Notes on the Semi-Literary

One hundred and forty years ago today, Mark Twain published his first nationally-popular story, "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County," in the Saturday Press. Everybody go read it right now.

Wasn't that great? It was a huge smash back in 1865 and Twain was on his way to a career as an American icon.

Now, there are those who might not consider "Jumping Frog" to be great literature because it's funny. Those are the same people who never vote for comedies at Oscar time, and scoff when museums put up exhibits of comics; they believe in ART, by God, and have no truck with anything so populist as humor.



I'm sure those types will be happy to know that today is also the 77th anniversary of Steamboat Willie's release, and the twentieth anniversary of Calvin and Hobbes' debut. After all, since the three anniversaries occur on the same day, the Mrs. Grundys of the world can ignore them in one fell swoop.

Well, let them. More for the rest of us. It's all great literature.


No, really.

As for the title of this entry, the epithet "semi-literary" does not refer to the works in question, you know. Rather, it refers to those who ignore them, and it's the back 'o me hand to the lot of 'em.

Benshlomo says, A good laugh will teach you a lot more than a lecture.