girl named Birgit": "a girl named Birgit": Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme Donald Barthelme, 153155.
page 255 "I"ve met this crazy Danish lady" "I"ve met this crazy Danish lady" to to "ethereal, she was beautiful": "ethereal, she was beautiful": Anne Barthelme, in a conversation with the author, June 19, 2004. Anne Barthelme, in a conversation with the author, June 19, 2004.
page 256 "I got letters from him": "I got letters from him": Lynn Nesbit, in a conversation with the author, July 30, 2007. Lynn Nesbit, in a conversation with the author, July 30, 2007.
30. Uprisings page 257 "Edward put his hands on Pia"s b.r.e.a.s.t.s": "Edward put his hands on Pia"s b.r.e.a.s.t.s": This and subsequent quotes from "Edward and Pia" are from Donald Barthelme, This and subsequent quotes from "Edward and Pia" are from Donald Barthelme, Unspeakable Practices, Unnatural Acts Unspeakable Practices, Unnatural Acts (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1968), 7788. (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1968), 7788.
page 257 "Please do not confuse my fiction with my life": "Please do not confuse my fiction with my life": This and all subsequent quotes in this chapter from the correspondence between Donald Barthelme and Roger Angell in December 1964 and during 1965 are from the letters in the Ma.n.u.scripts and Archives Division, New York Public Library. This and all subsequent quotes in this chapter from the correspondence between Donald Barthelme and Roger Angell in December 1964 and during 1965 are from the letters in the Ma.n.u.scripts and Archives Division, New York Public Library.
page 257 "gray and dismal"; "hordes of Indians and Frenchmen and Italians": "gray and dismal"; "hordes of Indians and Frenchmen and Italians": Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme: The Genesis of a Cool Sound Donald Barthelme: The Genesis of a Cool Sound (College Station: Texas A & M University Press, 2001), 154. (College Station: Texas A & M University Press, 2001), 154.
pages 258259 "soft-footed in" "soft-footed in" to to "no other Intelligence": "no other Intelligence": ibid. ibid.
page 261 "long struggles": "long struggles": Roger Angell, letter to Lynn Nesbit, February 10, 1965, Ma.n.u.scripts and Archives Division, New York Public Library. Roger Angell, letter to Lynn Nesbit, February 10, 1965, Ma.n.u.scripts and Archives Division, New York Public Library.
page 262 "emotionally important": "emotionally important": "Interview with Charles Ruas and Judith Sherman, 1975," in "Interview with Charles Ruas and Judith Sherman, 1975," in Not-Knowing: The Essays and Interviews Not-Knowing: The Essays and Interviews, ed. Kim Herzinger (New York: Random House, 1997), 231.
page 262 "We defended the city as best we could": "We defended the city as best we could": This and subsequent quotes from the "The Indian Uprising" are from Barthelme, This and subsequent quotes from the "The Indian Uprising" are from Barthelme, Unspeakable Practices, Unnatural Acts Unspeakable Practices, Unnatural Acts, 312.
page 263 "civilization" fighting "savages": "civilization" fighting "savages": See, for example, Walter Evans, "Comanches and Civilization in Donald Barthelme"s "The Indian Uprising," " See, for example, Walter Evans, "Comanches and Civilization in Donald Barthelme"s "The Indian Uprising," " Arizona Quarterly Arizona Quarterly 42, no. 1 (1986): 45. 42, no. 1 (1986): 45.
page 263 Other critics read the story: Other critics read the story: See, for example, Maclin Boc.o.c.k, " "The Indian Uprising" or Donald Barthelme"s Strange Object Covered with Fur," See, for example, Maclin Boc.o.c.k, " "The Indian Uprising" or Donald Barthelme"s Strange Object Covered with Fur," Fiction International Fiction International 4, no. 5 (1975): 134145. 4, no. 5 (1975): 134145.
