We were tooling along on the Santa Monica Freeway the other day when we noticed this amusing bumper sticker:
It turns out - in keeping with the devotion that the Aubrey-Maturin series inspires - that there's a website devoted to logging sightings of related bumper stickers.
The sticker certainly brings the judgment of O'Brian fans into some question. Setting aside the Constitutional questions (neither man is a natural born American citizen), one has to wonder about the wisdom of floating a noted laudanum addict for the number two spot. We've only read Master and Commander, the first book in the series, so we can't say for certain but Aubrey doesn't appear to lack the necessary leadership qualities. Which got us thinking - how many US presidents came up through the Navy? Given that the Navy was created in 1798, the answer may surprise you - only six presidents, and all comparatively recent ones.
But the more interesting question we're left with is which literary characters might make good presidents? It's kind of hard to imagine anyone more attractive than that paragon of decency, Atticus Finch. And perhaps the steadiness of a Nick Carraway might make him a good number two. Mischievous choices for a presidential stint might include Grady Tripp (no questions about inhaling) or, call us twisted, Mickey Sabbath. (He'd always be entertaining.) And Ignatius J. Reilly's State of the Union would be worth tuning in for. In a more serious vein, we're kinda partial to Doc Ricketts although, technically, he was a real guy. All in all, we suspect Aubrey-Maturin aren't the best presidential material literature has to offer.
If you've got some killer literary presidential candidates, drop us a line or just record your ballot in the comments box below.
Mickey Sabbath would be the ideal string-puller (or finger-wiggler) behind (or inside)the titular head; I'd vote for Seymour "Swede" Levov for titular head. The glove-making motif dovetails nicely with the hand-puppetry, too.
Posted by: Steven Augustine | July 25, 2007 at 06:54 AM
How about some women? I nominate Melanie Wilkes, from Gone With the Wind. She annoyed me when I was younger, but now that I'm wiser, I can appreciate her steadfastness and consensus-building. She even won the respect of Belle Watling!
Posted by: Leslie | July 25, 2007 at 08:37 AM
Holly Martins and Harry Lime to keep the buffoon/string puller motif going.
Posted by: Jim | July 25, 2007 at 09:09 AM
Tyrone Slothrop. If he pulls a Monica-gate, DC blows up.
Posted by: Andrew | July 25, 2007 at 09:27 AM
Quixote/Panza should be the ticket for our healthcare mess...and Iraq...and oh, anything else it seems.
Posted by: Jim L | July 25, 2007 at 10:47 AM
Beckett's narrator from the Unnamable - 'his' various identities could fill the entire cabinet. And imagine the State of the Union addresses!
Posted by: EG | July 25, 2007 at 10:47 AM
Eel O'Brien-Lamont Cranston
Posted by: Jack Pendarvis | July 25, 2007 at 03:25 PM
Gore Vidal's Lincoln / and to balance the ticket by herself, Myra Breckenridge.
Posted by: Capybara | July 25, 2007 at 03:46 PM
Ahab/Fedallah, a ticket that has certain parallels to our current administration...
Posted by: Erin | July 25, 2007 at 07:34 PM
Moll Flanders--hott!
Posted by: Jimmy Beck | July 26, 2007 at 05:33 AM