quote:I KNOW that I've read somewhere in Tolkien that Smeagol and Deagol were cousins (though not necessarily first cousins), and several other people also remember having read that.
I don't think there is specific text in the trilogy identifying them as cousins. There might be something in the Lost Tales, but I have to check.
Smeagol lived with an extended family. So maybe Deagol lived with the same family and therefore is likely to be a cousin of some sort.
Posts: 4116 | Registered: Apr 2002
| IP: Logged |
posted
A lot of you are convinced this is from "A Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy." But, I don't think so. I'm a little ashamed to admitt this, but I've never read AHGttG, and that quote is still very familar. (I'm not going to be kicked out of Hatrack for my lack, am I? It's one of those books I'm always meaning to read, but never seem to get to.)
posted
PSI T: that doesn't apply to me. My first reading of it was accompanied with a sense of "deja vu" and even an auditory memory when this first came up.
All of which confirms my suspicion this is a result of someone messing with the timestream! Posts: 4344 | Registered: Mar 2003
| IP: Logged |
posted
Hmmm... And I was thinking that if it was associated with William Shatner, it had to have then come from Airplane II: The Sequel. But I highly doubt it.
Posts: 1295 | Registered: Jan 2003
| IP: Logged |
posted
I've got the e-book versions of all the Hitchhikers Guide books, so I did a search. The phrase "the beauty of it" doesn't appear even once.
I can't vouch for the radio script versions, or the televised one, but I can't think of where it would have come up, either.
Don't have an easy way to search "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," but the transcript of the movie is available online and the phrase doesn't appear there, either.
Posts: 7790 | Registered: Aug 2000
| IP: Logged |
posted
I was thinking about this last night and I too thought of Monty Python. Maybe in one of the episodes, does anyone have them?
Posts: 145 | Registered: Jan 2004
| IP: Logged |
posted
I have a different question. Where did this question originate?
When you do a brief search on google, you will see a lot of forums discussing this very question. Can anyone find out who was the first person to infected the web with this question? Posts: 4116 | Registered: Apr 2002
| IP: Logged |
posted
I think the reason it seems familiar to everybody is that it's very easy to imagine just about anyone saying it.
Seriously, listen to it in your head as the following people; it works for all of them.
Moe the Bartender Tony Soprano Michael Caine John Cleese James Earl Jones Patcick Stewart Robert De Niro Christopher Walkin (actually, this one is my favorite) Gene Hackman George Carlin Ellen Degeneriss Geena Davis The guy that played Brody in Mall Rats Anyone from Buffy or Angel Yoda
It's just a very versatile set of sentences.
Dagonee P.S., you need to capitalize both letters in the first "do."
Posts: 26071 | Registered: Oct 2003
| IP: Logged |
posted
Beren, I think the internet questions originated from here. Intially, there was nothing googlable -- and then Hatrackers started to spread the evil meme by peppering other forums with the question.
posted
Could it have been us that started it? Because I know when the first question was raised here, I did an online search and it didn't come up at all. I know we sent seekers into imdb to ask, and immediately got threads spanning pages.
So...is Hatrack to blame for the internet phenomenon?
posted
Maybe we can get Lucas to digitally insert the line into American Graffiti and claim it was always there...
Posts: 26071 | Registered: Oct 2003
| IP: Logged |
posted
What's really awesome is that this quote has come to me outside of Hatrack. One of my sister's teachers was cruising forums and got caught up in this very discussion, and then told his class about it. Then my sister told me about it.
I wonder if we could play a six degrees of hatrack game.
Actually, what's really sad is that i posted this almost exact post whenever the origional thread a year ago.
Perhaps this was just an evil social experiment and Thalia is actually one of the Secret Cabal of Psych researchers lurking on Hatrack. Using this forum to see how effectively it can be used to infect the rest of the internet. Posts: 4344 | Registered: Mar 2003
| IP: Logged |
posted
I could see this line having been in Galaxy Quest, but I haven't seen the movie often enough to have it memorized.
I've been feeling vexed about the whole "Smeagol & Deagol being cousins" thing too. I've always been under that impression, and I really haven't read much Tolkein beyond The Hobbit, LOTR, and the Silmarillion. Am I right in thinking that there is a matriarch that is referred to as being their grandmother? If so, maybe we just read that and assumed they were cousins for some reason?
Posts: 16059 | Registered: Aug 2000
| IP: Logged |
posted
Yeah - it was ruled out. I watched the whole movie months ago, looking specifically for the quote. (not a big deal - I like the movie)
Posts: 4344 | Registered: Mar 2003
| IP: Logged |
posted
Also, everyone else seems to think it is from Formula 51 when Samuel L Jackson is explaining that his super drug actually uses a combonation of chemicals so while it tests as a massively potent drug, they all cancel each other out, and it doesn't do anything at all...
Posts: 232 | Registered: Mar 2002
| IP: Logged |
posted
Don't feel bad PSI, Rolie Polie Olie is one of the better children's shows. I love James Joyce and am actually looking for my own personal copy of Dinosaur Bob and the Family Lazardo.
At least you weren't referencing a Wiggles episode...
Posts: 995 | Registered: May 2003
| IP: Logged |
posted
HRE: You know there have been theories that that is how all humans are able to learn language and grammar. Some kind of joint "memory" written into our genes of a proto-language. Some even attempted to uncover this "original mother tongue" by raising infants and never using language around them. Of course, such a monstrous experiement would not be lawful today.
Posts: 7050 | Registered: Feb 2004
| IP: Logged |
posted
Snow Crash is my first book (still reading it). If anyone has opinions on his other books, please share. Posts: 1592 | Registered: May 2000
| IP: Logged |
quote:Am I right in thinking that there is a matriarch that is referred to as being their grandmother?
IIRC, when Gandalf is explaining Smeagol to Frodo, he mentions a matriarch.
quote:If anyone has opinions on his other books, please share.
My opinion of Neal Stephenson, based on Snow Crash and Cryptonomicon is that he needs to learn how to write denouement. He is a pretty good writer, has a great ironic comic sense, and has neat ideas, but both of those books ended too soon after the climactic moment. Actually, I think Cryptonomicon ended right at the climax.
Posts: 4534 | Registered: Jan 2003
| IP: Logged |
Thanks for the review Saxon. I'm getting close to the climax, so I hope your warning will help me deal with the inevitable let down. Posts: 1592 | Registered: May 2000
| IP: Logged |
posted
It's amazing seeing how the many discussions on this topic all trace back to Hatrack -- and all only a step or two away. Posts: 32919 | Registered: Mar 2003
| IP: Logged |
Printer-friendly view of this topic
![[Grumble]](graemlins/grumble.gif)
![[Smile]](smile.gif)
![[Wall Bash]](graemlins/wallbash.gif)
![[Cool]](cool.gif)
]![[Big Grin]](biggrin.gif)
![[Wink]](wink.gif)
![[Angst]](graemlins/angst.gif)
![[Razz]](tongue.gif)
![[Dont Know]](graemlins/dontknow.gif)
![[Evil Laugh]](graemlins/evillaugh.gif)
