I read about Mr. F. Gwynplaine MacIntyre (also known as "Froggy") today in the New York Times. What a multifaceted, interesting but very sad figure.
The most imaginative writer you could ever dream up could not create any more of an enigmatic, oxymoronic figure than the real life "Froggy".
God bless him and I sincerely hope he now has all the answers to his questions...I just had to relate his story.
From the New York Times by Corey Kilgannon:
The F stood for Fergus. That was how neighbors in his working-class neighborhood in deep Brooklyn knew him: a bearish pariah holed up in a fetid apartment stuffed with a lifetime of newspapers, books, belongings and all sorts of trash, who worked nights as a printer in Manhattan and ranted about his horrid childhood.
The F also stood for Froggy. That’s what fans in the rabid science-fiction world on the Internet called him: a witty and eloquent man prone to using obscure words and coining new ones, who published numerous books, articles and short stories to great acclaim and spun fantastic tales about his travels.
Both were vaporized June 25. In a dramatic farewell that could have come from Froggy’s pen, Mr. MacIntyre, according to fire officials, methodically set ablaze the contents of the apartment in Bensonhurst where he had lived for a quarter-century. First the flames consumed a lifetime of possessions; then they feasted on his weary flesh, ending his painful 59-year earthly existence. Born in Scotland, raised in Australia — or so he said, in his impeccable British regional accent — he now lies unclaimed in a Brooklyn morgue.
“We have to conclude that this was Froggy’s last story,” said Darrell Schweitzer, a writer who was an editor and agent for Mr. MacIntyre. “Froggy lived a life of suffering, and he was an enigma. He was an insoluble mystery, and it’s possible he’ll be remembered for that mystery.”
Read more http://alturl.com/korz3
The most imaginative writer you could ever dream up could not create any more of an enigmatic, oxymoronic figure than the real life "Froggy".
God bless him and I sincerely hope he now has all the answers to his questions...I just had to relate his story.
From the New York Times by Corey Kilgannon:
The F stood for Fergus. That was how neighbors in his working-class neighborhood in deep Brooklyn knew him: a bearish pariah holed up in a fetid apartment stuffed with a lifetime of newspapers, books, belongings and all sorts of trash, who worked nights as a printer in Manhattan and ranted about his horrid childhood.
The F also stood for Froggy. That’s what fans in the rabid science-fiction world on the Internet called him: a witty and eloquent man prone to using obscure words and coining new ones, who published numerous books, articles and short stories to great acclaim and spun fantastic tales about his travels.
Both were vaporized June 25. In a dramatic farewell that could have come from Froggy’s pen, Mr. MacIntyre, according to fire officials, methodically set ablaze the contents of the apartment in Bensonhurst where he had lived for a quarter-century. First the flames consumed a lifetime of possessions; then they feasted on his weary flesh, ending his painful 59-year earthly existence. Born in Scotland, raised in Australia — or so he said, in his impeccable British regional accent — he now lies unclaimed in a Brooklyn morgue.
“We have to conclude that this was Froggy’s last story,” said Darrell Schweitzer, a writer who was an editor and agent for Mr. MacIntyre. “Froggy lived a life of suffering, and he was an enigma. He was an insoluble mystery, and it’s possible he’ll be remembered for that mystery.”
Read more http://alturl.com/korz3
4 comments:
One of many tortured literary souls tortured because of their sensitivity to the human condition!
I think you may be right...
Sad, sad story. And given the right sort of circumstances and frame of mind, could happen to any one of us. Makes me ponder how one person's reactions to adversity can make for a totally different outcome than another person's. There is a saying that genius is only a step away from insanity. I hope Mr. MacIntyre has finally found peace.
Hi Mish,
Thanks for your comment...and "amen" to your thought on this subject.
Actually, you do realize, of course, that we are ALL a little "mad"
Post a Comment