October 16, 2005
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Philadelphia Stories
for John O’Hara
How does one stand
To behold the sublime,
To confront the mockers,
The mickey mockers
And plated pairs?
– Wallace Stevens, 1936
On the left, a Catholic answer.
On the right, a Protestant answer.Pictured:
“High Society,” “The Philadelphia Story,”
“Rocky” statue, Robert ScottThese are familiar parts of popular culture except for Scott, who died on Thursday. According to the New York Times, Scott’s mother, “the
former Helen Hope Montgomery, was said to be the model for Tracy Lord,
Katharine Hepburn’s character in ‘The Philadelphia Story.’” “High
Society” is, of course, a rather Catholic version of that story, starring Grace Kelly, also of Philadelphia.It is perhaps not entirely irrelevant
that Scott died on, or shortly after,
Yom Kippur– which ended at
sundown on Thursday, October 13..(See Log24 entry for Rosh Hashana.)
From today’s online Philadelphia Inquirer,
a story first posted on October 13:
“Mickey Mouse will see you dead.”
– Robert Stone
