“Hi, Bob.” The Associated Press reports that Bob Newhart has been nominated for this year’s Thurber Prize for American Humor. Newhart was nominated for his memoir, I Shouldn’t Even Be Doing This! Two other nominees are Merrill Markoe, for Walking in Circles Before Lying Down, and Joe Keenan, for My Lucky Star. I’ll admit my prejudice upfront: My love for Newhart knows no bounds; I haven’t read his book (I plan to–if only for his analysis of that wonderful Abe Lincoln versus the ad guy bit) but I want him to win. The winner will be announced at the Algonquin Hotel in New York this October. For those under 30, “Hi, Bob” was a 1970s drinking game played while watching the Bob Newhart Show. As you might guess, whenever “Hi, Bob” was heard, everyone was required to take a drink. I’m too young to remember this, of course.
It’s Beowulf“no, it’s Grendel“no, it’s Super Rove! The good folks over at Quillblog, in their Part II of Rove Literary Pretensions, latched onto this quote from Karl Rove speaking to Fox News’ Chris Wallace: “Let’s face it. I mean, I’m a myth, and they’re – you know, I’m Beowulf. You know, I’m Grendel. I don’t know who I am. But they’re after me.” You can help them come up with a literary character equal to Rove. In keeping with Rove’s own absurdist list, I choose Brett from The Sun Also Rises.