Thursday, September the 17th, 2009

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Gish ‘n’ Wasps

In a comment on Googie ‘n’ Bee, R. writes: I think there could be some useful mileage in Lilian Gish + wasps, too. I am afraid to say that this demonstrates a fundamental misunderstanding of the connections between stars of the silver screen and the sorts of insects that buzz and fly and sting, the Aculeate Hymenoptera.

A modicum of research reveals a plethora of anecdotal material linking Googie Withers with bees. Much of this is hearsay, and some of it is undoubtedly fictitious, merely the product of fuming brains careening pell-mell into poltroonery for want of any more useful employment. Nevertheless, bloody good anecdotage should never be discounted entirely, as Dobson once said, at a picnic.

Conversely, conversely, say it again daddy-o, you will wander the world for umpteen years before you ever come upon a reliable Gish-wasp story.

Now, useful mileage there may be if we are talking about Tallulah Bankhead and hornets, or Nova Pilbeam and German wasps, or even Vilma Banky and bees. In the latter case we even have a story involving ectoplasmic bee goo, though it has been suppressed by Vilma Banky's estate, for understandable reasons.

I hope that makes things clear.