tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1484180326012950400.post5489618990914477125..comments2024-03-27T23:55:17.673-07:00Comments on Flogging Babel: A Torrent of FacesMichael Swanwickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18389836784776252022noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1484180326012950400.post-17287599071266545682018-01-02T15:53:46.776-08:002018-01-02T15:53:46.776-08:00An outsider will never understand Philadelphia unt...An outsider will never understand Philadelphia until he understands mummery; which means he will never understand Philadelphia. <br /><br />I recollect once when a string band appeared on the Carson Tonight Show, and the curtain pulled back and, I don't know what the New Yorkers expected, but it wasn't <i>this</i> weird combo of saxophones and banjos led by a guy decked in a peacock's fantail and a silver-painted face. And when he broke into the Strut, the gasps were audible. It was like watching a primitive fertility rite. <br /><br />I think it was Ferko. <br /><br />Neighborhood clubs prepping all year for their one day in the sun reminds me of nothing so much as the New Orleans krewes on Mardis Gras, but obstinately insisting on what is often the least sunny day of the year.<br /><br />BTW: Congratulations on the Dozois collection.TheOFloinnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14756711106266484327noreply@blogger.com