1 00:00:02,440 --> 00:00:05,640 Speaker 1: Happy Saturday. Since the Guano Islands Act came up on 2 00:00:05,680 --> 00:00:07,840 Speaker 1: the show recently, we thought we would loop back to 3 00:00:07,880 --> 00:00:11,360 Speaker 1: our past episode on Lester Hemingway, which has a connection 4 00:00:11,440 --> 00:00:14,360 Speaker 1: to it. It also reminded Tracy a little bit of 5 00:00:14,400 --> 00:00:16,880 Speaker 1: our recent episode on Emily Sargent in that we know 6 00:00:17,239 --> 00:00:19,880 Speaker 1: so much about her brother and have so little detail 7 00:00:19,920 --> 00:00:23,639 Speaker 1: on her. It's kind of the scoop with Lester and Earnest. Yeah. 8 00:00:23,720 --> 00:00:27,160 Speaker 1: So this originally came out February twenty fourth, twenty twenty 9 00:00:27,520 --> 00:00:33,680 Speaker 1: Enjoy Welcome to Stuff You Missed in History Class, a 10 00:00:33,720 --> 00:00:43,519 Speaker 1: production of iHeartRadio. Hello, and welcome to the podcast. I'm 11 00:00:43,560 --> 00:00:47,320 Speaker 1: Holly Frye and I'm Tracy view Wilson. Tracy. Everybody's heard 12 00:00:47,320 --> 00:00:49,800 Speaker 1: the name Ernest Hemingway. I think most people have at 13 00:00:49,880 --> 00:00:52,560 Speaker 1: least heard of him. Yeah, they may not have read 14 00:00:52,600 --> 00:00:55,800 Speaker 1: his work, or maybe they did. And his life is 15 00:00:55,840 --> 00:00:58,200 Speaker 1: pretty well known and well documented because he was so 16 00:00:58,320 --> 00:01:01,040 Speaker 1: famous even in his own time. But his brother is 17 00:01:01,080 --> 00:01:04,560 Speaker 1: another story. But Lester, and that is spelled the same 18 00:01:04,560 --> 00:01:07,520 Speaker 1: way that the city in England is spelled, but it 19 00:01:07,600 --> 00:01:11,280 Speaker 1: is pronounced Lester similarly, much younger than his famous sibling, 20 00:01:11,680 --> 00:01:13,800 Speaker 1: has quite a story of his own and it is, 21 00:01:14,040 --> 00:01:17,440 Speaker 1: as you'll see, a life very much lived in relation 22 00:01:17,600 --> 00:01:20,959 Speaker 1: to his brother. In some ways, his identity growing up 23 00:01:21,200 --> 00:01:24,360 Speaker 1: was I'm Hemingway's little brother. We're going to talk about 24 00:01:24,360 --> 00:01:27,640 Speaker 1: the biography that he wrote about Ernest, and really anything 25 00:01:27,680 --> 00:01:32,560 Speaker 1: about himself is through the lens of how his brother 26 00:01:32,680 --> 00:01:35,160 Speaker 1: influenced him or how it related to his brother. It 27 00:01:35,200 --> 00:01:39,119 Speaker 1: really was not until after Ernest Hemingway's death that Lester 28 00:01:39,240 --> 00:01:42,160 Speaker 1: made his boldest moves in life. And we're going to 29 00:01:42,160 --> 00:01:44,440 Speaker 1: talk about all that as a heads up. As you 30 00:01:44,480 --> 00:01:46,520 Speaker 1: may or may not know, if you know any details 31 00:01:46,560 --> 00:01:49,760 Speaker 1: about Hemingway's life and the Hemingway family, there are going 32 00:01:49,840 --> 00:01:53,000 Speaker 1: to be several instances of suicide that we talk about 33 00:01:53,000 --> 00:01:55,400 Speaker 1: in today's show, not in great detail, but they do 34 00:01:55,480 --> 00:01:58,440 Speaker 1: come up as elements that happen along the way. So 35 00:01:58,520 --> 00:02:01,720 Speaker 1: when Lester was born on April first, nineteen fifteen, his 36 00:02:01,880 --> 00:02:05,800 Speaker 1: brother Ernest, who would become just wildly famous, was already 37 00:02:05,840 --> 00:02:09,200 Speaker 1: sixteen years old. The family was living in the Oak 38 00:02:09,360 --> 00:02:12,680 Speaker 1: Park suburb of Chicago at the time. The oldest of 39 00:02:12,680 --> 00:02:16,040 Speaker 1: the Hemingway siblings was their sister Marceline, who was born 40 00:02:16,120 --> 00:02:19,080 Speaker 1: a year before Ernest in eighteen ninety eight. They also 41 00:02:19,120 --> 00:02:22,160 Speaker 1: had two more sisters, Ursula born in nineteen oh two 42 00:02:22,440 --> 00:02:25,480 Speaker 1: and Madeleine, who was called Sonny, born in nineteen oh four. 43 00:02:26,160 --> 00:02:30,280 Speaker 1: Another daughter, Carol, came along in nineteen eleven, so Lester 44 00:02:30,440 --> 00:02:34,320 Speaker 1: was the baby of the family, also unplanned. His father 45 00:02:34,560 --> 00:02:38,600 Speaker 1: was Clarence Edmunds Hemingway and his mother was Grace Ernestine Hall. 46 00:02:38,919 --> 00:02:42,360 Speaker 1: The Hemingways were supporters of the arts and of missionary efforts, 47 00:02:42,480 --> 00:02:46,000 Speaker 1: and Clarence founded a local chapter of the Agasy Society, 48 00:02:46,040 --> 00:02:49,600 Speaker 1: which was focused on collecting and studying natural objects. They 49 00:02:49,600 --> 00:02:52,400 Speaker 1: were also very interested in science in the natural world. 50 00:02:52,840 --> 00:02:55,639 Speaker 1: Clarence was a doctor and he worked for several insurance 51 00:02:55,680 --> 00:02:59,480 Speaker 1: companies as their medical examiner while also leading the obstetrics 52 00:02:59,520 --> 00:03:03,040 Speaker 1: department at Oak Park Hospital. There's a moment in the 53 00:03:03,040 --> 00:03:06,240 Speaker 1: biography Lester wrote that he was also working for a 54 00:03:06,320 --> 00:03:09,839 Speaker 1: dairy as like their physical exam guy for their employees. 55 00:03:10,680 --> 00:03:13,120 Speaker 1: And Grace had been on the cusp of what could 56 00:03:13,160 --> 00:03:16,040 Speaker 1: have potentially been a pretty successful career as a singer 57 00:03:16,080 --> 00:03:19,200 Speaker 1: when she decided to give that up and instead mary 58 00:03:19,200 --> 00:03:22,040 Speaker 1: Clarence and start a family, and that is something that, 59 00:03:22,080 --> 00:03:24,600 Speaker 1: according to Lester, naged at her for the rest of 60 00:03:24,600 --> 00:03:28,079 Speaker 1: her life as she wondered what could have been. According 61 00:03:28,080 --> 00:03:31,280 Speaker 1: to Lester's biography of his brother, which we'll talk about 62 00:03:31,360 --> 00:03:34,000 Speaker 1: later in the episode, Ernest was very much a father 63 00:03:34,120 --> 00:03:38,120 Speaker 1: figure to his much younger sibling. Ernest did everything from 64 00:03:38,240 --> 00:03:41,440 Speaker 1: changing stapers to teaching him how to shoot and fish 65 00:03:41,520 --> 00:03:44,400 Speaker 1: and fight. He also gave his little brother one of 66 00:03:44,440 --> 00:03:47,520 Speaker 1: a lot of nicknames that he would use throughout their relationship. 