page 263 Other readers have noted: Other readers have noted: See, for example, John Domini, "Donald Barthelme: The Modernist Uprising," See, for example, John Domini, "Donald Barthelme: The Modernist Uprising," Southwest Review Southwest Review 75, no. 2 (1990): 95112. 75, no. 2 (1990): 95112.
page 264 "meant...disembowelling" the old city: "meant...disembowelling" the old city: Baron Georges-Eugene Haussmann quoted in T. J. Clark, Baron Georges-Eugene Haussmann quoted in T. J. Clark, The Painting of Modern Life The Painting of Modern Life (Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1984), 39. (Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1984), 39.
page 264 "The Savages of Cooper": "The Savages of Cooper": Paul Feval quoted in Sh.e.l.ley Rice, Paul Feval quoted in Sh.e.l.ley Rice, Parisian Views Parisian Views (Cambridge, Ma.s.sachusetts: MIT Press, 1997), 75. (Cambridge, Ma.s.sachusetts: MIT Press, 1997), 75.
page 264 "without turnings, without chance perspectives": "without turnings, without chance perspectives": Clark, Clark,The Painting of Modern Life, 35.
page 265 "poisonous breath of civilization": "poisonous breath of civilization": Paul Lafargue, Paul Lafargue, The Right to Be Lazy The Right to Be Lazy (1883; reprint, Chicago: Charles H. Kerr Publishing Company, 1975), 31. (1883; reprint, Chicago: Charles H. Kerr Publishing Company, 1975), 31.
page 265 "The white men are landing!": "The white men are landing!": Arthur Rimbaud, "Mauvais Sang," in Arthur Rimbaud, "Mauvais Sang," in A Season in h.e.l.l and the Drunken Boat A Season in h.e.l.l and the Drunken Boat, trans. Louise Varese (New York: New Directions, 1961), 19.
page 265 "Oh that clown band": "Oh that clown band": Donald Barthelme, Donald Barthelme, Forty Stories Forty Stories (New York: Putnam, 1987), 232. (New York: Putnam, 1987), 232.
pages 265266 "overturned carriages,"; "prevent enemy forces from circulating": "overturned carriages,"; "prevent enemy forces from circulating": Gustave Paul Cluseret, Gustave Paul Cluseret, Memoires du general Cluseret Memoires du general Cluseret, volume 2 (Paris: Jules Levy, 1887), 274, 287.
page 266 "make conscious the unconscious tendencies": "make conscious the unconscious tendencies": Kristin Ross, Kristin Ross, The Emergence of Social s.p.a.ce: Rimbaud and the Paris Commune The Emergence of Social s.p.a.ce: Rimbaud and the Paris Commune (Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1988), 3839. (Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1988), 3839.
page 266 "drawing-room fictions" "drawing-room fictions" to to "in command of the situation": "in command of the situation": Philip Rahv, Philip Rahv, Essays on Literature and Politics Essays on Literature and Politics, ed. Arabel J. Porter and Andrew J. Drosin (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1978), 35. Rahv"s essay "Paleface and Redskin" first appeared in The Kenyon Review The Kenyon Review 1, no. 3 (1939). 1, no. 3 (1939).
page 267 "vanguard writer": "vanguard writer": Harold Rosenberg, "The Stockade Syndrome" in Harold Rosenberg, "The Stockade Syndrome" in Location Location 1, no. 1 (1963): 5. 1, no. 1 (1963): 5.
page 267 Don"s grammatical battles: Don"s grammatical battles: At one point in the story, Don"s narrator "nonevaluate[s]" language "as "Korzybski instructed." This reference grounds the story, in part, in a specific theory of grammar that is linked to military violence. At one point in the story, Don"s narrator "nonevaluate[s]" language "as "Korzybski instructed." This reference grounds the story, in part, in a specific theory of grammar that is linked to military violence.
