9/11/08

Good job

Diana B.

2 comments:

Beacongal said...

Link fest: Reading this story led me to one that I had missed about the 45th anniversary of Elaine's.

That piece (URL below) has classic understatement: "Several of Ms. Kaufman’s most famous literary customers — like George Plimpton, Norman Mailer and David Halberstam — have moved on..."

When I'm writing and editing, I try to keep in mind that many of the immigrants in New York may not share my cultural knowledge.

Can the reader be expected to know that all of these gentlemen are dead? I would have suggested: "are no longer with us" if there is some squeamishness about saying "are dead."

I need to spend more time on those cranky copy editor Web sites, only I type so quickly and leave out prepositions so often that they would ban me.

http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/04/14/45-years-later-everyone-still-comes-to-elaines/

Gastropoda said...

Great observation, but I'm afraid you and I are from the lost generation trained to say "died" rather than 16 other euphemisms. Even the NYT obits read like paid death notices anymore.

Brings to mind the Monty Python skit on the parrot . . .