For anyone who is interested in Josh Billings: I live 10 miles from Norwalk OH where Henry Wheeler Shaw lived for a few years before he became Billings. Apparently, Shaw was a ne'er-do-well when he was younger and his Father sent him out here to live with his brother or uncle. He worked on the family farm and, I believe, in a store. I can put you in touch with the Norwalk town historian who knows the whole story. On 10/21/2020 9:32 AM, Lee, Judith wrote: > It *is* a fabulous letter, addressed to Partington— so probably Benjamin Shillaber. Great stuff about the rigors of the platform, and this lovely line: “Humor is too rare to be quarried out by the ton, the demand is always so great that the supply is sure to glut the market with unripe goods.” > > Thanks, Leslie! > Judith > > > Judith Yaross Lee, Ph.D. > Distinguished Professor Emerita > > School of Communication Studies > Ohio University > Schoonover Center 400 > Athens, Ohio 45701 > T: 740-593-4828 > > My newest book: Seeing MAD: Essays on MAD Magazine's Humor and Legacy < https://upress.missouri.edu/9780826222138/seeing-mad/ <https://upress.missouri.edu/9780826222138/seeing-mad/> > > > On Oct 21, 2020, at 8:42 AM, Leslie MYRICK <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > > On the topic of autographs/letters, for anyone working on Josh Billings, > there is a fantastic six-page letter from Oct 1868 for sale by bid, with an > estimate of $100-150 (now at 90). > > https://nam03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.alexautographs.com%2Fsearch-results%3Fquery%3Djosh%2Bbillings&data=04%7C01%7Cleej%40OHIO.EDU%7C1a2163361ec447f3202408d875beb69a%7Cf3308007477c4a70888934611817c55a%7C0%7C0%7C637388809254505854%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&sdata=gfjfH%2FeaMe0w7bL1nzOIiBisWiYWG%2Bwl%2Fhv84tw7B8E%3D&reserved=0 > > On Tue, Oct 20, 2020 at 9:22 AM Hal Bush <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > > anyone out there looking for that perfect holiday gift for me?? > > > https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/18/arts/design/autographs-auction-twain-lincoln.html > [ > https://nam03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fstatic01.nyt.com%2Fimages%2F2020%2F10%2F18%2Farts%2F18auction-autographs-05%2F18auction-autographs-05-facebookJumbo.jpg&data=04%7C01%7Cleej%40OHIO.EDU%7C1a2163361ec447f3202408d875beb69a%7Cf3308007477c4a70888934611817c55a%7C0%7C0%7C637388809254505854%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&sdata=atZ6HfXWC53U9Yh9fDfnX6S3NXZ55NNULlopfoqBvT0%3D&reserved=0 > ]< > https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/18/arts/design/autographs-auction-twain-lincoln.html > > A Mysterious Autograph Hound’s Book Is Up for Auction - The New York Times< > https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/18/arts/design/autographs-auction-twain-lincoln.html > > The little book is a relic from the years after the Civil War, when > autograph-crazy Americans collected signatures, a central building block of > identity before fingerprinting, Social Security ... > http://www.nytimes.com/ > > > > > _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ > > > Dr. Hal Bush > > Professor of English & > > Director of the Undergraduate Program > > Saint Louis University > > [log in to unmask] > > 314-977-3616 > > https://nam03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fhalbush.com%2F&data=04%7C01%7Cleej%40OHIO.EDU%7C1a2163361ec447f3202408d875beb69a%7Cf3308007477c4a70888934611817c55a%7C0%7C0%7C637388809254505854%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&sdata=KhbFHIGSWOQXV7WQh6P9Qb46%2BhsyTpVNWH%2Bt%2FZqFCGg%3D&reserved=0 > > author blog: https://nam03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.patheos.com%2Fblogs%2Fspiritualcoffee&data=04%7C01%7Cleej%40OHIO.EDU%7C1a2163361ec447f3202408d875beb69a%7Cf3308007477c4a70888934611817c55a%7C0%7C0%7C637388809254505854%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&sdata=hHb2eYXX%2BFo3JpGFRj4ctaxb9weESkkNSkYin0%2BN3J0%3D&reserved=0< > https://nam03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.patheos.com%2Fblogs%2Fspiritualcoffee%2F2020%2F08%2Fspiritual-coffee-and-the-path-toward-wokeness%2F&data=04%7C01%7Cleej%40OHIO.EDU%7C1a2163361ec447f3202408d875beb69a%7Cf3308007477c4a70888934611817c55a%7C0%7C0%7C637388809254505854%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&sdata=mNtXBhAjfb4PQaOzsg%2BOLev5Aaw90K4QFzi8u9zHBZc%3D&reserved=0 > >