67 00:03:47,560 --> 00:03:50,840 Speaker 1: That was the Baron. Grace was also assisted by a 68 00:03:50,920 --> 00:03:54,440 Speaker 1: number of nurses and servants. She was not particularly interested 69 00:03:54,440 --> 00:03:57,640 Speaker 1: in the more domestic aspects of family life. They were 70 00:03:57,680 --> 00:04:00,800 Speaker 1: able to afford help, sometimes hiring students on summer breaks 71 00:04:00,840 --> 00:04:03,920 Speaker 1: to assist to them. Yeah, Grace was not so interested 72 00:04:03,960 --> 00:04:07,960 Speaker 1: in cooking and housework. And I mean, if you can 73 00:04:08,000 --> 00:04:09,640 Speaker 1: afford help to do that and you don't like to 74 00:04:09,640 --> 00:04:13,320 Speaker 1: do it, go you. In his very young years, Lester 75 00:04:13,480 --> 00:04:16,080 Speaker 1: saw his older brother start his career as a writer, 76 00:04:16,720 --> 00:04:18,920 Speaker 1: taking his first job as a police reporter at the 77 00:04:19,000 --> 00:04:24,040 Speaker 1: Kansas City Star through a family connection, and then Ernest 78 00:04:24,080 --> 00:04:26,800 Speaker 1: moved quickly on to joining the American Red Cross Field 79 00:04:26,839 --> 00:04:29,760 Speaker 1: Service to join the war effort during World War One. 80 00:04:30,000 --> 00:04:32,080 Speaker 1: Ernest had actually wanted to go straight into the war 81 00:04:32,080 --> 00:04:35,760 Speaker 1: from school, but their father forbade it. It is very 82 00:04:35,760 --> 00:04:38,880 Speaker 1: clear through all of this, and really the entire biography 83 00:04:38,920 --> 00:04:43,360 Speaker 1: that he wrote, that Lester idolized his big brother. Ernest 84 00:04:43,520 --> 00:04:46,960 Speaker 1: was injured by a mortar shell while distributing cigarettes and 85 00:04:47,080 --> 00:04:49,480 Speaker 1: chocolate to the men on the front lines in Italy 86 00:04:49,600 --> 00:04:52,760 Speaker 1: during the war. He managed to carry an injured soldier 87 00:04:52,800 --> 00:04:55,640 Speaker 1: on his back to the aid station before he passed out, 88 00:04:55,720 --> 00:04:57,440 Speaker 1: and that was a feat that was made even more 89 00:04:57,440 --> 00:05:00,240 Speaker 1: impressive because he was hit by two bullets from a 90 00:05:00,320 --> 00:05:03,839 Speaker 1: machine gun along the way. His legs had also taken 91 00:05:03,960 --> 00:05:07,320 Speaker 1: most of the blast from the mortar. For years, this 92 00:05:07,480 --> 00:05:10,800 Speaker 1: incident grew in its telling in public circles, and it 93 00:05:10,839 --> 00:05:13,440 Speaker 1: was something that Ernest seemed to even encourage in not 94 00:05:13,600 --> 00:05:16,600 Speaker 1: correcting any of them. But Lester, in writing about it, 95 00:05:16,640 --> 00:05:19,080 Speaker 1: set the record straight that his brother had not taken 96 00:05:19,160 --> 00:05:21,800 Speaker 1: hundreds of bullets to the groin or had any kind 97 00:05:21,839 --> 00:05:25,080 Speaker 1: of mental or emotional breakdown as a result of this incident. 98 00:05:25,760 --> 00:05:28,560 Speaker 1: Ernest later referenced and kind of fueled this rumor that 99 00:05:28,640 --> 00:05:32,039 Speaker 1: his genitalia had been irreversibly injured in the writing of 100 00:05:32,040 --> 00:05:34,640 Speaker 1: his character Jake in his novel The Sun also rises, 101 00:05:34,680 --> 00:05:38,440 Speaker 1: so he definitely kind of enjoyed the oversized versions of 102 00:05:38,480 --> 00:05:42,200 Speaker 1: this story that went around. Ernest was seriously injured and 103 00:05:42,240 --> 00:05:45,080 Speaker 1: he required several months to recover, but he did return home. 104 00:05:45,480 --> 00:05:47,760 Speaker 1: He was hailed as a war hero, and Lester would 105 00:05:47,839 --> 00:05:50,800 Speaker 1: later write of it, quote, it was pretty glorious stuff 106 00:05:50,880 --> 00:05:53,719 Speaker 1: being kid brother to the guy who had personally helped 107 00:05:53,760 --> 00:05:56,920 Speaker 1: make the world safe for democracy. When Ernest and his 108 00:05:56,960 --> 00:06:00,600 Speaker 1: first wife, Hadley Richardson traveled to Europe, Less wrote him 109 00:06:00,640 --> 00:06:03,840 Speaker 1: what he described as fan mail that struck me as 110 00:06:03,920 --> 00:06:09,760 Speaker 1: so interesting that he calls it that, but clearly very 111 00:06:09,960 --> 00:06:13,240 Speaker 1: adoring of his brother. In the fall of nineteen twenty six, 112 00:06:13,560 --> 00:06:17,160 Speaker 1: Lester's grandfather on the Hemingway side passed away, and it 113 00:06:17,200 --> 00:06:19,560 Speaker 1: was the first of many events that culminated in a 114 00:06:19,600 --> 00:06:23,560 Speaker 1: depression for their father, Clarence. Soon after, Ernest wrote to 115 00:06:23,560 --> 00:06:25,720 Speaker 1: tell the family that he and his wife were separated 116 00:06:25,760 --> 00:06:28,640 Speaker 1: amicably and they were getting a divorce. This was something 117 00:06:28,640 --> 00:06:31,520 Speaker 1: Clarence was very upset by. He told Lester, who was 118 00:06:31,600 --> 00:06:34,080 Speaker 1: just a little over eleven years old at the time, quote, 119 00:06:34,279 --> 00:06:36,640 Speaker 1: you know, of course that your brother has brought great 120 00:06:36,720 --> 00:06:40,960 Speaker 1: shame on the family by divorcing Hadley don't you. Ernest's 121 00:06:41,080 --> 00:06:44,520 Speaker 1: rapid second marriage to Pauline Pfeiffer, who became pregnant soon 122 00:06:44,560 --> 00:06:48,039 Speaker 1: after the wedding, was another blow. Even though the Hemingways 123 00:06:48,240 --> 00:06:51,200 Speaker 1: loved Pauline and were happy to welcome a new grandchild, 124 00:06:52,000 --> 00:06:55,640 Speaker 1: Ernest sort of insulted his father, who, as we said earlier, 125 00:06:55,680 --> 00:07:00,280 Speaker 1: was an obstetrician, by