Kevin, thank you for this.   Still it was such a delight to see one of ours on a Sunday morning show.  John, we're proud of you. We'll stay tuned. 

Sent from my iPad

> On Oct 1, 2017, at 11:20 AM, Kevin Mac Donnell <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> 
> I was happy to see John Bird get the recognition that he got, but it wasn't 
> the recognition that he deserved. There was no mention that he wrote a far 
> superior ending to the story consistent with Twain's plot, characters, and 
> themes. There was no mention of exactly how Random House/Doubleday co-opted 
> (a much politer word than they deserve) the project in a mad scramble to 
> exploit Mark Twain's name and foist off on an unsuspecting public a work by 
> the Steads. I have no problem with the Steads; they were just following 
> orders. But did anybody give them orders to toss Twain's themes out the 
> window and pretend that making Johnny black was the only change they made 
> that matters? I must also admit, sadly, that I'm disappointed by those who 
> are willing to profit by all of this. Those who object are dismissed as 
> "purists"--the word actually used in the report. This brings me back to the 
> conclusion of my review: some readers will find the story charming, but it 
> isn't Mark Twain doing the charming. Using Twain's name to sell this book is 
> execrable (to borrow a favorite word of Twain's).
> 
> Twainians are grateful that Twain did not follow the custom of so many 
> authors and destroy his unpublished manuscripts, but if you have ever 
> wondered why so many authors do so, you need look no further than this 
> vulgar breach of literary ethics. This is not a Twain't; it's just a twaint.
> 
> Kevin
> @
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> 
> -----Original Message----- 
> From: Barbara Schmidt
> Sent: Sunday, October 01, 2017 9:44 AM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: Piece on Mark Twain Fairy Tale Tomorrow
> 
> I think this is a case of a publisher pushing Mark Twain's name off on an
> unsuspecting public.  As Kevin Mac Donnell would call it -- the present
> fairy tale is a "Twain't."   I think there is a lot more to the
> "oleomargarine" connection and its influence on Twain's later works.  I am
> looking forward to John Bird's scholarly interpretation along with the
> publication of the full manuscript.
> 
> Barb