They
come to see six-toed cats. They come to
see a historical landmark that’s nearly 165 years old. They come to see where a shipwreck salvation
pioneer built a home that was
architecturally ahead of its time. And
visitors from all over come to see where Ernest Hemingway produced 70% of his
legendary works. The Hemingway House is
something to behold, even if you are like me and don’t like the books of a man
who won a Pulitzer and Nobel Prize and had numerous novels turned into movies.
I had
visited the Hemingway House a number of times in the 1990s when I’d go visit
Key West, which was then just a three-hour car ride from where I lived in Ft.
Lauderdale. I hadn’t been back in nearly
two decades until I came down with my family for a vacation in mid-February.
Hemingway
was many things I will never be – a hunter, a fisherman, a war correspondent,
and a fall-down drunk who suffered from diabetes, bipolar depression, and a
penchant for cheating on each of his four wives. His writings come from his life experiences,
and though one can appreciate the writings or lifestyles of others, I never
really fell in love with the work of a man who would end his life prematurely with the
help of a shotgun. He was just shy of 62
years of age.
He wrote
more than three dozen books and short stories and spent years writing for the
news media. He sounded like an
interesting character and one who truly lives on the extremes – passionate
about life and death equally.
But even
after hearing one of the best tour guide speeches ever and being in the historic setting of
his old house, I couldn’t muster up an interest in buying any of his books in
the gift shop. But I was amazed at how
many people come to visit his house and pay homage to a man gone more than 50
years. I would estimate there were at
least one hundred people coming every hour.
It easily is visited by thousands of people every week of the year. So if over 100,000 people visit annually –
and 5% buy at least one book, he’ll sell better in death than most living
authors. Don’t forget he’s on school
reading lists as well.
In fact,
back in 1983 or ’84 when I was walking the halls of Murrow High School in
Brooklyn, I had to read The Sun Also Rises.
My term paper reflected my disinterest in the book. I thought the dialogue too simple, the story
too slow. My teacher disagreed,
especially when I challenged him as to why this book was considered a classic. Lesson learned. You get a C-when you
speak your mind in school.
However,
despite my lack of enthusiasm for his writings, I must admit I admire the
career he had and I envy his following that’s fueled interest in 2015 for a man
who died in 1961.
It is
wonderful that we honor writers in such a way, by preserving their homes or
creating museums dedicated to their works.
I recall going to see Margaret Mitchell’s home (Gone With The Wind), Ann
Rice’s Home (Interview With The Vampire), Eric Carle Museum (The Very Hungry
Caterpillar), and the museums and homes of other talented and revered
writers. It is the stories about our
storytellers that cause fans and curiosity-seekers to flock in droves to such
places. People feel connected when they
come together for a common purpose, such as visiting where geniuses created
their works.
Will
there be a Brian Feinblum House to visit?
What will be displayed and fawned over?
Will it show how I developed into The Book Marketing Buzz Blog blogger
or the author of The Florida Homeowner, Condo, and Co-Op association
Handbook? Will it show a newsletter I
handed out a college called Peace, Love & Democracy – or my online
newsletter from the late 90’s, The Sunny Times?
Have I written anything memorable, anything that could outlive me?
We don’t
need a physical structure to live the writings of another or to honor the
ideas, sprit, and creativity that flowed from the author. But it is making the world a better place
when we keep talking about writers and encouraging a new generation to read the
books that influenced so many who came before them.
Hemingway
you may not have been my kind of writer, but I applaud your efforts to write
what you live, to pen what you know, and to influence the hearts and minds of
millions from beyond the grave. There
should be more Hemingway Houses darting the landscape.
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