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QUESTIONS

NOTES

von Hindenburg

Paul von Hindenburg enjoyed a long if undistinguished career in the Prussian army, eventually retiring in 1913. He was recalled at the outbreak of the First World War, and first came to national attention, at the age of sixty-six, as the victor at Tannenberg in 1914. As Germany's supreme commander from 1916, he and his chief of staff, Erich Ludendorff, rose in the German public's esteem until Hindenburg came to eclipse the Kaiser himself. Hindenburg retired again in 1919, but returned to public life one more time in 1925 to be elected as the second President of Germany.

Associated Traction would have to fluctuate profitably next day

An oblique reference to the cavalier attitude of the “Roaring Twenties.” The owner of Associated Traction would have to influence his stock to fluctuate upwards, probably in some insider trading scheme that is now illegal, so that he could finance his gambling habits (especially those at Gatsby’s parties). When Assoc. Traction’s price would be high enough, the owner, James “Rot-gut” Ferret, would then sell some stock and use his profits as cash. Nick’s polite euphemism belies the lack of ethical or moral compunction—for if a stock fluctuates profitably, it can also, just as easily, become a loss.

worn so threadbare

Idiomatic expression meaning that the thing under discussion was, like an old shirt, worn out—so much so that the threads were exposed and fraying.

Bois de Boulogne

A famous and large (3.2 mi.2) park in Paris. It was part of the royal forest domains for centuries. In 1852, Napoleon II converted it into a park: there are thirty-five kilometers of footpaths, eight kilometers of cycle paths and twenty-nine kilometers of riding tracks. The upper and lower lakes, connected by a waterfall, were created; the excavated earth was used to create the Butte Mortemart.

Montenegro

Small country (5,000 mi.2) in Southeast Europe on the Adriatic coast. It has been a crossroads of Europe since Roman times. In World War I Montenegro was part of the allies and was invaded by the Austro-Hungarian Empire (leader of the Central Powers). Montenegro is a very long way from France, where Jay Gatsby served in the Seventh Infantry.

cricket

A game invented in Britain that modern baseball is based on. It is extremely popular in England and is commonwealth nations. A picture of a batsman in the traditional white uniform is below.

 

Astoria

Astoria is a neighborhood in the northwestern corner of the borough of Queens in New York City. Located in Community Board 1, Astoria is bounded by the East River and is adjacent to three other Queens neighborhoods: Long Island City (bordering at Broadway), Sunnyside (bordering at Northern Boulevard), and Woodside (bordering at 50th Street).

Originally, Astoria was known as Hallet's Cove, but was renamed after John Jacob Astor in order to persuade him to invest $2,000 in the neighborhood. He contributed only $500 to the neighborhood, but the name stayed. It has been said that Astoria was named for a man who never set foot in it. A bitter battle over naming the village was finally won by supporters and friends of Astor who had become the wealthiest man in America by 1840 with a net worth of over $40 million. Astor did live in "Astoria" (his summer home), built in Manhattan on what is now East 87th Street near York Avenue, from which he could see across the river the new Long Island village named in his honor. A picture of Astoria and the Triborough and Hell Gate Bridges is below.

pomp and circumstance

A march (a kind of song) composed in 1901 by Sir Edward Elgar. In the United States, March No. 1 is sometimes known simply as "the graduation song", and is associated with graduation ceremonies. It was first played at such a ceremony on June 28, 1905, at Yale University. The tune soon became de rigueur at American graduations.

It is also an idiom that expresses a high degree of formality, usually artificial or to an excessive degree.

Meyer Wolfshiem

The character of Meyer Wolfshiem is based on the real Arnold Rothstein, the New York gambler (both names are clearly Jewish). Rothstein was notorious for his involvement in the 1919 World Series (Black Sox) Scandal where the Chicago White Sox, who were heavy favorites, allegedly intentionally lost to make the money back on bets they (and Rothstein) had placed.

The Wikipedia entry follows:

BLACK SOX SCANDAL/WORLD SERIES OF 1919

The conspiracy was the brainchild of White Sox first baseman Arnold "Chick" Gandil and Joseph "Sport" Sullivan, a professional gambler of Gandil's acquaintance. Having clinched the American League pennant, the Chicago White Sox were installed as the bookmaker's favorites to defeat the Cincinnati Reds in the Series. At the time, gambling on baseball was rife and there were many stories about fixed games during the regular season, which were typically ignored by team owners and administrators.

Gandil enlisted seven of his teammates, motivated by a mixture of greed and a dislike of penurious club owner Charles Comiskey, to implement the fix. Starting pitchers Eddie Cicotte and Claude "Lefty" Williams, outfielders "Shoeless" Joe Jackson and Oscar "Happy" Felsch, and infielders Charles "Swede" Risberg and Fred McMullin were six of the players. Buck Weaver was also asked to participate but he refused. He was later banned with the others for knowing of the fix but not reporting it. Sullivan and his two associates Bill Burns and Billy Maharg, somewhat out of their depth, approached the wealthy New York gambler Arnold Rothstein to provide the money for the players, who were promised a total of $100,000.

The White Sox lost the 1919 World Series 5 games to 3 games.

THE FALLOUT

Rumors dogged the club throughout the 1920 season, as the White Sox battled the Cleveland Indians for the AL pennant that year, and stories of corruption touched players on other clubs as well. At last, in September 1920, a grand jury was convened to investigate.

During the investigation, two players — Cicotte and Jackson — confessed. Comiskey suspended the seven White Sox still in the majors (Gandil had left the team and was playing semi-pro ball). This move decimated the team, and the remnants finished second, two games behind Cleveland. Prior to the trial, key evidence went missing from the Cook County Courthouse, including the signed confessions of Cicotte and Jackson, who subsequently recanted their confessions. The players were acquitted. Some years later, the missing confessions reappeared in the possession of Comiskey's lawyer.

The Leagues were not so forgiving. The damage to the sport's reputation led the owners to appoint Federal Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis as the first Commissioner of Baseball. As his first act, he declared:

Regardless of the verdict of the juries, no player who throws a ball game, no player who undertakes or promises to throw a ball game, no player who sits in confidence with a bunch of crooked players and does not promptly tell his club about it, will ever play professional baseball.

With this statement, all eight players were banned from baseball for life.

The Plaza Hotel

Ultra-posh hotel on 59th st. and 5th Ave., across the street from Central Park and about 2 blocks from Tiffany’s. It is the last name in elegance and the home to the famous Heloise who ends up living there (accidentally) as a child. See the picture below.