The Emperor of Ice-Cream by Wallace Stevens Call the roller of big cigars, The muscular one, and bid him whip In kitchen cups concupiscent curds. Let the wenches dawdle in such dress As they are used to wear, and let the boys Bring flowers in last month’s newspapers. Let be be finale of seem. The only emperor is the emperor of ice-cream. Take from the dresser of deal, Lacking the three glass knobs, that sheet On which she embroidered fantails once And spread it so as to cover her face. If her horny feet protrude, they come To show how cold she is, and dumb. Let the lamp affix its beam. The only emperor is the emperor of ice-cream. “The Emperor of Ice Cream,” by Wallace Stevens. Public domain. (buy now) Today is the 150th birthday of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (books by this author), best known as Mahatma Gandhi, a religious and political leader born in western India in 1869. In 1888, he traveled to England to study law. He spent most of the sea journey hiding in his cabin, horribly shy and embarrassed that he did not understand British table manners. During the next three years, he became fluent in English and for a short time dressed fashionably and studied French, elocution, and dancing, though he swiftly turned to the ascetic lifestyle for which he is known. Gandhi and his family lived in South Africa from 1893 to 1914. In South Africa, he came into his own as a lawyer, an activist, and a visionary. He also adopted a strict moral code and argued that individual moral reform was essential to political change. In 1906, at the age of 37, Gandhi took a vow of celibacy, so that he might better embrace all humanity as his family. He returned to India in 1915, hoping to reject colonial rule in favor of loose government and close-knit rural communities. He abhorred materialism and metropolitan culture and as a result was criticized by many of his countrymen, who felt that rejecting modern life was not a good way to end colonial rule. His pacifism stemmed from his definition of Truth, since he was morally opposed to forcing his own Truth on others, especially by using violence. He argued that evil means inevitably yielded evil results. As for individual reform, he advocated reducing material desires in order to channel strength inward. When colonial rule ended in 1947, the nation was divided according to religious lines into India and Muslim Pakistan. Scholars have criticized Gandhi for overemphasizing individual morality and rejecting modernism, calling his approach impractical and idealistic. Yet he remains a touchstone for those seeking justice without the use of force. The comic strip Peanuts made its debut on this date in 1950. The strip's creator, Charles M. Schulz (books by this author), was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 1922. In 1950, he approached a large U.S. syndication service with the best of his work, and he was given a syndication of eight local papers in a variety of U.S. cities. His strip was renamed Peanuts. The strip was an almost immediate success that expanded from its original eight newspapers to more than 2,600 papers in 75 countries at its peak. The Twilight Zone premiered on this date in 1959. The show's creator, Rod Serling, had been a successful TV writer for several years, penning hard-hitting dramas that often ran afoul of the censors. The show ran for five seasons, and it gave audiences an early glimpse at many future stars, including Robert Redford, William Shatner, Robert Duvall, Dennis Hopper, and Carol Burnett. It also featured Hollywood legends like Buster Keaton and Mickey Rooney. The show has been revived 3 times, most recently in the spring of 2019 for the streaming network CBS All Access. Today is the birthday of Modernist poet Wallace Stevens (books by this author), born in Reading, Pennsylvania (1879). His collections include Ideas of Order (1936), Owl’s Clover (1936), The Man with the Blue Guitar (1937), Parts of a World (1942), Transport to Summer (1947), The Auroras of Autumn (1950), Opus Posthumous (1957), and The Palm at the End of the Mind (1972). Stevens went to Harvard and wanted to study literature, but his father wanted him to be a lawyer. Stevens moved to New York and took a job with the New York Tribune. He loved to explore the city, and enjoyed his work, but really wanted to be a poet. His father still disapproved of Stevens’ literary aspirations so, in 1901, Wallace Stevens finally caved to the pressure and went to law school. He passed the bar in 1905 and practiced law at various New York firms for more than a decade. In 1909, after a lengthy courtship, he married Elsie Kachel. She was an uneducated country girl, and his parents considered her “lower class.” They refused to come to the wedding, and Stevens never spoke to his father again. In 1916, Stevens moved to Hartford and took a job as an insurance lawyer with the Hartford Accident and Indemnity Company. He worked there for the rest of his life, eventually becoming the company’s vice president. His colleague Manning W. Heard said of Stevens, “He was at the time, and for many years before his death, the dean of surety-claims men in the whole country.” And Charles O’Dowd, an underwriter at the company, said, “His [business] letters were as clear as his poetry was obtuse.” Stevens walked two miles to and from work every day, and that was when he wrote most of his poetry. “I write best when I can concentrate,” he said, “and do that best while walking.” He would carry slips of paper in his pockets, and jot down notes, which he would later give to his secretary to type up for him. He published his first book, Harmonium (1923), when he was 44. Be well, do good work, and keep in touch.® |