In 1997, I convinced Jeff Bezos to pay me to quit my job at a newsletter publishing company and drive around the South interviewing writers and scholars.
This post is a terrific read. How did I never make the Oedipus connection before re: Hazel Moates?! When I was in high school, our English teacher trooped about five of us (how did we all fit in her Karmann Ghia? Must have been two cars?) over to Milledgeville to meet Regina (Flannery's mother), who was quite old in 1976, but how and why that came about escapes me. I remember the house was dark because someone drew the drapes, there was memorabilia, and I was afraid of her.
Wow. That was a devoted teacher. I've read and heard so much about Regina that I feel like I met her, though I never did. Was this at Andalusia or the house in town? I met Louise Florencourt, her cousin, at the intown house when I was working on Porches. It was all so perfectly gothic.
What a post! No memory Bezos sent you a calling to the farm in Raleigh armed with a bottle of something brown, which aged for years because as you know from your bourbon tour stop in Asheville, Charles drinks sharp clear stuff--a G &T. Or Icelandic vodka shots. We didn't know anybody then, and trying to figure out what the hell was going on. I think it was Reynolds Price, who took us under his precious wing (lived near Annie's school), who vouched for you. Good kid, he said about you. Invite him over. So we did. It was the start of a good run and friendship. That photo of you in the post. Yep. That's the little Daren pup I remember meeting way back when. Anywho--wow. Great stories! Every time we pack up and move, I make sure the Porches mug is carefully wrapped and reappears in its rightful place of honor. Imagine, Southern authors, even those with some bits of common authorial stops along the way, whose work is birthed from the Greeks...
When I tell this story, I always mention that these days, Robert Fitzgerald is best known for his translation of the Odyssey and that's the version that sat on Charles' desk when he was writing Cold Mountain. So those Southern authors like a certain flavor of Greek translations.
I should have done more research on Charles and brought him gin or another book. When I went to visit James Dickey in has last days, I knew he'd finally gone sober and not to bring him alcohol. Instead, I found a 19th century copy of Lucretius' On The Nature of Things that was covered with some wonderful marginalia. He loved it.
This was at Andalusia. A very Paideia in the 70s kind of outing, and I wish I knew how it came about. Our teacher Nancy Newman, apparently knew Regina?? No idea.
You may know that Jane Pepperdine, who shows up in the letters quite a bit, somehown ended up teaching at Paideia after she retired from ASC. Perhaps it was Nancy that recruited her.
I just know that Jane would bring her friend Eudora to class whenever she was passing through town. That just kills me.
I took my Mom to see Eudora speak once when Jane brought her to town! We were thrilled.
This post is a terrific read. How did I never make the Oedipus connection before re: Hazel Moates?! When I was in high school, our English teacher trooped about five of us (how did we all fit in her Karmann Ghia? Must have been two cars?) over to Milledgeville to meet Regina (Flannery's mother), who was quite old in 1976, but how and why that came about escapes me. I remember the house was dark because someone drew the drapes, there was memorabilia, and I was afraid of her.
Wow. That was a devoted teacher. I've read and heard so much about Regina that I feel like I met her, though I never did. Was this at Andalusia or the house in town? I met Louise Florencourt, her cousin, at the intown house when I was working on Porches. It was all so perfectly gothic.
What a post! No memory Bezos sent you a calling to the farm in Raleigh armed with a bottle of something brown, which aged for years because as you know from your bourbon tour stop in Asheville, Charles drinks sharp clear stuff--a G &T. Or Icelandic vodka shots. We didn't know anybody then, and trying to figure out what the hell was going on. I think it was Reynolds Price, who took us under his precious wing (lived near Annie's school), who vouched for you. Good kid, he said about you. Invite him over. So we did. It was the start of a good run and friendship. That photo of you in the post. Yep. That's the little Daren pup I remember meeting way back when. Anywho--wow. Great stories! Every time we pack up and move, I make sure the Porches mug is carefully wrapped and reappears in its rightful place of honor. Imagine, Southern authors, even those with some bits of common authorial stops along the way, whose work is birthed from the Greeks...
When I tell this story, I always mention that these days, Robert Fitzgerald is best known for his translation of the Odyssey and that's the version that sat on Charles' desk when he was writing Cold Mountain. So those Southern authors like a certain flavor of Greek translations.
I should have done more research on Charles and brought him gin or another book. When I went to visit James Dickey in has last days, I knew he'd finally gone sober and not to bring him alcohol. Instead, I found a 19th century copy of Lucretius' On The Nature of Things that was covered with some wonderful marginalia. He loved it.
This is the greatest personal story/history lesson/philosophical tie-together I’ve ever read! Just fabulous post!
You're making me blush.
This was at Andalusia. A very Paideia in the 70s kind of outing, and I wish I knew how it came about. Our teacher Nancy Newman, apparently knew Regina?? No idea.
You may know that Jane Pepperdine, who shows up in the letters quite a bit, somehown ended up teaching at Paideia after she retired from ASC. Perhaps it was Nancy that recruited her.
I just know that Jane would bring her friend Eudora to class whenever she was passing through town. That just kills me.