asking kind of pointed questions about 126 00:07:00,279 --> 00:07:03,760 Speaker 1: the quality of the hospital where he was working as 127 00:07:03,800 --> 00:07:05,800 Speaker 1: he and Pauline try to decide where they were going 128 00:07:05,839 --> 00:07:08,359 Speaker 1: to have the baby. Yeah, it's interesting. There is a 129 00:07:08,440 --> 00:07:12,040 Speaker 1: letter in this biography that Lester publishes. He doesn't publish 130 00:07:12,040 --> 00:07:14,360 Speaker 1: any of his brother's letters, which we'll talk about in 131 00:07:14,400 --> 00:07:17,440 Speaker 1: a moment, but the letter that Clarence wrote back to 132 00:07:17,520 --> 00:07:22,040 Speaker 1: him is very polite and he kind of is like, oh, yeah, 133 00:07:22,080 --> 00:07:24,520 Speaker 1: the hospital's here might not do for you. Maybe you'd 134 00:07:24,560 --> 00:07:27,200 Speaker 1: be better off having the baby elsewhere. And it sounds 135 00:07:27,280 --> 00:07:29,920 Speaker 1: very polite and not upset. But Lester is very clear 136 00:07:29,960 --> 00:07:36,000 Speaker 1: that his father was really injured and heartbroken that the 137 00:07:36,120 --> 00:07:38,440 Speaker 1: quality of the care that he was part of was 138 00:07:38,560 --> 00:07:42,400 Speaker 1: questioned in this way. Additionally, there was some ongoing strife 139 00:07:42,440 --> 00:07:46,080 Speaker 1: between Ernest and Clarence, even though his eldest son was 140 00:07:46,120 --> 00:07:48,200 Speaker 1: making a name for himself as a writer and was 141 00:07:48,280 --> 00:07:50,840 Speaker 1: lauded as one of the great literary voices of the time. 142 00:07:50,880 --> 00:07:54,920 Speaker 1: By this point, Clarence and Grace just didn't understand Ernest's work, 143 00:07:55,000 --> 00:07:57,960 Speaker 1: and they often did not like it when they read it. That, 144 00:07:58,200 --> 00:08:02,040 Speaker 1: coupled with their ongoing dismay earnest life choices, had really 145 00:08:02,040 --> 00:08:05,240 Speaker 1: put a strain on the father son relationship. Then, as 146 00:08:05,320 --> 00:08:07,640 Speaker 1: nineteen twenty eight played out, Clarence had to run of 147 00:08:07,680 --> 00:08:11,160 Speaker 1: bad luck. He had invested in property in Florida, planning 148 00:08:11,200 --> 00:08:14,360 Speaker 1: it as a retirement destination, but then the bottom dropped 149 00:08:14,360 --> 00:08:17,680 Speaker 1: out of the real estate market in Florida. The property 150 00:08:17,840 --> 00:08:21,840 Speaker 1: was significantly devalued, the heavyways owed a lot more on 151 00:08:21,920 --> 00:08:24,280 Speaker 1: it than it was worth, and Clarence was not going 152 00:08:24,320 --> 00:08:26,560 Speaker 1: to be able to set up a retirement practice there. 153 00:08:27,280 --> 00:08:30,640 Speaker 1: Several months later, Clarence was diagnosed with diabetes. This was 154 00:08:30,680 --> 00:08:33,199 Speaker 1: something he had suspected for a while, but he had 155 00:08:33,200 --> 00:08:36,679 Speaker 1: put off getting tested. It's one of those the cobblers 156 00:08:36,800 --> 00:08:39,360 Speaker 1: children have no shoe situation. He is one of those 157 00:08:39,360 --> 00:08:41,080 Speaker 1: doctors that did not want to go to the doctor. 158 00:08:42,000 --> 00:08:45,360 Speaker 1: These events all accumulated, and Lester described in his writing, 159 00:08:45,400 --> 00:08:48,720 Speaker 1: Clarence having a quote serious loss of morale, and it 160 00:08:48,760 --> 00:08:52,120 Speaker 1: was something he also called an emotional illness. On the 161 00:08:52,120 --> 00:08:54,960 Speaker 1: morning of December sixth, nineteen twenty eight, Clarence burned a 162 00:08:54,960 --> 00:08:57,520 Speaker 1: few of his personal items and papers, and then he 163 00:08:57,559 --> 00:09:00,840 Speaker 1: retired to an upstairs bedroom and he shot himself in 164 00:09:00,880 --> 00:09:04,640 Speaker 1: the midst of the household's grief and turmoil. Ernest had 165 00:09:04,679 --> 00:09:08,840 Speaker 1: traveled in to manage the funeral arrangements and some other business. 166 00:09:09,440 --> 00:09:11,800 Speaker 1: He told Lester, who at this point was thirteen, that 167 00:09:11,920 --> 00:09:14,800 Speaker 1: a he should not cry. That the Hemingways did not cry. 168 00:09:15,679 --> 00:09:17,760 Speaker 1: It was just kind of a horrible emotional burden to 169 00:09:17,800 --> 00:09:20,800 Speaker 1: give a kid, and b that he wanted Lester to 170 00:09:20,880 --> 00:09:23,000 Speaker 1: get the gun that their father had used to end 171 00:09:23,040 --> 00:09:25,880 Speaker 1: his life from the police and have it shipped to him. 172 00:09:26,000 --> 00:09:30,720 Speaker 1: Ernest Hemingway wanted that weapon. So you might think that 173 00:09:30,880 --> 00:09:34,280 Speaker 1: something like that would sour the younger brother's admiration for 174 00:09:34,360 --> 00:09:36,880 Speaker 1: his older sibling, but this was not the case at all. 175 00:09:37,360 --> 00:09:40,160 Speaker 1: A few years later, as the movie adaptation of The 176 00:09:40,200 --> 00:09:43,560 Speaker 1: Sun Also Rises was coming out, Lester visited his big 177 00:09:43,600 --> 00:09:47,680 Speaker 1: brother in Piggott, Arkansas, where Pauline's family lived. It went 178 00:09:47,720 --> 00:09:49,960 Speaker 1: and saw the movie and reported back about it to 179 00:09:50,040 --> 00:09:52,280 Speaker 1: Ernest and then went hunting with him. And this whole 180 00:09:52,320 --> 00:09:55,800 Speaker 1: trip in Lester's account, reads as though Ernest was keenly 181 00:09:55,840 --> 00:09:58,480 Speaker 1: aware that his brother needed somebody to step into the 182 00:09:58,520 --> 00:10:01,640 Speaker 1: shoes of their like father, and the two of them 183 00:10:01,679 --> 00:10:04,480 Speaker 1: talked about their family. Ernest made sure that Lester had 184 00:10:04,559 --> 00:10:07,679 Speaker 1: enough money. Yeah, it's interesting. Ernest did not want to 185 00:10:07,720 --> 00:10:10,600 Speaker 1: go see the movie, but he didn't want to hear 186 00:10:10,640 --> 00:10:13,120 Speaker 1: if it was okay, So that's why he sent his brother. 