skinny-lil-b: He's dead, Jim.

Aw, crap. Sorry.

Need to RTFThread.

vernonFL: DrZiffle: Who's Edgar Allen Poe?

David Allen Coe.

Nappy headed ho.

I grant you that in Fum-Fudge the greatness of a grave is in proportion to the size of its visitors-but, good heavens! there is no competing with a grave that has no visitors at all.

vernonFL: David Allen Coe.

"You don't have to call me Roderick Usher ...."

Well Mystery Visitor is DEAD? I mean obvious.

Jedekai: Aside from how he died - most likely as a result of a depressed immune system from superheroic levels of alcoholism and influenza

Poe died from rabies (new window).

Should have had the "Sad" tag!

The note left in '98 said that a son had taken over for the dead father. I wonder if he was doing it to please the widow, and now she's gone, too?

MooseBayou: vernonFL: DrZiffle: Who's Edgar Allen Poe?

David Allen Coe.

Nappy headed ho.

you don't know E.A. poe?
spaghetti-Os
tic tac toe
/nevermo'e

relaxitsjustme: Pocket Ninja: Sensei Can You See: Who's this "we"? You got a mouse in your pocket?

And a shrew in my shoe.

and a trout in my trousers

and ants in my pants.....

Paging the lord of the black wing...

relaxitsjustme: Pocket Ninja: Sensei Can You See: Who's this "we"? You got a mouse in your pocket?

And a shrew in my shoe.

and a trout in my trousers

And an adder in my bladder.

Rufus Griswold, Poe's editor and eventual "biographer" greatly exaggerated Poe's debauchery to sell books. Sounds like some lazy MD's are doing the same thing.

OneFretAway: syberpud: I thought it was finally discovered that it was all a ploy by the groundskeepers and tour operators to keep the mystery alive.

Yup. There is no longer a "mystery visitor". There's just a groundskeeper and his staff. I figured they would have stopped coming after outing themselves in 2007.

FTA:
Sam Porpora, a former historian at Westminster Presbyterian Church, where Poe is buried, claimed in 2007 that he was the original Poe toaster and that he had came up with the idea in the 1970s as a publicity stunt. Jerome disputed Porpora's claims by citing a 1950 article in The (Baltimore) Evening Sun that referred to the annual tribute.

AlwaysRightBoy: Maybe whoever it was is finally delivering them personally?

I like that explanation.

Happy Birthday anyway, Old Man.

WaltzingMathilda: Rann Xerox: Maybe the mystery person decided to go to this guy's grave instead:



Instead of a half-bottle of cognac, a half-pack of Newports would be left instead.

/Yo', Omar comin'!
//Indeed.

OMGF, I just realized the popular TV show "The Wire" is based in Baltimore, and this story is about Baltimore too! Quick, post a picture of Cal Ripken, Jr.!

OMG, crabcakes!!!!!!

syberpud: I thought it was finally discovered that it was all a ploy by the groundskeepers and tour operators to keep the mystery alive.

Driving/walking around Baltimore at late night or early morning isn't exactly safe. Even in a relatively (for Baltimore) safe area.

Well there is UMD Medical center right across the street, so that is convenient if you do get shot.

Don't taze me, Poe.

ttintagel: relaxitsjustme: Pocket Ninja: Sensei Can You See: Who's this "we"? You got a mouse in your pocket?

And a shrew in my shoe.

and a trout in my trousers

And an adder in my bladder.

And a penis.

I always wanted to put Edgar Allen Poe in a headlock (new window)

:(

OneFretAway: There is no longer a "mystery visitor". There's just a groundskeeper and his staff.

Popora is not the Poe Toaster, and never was. He's a 93-year-old huckster who was caretaker of Westminster cemetery in the 1970s. He's also responsible for perpetuating a lot of folklore. Jeff Jerome discounts Popora's claims, and he's too old to have done the physical feat I (along with Jerome and three others) saw the Toaster do in 1983.

"In 1836, Poe married his 13 year old cousin, Virginia, in Richmond."

_{From the Baltimore City Commission for Historical & Architectural Preservation (CHAP)web site.}

So, does this mean the State of Virginia can prosecute Poe posthumously for being a child molester? You know, there's no statute of limitations on that crime. I wouldn't put it past one of those stupid political hacks of a prosecutor to try.

/Got nothin'...

Seymour's Fat Lady: Maybe it's because this story seems to be gathering steam every year and there are dozens of "enthusiasts" standing around waiting for him now?

This. All those rubberneckers are to blame. Go home. Seriously. You suck and your uncontrolled voyeurism ruined it for everyone.

Baz the Spaz: "In 1836, Poe married his 13 year old cousin, Virginia, in Richmond."

From the Baltimore City Commission for Historical & Architectural Preservation (CHAP)web site.

So, does this mean the State of Virginia can prosecute Poe posthumously for being a child molester? You know, there's no statute of limitations on that crime. I wouldn't put it past one of those stupid political hacks of a prosecutor to try.

/Got nothin'...

Poedo Bear approves.

Rann Xerox: Maybe the mystery person decided to go to this guy's grave instead:



Instead of a half-bottle of cognac, a half-pack of Newports would be left instead.

/Yo', Omar comin'!
//Indeed.

Damn. I just started season 5. Damn.

