Pynchon, Glasses and ID

[Sam Shapiro]

Wha? I thought I was the only person crazy enough to place TRP's high 
school mug-shot beside the CNN footage....oh well---but yes, it IS 
obvious, of course it's the tall grey-haired gentleman from the first 
clip...and CNN was sneaky, because they didn't alert viewers to the 
fact that Pynchon was in the footage UNTIL that first clip was 
over...perhaps this was one of TRP's requests, although I doubt it....now I 
know that 42 years is a significant amount of time, and that people tend 
to change somewhat over 4 DECADES, but just examine the shape of his 
head, his jaw structure, the closeness of his eyes----and he's TALL, just 
as he is in that photo CNN provided (a shock--it's one I was not familiar 
with) where TRP is posing beside his mama....come on, this is a 
'no-brainer'!! And far as the little weird dude with the red baseball cap 
ducking behind a parking meter goes----he's the last one I would have 
picked.....too short, for one thing, and the face is all wrong....
And as far as MASON & DIXON goes---I may be naive, but what exactly does 
TRP mean by "a difficult bit of double-Back-stitch Filling" (p.30)....

--SRS

On Mon, 9 Jun 1997, D wrote:

> Nancy Jo Sales piece in New York magazine does mention that he wears
> glasses.  Someone should post the first paragraph of the Sales article and
> let foax decide for themselves.  However, I have heard P. being described
> as 'tall and gaunt with a droopy mustache' which favors the first guy in
> the clips, but the photo in Sales' article gives more credence to the
> baseball cap guy.  Gosh, this whole thing is just like his books; lots of
> possibilities and
> theories, no definitive answers and I'm at the point of wondering if he is
> in ANY of the footage CNN allowed (THEY) showed. At one point I was split
> between the two and was convinced he's BOTH of them! However, I have now
> come to think I've got a positive ID.  I downloaded the yearbook photo that
> CNN had put on with their web page story (shows P with a wave in his hair
> and a facing his left), enlarged and printed it and THEN put it up next to
> the TV screen with the CNN clip paused . . . . the answer is obvious.   
> 
> Not wishing to de-anonymize P.,
> 
> D.
>