(urth) AEG: Dr. Lao and Woldercan

[don doggett]

--- On Sun, 9/20/09, Roy C. Lackey <rclackey at stic.net> wrote: 
> Then I was reminded that Wolfe used references from the Oz
> movie in FLF, so
> I may have been wrong to dismiss the possibility of him
> using the movie
> version of Dr. Lao as a source in AEG. If there are
> duplictes of humans on
> Woldercan, it eliminates the need for hypothetical time
> travel and other
> problematic solutions.
> 
> What say you?

I'd say that Wolfe tends to appropriate and redefine any bit of literature and pop culture that appeals to him, and that he is of just the right generation to have been a fan of the movie as well as the book. On the other hand, he does mention Charles Finney (the author of the The Circus of Dr. Lao) by name in AEG, so that tends to skew things towards the book. I own a few copies of it and no, the townsfolk are not duplicated in the novel. It's a wonderful book, Roy, if you haven't read it, and it has influenced many great writers, most notably Ray Bradbury. It definitely belongs in the canon of classic fantastic fiction.

Don