187 00:10:14,240 --> 00:10:16,680 Speaker 1: And this relationship, to be clear, was also something that 188 00:10:16,760 --> 00:10:20,959 Speaker 1: benefited Ernest. He really liked having someone in his life 189 00:10:21,000 --> 00:10:24,320 Speaker 1: that looked up to him. Lester later wrote, quote, Ernest 190 00:10:24,400 --> 00:10:26,840 Speaker 1: was never very content with life unless he had a 191 00:10:26,880 --> 00:10:30,840 Speaker 1: spiritual kid brother nearby. He needed someone he could show 192 00:10:30,880 --> 00:10:34,559 Speaker 1: off to as well as teach. He needed uncritical admiration. 193 00:10:35,320 --> 00:10:38,080 Speaker 1: If the kid brother could show a little worshipful awe, 194 00:10:38,160 --> 00:10:41,320 Speaker 1: that was a distinct aid in the relationship. I made 195 00:10:41,320 --> 00:10:43,520 Speaker 1: a good kid brother when I was around, but I 196 00:10:43,600 --> 00:10:47,480 Speaker 1: couldn't be around regularly. We'll talk more about the relationship 197 00:10:47,520 --> 00:10:51,400 Speaker 1: between the Hemingway brothers as Lester grew into adulthood after 198 00:10:51,440 --> 00:11:03,800 Speaker 1: we take a quick sponsor break. As the years went on, 199 00:11:04,160 --> 00:11:07,400 Speaker 1: Lester and Ernest remained close, although other friends filled that 200 00:11:07,520 --> 00:11:10,320 Speaker 1: kid brother roll for the writer when Lester was busy 201 00:11:10,320 --> 00:11:13,560 Speaker 1: with school. The younger brother joined his brother on the 202 00:11:13,600 --> 00:11:16,320 Speaker 1: sea in Key West when the novelist took delivery of 203 00:11:16,360 --> 00:11:19,880 Speaker 1: his famous fishing boat Pillar in nineteen thirty four, and 204 00:11:19,960 --> 00:11:22,120 Speaker 1: during their trips out on the water, they continued their 205 00:11:22,160 --> 00:11:24,680 Speaker 1: long talks. This was something that they would do for 206 00:11:25,000 --> 00:11:27,600 Speaker 1: years and years. It was a bored pillar that they 207 00:11:27,679 --> 00:11:30,200 Speaker 1: discussed the fact that Lester also wanted to be a 208 00:11:30,200 --> 00:11:33,520 Speaker 1: professional writer, just like his older brother, and the shared 209 00:11:33,559 --> 00:11:36,560 Speaker 1: knowledge that anything the younger Hemingway wrote would be compared 210 00:11:36,600 --> 00:11:40,560 Speaker 1: to Ernest's work. Everything you do, Ernest told his brother, 211 00:11:40,840 --> 00:11:43,520 Speaker 1: they'll say you're writing on my reputation. You know that, 212 00:11:43,720 --> 00:11:48,200 Speaker 1: don't you. Ultimately, Ernest was supportive of Lester's desire to 213 00:11:48,280 --> 00:11:50,640 Speaker 1: write and told him he could give him some advice, 214 00:11:50,720 --> 00:11:52,520 Speaker 1: but he did not want to help him in any 215 00:11:52,559 --> 00:11:55,760 Speaker 1: way beyond that. Over the years, he offered up some 216 00:11:55,880 --> 00:11:59,160 Speaker 1: tips like, if you can't make up stories, you shouldn't 217 00:11:59,200 --> 00:12:02,760 Speaker 1: try to write a real one remembered as always sort 218 00:12:02,800 --> 00:12:06,920 Speaker 1: of flat compared to a made up one. Yeah, perfectly 219 00:12:06,920 --> 00:12:08,640 Speaker 1: happy to do all that advice, but he didn't want 220 00:12:08,640 --> 00:12:11,640 Speaker 1: anybody to be able to say that Lester hadn't earned 221 00:12:11,640 --> 00:12:14,920 Speaker 1: his place as a writer. He also advised that Lester 222 00:12:14,960 --> 00:12:17,000 Speaker 1: should do what he had done, which was start out 223 00:12:17,040 --> 00:12:19,640 Speaker 1: in newspapers. He felt like that was a really good 224 00:12:19,640 --> 00:12:22,720 Speaker 1: way to develop your own voice and also to basically 225 00:12:22,920 --> 00:12:24,959 Speaker 1: get in the habit of having to write all the time, 226 00:12:25,000 --> 00:12:27,360 Speaker 1: whether you felt like it or not. And that was 227 00:12:27,440 --> 00:12:30,880 Speaker 1: precisely what the younger Hemingway brother did. In nineteen thirty five, 228 00:12:30,960 --> 00:12:34,640 Speaker 1: Lester started working for the Chicago Daily News, writing regional 229 00:12:34,679 --> 00:12:38,960 Speaker 1: news and fielding questions from his coworkers about his famous brother. 230 00:12:39,480 --> 00:12:42,280 Speaker 1: In nineteen fifty three, almost twenty years after the two 231 00:12:42,360 --> 00:12:45,320 Speaker 1: brothers had started talking about Lester becoming a writer, he 232 00:12:45,400 --> 00:12:47,880 Speaker 1: published his first novel, The Sound of the Trumpet, and 233 00:12:47,920 --> 00:12:50,400 Speaker 1: that was based on his experiences in Europe during the 234 00:12:50,400 --> 00:12:53,760 Speaker 1: Second World War. It was compared in the press to 235 00:12:54,960 --> 00:12:59,959 Speaker 1: Ernest's work and often was deemed derivative and heavily inflat 236 00:13:00,080 --> 00:13:03,800 Speaker 1: winced by Ernest Hemingway. Lester wrote several other books that 237 00:13:03,880 --> 00:13:07,880 Speaker 1: also existed but went unpublished. We didn't mention that he 238 00:13:08,000 --> 00:13:10,120 Speaker 1: went to Europe during the Second World War. And there's 239 00:13:10,120 --> 00:13:13,959 Speaker 1: a reason, which is that Lester's life is not documented 240 00:13:14,040 --> 00:13:16,480 Speaker 1: in any way as well as his brothers. It kind 241 00:13:16,520 --> 00:13:19,120 Speaker 1: of comes up in these these things. Oh yes, of 242 00:13:19,200 --> 00:13:21,080 Speaker 1: course I went to Europe. It was in my book. 243 00:13:21,600 --> 00:13:25,640 Speaker 1: But he's so busy always capturing his brother's life that 244 00:13:25,679 --> 00:13:30,000 Speaker 1: he never really seemed to record a lot about his own. Lester, 245 00:13:30,200 --> 00:13:33,160 Speaker 1: for example, married twice. I couldn't tell you the dates 246 00:13:33,160 --> 00:13:37,520 Speaker 1: because I could not find them, despite looking around very 247 00:13:37,600 --> 00:13:40,800 Speaker 1: energetically about it. His first wife was Patricia Shed. The 248 00:13:40,840 --> 00:13:43,319 Speaker 1: couple had two sons together, Peter and Jacob, who went 249 00:13:43,320 --> 00:13:46,199 Speaker 1: by Jake, although that marriage did not last. He next 250 00:13:46,200 --> 00:13:49,559 Speaker 1: married Doris May Dunning, a marriage which produced two daughters, 251 00:13:49,600 --> 00:13:51,559 Speaker 1: ann in Hillary, and he was married to Doris for 252 00:13:51,640 --> 00:13:55,920 Speaker 1: the rest of his life. So documenting Ernest Hemingway's life 253 00:13:55,960 --> 00:13:59,720 Speaker 1: was something that Lester said was his brother's idea. Ernest 254 00:13:59,720 --> 00:14:02,199 Speaker 1: wanted quote somebody who really knew me to write a 255 00:14:02,200 --> 00:14:05,520 Speaker 1: book about me, and Lester took up that challenge, writing 256 00:14:05,559 --> 00:14:09,679 Speaker 1: about his brother's quote absolute integrity, both emotional and esthetic. 