Re: <documenta X><blast> gossip

murph the surf (murph@interport.net)
Fri, 1 Aug 1997 17:57:13 +0100

At 10:45 PM +0100 8/1/97, Tina LaPorta wrote:
>Robbin Murphy wrote:
>
>>An editor I worked with once told me to keep very good notes on all the
>>gossip >you hear. They can be your retirement fund.

> ...SLEAZZZY...

What is history but gossip somebody wrote down. If Foucault is correct
about the hypomnemata, that it only appeared at the time of Plato, what
were the sources Herodotus used? Village rumor, myths, rituals -- oral
traditions. Claudius played the fool, kept his hears open and survived.

My aunt Iola was the "historian" of my mother's family as she was the
oldest and the most bossy. When she died my mother took the role and recast
the family history more to her liking. All of a sudden we had Jewish
ancestors and far more colorful stories. Mom was the "rebel" in the family
and had "sources" (an aunt she was close to) that my aunt didn't.

The editor I mentioned was a lovely woman who toiled at Vogue for years and
dearly loved good writing, whatever form it took.

Robbin Murphy
murph@artnetweb.com
<i> i o l a </i> http://artnetweb.com/iola/