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Everyone knows that only my commendable humility exceeds my near-boundless wit,
and yet I have stumbled upon a pun-reference that eludes me.
I just read Arthur C. Clarke's short story "Patent Pending," copyright 1957, in
which Clarke nicely prefigures "braintaping" and the 80's film "Brainstorm." A
very brief summary: someone has created a sensory-recorder, and the narrator is
describing a discussion of it.
As an aside, this is interesting from a narrative standpoint, because the
narrator is retelling someone else's retelling or someone else's actions.
Anyway, here's the bit that stumps me, from about three pages into the story:
"All good ideas have been thought of by somebody before they are realised,"
said Purvis severely. "The point is that what Huxley and others had talked
about, Julian actually did. My goodness, there's a pun there!
Aldous--Julian--oh, let it pass!"
This pun is lost on me. The only bell that it rings for me is from David
Bowie's long-format video "Jazzin' for Blue Jean," from 84 or 85. At the end of
it, one of Bowie's two characters is arguing with the director (Julien Temple)
about how the film has ended. Bowie says something that I always heard as "Oh
no, Julien" or "Auto Julien" (whatever that means), but now I wonder if Bowie
might have been making the same pun as Clarke. Independent evidence reveals
Bowie as a fan of "2001: A Space Odyssey," so it's possible that he's making a
deliberate reference to one of Clarke's lesser-known works.
It's probably more likely that I am misremembering what I misheard 20+ years
ago.
Regardless, does anyone understand the "Aldous--Julian" reference in "Patent
Pending?" If so, could you let me in on the joke?
Thanks a bazillion.
Dave!
FUT ot.pun
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Message has 2 Replies:
 | | Re: I don't get it
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| (...) I'm not sure what the reference is. I did a little googling and came up with this anecdote: Aldous Huxley once found himself discussing genetics with his brother Julian, an eminent zoologist, who happened to use the phrase "aristocracy of (...) (20 years ago, 10-Mar-05, to lugnet.off-topic.pun)
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