257 00:14:10,440 --> 00:14:13,520 Speaker 1: But the famous Hemingway did not want a biography to 258 00:14:13,559 --> 00:14:16,960 Speaker 1: be published about him while he was still alive. So Lester, 259 00:14:17,120 --> 00:14:19,800 Speaker 1: who worked on the project for some time, just held 260 00:14:19,840 --> 00:14:23,640 Speaker 1: onto that manuscript. On July second, nineteen sixty one, Ernest 261 00:14:23,640 --> 00:14:26,280 Speaker 1: Hemingway was found dead in the foyer of the home 262 00:14:26,320 --> 00:14:28,720 Speaker 1: in Idaho that he shared with his fourth wife Mary. 263 00:14:29,560 --> 00:14:32,160 Speaker 1: The obituary, which ran in the New York Times, printed 264 00:14:32,200 --> 00:14:36,480 Speaker 1: Mary's statement, quote, mister Hemingway accidentally killed himself while cleaning 265 00:14:36,520 --> 00:14:39,640 Speaker 1: a gun this morning at seven thirty am. No time 266 00:14:39,680 --> 00:14:42,240 Speaker 1: has been set for the funeral services, which will be private. 267 00:14:42,960 --> 00:14:45,960 Speaker 1: But the obituary also noted that Ernest had been treated 268 00:14:45,960 --> 00:14:48,760 Speaker 1: at the Mayo Clinic in recent months, and quoted a 269 00:14:48,800 --> 00:14:51,600 Speaker 1: friend of the authors from the police force as saying 270 00:14:51,600 --> 00:14:53,800 Speaker 1: that friends had relayed that in the time leading up 271 00:14:53,840 --> 00:14:57,720 Speaker 1: to his death, Hemingway quote looked thinner and acted depressed. 272 00:14:58,520 --> 00:15:01,400 Speaker 1: The coroner also gave a quot quote in this obituary 273 00:15:01,480 --> 00:15:03,920 Speaker 1: story that stated quote, I can only say at this 274 00:15:04,040 --> 00:15:06,800 Speaker 1: stage that the wound was self inflicted. The wound was 275 00:15:06,840 --> 00:15:09,560 Speaker 1: in the head. I couldn't say it was accidental, and 276 00:15:09,600 --> 00:15:12,760 Speaker 1: I couldn't say it was suicide. There wasn't anybody there. 277 00:15:13,560 --> 00:15:17,160 Speaker 1: Lester's book was published eight months after Ernest's death, titled 278 00:15:17,160 --> 00:15:20,600 Speaker 1: Simply My brother, Ernest Hemingway, and it was dedicated to 279 00:15:20,640 --> 00:15:23,720 Speaker 1: his wife Doris. The opening of the book offers so 280 00:15:23,880 --> 00:15:27,400 Speaker 1: much insight into the reverence for Ernest that his brother had. 281 00:15:28,280 --> 00:15:31,600 Speaker 1: It reads quote. The conversations recorded in this biography are 282 00:15:31,640 --> 00:15:34,000 Speaker 1: as accurate as I could make them. I did not 283 00:15:34,080 --> 00:15:36,720 Speaker 1: have a tape recorder, and I do not possess total recall, 284 00:15:37,360 --> 00:15:40,480 Speaker 1: but my own notes, ship's log and memory enabled me 285 00:15:40,560 --> 00:15:46,200 Speaker 1: to reproduce many conversations. In writing dialogue, Ernest polished, edited, 286 00:15:46,240 --> 00:15:49,560 Speaker 1: and was the supreme master of this art. In presenting 287 00:15:49,640 --> 00:15:53,280 Speaker 1: Ernest's conversations, I have been mindful of the obligations of 288 00:15:53,320 --> 00:15:56,920 Speaker 1: a brother, a friend, and a biographer. Ernest did not 289 00:15:57,080 --> 00:15:59,320 Speaker 1: favor the publication of his letters, so they have not 290 00:15:59,400 --> 00:16:03,840 Speaker 1: been reproduced here. He regarded all biographies as unlucky during 291 00:16:03,840 --> 00:16:06,800 Speaker 1: the subject's lifetime, Yet at the end of the last 292 00:16:06,880 --> 00:16:09,080 Speaker 1: letter I had from him, he wished me luck with 293 00:16:09,120 --> 00:16:13,240 Speaker 1: this book. Lester acknowledged the version of his brother's death 294 00:16:13,360 --> 00:16:16,000 Speaker 1: that Ernest's wife Mary had shared with the press, that 295 00:16:16,120 --> 00:16:18,680 Speaker 1: it may have been an accident rather than an intentional 296 00:16:18,680 --> 00:16:22,120 Speaker 1: effort to end his own life. But Lester also attributes 297 00:16:22,240 --> 00:16:25,680 Speaker 1: full intention to his brother's actions. He wrote really candidly 298 00:16:25,760 --> 00:16:29,680 Speaker 1: about his brother's depression, his sadness at having lost several friends, 299 00:16:30,040 --> 00:16:31,880 Speaker 1: and during that time at the Mayo Clinic, he was 300 00:16:31,960 --> 00:16:36,120 Speaker 1: undergoing electroshock treatments. He also notes in the text that 301 00:16:36,280 --> 00:16:40,840 Speaker 1: Ernest was, unlike any author before him, mourned globally as 302 00:16:40,840 --> 00:16:42,880 Speaker 1: though he had been a statesman rather than a writer. 