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MASCULINE SWEETHEART AND FURTHER FOLLOW-UP TO LAST NIGHT’S POST

After posting last night, I remembered that Jordan had commented on my post on Gendered Language a few weeks ago, “That's one of the nicest things in ‘The Odd Couple,’ Oscar calling Felix (and every other man) ‘honey,’ ‘sweetie,’ and other non-masculine terms of endearment.” Jack Klugman was born in 1922; as I wrote last night, it’s hard to imagine younger men talking that way.

An article on the Seattle chapter of the Grammys in this morning’s paper quoted Dave Dederer of the Presidents of the United States, talking about Seattle rockers’ distrust “of anything that comes from New York or L.A. as overly showbiz,” which he attributes to “That whole Northwest, bohemian-yet-blue-collar, ‘I'm-a-logger-and-I-read-Sartre’ thing.” It’s a good line; witty because Sartre is so out of date; and yet, Dave (I have from an authoritative grapevine) went to private high school, as did his bandmates, as did some of the Pearl Jam guys -- “logger” is a pose; Dave’s joke admits this, more or less -- except some of the rockers really have come from blue collar backgrounds, and really do read Sartre (or some latterday equivalent) -- so, what’s the joke?

(Is it in “Stage Door” that Lucille Ball and another chorus girl hook up with rich guys from Seattle, who turn out to be wealthy loggers who are built like tanks and show up wearing flannel shirts? I think it is. Funny moment, if you live here.)