Christmas may be six months away, but there’s no wrong time of year to celebrate J.R.R. Tolkien’s Yuletide letters to his four children. As Letters of Note describes, Tolkien wrote a note in festive, quivering handwriting (Santa was 1925 years old, after all), full of tales from the North Pole, and signed it “Father Christmas.” And, perhaps because Lord of the Rings fans have pretty much ensured the publication of everything Tolkien ever jotted down, the entire collection, spanning 20 years, in a book called Letters to Father Chistmas. See one of the missives, featuring a charming comedy of polar-bear errors and some lovely illustrations, after the jump.
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It’s always heartwarming to see our heroes treat their fans well — especially those, like Tom Waits and Iggy Pop, who have a reputation for being cantankerous. So it put a smile on our faces this stormy Friday to see Letters of Note post this response from Waits to a 15-year-old fan named Colin. The letter kicks off with a joke about Colin’s address (Palestine, IL) before moving on to some truly inspirational words: “Colin go out there and take the world by the tail, pull it down, wrap it around and put it in your pocket.” Waits also enclosed an adorable photo of himself serenading a little girl. See the handwritten letter and picture after the jump and click over to Letters of Note for the transcript.
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When we think of George Carlin, a number of strong descriptors come to mind: hilarious, brilliant, atheist, no-bullshit. But “romantic” isn’t exactly at the tip of our tongue. Letters of Note corrects this misapprehension, posting a brief missive from Carlin to his wife, one of many that appears in her memoir The George Carlin Letters: The Permanent Courtship of Sally Wade, published last month. The note, which is both sweet and funny, addresses Wade as “Sallyburger” and features a delightfully absurd quantification of Carlin’s love for her. See it for yourself after the jump, and click over to Letters of Note for a transcription.
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Feeling self-conscious about your limited vocabulary? Don’t sweat it. Even literary superstars occasionally encounter words they don’t know. Take, for instance, John Updike. The author of the Rabbit books wrote to thank a bookstore manager for sending his order and mentioned that he was confused about some of the terms from the newspaper it was wrapped in — the Village Voice escort section. “Tell me,” writes Updike, “what is a ‘she-male’ (they looked female to me, mostly) and what does ‘Outcalls Only’ mean?” Whether this was pure humor or genuine curiosity, it kind of makes our day. See the typewritten note after the jump.
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For anyone who has ever felt drawn to the Beat Generation, yet has never fully comprehended its history, Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg: The Letters
provides a long-awaited context for the lives, loves, and poetry of its founders. Beginning in 1944, Kerouac and Ginsberg’s correspondence stretched nearly 20 years, spurred by a murder and sustained by a mutual love of the written word.
In Viking’s new publication, the depth and cultural significance of the two writers’ works takes on a new perspective. Their letters chronicle the authors’ complex relationship, including Ginsberg’s early admiration of the hyper-heterosexual Kerouac, as well as their numerous publication rejections, and the establishment of a literary movement that defined a generation.
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Kids are unfiltered, and thus, terrifyingly honest. Enter 30-something Bill Geerhart in the ’90s — unemployed, opinionated, and best able to express his snark through writing. Thus began Little Billy’s Letters
, a collection of correspondences between some of the most recognizable figures in popular culture and Bill, posing as ten-year-old Billy (chicken scratch, typos, and all). Think political, religious, and educational advice from icons who range from the cast of 90210 to Charles Manson. While some of the responses Billy receives consist only of a signed head shot, others are incredibly sensitive and well thought out. Check out his letter to then Governor Sarah Palin, along with the response he got from her dad, after the jump.
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Read through hundreds of Vincent van Gogh’s revealing letters online, now translated into English with a drawings appendix.
The Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam commissioned the ambitious Vincent van Gogh: The Letters project, an extensive and richly annotated archive searchable by chronology, place, and correspondent. Interactive tabs on the letter-viewing screen allow scrolling between the original text, facsimile images of the letters, and English translations.
The most in-depth function is filed under Concordance, lists, bibliography on the top right of the screen. Here, hyperlinks lead to historical persons and digital images of the artworks specifically referenced by van Gogh — all the cultural scraps that influenced the artist’s beautiful and tortured inner world.
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