STetc ch 21 - an unheralded mention of the Gumshoe's Manual

Sat Aug 29 09:09:24 UTC 2026

Free on YouTube atm 😃
________________________________
From: Pynchon-l <pynchon-l-bounces at waste.org> on behalf of Michael Bailey via Pynchon-l <pynchon-l at waste.org>
Sent: Saturday, August 29, 2026 5:06 AM
To: Joseph Tracy <coypoet at mailfence.com>; Pynchon List <pynchon-l at waste.org>
Subject: Re: STetc ch 21 - an unheralded mention of the Gumshoe's Manual

Praediger's reverse "comeuppance" at Bruno's party reminds me of a scene in that John Candy detective comedy, "Who's Harry Crumb," where he's surveilling  from a similar stance above a ceiling fan. Can't find it on YouTube, but the whole movie's pretty funny.

________________________________
From: Michael Bailey <mi256118 at ucf.edu>
Sent: Saturday, August 29, 2026 5:00 AM
To: Joseph Tracy <coypoet at mailfence.com>; Pynchon List <pynchon-l at waste.org>
Subject: Re: STetc ch 21 - an unheralded mention of the Gumshoe's Manual

At a guess, he's working for one or more of the demons in the Goetia described in the Lesser Key of Solomon..

I jest; I don't put any credence in that stuff, though I had some Creedence in my car when it was stolen... (A nod to The Big Lebowski)

https://nam02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fyoutu.be%2FwP56EcXm9R0%3Fis%3DZQyDny6j0V1vxLiY&data=05%7C02%7Cmi256118%40ucf.edu%7C67df656fa18e451dac7608df05acd1de%7Cbb932f15ef3842ba91fcf3c59d5dd1f1%7C0%7C1%7C639235911961845889%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C60000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=hvynaKkXsyCeTurx9IMNy0qQJJo2zGqJHZZK9UPCgXY%3D&reserved=0<https://youtu.be/wP56EcXm9R0?is=ZQyDny6j0V1vxLiY>

Although having a demonic hierarchy to blame things on can really tie a room together (-;

But seriously, he has a government position, and within his discretion is some choice as to how to conduct his duties, what relationships to cultivate & so forth - he continues to impress me as a rather intelligent person who lacks moral fiber & behaves accordingly.

He's nominally against Bruno but that doesn't necessarily make him a good guy. He seems to look forward to war, and admires at least the uniforms of the resurging German military, but that doesn't necessarily make him a bad guy. (Although it militates in that direction)

Hicks figures him for Inspector level, but that might be a misunderestimation. He's in charge of the hunt for Bruno, which continues to fail - maybe due to his incompetence, or is he bent?

He's actually a pretty interesting guy, from a distance. I keep flashing forward to Bruno's villa and the scene where a coke-addled Praediger, some Henchmen, and the couch they're riding come crashing down from above the fan, and it keeps getting funnier.

 don't envy Hicks having to work for him, though.

________________________________
From: Joseph Tracy <coypoet at mailfence.com>
Sent: Friday, August 28, 2026 8:39 AM
To: Michael Bailey <mi256118 at ucf.edu>; Pynchon List <pynchon-l at waste.org>
Subject: Re: STetc ch 21 - an unheralded mention of the Gumshoe's Manual

So curious about your off-the-shoulder guess. Is Praediger working for
the International Cheese Consortium. or whatever it's called or one of
the Kraft, Unilever, ?, branches of big cheese, or is this more
political( which in this case is pretty vague). What is clear is that
Praediger  is engaged in  criminal behavior ( there is no legal way to
disallow someone from quitting a job) linked to an international web of
police.

    We live in a time when laws are being made up by brownshirt style
pol ice and every decision a court makes , no matter how clear the
constitution  can be reversed in review or simply ignored by the branch
of government designated to enforce law.

Later we are told Praediger and others cannot see the U13 sub. Tryrants
never know what their blind spot is.

On 8/27/26 2:21 AM, Michael Bailey via Pynchon-l wrote:
> P 107 - "OK, just gonna look in the Manual here for a minute...right, the next question I'm spoze to ask is, is who are (italics) you (italics off) reporting to, who is it that's sending me off onto one more miserable damn hopeless ticket I never heard of, here?"
>
>   I didn't catch it to include in the Gumshoe Interlude, but indubitably "the Manual" is The Gumshoe's Manual.
>
>
>
> After revealing his debauchery & utterly abysmal worldview, and stapling a Bruno ticket onto Hicks's Daphne ticket, Praediger shows Hicks the warrant he'll be subject to if he tries to duck out. There's a mug shot, sent by "Belinograph, all the way from Chicago."
>
> Belinograph - invented by Edouard Belin in 1907. Early fax machine.
>
> Once again observantly, like when he noticed Hicks noticing his suit and replied aloud to what he accurately presumed Hicks to be thinking --- there's a term for that, something like "negative empathy" where they're aware of your feelings but lack sympathy ---
>
> Here he notices Hicks's discomfiture and responds - not to the quip about looking younger in the faxed picture, but to a real uneasiness he can sense. His evocation of Hicks's very early info-age lament isn't followed by any kind of reassurance or commiseration; I think it's just another way to tighten the screws by emphasizing how trapped he is.
> --
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