Hello all! Kevin has given me leave to do the permitted one-time promotional mention of my forthcoming biography of Joe Twichell, Joseph Hopkins Twichell: The Life and Times of Mark Twain's Closest Friend, which will be published by the University of Georgia Press in May. 
 
The Forum has been a tremendous help in establishing the context of Twichell's life, particularly the contributions of laborers in the same vineyard such as Pete Messent, Hal Bush and Dwayne Eutsey. And in establishing the events surrounding Clemens' famous rebuke after Twichell tried to tone down his friend's statements about the Philippine-American War ("You are a public guide and teacher, Joe...") I of course benefited greatly from the work of Jim Zwick, whom I met in Elmira and whose passing came as a terrible shock.
  You can read more about the book at a website my son Ben created, www.josephhopkinstwichell.com, and at the University of Georgia's catalogue site at http://www.ugapress.uga.edu/0820330566.html. Steve Courtney7 Union St.Terryville, CT [log in to unmask]
_________________________________________________________________
Shed those extra pounds with MSN and The Biggest Loser!
http://biggestloser.msn.com/