It's actually pretty good; if you're into hip-hop. Check out the Floe Almighty album.

Oh yea, and on topic, they died. That is all.

The tombstone says he was born on October 8th, 1848. But the dude who shows up on Poe's birfday was supposed to show up with roses and some Henny last night, January 18th. This story makes no sense.

Poe sucks anyway.

Constance Velocity: All those rubberneckers are to blame. Go home. Seriously. You suck and your uncontrolled voyeurism ruined it for everyone.

No, if you're going to blame anybody, blame Jeff Jerome for turning what was a quiet personal tribute into a commercial event that drums up tours for Westminster Burial Grounds and the Poe House, provides an occasion for fundraising "birthday parties," and assures him of non-stop calls from the media once a year.

The University of Maryland and Westminster Preservation Trust have tolerated public drinking, leading to rowdiness and people clambering over the walls and a general party-like atmosphere.

Back in the day, the early to mid 80s, nobody showed up. Jerome even left a gate open for the Poe Toaster.

It's been turned into an event by Jerome, and allowed to happen by Westminster Preservation Trust. That's where the blame lies.

It was Eric Woolfson.

Kalyco Jack: The tombstone says he was born on October 8th, 1848. But the dude who shows up on Poe's birfday was supposed to show up with roses and some Henny last night, January 18th. This story makes no sense.

Are we looking at the same tombstone? Poe was born in 1809. His 1875 monument incorrectly gives his birth date as January 20. Poe was actually born on January 19. The Poe Toaster visits on Poe's birthday -- after midnight on the night that begins January 18.

Not a single solid example of the following in this thread?!

1. -----8----A -----8---A
2. --------15-16-----B*(ore)
3. ---~8----C ---~8----C
4. ---~8----C ---~8----Bx
5. -------15-16------Bx
6. ----7----B

* number of syllables in a section is indicated with an Arabic numeral and later in parentheses.

/I am leaving disappointed.

WeAreTheGoldfarbs: Constance Velocity: All those rubberneckers are to blame. Go home. Seriously. You suck and your uncontrolled voyeurism ruined it for everyone.

No, if you're going to blame anybody, blame Jeff Jerome for turning what was a quiet personal tribute into a commercial event that drums up tours for Westminster Burial Grounds and the Poe House, provides an occasion for fundraising "birthday parties," and assures him of non-stop calls from the media once a year.

The University of Maryland and Westminster Preservation Trust have tolerated public drinking, leading to rowdiness and people clambering over the walls and a general party-like atmosphere.

Back in the day, the early to mid 80s, nobody showed up. Jerome even left a gate open for the Poe Toaster.

It's been turned into an event by Jerome, and allowed to happen by Westminster Preservation Trust. That's where the blame lies.

OK. Will do!

Rann Xerox

Cal Ripken, Jr.?????? Sheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeiiiit!


Golly!

Kalyco Jack

Poe sucks anyway.


You sound dull.

I'm thinking the guy decided at some point to keep doing it until Poe's 200th birthday, which was last year, and then retire. So, he's done.

The guy started in 1949, which was the year that was 100 years after Poe died. Coincidence? Maybe not.

FTA about the guy who perpetuated the rumors:

"Franks once photocopied his private parts on a Xerox machine at a Social Security office and put the images on display. Decades ago, he posed as a disabled poet in a wheelchair, solicited donations from the crowd, then thanked everyone and got up and walked away."

Stand up guy.

Kalyco Jack: The tombstone says he was born on October 8th, 1848. But the dude who shows up on Poe's birfday was supposed to show up with roses and some Henny last night, January 18th. This story makes no sense.

Poe sucks anyway.

What you are really looking at in the photo is the "original" grave of Poe. He was buried there from 1848 until 1875, when his body was moved to its present location. The marker in the photo memorializes the first grave site. It was not installed until 1913 and at first was misplaced outside the Poe family plot. Eight years later (1921) it was moved to the correct location although Poe's body had long since been exhumed.

The marker you see in the new photo reads: "Original Burial Place of Edgar Allan Poe from October 9, 1849 until November 17, 1875. Mrs. Maria Clemm, his mother-in-law, lies upon his right and Virginia Poe, his wife, upon his left under the monument erected to him in this cemetery."

The more you know...

w0oooop wooop woop wooooop

Englebert Slaptyback: Kalyco Jack

Poe sucks anyway.


You sound dull.


Seconded.

1. -----8----A -----8---A
2. --------15-16-----B*(ore)
3. ---~8----C ---~8----C
4. ---~8----C ---~8----Bx
5. -------15-16------Bx
6. ----7----B

* number of syllables in a section is indicated with an Arabic numeral and later in parentheses.

/I am leaving disappointed.

Shakespeare was a hack. Iambic pentameter, Indeed!

What did I do?
Credit to SweetDude for doing all the work, there....

WeAreTheGoldfarbs: OneFretAway: There is no longer a "mystery visitor". There's just a groundskeeper and his staff.

Popora is not the Poe Toaster, and never was. He's a 93-year-old huckster who was caretaker of Westminster cemetery in the 1970s. He's also responsible for perpetuating a lot of folklore. Jeff Jerome discounts Popora's claims, and he's too old to have done the physical feat I (along with Jerome and three others) saw the Toaster do in 1983.

I dunno. Men have been known to remain fertile well in to their 80's.