303 00:16:43,840 --> 00:16:46,560 Speaker 1: Lester's biography of his brother was well received, and it 304 00:16:46,600 --> 00:16:49,400 Speaker 1: is still read today by Hemingway enthusiasts. And it is 305 00:16:49,480 --> 00:16:52,680 Speaker 1: definitely an adoring picture of the man. And it is 306 00:16:52,760 --> 00:16:55,720 Speaker 1: filled with a lot of stories about them hunting and 307 00:16:55,760 --> 00:16:58,800 Speaker 1: fishing together, a lot of details regarding all of that, 308 00:16:59,280 --> 00:17:01,840 Speaker 1: not the best for people who might be squeamish about 309 00:17:01,840 --> 00:17:04,960 Speaker 1: the details of such activities. Okay, so we're going to 310 00:17:04,960 --> 00:17:07,560 Speaker 1: go ahead and stop for a sponsor break, because after 311 00:17:07,720 --> 00:17:11,240 Speaker 1: his brother's iconic life had ended, Lester made some really 312 00:17:11,280 --> 00:17:13,639 Speaker 1: bold decisions of his own. We will get to that 313 00:17:13,760 --> 00:17:26,040 Speaker 1: right after a sponsor break. Okay, this is gonna sound 314 00:17:26,080 --> 00:17:29,520 Speaker 1: like we edited two different episodes together because it's a 315 00:17:29,520 --> 00:17:31,840 Speaker 1: little bit of a track jump. But we have to 316 00:17:32,080 --> 00:17:34,800 Speaker 1: pause for a moment here in the story of Lester 317 00:17:34,840 --> 00:17:38,080 Speaker 1: Hemingway's life. We did not edit two episodes together accidentally 318 00:17:38,720 --> 00:17:44,320 Speaker 1: to discuss bird poop. Before synthetic fertilizers were commercially produced 319 00:17:44,320 --> 00:17:47,040 Speaker 1: in any kind of cost effective way, the name of 320 00:17:47,040 --> 00:17:50,840 Speaker 1: the game in soil fertilization was guano. All kinds of 321 00:17:50,920 --> 00:17:55,320 Speaker 1: natural fertilizers had been used since the beginning of time. Manure, compost, 322 00:17:55,320 --> 00:17:58,359 Speaker 1: and river silt have all been used to enrich soil 323 00:17:58,440 --> 00:18:01,960 Speaker 1: to produce crops for centuries. We talked about some of 324 00:18:02,000 --> 00:18:06,640 Speaker 1: this in our episode on the discovery of phosphorus, yeah 325 00:18:06,880 --> 00:18:12,520 Speaker 1: and guano. In this case, seabird excrements rather than bats, 326 00:18:12,720 --> 00:18:15,239 Speaker 1: was used in the Andes and the Previing Coast, as 327 00:18:15,280 --> 00:18:18,280 Speaker 1: well as other areas to enrich the soil. It became 328 00:18:18,320 --> 00:18:21,080 Speaker 1: really coveted by a lot of countries in the nineteenth century, 329 00:18:21,119 --> 00:18:24,919 Speaker 1: and this was a significant part of several conflicts. The 330 00:18:24,960 --> 00:18:27,480 Speaker 1: First and Second Wars of the Pacific, which started in 331 00:18:27,520 --> 00:18:31,080 Speaker 1: eighteen sixty four and eighteen seventy nine, respectively, were fought 332 00:18:31,160 --> 00:18:35,280 Speaker 1: over occupation and exploitation of South American territories that were 333 00:18:35,359 --> 00:18:38,520 Speaker 1: rich in a lot of resources, one of them being guano. 334 00:18:39,000 --> 00:18:42,400 Speaker 1: But before either of those conflicts, in eighteen fifty six, 335 00:18:42,520 --> 00:18:47,800 Speaker 1: the US Congress passed the Guano Islands Act. Seabirds, particularly 336 00:18:47,800 --> 00:18:50,560 Speaker 1: in places where their colonies have been allowed to flourish 337 00:18:50,600 --> 00:18:53,560 Speaker 1: without humans getting in the way, produce a lot of 338 00:18:53,760 --> 00:18:57,480 Speaker 1: very rich fertilizer. The US and the eighteen fifties did 339 00:18:57,480 --> 00:18:59,960 Speaker 1: not have a whole lot of islands with productive sea 340 00:19:00,000 --> 00:19:03,240 Speaker 1: ee bird populations to fill this need, so this federal 341 00:19:03,320 --> 00:19:06,520 Speaker 1: law was intended to generate territory that would give them 342 00:19:06,560 --> 00:19:11,359 Speaker 1: access to this natural resource. The acts opening reads as follows. Quote, 343 00:19:11,400 --> 00:19:14,560 Speaker 1: Whenever any citizen of the United States discovers a deposit 344 00:19:14,600 --> 00:19:17,920 Speaker 1: of guano on any island, rock, or key not within 345 00:19:17,960 --> 00:19:21,320 Speaker 1: the lawful jurisdiction of any other government, and not occupied 346 00:19:21,359 --> 00:19:24,240 Speaker 1: by the citizens of any other government, and takes peaceable 347 00:19:24,280 --> 00:19:28,360 Speaker 1: possession thereof and occupies the same such island, rock, or key, may, 348 00:19:28,440 --> 00:19:32,119 Speaker 1: at the discretion of the President, be considered as appertaining 349 00:19:32,119 --> 00:19:35,720 Speaker 1: to the United States. According to this Act, the discoverer 350 00:19:35,800 --> 00:19:38,280 Speaker 1: of such a spot is required to notify the Department 351 00:19:38,320 --> 00:19:41,400 Speaker 1: of State of the possession and provide proof that all 352 00:19:41,440 --> 00:19:44,280 Speaker 1: of the conditions of the law are met. If the 353 00:19:44,320 --> 00:19:47,399 Speaker 1: person who discovers the guano resource were to die before 354 00:19:47,480 --> 00:19:50,000 Speaker 1: all this paperwork and proof is taken care of. His 355 00:19:50,119 --> 00:19:52,880 Speaker 1: widow or heirs can follow through and they will get 356 00:19:52,920 --> 00:19:55,440 Speaker 1: credit for the discovery, as well as rights to live 357 00:19:55,480 --> 00:19:59,320 Speaker 1: there on this declared land and to harvest and sell 358 00:19:59,320 --> 00:20:03,000 Speaker 1: the guano there. The claimed land and guano shipment is 359 00:20:03,040 --> 00:20:05,719 Speaker 1: also to be protected by the US. And I am 360 00:20:05,800 --> 00:20:09,919 Speaker 1: using present tense language here because this federal law still stands. 361 00:20:10,480 --> 00:20:12,840 Speaker 1: We're going to get back to this bird poop, but 362 00:20:13,080 --> 00:20:15,240 Speaker 1: for a moment, we're going to go back to Lester Hemingway. 363 00:20:15,960 --> 00:20:18,760 Speaker 1: The publication of my brother Ernest Hemingway made a bit 364 00:20:18,800 --> 00:20:21,159 Speaker 1: of money for Lester, and he had some plans for 365 00:20:21,200 --> 00:20:23,520 Speaker 1: how to use it. He had gotten twenty five thousand 366 00:20:23,600 --> 00:20:27,320 Speaker 1: dollars from Playboy magazine to publish the story as a serial, 367 00:20:27,880 --> 00:20:31,280 Speaker 1: and the biography was really successful, eventually being translated into 368 00:20:31,320 --> 00:20:35,560 Speaker 1: eleven languages. Everyone, it seemed, wanted the inside story of 369 00:20:35,600 --> 00:20:39,879 Speaker 1: the Hemingway family and its most famous member. On July fourth, 370 00:20:39,960 --> 00:20:43,320 Speaker 1: nineteen sixty four, Lester Hemingway took all of the proceeds 371 00:20:43,320 --> 00:20:46,800 Speaker 1: from the book and made his own history by creating 372 00:20:46,840 --> 00:20:50,879 Speaker 1: his own country. He floated a raft made of bamboo. 