Dyer-Bennet, The Gathering of the Clan

"The Gathering of the Clan" appeared on the flip side of a recording of Mark Twain's '1601', an essay read by Dyer-Bennet. This sophisticated tenor, a popular singer of folk songs before World War II, later became a record producer. The longish essay was Twain's imaginary re-creation of a gathering in Queen Elizabeth's I's private chambers of her favorite literary figures. Francis Bacon, Shakespeare, and Walter Drake hold forth, not on weighty literary matters but on sex and bodily functions, Twain imitating the style of each writer to perfection.

Around the World in 80 Years: A Memoir, Henrietta Yurchenko