The Writer's Almanac from Sunday, January 21, 2007
The Writer's Almanac from Sunday, January 21, 2007
"The Walrus and the Carpenter" by Lewis Carroll.
It's the birthday of blues singer and songwriter Huddie "Lead Belly" Ledbetter (sometimes noted as January 20 or January 29), born in Mooringsport, Louisiana (1888). He's best known for his songs "Goodnight Irene," "Midnight Special," and "Rock Island Line" and for his skill in playing 12-string guitar.
It's the birthday of critic Louis Menand, born in Syracuse, New York (1952). He is one of the few people who works as both a full-time professor and as a journalist. He teaches English at Harvard University, and he's also a contributing editor to The New York Review of Books, a staff writer for The New Yorker, and a contributor to many other publications. He said, "I don't think of there being any division between my academic career and my career in journalism. To me, I'm just a writer ... and it happens that some of my interests are relatively scholarly and some are not."
Be well, do good work, and keep in touch.®
