[8mmMauser]

I was a fan of Max Shulman. Can we say Rally Round the Flag, Boys? It was one of my treasures of youth. His humor fit right in. But I confess, I can’t place your Bang.

[T'wit]

First line of "Sleep Till Noon." It had absolutely nothing to do with the book. Max just thought it would be a great first line for a book :-) I went searching for it just now, found a few SIGNED copies for sale, and pounced on one. Just for old times' sake.

My introduction to Shulman was "Barefoot Boy with Cheek." This book had an even better first line... think about it :-) ... sticking a pushpin into his alma mater: "St. Paul and Minneapolis extend from the Mississippi River like the legs on a pair of trousers. Where they join is the University of Minnesota."

In fact, the whole book was a spoof on the U. of Minnesota, with such characters as Asa Hearthrug (our hero), Lodestone la Toole, his hometown sweetheart who eats lard sandwiches, Yetta Samovar, the campus subversive, and Noblesse Oblige, a member of the Beta Thigh sorority. (Asa's fraternity, which he joined because he fell into their pit trap, was Alpha Cholera.) The stupid athlete was named Eino Flikkeninnen, or something along those lines. SO Minnesota.