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| Title: | Soapbox. Just Soapbox. |
| Notice: | No more new notes |
| Moderator: | WAHOO::LEVESQUE ONS |
|
| Created: | Thu Nov 17 1994 |
| Last Modified: | Fri Jun 06 1997 |
| Last Successful Update: | Fri Jun 06 1997 |
| Number of topics: | 862 |
| Total number of notes: | 339684 |
317.0. "R.I.P. James Herriot" by TOOK::MORRISON (Bob M. LKG1-3/A11 226-7570) Mon Feb 27 1995 18:44
Last Friday (I think), I heard on Paul Harvey that James Herriot of "All
Creatures Great and Small" fame had died. I depend on WBZ AM as my main source
of news and didn't hear a thing about it in the news segments. It's lucky I
caught Paul Harvey that day. In fact, I hear a lot of news on Paul Harvey that
I don't hear anywhere else, but that's another story.
I admit I have never read a complete Herriot book. I have read excerpts from
his books, watched a PBS movie of one of his stories a while ago, and listened
to two audiotapes of his books.
His stories have brought to life a culture that, to someone living in a U.S.
suburb in the 1990's, seems like almost a fantasy world. What would have
seemed like the most ordinary things to someone living in rural Yorkshire in
the time frame of his stories (roughly 1930 - 1960) is absolutely fascinating
to us. And that was Herriot's stock in trade, taking ordinary everyday exper-
iences and making them fascinating. Rural England has always been fascinating
to Americans, and though you can see the countryside as a tourist, it is very
difficult for tourists to truly experience the culture. Herriot enabled us to
experience it without leaving home.
As most readers "across the pond" know, "James Herriot" was an assumed name
that he took on so that he could retain some privacy. "Darrowby" is a fictional
town name too. About 10 years ago, I read an article in Business Week, of all
places, that revealed where James Herriot actually lived (which I have for-
gotten) and that he had visits with the public in his office for an hour or
two each week. I think he did the right thing by writing under an assumed
name, because he had such a large "fan club" that if he had been easy to find,
he would have been deluged with visitors and would not have had time to con-
tinue his writing and his veterinary practice.
| T.R | Title | User | Personal
Name | Date | Lines |
|---|
| 317.1 | | LJSRV2::KALIKOW | TechnoCatalyst | Mon Feb 27 1995 20:18 | 8 |
| If memory serves, his real name was Dr. Alf Wight, who practiced (and
incidentally wrote like an angel of the Lord) in the lovely Yorkshire
market town of Thirsk. My family (including my younger daughter Mandy,
who at the then age of ~11 was completely mad for "Herriot's" books)
visited his veterinary offices sometime in the early '80s. She still
treasures the autographed copy she has of "All Creatures." What a very
lovely man he was. May he rest in peace...
|
| 317.2 | Read them all ! | PEKING::SULLIVAND | Not gauche, just sinister | Tue Feb 28 1995 06:13 | 11 |
| I suspect that one of the reasons he wrote under a pseudonym was that
to use his own name would possibly have been construed as advertising
his veterinary practice, which would be regarded as unprofessional
conduct. I think the rules on this have been relaxed in recent years.
I can definitely recommend this area of Yorkshire to visitors - the
whole area is known as "Herriot country". It can of course get a bit
bleak in the winter but the countryside is enchanting.
Dave
|
| 317.3 | | MOLAR::DELBALSO | I (spade) my (dogface) | Tue Feb 28 1995 07:40 | 3 |
| Is this really going to get sufficient discussion to warrant its
own topic, or is it a clear candidate for concatenation to #40?
|
| 317.4 | What A Bummer | STRATA::BARBIERI | God cares. | Thu Mar 02 1995 12:29 | 9 |
| Wow, what a bummer to hear that James Herriot passed away!
I love his books! Some of the stories are so good, my favorite
possibly being the one aboue the Golden Retriever named Roy
who is rescued by an old lady named Mrs. Robinson (I think thats
the last name).
Yeah, it truly was enchanting. May he rest in peace.
Tony
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| 317.5 | | RICKS::TOOHEY | | Thu Mar 02 1995 18:11 | 14 |
|
A truely wonderful writer. I've read most of his books and they are
terrific.
I read once that he was often advised to move out of Britain, to
avoid the high taxes on his book income. But he liked what he was
doing and where he lived, which was much more important to him than
ending up with a few more bucks.
The animals in Heaven must have given him quite a greeting!
Paul
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