GR translation: Closet Intellectual Book & candycane control room

[Mike Jing]

Thanks for the reply, Paul, Mark and Laura.

On Sat, Jan 2, 2016 at 4:04 PM, <kelber at mindspring.com> wrote:

> The Closet Intellectual Book, as it's described, sounds as if it's a
> low-brow book meant to be passed off, via the cover, as something more
> high-brow.
>
> Coincidentally, the NY Public Library just opened its erotica collection
> to the public. Among its attractions, which include an extensive porn
> magazine collection, a first edition of Lolita and some explicit pencil
> sketches of Faulkner having sex with his girlfriend, there are porn books
> disguised with covers making them look like sociological studies.
>
> In this NY Times video about the collection, these faux-intellectual tomes
> are described at 0.45 seconds in:
>
> http://nyti.ms/1UjI7q9
>
> Laura
>
> -----Original Message-----
>
> From: Mike Jing
>
> Sent: Jan 2, 2016 2:00 AM
>
> To: Pynchon Mailing List
>
> Subject: GR translation: Closet Intellectual Book & candycane control room
>
>
>
> V680.25-35, P693.33-694.3   Maximilian is way down in the bottom of the
> orchestra pit posing as the C-melody saxophone player, complete with Closet
> Intellectual Book, The Wisdom of the Great Kamikaze Pilots, with
> illustrations by Walt Disney—screaming, hairy-nosed, front teeth in white
> dihedral, slant-eyed (long, elaborate curlicued shapes) round black
> licorice dognosed Japs, zoomin’ through ev’ry page! and any time he’s not
> playing that saxophone, you can be sure Maximilian will be, to the casual
> observer, immersed in this diffuse, though rewarding, work. Myrtle meantime
> is back in the candycane control room, manning the switchboard and ready to
> swoop in at any time to save the others, who are sure (through their own
> folly if nothing else) to be in deep trouble soon.
>
> 1. Is the purpose of the Closet Intellectual Book to hide the fact that
> one is actually an intellectual?
>
> 2. What is a "candycane control room"?
>
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