Historical note

[Laurence Horn]

At 10:19 PM -0400 10/3/08, Mark Mandel wrote:
>My word! My immediate reaction reaction to that name was not at all
>professional... that is, not based in my, or her, professional life.
>The last name is very unusual, and I know it only in connection with
>
>  the psychological warfare expert and author Paul M. A.
>  Linebarger (1913-1966), whose visionary stories as "Cordwainer
>Smith" are among
>  the science fiction field's most haunting achievements.
>    (http://www.plokta.com/pnn//stories.php?story=01/11/18/9862904)
>
>... who, I am not surprised to find out, was the father of Marcia
>Linebarger Garfinkle.
>
>I believe I also had a brief correspondence with her in my earlier
>professional life.

You may well have, since the two of you have been working in
linguistic-related positions in Philly for quite some time; I didn't
know that about Marcia's father.  As for Wilson's note, I can't
remember not being familiar with "Now, {don't/you can't} say I've
never done anything for you" under the kind of circumstances he
mentions.  I believe the most recent time I've used it or heard it
used in my presence was in connection with the passing of a useful
card in various games in (dealer's choice) poker.

LH

>
>On Fri, Oct 3, 2008 at 9:35 PM, Wilson Gray <hwgray at gmail.com> wrote:
>...
>>  Ca.1974 at M.I.T., I had occasion to do a similarly-trivial - such
>>  that I've forgotten what it was - yet meaningful, favor, for a very
>>  nice girl (well, girl in those days), known, no doubt, to many, here,
>>  Marcia Linebarger.
>
>m a m
>
>------------------------------------------------------------
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The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org