Pynchon fax

[Otto]

----- Original Message -----
From: "jbor" <jbor at bigpond.com>
To: <pynchon-l at waste.org>
Sent: Monday, May 03, 2004 1:11 AM
Subject: Re: Pynchon fax


> otto
> > To
> > me it seems more that you are on a quest against the piece
> > because you disagree with his critical attitude in it
>
> Not at all. As always, you need to put words into my mouth to mount your
> attack.
>

Not at all, if you read as closely as usual you will find that "to me it
seems" that way. I did not put any words into yout mouth.

> If it's a statement Pynchon made knowing that it was to be published then
it
> reflects badly on him. I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt,
> however, until the source (i.e. Pynchon) is verified.

But we have no reason to believe that it's not been him talking to the
Playboy. Why should we be forced to verify this Playboy thing while we
accept the New York Times being correct in printing the luddite-essay?

> That's basic
> journalistic ethics, and something which the anonymous publisher of the
> Tinasky letters and the editors of Playboy Japan -- as well as those who
> have subsequently blogged the Japan Playboy piece onto the Internet, in
what
> they are openly acknowledging is a sub-standard retranslation anyway, and
> then claimed it is a public statement made by Pynchon -- have breached.
>

I don't know what the Playboy Japan people have done wrong.

The Tinasky-affair is different because there has been a denial:

"Pynchon has remained silent on the matter; a couple years ago, when
considerations of collecting the letters came about, Pynchon's agent, who is
also his wife, insisted he was not Wanda. But they were not married until a
year and a half past the Wanda era, indeed, lived on opposite coasts. Maybe
Wanda was the Other Woman he neglected to mention."
http://web.archive.org/web/20000618165259/members.aol.com/tinasky/letters/in
dex.html

> Again, has anyone contacted Pynchon through his agent or publisher to try
to
> verify the authenticity of the Playboy Japan statement? And, if not, why
> not?
>
> best
>

I guess nobody did it because the story goes they wouldn't answer.

Otto