Episode 20: For the Sake of Bill Cosby

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Phil & Kevin, talking over Skype, talk about what makes a great first line great—in movies, in novels, from TV shows, and from articles. And then there’s a bit about German translation. Then it’s on to the etiquette of shooting down relatives and Facebook friends with Snopes.com links. Then, Phil’s Best-Worst Thing on the Internet This Week is simply amazing, and amazingly wrong.

Run time: 39:47

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Show notes and links

First Lines

• Some complain that the brothers laugh at their own jokes, says Fulton

• Goodfellas - Wikiquote

• Greatest Opening Film Lines and Quotes

• “Nevermind” was full of teenage angst, ironically, the first line on “In Utero” is, ‘Teenage angst has paid off well, now I’m bored and old.’

• Space. It seems to go on and on forver. But then you get to the end and the gorilla starts throwing barrels at you.

• “How’s your blog going?”

• “All this happened, more or less.” Kurt Vonnegut, In Memoriam

• The Trouble with Translations (on The Metamorphosis’ first line) (PDF link)

• “The Boxer and the Blonde” - 06.17.85 - SI Vault

• Edna Buchanan covered the murder for the Herald—there are policemen in Miami who say that it wouldn’t be a murder without her—and her story began with what the fried-chicken faction still regards as the classic Edna lead: “Gary Robinson died hungry.”

• His A-head on the carrot - “This morning we will discuss carrots” - is legendary.

• In Pod Form listeners’ favorite first lines

Is it worth correcting/Snopes-ing chain letters and Facebook posts?

• snopes.com: Bill Cosby - I’m Tired

• snopes.com: Target Merry Christmas Ban

Best Thing on the Internet This Week (BTOTITW)

• Phil: Mega Millions Fever: Tips for Buying Your Lucky Lottery Ticket | ABC News

• Kevin: Letters of Note (Particularly (NSFW): “Mickey Mantle’s outstanding experience at Yankee Stadium” and The Tiger Oil Memos)