Jean's comments
(member since Dec 28, 2008)
Jean's comments from the Constant Reader group.
(showing 1-20 of 22)
Speaking of chutzpah -- I got the sense that even VM didn't have enough of it to intentionally cheat Goering. You read the police interview where he tried to blame it on the other guy. How much of that do you think is true? Was it more lying?
Jonathan wrote: "Van Meegeren never tried to make people think that he was a particularly honest person. Basica..."SUCH a liar. My favorite was him telling his classmates that he won the lottery -- TWICE! This guy was the embodiment of chutzpah.
Al wrote: "Jean:I think Jonathan did a great job of pointing out how much Lt. Piller wanted to believe Van Meegeren's story and how much he helped him make it work."
Good point Al. Piller was a fascinating character. I think I felt worse for him than for anyone else Van Meegeren duped. A Jewish resistance fighter manipulated into helping a Nazi collaborator. How much lower could Van Meegeren get!
Philip wrote: "I agree about our human fascination with hucksters"Philip - Totally agree about the human fascination with hucksters. The thing I still don't get is why anyone ever believed Van Meegeren's story after he was caught. Here he is, an admitted huckster, a guy who's confessed to cheating people for years. But, he says, I did it to "revenge" myself. So people say, OH, well, sure he lied to all those people, but NOW he's telling the truth to us. Are people really that eager to get duped? I guess so.
Strip clubs? There aren't going to be any strip clubs involved with the CR convention, are there?!Jan 30, 2009 06:10AM
Just read a review of another book about faking:Fakers Hoaxers, Con Artists, Counterfeiters, and Other Great Pretenders. Is it me or does there seem to be a lot of interest in all sorts of fakes and scams right now? Any thoughts on why?
Love the fact that this thread starts with The Moonstone. One of my all-time favorites. My secular bible is anything by Michael Pollan.
Candy wrote: "I'm crazy about Pollan's work!You are out there girl, go!"
I'm crazy about him too. So smart. So important.
Philip wrote: "Why am I thrilled to have a President known as an ardent lover of books?There is an interesting column by the critic Michiko Kakutani in today's NY Times about Barack Obama as reader. My post i..."
Thanks for the footnote Philip!
Philip wrote: "This may be what Jean was referring to -- a front-page story by Michiko Kakutani in today's New York Times (for Monday 1/19) headlined From Books, New President Found Voice. I hope this link works..."Thanks Philip. That's precisely what I was referring to. A literate president. Amazing!
There's just so much wrong with wikipedia. Can't trust it for anything.
Isn't the mythical bird that rises from the ashes a Phoenix? As in Phoenix University? Pun intended?
Jan 05, 2009 10:23AM
Terrific book, Jonathan. Here's what I don't get: you make it so clear that Van Meegeren was a fascist and that his paintings are Nazi-inspired. How come he's been seen as some kind of hero? The man's a confessed liar. Why did biographers take him at his word for so long?
I just don't get Tarantino. Maybe I'm too old. What's the appeal?
Jan 02, 2009 08:00AM
Do you think the Antikythera Mechanism might be a forgery too?
Dec 30, 2008 05:06PM
When is the talk at the MFA in Boston?Jonathan wrote: "Thanks Molly, Yulia and Jean!
And Molly -- I can only hope that my talk at the MFA in Boston will be more entertaining than the class you took!
- Jonathan "
Dec 30, 2008 05:05PM
That's very interesting Molly. Maybe I'll try it. I always think about reading as an activity to be done in private, with no noise or distractions. At the gym I do enjoy listening to Selected Shorts on my ipod. I'll try to bring a book to see how that goes.Molly wrote: "Jean - I actually drown out all the music and talk and noise from the machines by plugging my headphones into the personal TV on the cardio machine and read with the TV on in the background. I tun..."
Dec 29, 2008 05:16PM
Hi Molly. How do you manage to read at the gym? Isn't all the noise distracting?Molly wrote: "I read about an hour a day while at the gym. My commute is too short for audio books. When I get home I only have a few hours of time with my hubby so I don't read then. We watch sports on TV or..."
Oh, I think that Michael Pollan should be required reading for everyone in the U.S. Such a simple message, but such an important one. Eat real food. Eat local food. Don't eat too much food. You'll be healthier, and the world will be too.
