You never knew Jean Genet served a stint with Uncle Sam, did you? Well, just as some things are kept under wraps for various deceptive reasons and some appearances are meant to be intentionally deceiving, i.e the bogus name-tag with that implausible soubriquet, this authentic looking photo recently discovered jammed between the thin slit left between weathered floor boards in a safe house somewhere in Europe shows the great French writer staring at us from that infamous Middle West boot camp's PX photo booth. Observe, if you will, that famous full-of-meaning slanted glance he's throwing our way and the way his cig forms an artful ringlet that has just wafted up to the bottom of his trademark horn-rimmed glasses. As if all the above weren't enough to throw us off the track, he's also adorned his left hand with--of all things--a US high school class ring!*
Excuse my use of what might seem smacking of hyperbole, but from here to eternity, this is what I'd call the sublime art of subterfuge.
*It has yet to be ascertained as fact, but rumor has it that the phrase Tell Laura I Love Her is engraved on the ring in question.
Darn you, Zambaras. Thanks to you, I’ve been singing/humming “Tell Laura I Love Her” ever since my first visit here this morning. But the inspiration is well worth it, I must say. Classic photo!
ReplyDeleteWilliam,
ReplyDeleteWell, yeah, but look at it this way: It could have been "ep,ep,ep,ep,ep,mmm, mmm, mmm, mmm, mmm.........!"