Kevin did a splendid job blending humor and keen perspective with the history of Twain collecting, introducing us to a delightful parade of quirky and intriguing "characters" along the way. My only complaint is that he fetched that audience so completely, he has left me heading for Manhattan with one incredibly tough act to follow.
On Monday, March 31, 2025 at 12:10:02 PM EDT, Barbara Schmidt <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
I just saw Shelley Fishkin's Facebook post this morning announcing her new
book JIM: THE LIFE AND AFTERLIFE OF HUCKLEBERRY FINN'S COMRADE. Looking
forward to reading it.
Barb
On Mon, Mar 31, 2025 at 9:41 AM <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> 1601! As always, I researched O'Brien's personal life and educational
> background, and selected Twain works that seemed like a good fit. The folks
> at the Kennedy Center then asked if there were other options. I
> half-jokingly replied that "you can never go wrong with a fart joke" and
> suggested the 1920 Merle Johnson edition of 1601, which was printed on
> handmade paper with facsimiles of the 1880 proof and the 1882 West Point
> edition. They selected that over my other suggestion, so it was put into a
> handsome custom clamshell case for presentation.
>
> I'm flattered by the positive responses to my talk. I was speaking to a
> group of sophisticated bibliophiles who were quite familiar with the (dead)
> collectors I included in my slide show, but not necessarily with Twain.
> They are book-collectors, but like many book-collectors, many of them also
> collect letters, mss, photos, relics, and related materials. So, I included
> those kinds of materials in my talk, which aimed at showing when and how
> these items ended up in the market and encouraged collecting, and then
> explained when and how Twain--at least in the minds of
> book-collectors--gradually moved from being a mere funny man to acceptance
> as a member of the American literary canon.
>
> In the middle of my talk I shamelessly took a couple of minutes to talk
> about my biography of George Griffin, which is more than three times the
> length of the version that appeared in the *Mark Twain Journal*, with
> lots of additional factual information, much more context, and over 400
> citations. My literary agent is hard at work, but amongst the members of
> the Grolier Club you never know who might have connections with a
> commercial publisher. Griffin's life (and his after-life as Jim) deserve to
> be known to the widest audience possible. He was, as Twain said, a
> remarkable man by any measure.
>
> If any of you find yourself in NYC, give the club a call, and go see the
> exhibit. The items on display are from the library of Susan Tane, a
> long-time friend and customer, with some additions from the Berg collection
> at NYPL. Mark Dawidziak will be at the club performing as Mark Twain
> tomorrow night at 6 PM. Visit the Grolier Club website for more info.
>
> Kevin
> @
> Mac Donnell Rare Books
> 9307 Glenlake Drive
> Austin TX 78730
> 512-345-4139
>
> You can browse our books at:
> www.macdonnellrarebooks.com
>
>
> ------ Original Message ------
> From: "Barbara Schmidt" <[log in to unmask]>
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Cc: [log in to unmask]
> Sent: 3/31/2025 8:44:39 AM
> Subject: Re: An Illustrated History of Mark Twain Collecting
>
> I just had a chance to watch this video last night. Only Kevin Mac Donnell
> could present such a fact-filled and stunning presentation. We are all
> truly blessed to have his friendship and willingness to share his
> knowledge. I am so looking forward to reading his George Griffin biography
> -- as well as anything else he writes. His Grolier club book A FIRST CLASS
> FOOL is now shipping from amazon.
>
> Only one question after watching the video -- just which Mark Twain book
> did Kevin select for Conan O'Brien's Kennedy Center presentation?
>
> Barb
>
> On Sat, Mar 29, 2025 at 3:18 PM Kevin Mac Donnell <
> [log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
>> For those who might find this of interest, here's a link to the one-hour
>> slide show I presented at the Grolier Club in NYC last week:
>>
>> https://www.youtube.com/live/Mx4Wod9SkkI
>>
>> To get the video started you have to slide that little button at the
>> bottom-left over to the 4:45 minute mark.
>>
>> It's 58 minutes long, followed by a 30 minute Q&A.
>>
>> This was presented to an astute audience of well-read seasoned book
>> collectors (not necessarily Twainians) who were already familiar with
>> the various collectors that I talk about, and it was presented in a room
>> where the audience had just viewed more than 100 items on display from
>> the collection of Susan Tane, one of my fellow Grolier Club members.
>>
>> Kevin
>> @
>> Mac Donnell Rare Books
>> 9307 Glenlake Drive
>> Austin TX 78730
>> 512-345-4139
>>
>> You can browse our books at:
>> www.macdonnellrarebooks.com
>>
>
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