373 00:20:50,920 --> 00:20:52,679 Speaker 1: It was also fortified. We'll talk about that in a 374 00:20:52,680 --> 00:20:55,520 Speaker 1: minute to a spot eight miles that's twelve point eight 375 00:20:55,600 --> 00:21:00,199 Speaker 1: kilometers to the southwest of Jamaica, making that international waters. 376 00:21:01,040 --> 00:21:03,880 Speaker 1: The raft, which was eight by thirty feet or two 377 00:21:03,920 --> 00:21:06,920 Speaker 1: point four by nine point one meters, was then anchored 378 00:21:06,920 --> 00:21:10,439 Speaker 1: with a Ford engine block. It was fortified with pipes 379 00:21:10,480 --> 00:21:13,600 Speaker 1: and steel, and Lester Hemingway declared that this raft was 380 00:21:13,640 --> 00:21:17,320 Speaker 1: an island. He further claimed that half of this island 381 00:21:17,400 --> 00:21:19,919 Speaker 1: was the brand new country of New Atlantis, but the 382 00:21:20,000 --> 00:21:22,440 Speaker 1: other half, he said, was claimed for the United States 383 00:21:22,560 --> 00:21:25,399 Speaker 1: under the Guano Islands Act, which at that point was 384 00:21:25,440 --> 00:21:28,160 Speaker 1: more than one hundred years old. The Guano Islands Act 385 00:21:28,200 --> 00:21:31,080 Speaker 1: made it possible for Lester to gain the protection of 386 00:21:31,119 --> 00:21:34,960 Speaker 1: the US government over his new country, simply because his 387 00:21:35,119 --> 00:21:37,760 Speaker 1: man made island was so small that there would be 388 00:21:37,760 --> 00:21:40,520 Speaker 1: no way to really coordinate off as two separate entities 389 00:21:40,560 --> 00:21:44,000 Speaker 1: in any sort of practical sense. So he wrote a 390 00:21:44,080 --> 00:21:48,360 Speaker 1: constitution for New Atlantis sort of. He actually just used 391 00:21:48,400 --> 00:21:51,719 Speaker 1: the exact wording of the US Constitution, but he subbed 392 00:21:51,720 --> 00:21:54,720 Speaker 1: in the name New Atlantis everywhere the original document had 393 00:21:54,760 --> 00:21:59,280 Speaker 1: said United States. Seven months after claiming this new territory, 394 00:21:59,359 --> 00:22:03,400 Speaker 1: which was a public Lester held elections the resident. Voters 395 00:22:03,400 --> 00:22:06,840 Speaker 1: of New Atlantis were Lester, his wife Doris, their two daughters, 396 00:22:07,200 --> 00:22:11,119 Speaker 1: pr specialist Edward K. Moss, and Julia Celini, who was 397 00:22:11,160 --> 00:22:15,680 Speaker 1: Moss's assistant. Lester was elected president in a unanimous vote, 398 00:22:15,760 --> 00:22:18,639 Speaker 1: and then all of this, the Declaration of New Atlantis, 399 00:22:18,640 --> 00:22:21,680 Speaker 1: the elections, Lester's constitution, all of that was covered in 400 00:22:21,720 --> 00:22:24,720 Speaker 1: the press. Lester gave quotes to reporters that his new 401 00:22:24,720 --> 00:22:27,880 Speaker 1: country was peaceful and had no intention of threatening its neighbors, 402 00:22:27,920 --> 00:22:31,400 Speaker 1: that he did not know of any laws forbidding starting 403 00:22:31,440 --> 00:22:34,680 Speaker 1: your own country. Yeah, I feel like we should also 404 00:22:34,800 --> 00:22:38,240 Speaker 1: note that two of the constituents who voted in that 405 00:22:38,280 --> 00:22:41,919 Speaker 1: presidential election, his daughters, were the little kids at the time, 406 00:22:42,840 --> 00:22:45,879 Speaker 1: so voting rights were converted at a very young age. 407 00:22:46,600 --> 00:22:49,240 Speaker 1: There was also currency for New Atlantis, which was, in 408 00:22:49,280 --> 00:22:53,280 Speaker 1: case you're wondering, named after the Francis Bacon idea. New 409 00:22:53,320 --> 00:22:56,919 Speaker 1: Atlantis commerce was done in scruples, which appeared to be 410 00:22:57,160 --> 00:22:59,879 Speaker 1: just items scavenged from the sea, such as fish hooks 411 00:22:59,880 --> 00:23:03,560 Speaker 1: and sharp teeth, et cetera. The joke there is that 412 00:23:04,280 --> 00:23:07,160 Speaker 1: Lester Hemingway thought that if you were rich, you should 413 00:23:07,160 --> 00:23:10,560 Speaker 1: have a lot of scruples. You could not gamble though 414 00:23:10,640 --> 00:23:13,120 Speaker 1: on New Atlantis that was for boten against the law. 415 00:23:13,920 --> 00:23:17,159 Speaker 1: Lester's wife, Doris, stitched the country's flag, which featured a 416 00:23:17,200 --> 00:23:20,560 Speaker 1: gold equilateral triangle pointing down on a royal blue background. 417 00:23:20,960 --> 00:23:22,919 Speaker 1: It also had a circle of royal blue in the 418 00:23:22,960 --> 00:23:25,680 Speaker 1: center of the triangle. There were actually several of these flags, 419 00:23:25,720 --> 00:23:28,240 Speaker 1: because some had blown away in the wind and whatnot. 420 00:23:28,440 --> 00:23:32,040 Speaker 1: There is one remaining to this day. And then there 421 00:23:32,080 --> 00:23:35,719 Speaker 1: were the stamps. New Atlantis designed print and sold stamps 422 00:23:35,760 --> 00:23:39,439 Speaker 1: at five different values. President Lyndon B. Johnson was featured 423 00:23:39,440 --> 00:23:42,159 Speaker 1: on the one hundred cent stamp, which resulted in a 424 00:23:42,200 --> 00:23:45,040 Speaker 1: thank you note from the White House. And all of 425 00:23:45,080 --> 00:23:48,119 Speaker 1: this sounds a little bit silly. It is easy to 426 00:23:48,240 --> 00:23:50,960 Speaker 1: imagine that an eccentric with a bit of privilege and 427 00:23:51,000 --> 00:23:53,959 Speaker 1: some money was just mucking around with this idea of 428 00:23:54,000 --> 00:23:55,879 Speaker 1: starting a country, or that it was some sort of 429 00:23:55,960 --> 00:23:59,320 Speaker 1: publicity stunt for his writing. And he did admit that 430 00:23:59,359 --> 00:24:01,760 Speaker 1: he was motived by fun and the desire to see 431 00:24:01,760 --> 00:24:04,400 Speaker 1: if he could make money off of starting a new government, 432 00:24:05,040 --> 00:24:08,400 