I have not seen the movie and am not expert on Twain's life. Should I avoid it to keep my mind pure of falsehood about Twain? Mae Kuykendall Professor of Law Michigan State University College of Law 648 N. Shaw Lane Rm 366 East Lansing, MI 488241300 517-432-6894 (office) 734-645-5769 (cell) 517-381-2082 (Haslett land) http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/cf_dev/AbsByAuth.cfm?per_id=233952 -----Original Message----- From: Mark Twain Forum [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Carl J. Chimi Sent: Friday, January 04, 2019 10:08 PM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: The Adventures of Mark Twain I just finished watching the 1942 biopic starring Fredric March and Alexis Smith. It's probably been close to 25 years since I saw it. Back then, even though I was familiar with the chronology and many of the details of Clemens' life, it made me happy just to see him represented on screen by such a fine actor, and to see many of the real and legendary events of his live portrayed with loving detail and sentimental devotion. This time around, I found myself much more critical of the whole thing. I understand much of the context of the time it was made, and the facts that Clara was still very much alive and that she and a trust controlled to a large extent the image and works of her father. I also understand the need to tell his life as a story covering 74 years of a variegated career in about two hours. I also have a rudimentary sense of how Americans perceived Mark Twain in the early 1940s. But, man, did the filmmakers HAVE to deviate so much from the perpendicular truth to tell a great story? Isn't the real story one of the most interesting, one of the most quintessential in American history, second maybe only to Lincoln's? I'm curious to know if this film has ever been the subject of research. Just listing the places where it presents the facts incorrectly would be an article, never mind the more subjective listing of people whose characters are portrayed as caricatures or stereotypes. Anyone know of any writings specifically about this movie? Thanks, Carl