How terribly sad.  The boyhood home has been "run like a business" in
Hannibal since 1989 when the city leased it to The Mark Twain Home
Foundation. A retired Monsanto executive, a local real-estate millionaire,
and a local convenience store millionaire have led the group of
businesspeople.  They began charging a $6.00 admission fee and have opened
two additional retail outlets. History and reality are out the window.  They
tell a sanitized and rather silly Tom Sawyer story as the life of Sam
Clemens (our own Mickey Mouse). Attendance is about 1/3 what it was before
they operated the place -- but they are making a lot of money.
    One has to wonder what Disney would get out of a deal with Hartford.
What hand will they have in presenting the story?  What must be done for the
filthy lucre?
    Terrell