“Substitute
'damn' every time you're inclined to write 'very;' your editor will delete it
and the writing will be just as it should be.”
Mark Twain
Curious facts about:
He was born and
died when Comet Halley was visible in the sky. Twain once noted: I came in with Halley’s Comet
in 1835. It is coming again next year (1910), and I expect to go out with it.
It will be the greatest disappointment of my life if I don’t.” He got his wish.
He died on April 21, 1910, just two days after Halley’s comet had reached its
point closest to the Sun. It was the second death he predicted, the first being
his brother’s.
Samuel Clemens tried out several
pseudonyms, including Rambler, W Epaminondas Adrastus Blab, and Josh, before
settling on Mark Twain (the phrase used by Mississippi River steamboat crews when
measuring water depth).
Twain briefly
served with a Confederate militia. In June 1861, shortly after the Civil War
began, 25-year-old Clemens joined the Marion Rangers, a pro-Confederate
militia. Although his family had owned a slave when he was a boy, Clemens
didn’t have strong ideological convictions about the war and probably enlisted
with the militia primarily out of loyalty to his Southern roots.
Bermuda was always a favorite of
Twain’s getaways.
I adore Mark Twain! One of my favorite literary characters of all time is Twain's Huckleberry Finn. In addition to being a brilliant writer, Twain had an amazing sense of humor. So glad he chose the pseudonym he did. It fits him!
ReplyDeleteI love his sense of humor too, Mae.
DeleteWhat a pity he has no offspring and his kin perished!
Thank you for checking the post!
What a wonderfully insightful writer you have featured today! I adore many of his quotes and literary works. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteGlad to see you back, Flossie!
DeleteI thought it right to feature this monumental author, representative of American literature as Shakespeare is for the British one.