It must seem amusing to some that others can seem to get lost in the minutiae of Twain's visual images, and I find it funny at times too. But Twain, unlike many other literary figures enjoys dual status in America's collective cultural memory. Besides his written words, he is a cultural icon, even if his image has been Disneyfied of late. He was keenly aware of his celebrity status and exploited it as best he could, both in his spoken words (speeches and interviews) and visually. He dressed the part, played the role, and did all he could to control his public image. Entire books have been written on this topic (Lou Budd, John Seelye, et al) and other books, like THE COMPLETE INTERVIEWS, provide abundant evidence. The white suit, cigars, choice of locales, choice of fellow subjects, and those familiar stern gazes at the camera were not accidental. It is rare to catch Twain on film in a candid unposed moment, and rarer still to find him speaking in public or to strangers without his famous drawl. All of this, remember, long before press offices, publicity agents, and the carefully cultivated photo ops we have grown accustomed to seeing in the media today --which we often accept as authentic (at the same time we deplore the photographers who try to capture the candid moments in celebrities' lives). Shirt and coat buttons are standard evidence used to determine whether a negative has been flipped. The Eastman Kodak Archives, The Mark Twain Project at Berkeley, and many others use this method when examining visual evidence. As a footnote, I should add that when a glass plate negative is flipped (which causes the side with the emulsion to not come in contact with the sensitized paper) the resulting image is slightly blurred and distorted, so there is good reason to pay attention to such details, besides historical accuracy. I found a better tape of the Edison film in my own files and took a few more minutes to examine some frames more carefully than the low resolution youtube copy. I now agree that the youtube version seems to be flipped, at least in the portion showing Twain walking around the driveway at Stormfield. In those frames his vest does seem reversed. Also, the curve of the driveway in the background seems to conform to the south end of the house rather than the north end. But if somebody finds a clearer copy and better evidence I'll stand corrected. It's very hard to be certain from my own copy, and I con't have time today to compare watch chain placement and other clues. I assume the tea-sipping scene is flipped also, but can't prove it from my copy. I think the real significance of this film is how Twain once again projects his carefully cultivated public persona in white coat, cigar in hand, strutting around his huge newly built Italian style villa, and then had himself filmed having tea with his daughters. Anyone familiar with the tensions and drama at Stormfield in 1909 will have no trouble understanding why Twain wished to project an image of peace and tranquility with both of his daughters together at the same time, sitting at a table for afternoon tea and some pleasant conversation with their father. An examination of the Stormfield guestbook and the surviving correspondence with the Edison people might shed light on how carefully Twain --media savvy, already sensing that his days were numbered, and obsessed with how he would be viewed by posterity-- may have planned his only moment on film. I hope the day never comes when Twain's words, or his image, don't create a stir. Kevin Mac Donnell Austin TX