Eerie and Gorey encounters ...1978

My oldest sister Mary lived on Cape Cod near the famous writer and illustrator Edward Gorey who passed away in 2000. His home is now a museum and I've been fortunate to have visited there two times while visiting Mary and another sister, Peg, who also lived on the Cape.  Sadly both sisters are gone now so my Gorey days are over.

However, Mary's daughter Wendy (my niece) was with me over the Holidays and her presence brought back this memory.  Her brother Chris (my nephew) knew I was interested in Edward Gorey and he wrote to me about his mother and he going to a restaurant in W. Barnstable where they often ran into him.   Chris writes:

"She took me one day when I was 17 and ... I was able to shake his hand and thank him for all the creepy entertainment he had given me over the  years.  He was very eccentric and was wearing bright red lipstick and black eye liner. I was a huge fan from the time I was in my first year of High School. I can still recite every word of  his alphabet book The Gashleycrumb Times.  'A if for Amy who fell down the stairs, B is for Basil assaulted by bears', etc.

I  called Gorey when I was in High School to see if he would come in as a guest.  I pleaded with him but he kept saying 'I'm sorry.  I'm just not good at that sort of thing.'  His pen and ink drawings are brilliant and worth looking at for anyone who in not familiar with his work."

Thanks. Chis, for the first-hand information.  My introduction to the world of Edward Gorey came when I watched the opening of Mystery Theater on PBS and found out he was the illustrator.  I've been hooked ever since.