Alfred Korzybski (p.r.o.nounced Kashibski Kashibski) was born in Poland in 1879. In World War I, he joined the Russian army, where he served as a battlefield intelligence officer. Later, he claimed that his theory of language was an outgrowth of his experience of war. "My military experiences gave me a very serious insight into...those endless historical disasters which have beset mankind...and sharpened my awareness of the helplessness of the old evaluations...of the "nature of man," " he said.
According to Korzybski, our "old evaluations" are based on false a.s.sumptions enforced by language, whose grammatical structures are too limited to encompa.s.s reality"s complexities. The human nervous system is multidimensional, multidirectional, and involves emotional, neurological, semantic, and behavioral responses to the world. Yet language is stuck in the limited cause and effect of the subjectpredicate form; thus, it reduces the world to artificial categories.
The gap between reality and our false linguistic view of it creates "semantic phantoms" with a "savage magic" to confound and disrupt our lives, and add to our "fears and worries." Korzybski said that "many symptoms such as some... "s.e.x" disorders...migraines, [and] alcoholism...have a neuro-semantic and neurolinguistic origin."
The only way to ward off these "phantoms" is to "reject cause and effect." Cause and effect is "unnatural" and not at all "similar to the structure of the world." We must learn to embrace the "un-speakable." (Don included "The Indian Uprising" in a collection ent.i.tled Unspeakable Practices, Unnatural Acts Unspeakable Practices, Unnatural Acts. This t.i.tle echoes a speech in Shakespeare"s Hamlet Hamlet, as well as Korzybski.) If we do not "part company" with cause and effect, we will "continue in the prevailing chaos," Korzybski said. We must "non-evaluate" the old standards, and appreciate the world"s "asymmetrical relations." We must adopt a new language that embraces the "infinite velocity of nervous impulses [which]...spread instantaneously in no time."
Accepting Korzybski"s challenge, Don wrote, "Strings of language extend in every direction to bind the world into a rushing, ribald whole."
Korzybski noted that, more than other peoples, the "white race" will have trouble accepting this new language, because it has invested so much in falsely "logical" structures.
At the end of "The Indian Uprising," Don"s narrator stares into the "savage black eyes" of phantomlike Comanches as an apocalyptic rain falls over "neat rows of houses in the subdivisions" (an image reminiscent of the storm that ends The Waste Land The Waste Land).
See Alfred Korzybski, Manhood of Humanity Manhood of Humanity (Lakeville, Connecticut: International Non-Aristotelian Library Publishing Company, 1929), vvi; (Lakeville, Connecticut: International Non-Aristotelian Library Publishing Company, 1929), vvi; Science and Sanity Science and Sanity (1933; reprint, Lakeville, Connecticut: International Non-Aristotelian Library Publishing Company, 1958), 198199, x.x.xvii; (1933; reprint, Lakeville, Connecticut: International Non-Aristotelian Library Publishing Company, 1958), 198199, x.x.xvii; Time-Binding Time-Binding (Lakeville, Connecticut: Inst.i.tute of General Semantics, 1949), 1; (Lakeville, Connecticut: Inst.i.tute of General Semantics, 1949), 1; Science and Sanity Science and Sanity, 218, 59, x.x.xvi, 192.
page 269 only "promising young writer": only "promising young writer": Tom Wolfe, Tom Wolfe, Hooking Up Hooking Up (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2000), 278. (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2000), 278.
page 269 "I am not well": "I am not well": This and subsequent quotes from "The Game" are from Donald Barthelme, This and subsequent quotes from "The Game" are from Donald Barthelme, Unspeakable Practices, Unnatural Acts Unspeakable Practices, Unnatural Acts, 109115.
