Michael Thompson, photo courtesy of ILAB.
This past Saturday, the ABAA’s Southern California Chapter held a memorial for our recently departed colleague, Michael Thompson. Through the good offices of Brad Johnson, my following remarks were read, as I was unable to deliver them in person. I offer them here too, in an effort to pay wider homage to our dearly beloved friend.
I suspect that I’m like most of you here today, in that I knew Michael for over 2 decades, our acquaintance first being made, as I recall, in the mid-90s, at one of the then bountiful California book fairs. We recognized in each other a kindred spirit, that is, we both loved the ‘hunt’ for books, and it’s in that vein I’ll relate a story from the late 90s that, I believe, epitomizes Michael’s joy in bookselling…
One summer, we decided to share a booth at Rob Rulon-Miller’s Twin Cities Book Fair. Like most regional fairs, Sunday morning that weekend was, shall we say, slow. Standing idly in our booth, hands in our pockets, Michael looked over at me and inquired,
“Mind holding down the fort? I’m gonna wander around for a bit.”
“No problem,” say I, “take your time.”
20 minutes later, I see Michael purposely striding back to the booth, clutching a little … something, in his left hand.
Entering the booth, smiling triumphantly, he exclaimed, “I just made my weekend!”
“Do tell!”
“Do you know what this is?” he queried, waving the little pamphlet, leaflet.. I couldn’t quite discern which. “It’s the press announcement for Saul Marks’ Plantin Press! I’ve never seen it before, and what do you know, I find this LA item in Minneapolis! For twenty bucks no less!” He grinned, and continued, “Young man, just remember, anything can be anywhere!”
Well Michael, I’ve never forgotten that advice given decades ago, just as I’ll never forget you. Godspeed my friend, may you enjoy this new journey on which you’ve embarked with as much joy as that you experienced in the one just finished.
RBS provides you with the ultimate learning environment. The faculty is a who’s who of rare book experts, who unselfishly divulge their secrets, meant to be shared further with others. Students are free to select their favorite course(s) only, but once you experience this wonderful place, you will want to return soon and often. There is no competition, no cramming, no grades. This is learning at its best. Hint: get to know your peers; they will be delightful and VERY helpful to you. The RBS staff made hard work look easy; everything ran without a hitch. People enjoyed their chosen course, each a shortcut to expertise garnered over a lifetime. Casual, well-attended get-togethers formed naturally during breaks; people were very happy to be there. It felt like a week-long vacation from reality.
Barrie wrote several successful plays (and a couple flukes), but his third script brought him into contact with a young actress of the day – Mary Ansell – who would later, in 1894, become Barrie’s wife. For their union Barrie gifted Mary a St. Bernard puppy – who would become the inspiration for “Nana” in later years. They settled in London but kept a country home in Farnham, Surrey. In 1897 Barrie became acquainted with a nearby family – the Llewelyn Davies family.
Inspired largely by the stories he told to the Llewelyn Davies family, Barrie began to formulate a story of a boy who wouldn’t grow up, who flew around and had adventures. Not unlike Charles Dodgson’s Alice a century before, Barrie began to write his story into a play and once debuted in 1904, the play Peter Pan; or the Boy Who Wouldn’t Grow Up was an immediate success. George Bernard Shaw said of the performance, “ostensibly a holiday entertainment for children, but really a play for grown-up people” – a wonderful description of the meanings and metaphors found in Peter Pan. Though children may see the adventure story on the outside, the adults in the audience could see what was really at play (pun intended) – Barrie’s social commentary on the adult’s fear of time and growing old and losing their childish innocence and fun, to name just a few.
