Here's something that will be of special interest to people
interested in the mythologizing of Mark Twain.  On May 7, the
Hartford Courant's Northeast Magazine (Sunday magazine)
started an 18-month series called "Twain's World" that will be
exploring various aspects of the cultural history of the city.  It is
a major undertaking, and is designed to restore interest and pride in
the city and to increase tourism and reverse decades of urban
decline.  "By the year 2000, it was clear that reports of the city's
death had been greatly exaggerated....  And all this because the city
found something it already had.  It found its future in its rich
past" (from the cover of the May 7 special issue).  The Mark Twain
Memorial is helping with the series.  Besides the print version in
Northeast Magazine, the series is being featured in the Friday
newscasts of the local CBS affiliate and all of the stories are being
posted on the World Wide Web at

     http://www.atlantic.com/ctguide/news/courant/twain.htm

(Yes, just .htm -- if that address doesn't work later, try adding the
"l" -- small L -- at the end of the URL to make it .html.)

The first cover story explains the urban renewal rationale of the
series and addresses potential complaints about centering the
series on Twain.  On May 14, a short article was printed about
Harriet Beecher Stowe.  On May 28, another cover story will be
run on "Citizen Twain" about "the character of life" at the Mark
Twain House.

Among the promotions is a city-wide "Hartford Hunt" with clues at
various local historical sites and "Twain's World: The Button" sent
free to people who send them a self-addressed stamped envelop.
In the May 7 issue, the Greater Hartford Convention and Visitor's
Bureau also ran an ad headlined, "Bring it Home to Hartford: Twain's
World, Home to Many American Legends."

The series will probably include a lot of good introductory
information about Twain and other Nook Farm residents.  I'm looking
forward to seeing how it unfolds.

Jim Zwick