31. A Village Homecoming page 272 "lease is up on the apartment": "lease is up on the apartment": This and subsequent quotes from Don"s letters to Helen Barthelme and the Barthelme family are from Helen Moore Barthelme, This and subsequent quotes from Don"s letters to Helen Barthelme and the Barthelme family are from Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme: The Genesis of a Cool Sound Donald Barthelme: The Genesis of a Cool Sound (College Station: Texas A & M University Press, 2001), 156159. (College Station: Texas A & M University Press, 2001), 156159.
page 273 "wrong, wrong, wrong"; "I don"t think you have to do this": "wrong, wrong, wrong"; "I don"t think you have to do this": Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme Donald Barthelme, 157.
page 273 "I am tired of tiny stories however beautiful": "I am tired of tiny stories however beautiful": Donald Barthelme, letter to Roger Angell, undated (1965), Ma.n.u.scripts and Archives Division, New York Public Library. Donald Barthelme, letter to Roger Angell, undated (1965), Ma.n.u.scripts and Archives Division, New York Public Library.
page 273 "I told him to get rid of the kid": "I told him to get rid of the kid": Herman Gollob, in a conversation with the author, April 19, 2007. Herman Gollob, in a conversation with the author, April 19, 2007.
page 273 "We are now in a three-way snit": "We are now in a three-way snit": Donald Barthelme, letter to Roger Angell, undated (1965), Ma.n.u.scripts and Archives Division, New York Public Library. Donald Barthelme, letter to Roger Angell, undated (1965), Ma.n.u.scripts and Archives Division, New York Public Library.
page 273 "I am going to be 45"; "You are writing so much and so well": "I am going to be 45"; "You are writing so much and so well": Roger Angell, letter to Donald Barthelme, June 1, 1965, Ma.n.u.scripts and Archives Division, New York Public Library. Roger Angell, letter to Donald Barthelme, June 1, 1965, Ma.n.u.scripts and Archives Division, New York Public Library.
page 274 "If you don"t like the laparotomy": "If you don"t like the laparotomy": Donald Barthelme, letter to William Maxwell, August 11, 1965, Ma.n.u.scripts and Archives Division, New York Public Library. Donald Barthelme, letter to William Maxwell, August 11, 1965, Ma.n.u.scripts and Archives Division, New York Public Library.
page 274 "against future work"; "[Don"s] indebtedness": "against future work"; "[Don"s] indebtedness": Roger Angell, letter to Lynn Nesbit, October 4, 1965, Ma.n.u.scripts and Archives Division, New York Public Library. Roger Angell, letter to Lynn Nesbit, October 4, 1965, Ma.n.u.scripts and Archives Division, New York Public Library.
page 274 "manner was like that of a child"; "may suddenly step into the street"; " "something" happened to her in Denmark": "manner was like that of a child"; "may suddenly step into the street"; " "something" happened to her in Denmark": Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme Donald Barthelme, 161, 172.
page 274 "Edward walked out of the room": "Edward walked out of the room": Donald Barthelme, Donald Barthelme, Unspeakable Practices, Unnatural Acts Unspeakable Practices, Unnatural Acts (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1968), 8081. (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1968), 8081.
page 275 "I am sorry that I did not treat" "I am sorry that I did not treat" to to "house is out of the question, really": "house is out of the question, really": Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme Donald Barthelme, 158.
page 275 "I feel [happy] about nothing": "I feel [happy] about nothing": Donald Barthelme, letter to Lynn Nesbit, undated (1965); letter courtesy of Lynn Nesbit. Donald Barthelme, letter to Lynn Nesbit, undated (1965); letter courtesy of Lynn Nesbit.
page 276 "Otherwise I will have to adopt it later": "Otherwise I will have to adopt it later": Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme Donald Barthelme, 159.
page 276 "We both were reluctant": "We both were reluctant": ibid. ibid.
page 276 "You"ll see that it"s not "You"ll see that it"s not Indian Uprising Indian Uprising" to to "I gave him the honorarium": "I gave him the honorarium": Herman Gollob, Herman Gollob, Me and Shakespeare: Adventures with the Bard Me and Shakespeare: Adventures with the Bard (New York: Doubleday, 2002), 170. (New York: Doubleday, 2002), 170.
