TSI, Notes 4

[Michael Perez]

160.22  "King Yrjö":  Charles Hollander has written on a possible
origin for this king in a section of his article "Pynchon's Politics: 
The Presence of an Absence" (_PN_ 26-27, pp. 42-54) dedicated to "TSI":

  "Pynchon's King Yrjö resembles King Carol II of Rumania. According to
the New Columbia Encyclopedia:
  "'Carol II, 1893-1953, king of Rumania, son of King Ferdinand and
Queen Marie. While crown prince, he contracted a morganatic marriage
with Zizi Labrino but divorced her to marry (1921) Princess Helen of
Greece. He soon formed a liaison with Magda Lupescu, with whom he lived
in Paris after being forced (1925) to renounce his right of succession.
On the death of King Ferdinand (1927), Carol's son Michael became king,
but Carol, having divorced Queen Helen in 1928, returned to Rumania in
1930, supplanted his son, and had himself proclaimed king "de iure"
since 1927. A turbulent period began. In 1938, Carol formed a royal
dictatorship. A contest between the king and the fascist Iron Guard
ensued, with assassinations and massacres on both sides. Forced to call
on Ion Antonesque to form a government (1940), Carol was deposed and
fled abroad with Lupescu, whom he finally married in Brazil in 1947.'
  "More to the point, in 1921, as Hoyt tells us, when many European
nations needed capital to get their economies moving in the aftermath
of the First World War, the House of Morgan financed the Rumanian
government through Morgan Harjes of Paris. The 1920s in Rumanian
industrial history were characterized by 'regulated exploitation of
Rumania's vast natural resources, primarily crude oil, by
Anglo-American and French interests' (Stephen A. Fischer-Galati,
Twentieth Century Rumania [1970]). The prize in Rumania was the Ploesti
oil fields, and we should remember that, during the 1920s, the French
Rothschilds 'were, for a number of years, an principal competitor of
the Rockefeller trust.' (Frederic Morton, The Rothschilds: A Family
Portrait ([1962]). So here we are again: competing dynasties. King Yrjö
leads us to King Carol II of Rumania, leads to the Ploesti oil fields,
leads to the competition between the Morgan-Rothschilds and the
Rockefellers.  . . .
  "King Yrjö's name resolves ('Yr,' shorthand notation for 'your,' and
'jö' [with 'ö' pronounced as the French 'u,' as in 'menu'], 'ju' or
'Jew') into King 'Yourjew.' King Yourjew leads to Magda Lupescu,
through King Carol II, whose Jew she was. King Yrjö's name compacts
into two syllables the whole of twentieth-century Rumanian politics,
finance, industrial development, and civil war; summons Carol and
Magda's love affair; brings 'Mortality and Mercy in Vienna' into focus
with 'The Secret Integration'; and summons J. P. Morgan, King Carol's
financier."


160.22  "morganatic":  From  http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary :
  Main Entry: mor·ga·nat·ic 
  Pronunciation: "mor-g&-'na-tik
  Function: adjective
  Etymology: New Latin matrimonium ad morganaticam, literally, marriage
with morning gift
  Date: circa 1741
: of, relating to, or being a marriage between a member of a royal or
noble family and a person of inferior rank in which the rank of the
inferior partner remains unchanged and the children of the marriage do
not succeed to the titles, fiefs, or entailed property of the parent of
higher rank

162.7   "Wonderful World of Color":  also the name of a weekly hour
long show from Disneybeginning in 1961, hosted by Walt himself until
his death in 1966, and ran under that title until 1969.  It was among
the first TV shows broadcast in color.  There was a show from Disney
under some name or another or varying networks on US television from
1954 until 1990. 

162.21, 22, 24  "Jay Gould" "Jubilee Jim Fisk" "James G. Blaine":  From
the Hollander article in _PN_ 26-27 again:

"As the kids set out toward King Yrjö's estate, Pynchon mentions Jay
Gould and Jim Fisk, robber barons of the Gilded Age. They are
remembered for their attempted takeover of the Albany and Susquehanna
Railroad in 1869. Their grab was thwarted by a young man equal to them
in cunning and resolve, the thirty-two-year-old J. P. Morgan. By
mentioning the vanquished Gould and Fisk, Pynchon enthymematically
summons their victor, young J. P. Morgan. Pynchon also mentions James
G. Blaine, a politician of the period, Secretary of State under
President Garfield (who was assassinated in 1881), and a presidential
candidate in 1884. Morgan, a traditional Republican, startled many by
backing the Democrat in that election, Grover Cleveland. So by
mentioning James G. Blaine, Pynchon evokes the election of 1884 (which
may also explain why he chose 'Grover' for the name of his boy genius),
and evokes J. P. Morgan, though again without ever naming him."

165.9  "Moxie":  The following is from our _GR_ reading a couple of
years ago from Terrance, courtesy of the W.A.S.T.E. archives:

  Date: Mon, 18 Oct 1999 08:32:01 -0400 
  From: "Terrance F. Flaherty" <Lycidas@[omitted]> 
  To: "pynchon-l@[omitted]" <pynchon-l@[omitted]> 
  Subject: RE:GRGR(12)NOTES (4) 

  Mass marketing is not new to the '90s. Long before Coca Cola and
Pepsi dominated the world market--114 years ago, in fact--Moxie, a soft
drink whose popularity rivaled even our beloved colas of today, was
born. Moxie-mania infested the whole country.  Moxieland became a major
Boston tourist attraction. To "have a lot of Moxie" came to mean "to be
spunky."
  Legend had it that after the Civil War, Lieutenant Moxie went down to
the unexplored jungles of SouthAmerica. There, he discovered a starchy
plant known to locals to have great powers, which tasted like
asparagus. Despite the fact that there was no such starchy plant, and
never a Mr. Moxie, the story became urban legend. The real story is
that in 1884, Dr. Augustin Thompson of Union, Maine, founded the first
Moxie plant. He said that whoever drank Moxie would be overcome by a
"durable, vigorous feeling." Word soon began to spread regarding a
strange new medicine that was guaranteed to cure almost any ailment,
including loss of manhood, paralysis, and softening of the brain.
  By the early 20th century, the "Nerve Food" was carbonated and
merchandised so brilliantly that "Moxie" not only became a household
word, but also became a precedent for successful marketing scams for
years to come.
  Moxie became synonymous with good times. The Moxie logo was slapped
on every kid's toy, piano roll, recording, and piece of silverware.
There was Moxie Candy, Moxie ice cream, Moxie collectibles, and in the
late '20s, Moxieland was built in Boston.  Moxieland became an
overnight success, and it was visited by celebrity spokespersons like
Ted Williams, George M. Cohan and Ed Wynn. After World War II, Coca
Cola erupted from the fountains of America's soda shops. Moxieland
closed, and the company settled into New England obscurity. Today,
Moxie is made by only a few bottlers and can be found only in local
supermarkets. In "The Secret Integration" the kids have a case of
Moxie, well actually they used one bottle to christen their boat and
they drank one bottle to celebrate a secret integration, so they have a
case shy two.

186.24  ". . . integration" "The opposite of differentiation":  A
mathematical explanation of these concepts is found at
http://www.cop.ufl.edu/safezone/pat/pha5127/introd/diff-int.htm
It's another instance wherre "you can't fight the curve," I suppose.

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