I heard Garrison Keillor talking about Umberto Eco this morning on The Writer’s Almanac. What a fascinating man! Keillor said a friend challenged him to write a detective novel instead of mulling over crumbling old medieval treatises, and the product of that odd blend of styles was The Name of The Rose. Brilliant!!
Now, if I could some day just make it through Focault’s Pendulum….. No, no, I must focus on something pretty and shiny like those Tahari boots before I’m once again befuddled by that book!
I thoroughly enjoyed Name of the Rose and then actually did read Foucault’s Pendulum. I had to quit Eco after that; it was as mind-bending as Gilliams’ Brazil. And about as uplifting.
That is a fantastic photo of Sr. Eco, and for me, it makes me ask the question, “Where do Italian men get their sense of style?” From the rumpled hat to the cigarrette holder clenched in his teeth, the striped shirt & red tie…and he even got the rain to fall on his jacket just so!
I’m always jealous of Italian men and the flair with which they dress.
I think you’ve touched on it, sir, though I might leave out the word “jaunty” (although that certainly describes the cigarette holder!). I wonder if it may be a confidence thing, which is something American men (generally speaking, that is, IMO) lack in their dress–hence the safe black, blue, or gray Brooks Brothers suits, and safe regimental-striped or small-dotted ties.
I concede that the reason that’s all I see is because I work in Washington DC, and elsewhere, perhaps, there is a CEO rocking a silvery-gray Gucci suit with a bright Hermes or (dare I wish?) Jerry Garcia tie.
That still doesn’t explain how Sr. Eco made the rain fall on his jacket Just So :)
I had the good fortune to work with a lovely lady from Italy for a few years. I might could have worn the same clothes, but I would never, ever, have carried the style. It is the confidence, the joie de vivre, the “here I am, look at me, love me” attitude.
I met him while an undergrad at the University of Maryland, College Park. He was there for a lecture hosted by Professor Theresa Coletti & the English department. She was my professor at the time. Professor Eco is very engaging and a wonderful speaker on semiotics.
Comments
Dani 13 years ago
I heard Garrison Keillor talking about Umberto Eco this morning on The Writer’s Almanac. What a fascinating man! Keillor said a friend challenged him to write a detective novel instead of mulling over crumbling old medieval treatises, and the product of that odd blend of styles was The Name of The Rose. Brilliant!!
Now, if I could some day just make it through Focault’s Pendulum….. No, no, I must focus on something pretty and shiny like those Tahari boots before I’m once again befuddled by that book!
marvel 13 years ago
I thoroughly enjoyed Name of the Rose and then actually did read Foucault’s Pendulum. I had to quit Eco after that; it was as mind-bending as Gilliams’ Brazil. And about as uplifting.
Manolo the Shoeblogger 13 years ago
Allow the Manolo to commend Baudolino to you as something that, while difficult in that peculiarly Eco-ish way, is no unenjoyable.
Klee 13 years ago
Buon Compleanno, Maestro!
Victor 13 years ago
That is a fantastic photo of Sr. Eco, and for me, it makes me ask the question, “Where do Italian men get their sense of style?” From the rumpled hat to the cigarrette holder clenched in his teeth, the striped shirt & red tie…and he even got the rain to fall on his jacket just so!
I’m always jealous of Italian men and the flair with which they dress.
Manolo the Shoeblogger 13 years ago
It is not so much the clothing as it is the attitude, which the Manolo would describe as “jaunty and self-assured”.
Victor 13 years ago
I think you’ve touched on it, sir, though I might leave out the word “jaunty” (although that certainly describes the cigarette holder!). I wonder if it may be a confidence thing, which is something American men (generally speaking, that is, IMO) lack in their dress–hence the safe black, blue, or gray Brooks Brothers suits, and safe regimental-striped or small-dotted ties.
I concede that the reason that’s all I see is because I work in Washington DC, and elsewhere, perhaps, there is a CEO rocking a silvery-gray Gucci suit with a bright Hermes or (dare I wish?) Jerry Garcia tie.
That still doesn’t explain how Sr. Eco made the rain fall on his jacket Just So :)
marvel 13 years ago
I had the good fortune to work with a lovely lady from Italy for a few years. I might could have worn the same clothes, but I would never, ever, have carried the style. It is the confidence, the joie de vivre, the “here I am, look at me, love me” attitude.
Tara 13 years ago
I met him while an undergrad at the University of Maryland, College Park. He was there for a lecture hosted by Professor Theresa Coletti & the English department. She was my professor at the time. Professor Eco is very engaging and a wonderful speaker on semiotics.