page 276 Birgit was about to pop: Birgit was about to pop: Herman Gollob, in a conversation with the author, April 19, 2007. Herman Gollob, in a conversation with the author, April 19, 2007.
page 276 The Manhattan to which Don returned: The Manhattan to which Don returned: For details regarding events in New York at this time, I have drawn upon information in James Trager, For details regarding events in New York at this time, I have drawn upon information in James Trager, The New York Chronology The New York Chronology (New York: HarperResource, 2003), 657662. (New York: HarperResource, 2003), 657662.
pages 276277 "quiet block" "quiet block" to to "The war had come home": "The war had come home": Roger Angell, "New York, 1967," Roger Angell, "New York, 1967," The New Yorker The New Yorker, June 12, 2006, 54.
page 277 "When a child is born": "When a child is born": This and subsequent quotes from "See the Moon?" are from Donald Barthelme, This and subsequent quotes from "See the Moon?" are from Donald Barthelme, Unspeakable Practices, Unnatural Acts Unspeakable Practices, Unnatural Acts, 160170.
page 278 "there would be no doubt how electric technology shapes": "there would be no doubt how electric technology shapes": Marshall McLuhan, "McLuhan: A Dialogue," in Marshall McLuhan, "McLuhan: A Dialogue," in McLuhan: Hot and Cool McLuhan: Hot and Cool, ed. Gerald Emanuel Stearn (Toronto: Signet Books, 1969), 272.
page 278 "could have been an artist"s idea": "could have been an artist"s idea": Billy Kluver, cited in Catherine Morris, Billy Kluver, cited in Catherine Morris, 9 Evenings Reconsidered: Art, Theatre and Engineering, 1966 9 Evenings Reconsidered: Art, Theatre and Engineering, 1966 (Cambridge, Ma.s.sachusetts: (Cambridge, Ma.s.sachusetts: MIT List MIT List Visual Center, 2006), 32. Visual Center, 2006), 32.
page 278 "fused glance": "fused glance": This and subsequent quotes from "City Life" are from Donald Barthelme, This and subsequent quotes from "City Life" are from Donald Barthelme, Sixty Stories Sixty Stories (New York: Putnam, 1981), 158159. (New York: Putnam, 1981), 158159.
page 279 "The more you create village conditions": "The more you create village conditions": McLuhan, in McLuhan, in McLuhan McLuhan, ed. Stearn, 272.
page 279 "golden time of freedom": "golden time of freedom": Robert Lowell, cited in Jonathan Raban, "September 11: The View from the West," Robert Lowell, cited in Jonathan Raban, "September 11: The View from the West," The New York Review of Books The New York Review of Books 52, no. 14 (2005): 4. 52, no. 14 (2005): 4.
page 279 "You have a lovely baby": "You have a lovely baby": Roger Angell, letter to Donald Barthelme, January or late December [1965], Ma.n.u.scripts and Archives Division, New York Public Library. Roger Angell, letter to Donald Barthelme, January or late December [1965], Ma.n.u.scripts and Archives Division, New York Public Library.
32. Snow White Snow White and the Summer of Love and the Summer of Love page 284 "She is a tall dark beauty": "She is a tall dark beauty": Donald Barthelme, "Snow White," Donald Barthelme, "Snow White," The New Yorker The New Yorker, February 18, 1967, 38.
page 285 The city felt livelier: The city felt livelier: For background detail, I have drawn on information in James Trager, For background detail, I have drawn on information in James Trager, The New York Chronology The New York Chronology (New York: HarperResource, 2003), 665670. (New York: HarperResource, 2003), 665670.
page 286 "One reason that Don could be so spare": "One reason that Don could be so spare": Kirkpatrick Sale, "A Tribute to Donald Barthelme," Kirkpatrick Sale, "A Tribute to Donald Barthelme," Poets and Writers Magazine Poets and Writers Magazine, March/April 1990, 10.