Comments on: Originally invented by Ben Franklin to mess with Thomas Jefferson on his birthday ...

Originally invented by Ben Franklin to mess with Thomas Jefferson on his birthday ...

clerestory — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 04:24:41 -0800

Acclaimed documentary filmmaker Ken Burns takes on the untold story of The Vowels. Part 2.

By: 2or3whiskeysodas

2or3whiskeysodas — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 04:45:23 -0800

Took me a moment to figure out that this post is not about the excellent song The Vowels, Part 2 by Why?.

By: hippybear

hippybear — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 04:49:58 -0800

And I came here expecting to see a family history of the ever-acclaimed author Sarah Vowell, who herself has been doing a lot of history lately.

By: jonmc

jonmc — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 04:57:16 -0800

I once rode in an elevator with Ken Burns. He got off after four floors. Good thing, too, otherwise we would have all turned sepia.

By: hal9k

hal9k — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 05:09:03 -0800

I once rode in an elevator with Ken Burns. He got off after four floors. Good thing, too, otherwise we would have all turned sepia. And your elevator panel choices were Up, Down, Pan Left, Pan Right...

By: Gratishades

Gratishades — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 05:29:03 -0800

"We would not have a worthwhile planet without America" Hmm interesting way to start a documentary about vowels. (By "interesting" I mean I just threw up a little in my mouth.)

By: nathancaswell

nathancaswell — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 05:38:09 -0800

Pretty well done. Wish the interviewees had made eye contact with the lens and not the interviewer though.

By: nathancaswell

nathancaswell — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 05:39:03 -0800

(gratishades this is a parody)

By: Gratishades

Gratishades — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 05:48:46 -0800

nathancaswell Whoops, colour me chastised. Any parody that strikes one so offensively must be good. I'll start again. Should have noticed the title.

By: condour75

condour75 — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 05:51:19 -0800

2or3, Why is only sometimes in a post about vowels.

By: lesli212

lesli212 — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 06:02:26 -0800

I knew "Y" was going to be controversial, but that made its valiant fight for full vowel recognition no less tragic. I'm grateful to Burns for describing every single underlying cause of that complex bit of American history in an unambiguously clear manner that no other historian can ever hope to contradict or improve upon -- it's just like what he did for the Civil War.

By: marxchivist

marxchivist — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 06:14:52 -0800

It seemed kind of forced to me, you could see them really trying. Just panning over old photos doesn't do it. It didn't have the feel of Ken Burns to me. It sure wasn't the Old Negro Space Program.

By: Obscure Reference

Obscure Reference — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 06:15:56 -0800

So the Y is due to beloved president Nixon!

By: StickyCarpet

StickyCarpet — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 06:20:29 -0800

I knew "Y" was going to be controversial It's tragic what's happened to W. Despite co-opting the word diphthong in their own patois, that term is still thrown around un-ironically, and I find that terribly sad.

By: StickyCarpet

StickyCarpet — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 06:27:51 -0800

Y and W can point to to small victories, like uncopywritable, but they are still regularly excluded from facetious and abstemious.

By: GrammarMoses

GrammarMoses — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 06:32:05 -0800

SC, just add "-ly." Problem solved.

By: lesli212

lesli212 — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 06:38:45 -0800

marxchivist: "It sure wasn't the Old Negro Space Program " This made me laugh -- or chortle -- so hard that I began to cry -- or weep, if you will. I would argue that both parodies are adequate -- or good -- in some ways, though both lack a few elements of what make -- or comprise -- a true Ken Burns documentary. However, it must be concluded, upon perusal of both that both are amusing and not wastes of a Saturday morning.

By: nathancaswell

nathancaswell — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 06:55:50 -0800

It sure wasn't the Old Negro Space Program Oh man "NASSA" is just brilliant

By: nathancaswell

nathancaswell — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 07:02:18 -0800

so is the white african american studies guy who says everything 2 different ways

By: tomswift

tomswift — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 07:03:49 -0800

We're this far into this thread and none of you have pointed out that if you get Ken Burns involved in a documentary about these letters you will, most certainly, end up with (a) vowel movement?

By: Capt. Renault

Capt. Renault — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 09:31:18 -0800

Splendid!

By: LobsterMitten

LobsterMitten — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 20:02:48 -0800

It seemed kind of forced to me, you could see them really trying. Just panning over old photos doesn't do it. It didn't have the feel of Ken Burns to me. It sure wasn't the Old Negro Space Program. I came in here to say exactly this. The Old Negro Space Program benefitted from great voice work, among other things, while the vowels one had merely okay voice work.