Speaker 1: But there was also a scientific goal for the fledgling 433 00:24:08,440 --> 00:24:12,399 Speaker 1: Republic of New Atlantis. Lester Hemingway wanted the island to 434 00:24:12,480 --> 00:24:16,520 Speaker 1: become home to the International Marine Research Society. They could 435 00:24:16,560 --> 00:24:19,280 Speaker 1: do science work there and for sales of stamps to 436 00:24:19,440 --> 00:24:22,919 Speaker 1: finance that endeavor, and he also wanted his country and 437 00:24:22,960 --> 00:24:25,040 Speaker 1: any money that they made out of stamp sales to 438 00:24:25,080 --> 00:24:28,560 Speaker 1: be used to protect nearby fishing resources. In the autumn 439 00:24:28,560 --> 00:24:31,639 Speaker 1: of nineteen sixty five, Lester worked with the librarian at 440 00:24:31,640 --> 00:24:35,159 Speaker 1: the University of Texas Humanities Research Center in Austin to 441 00:24:35,200 --> 00:24:38,320 Speaker 1: create an exhibit about his new country, including what may 442 00:24:38,359 --> 00:24:40,800 Speaker 1: be the only copy of the constitution, as well as 443 00:24:40,800 --> 00:24:44,040 Speaker 1: a number of other artifacts. This collection remains at the 444 00:24:44,119 --> 00:24:49,120 Speaker 1: University of Texas at Austin Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center. Yeah, 445 00:24:49,160 --> 00:24:52,840 Speaker 1: some of those pieces they have photographs of online. But 446 00:24:52,960 --> 00:24:56,119 Speaker 1: New Atlantis you may have noticed, you don't have to 447 00:24:56,119 --> 00:24:58,080 Speaker 1: memorize it in a list of countries, and that is 448 00:24:58,119 --> 00:25:01,919 Speaker 1: because it was a short lived price. Its demise was 449 00:25:01,960 --> 00:25:05,600 Speaker 1: not that the Universal Postal Union refused to acknowledge its stamps, 450 00:25:05,600 --> 00:25:08,840 Speaker 1: although that was a very real problem, But the culprit 451 00:25:08,880 --> 00:25:12,680 Speaker 1: here was nature itself. New Atlantis, which Lester had been 452 00:25:12,720 --> 00:25:16,240 Speaker 1: hoping to expand and further fortify, was destroyed in a 453 00:25:16,280 --> 00:25:19,200 Speaker 1: storm in nineteen sixty six before he could make improvements 454 00:25:19,280 --> 00:25:22,679 Speaker 1: on it. After the demise of his little country, Lester 455 00:25:22,800 --> 00:25:25,800 Speaker 1: continued to write. He started working as a freelance journalist, 456 00:25:25,880 --> 00:25:29,080 Speaker 1: writing about fishing and the outdoors activities he had learned 457 00:25:29,080 --> 00:25:32,240 Speaker 1: about from his brother. He wrote for various periodicals and 458 00:25:32,320 --> 00:25:36,639 Speaker 1: also started his own newsletter, the Bimini out Island News, 459 00:25:36,840 --> 00:25:40,320 Speaker 1: which he described as the smallest newspaper in the world. Yeah. 460 00:25:40,359 --> 00:25:42,320 Speaker 1: In one quote, he said something like, you would need 461 00:25:42,400 --> 00:25:46,080 Speaker 1: two copies to wrap a piece of fish, so very little. 462 00:25:46,680 --> 00:25:49,680 Speaker 1: As he aged, Lester also let his beard grow out, 463 00:25:49,720 --> 00:25:52,360 Speaker 1: and to a lot of people, he started to look 464 00:25:52,400 --> 00:25:55,520 Speaker 1: like the spitting image of his deceased brother. During this time. 465 00:25:55,960 --> 00:25:58,680 Speaker 1: In his mid sixties, Lester had a heart attack and 466 00:25:58,720 --> 00:26:01,320 Speaker 1: then was diagnosed with DIYBEA, which led to a number 467 00:26:01,320 --> 00:26:05,199 Speaker 1: of surgeries, including having artificial arteries put into his legs. 468 00:26:05,760 --> 00:26:08,800 Speaker 1: His health continued to decline, and his doctors, noting his 469 00:26:08,920 --> 00:26:12,520 Speaker 1: poor circulation, suggested that he have both of his legs amputated. 470 00:26:13,200 --> 00:26:15,800 Speaker 1: This was more than he was willing to consider, and 471 00:26:15,920 --> 00:26:19,280 Speaker 1: like his father and his brother before him, Lester Hemingway's 472 00:26:19,280 --> 00:26:21,720 Speaker 1: medical issues brought on depression, and at the age of 473 00:26:21,760 --> 00:26:25,200 Speaker 1: sixty seven, in September of nineteen eighty two, Lester Hemingway 474 00:26:25,280 --> 00:26:28,000 Speaker 1: ended his life via a self inflicted gunshot wound to 475 00:26:28,040 --> 00:26:31,520 Speaker 1: the head. I had not heard about Lester until fairly recently, 476 00:26:31,600 --> 00:26:35,359 Speaker 1: and I was immediately fascinated. Yeah, because it is a 477 00:26:35,400 --> 00:26:40,000 Speaker 1: story of someone who seems very I don't know if 478 00:26:40,000 --> 00:26:43,840 Speaker 1: contented is the right word, but comfortable living in the 479 00:26:43,920 --> 00:26:47,879 Speaker 1: shadow of a much more famous sibling, and even to 480 00:26:47,920 --> 00:26:50,040 Speaker 1: the point that they're willing to pursue the same career 481 00:26:50,160 --> 00:26:53,280 Speaker 1: knowing it will count against them in some ways. But 482 00:26:53,400 --> 00:26:58,880 Speaker 1: then once Ernest is gone, Lester does some really fascinating 483 00:26:58,960 --> 00:27:02,800 Speaker 1: things of his own. He's an interesting dude, and I 484 00:27:02,840 --> 00:27:05,200 Speaker 1: think a lot of people don't know about him. I 485 00:27:05,200 --> 00:27:07,800 Speaker 1: think people that are really into the Hemingways and their 486 00:27:07,840 --> 00:27:12,040 Speaker 1: family history and Earnest probably have an inkling of him. 487 00:27:12,040 --> 00:27:15,639 Speaker 1: But Lester gets a little bit lost in the historical record. 488 00:27:16,280 --> 00:27:18,720 Speaker 1: So that's what I wanted to talk about him, because 489 00:27:18,840 --> 00:27:21,920 Speaker 1: I love the story of an eccentric and I love 490 00:27:21,960 --> 00:27:26,280 Speaker 1: the idea of starting one's own country, even if it 491 00:27:26,320 --> 00:27:30,200 Speaker 1: does not go tremendously well, it is such a fun idea. Though. 492 00:27:36,080 --> 00:27:38,920 Speaker 1: Thanks so much for joining us on this Saturday, since 493 00:27:38,960 --> 00:27:41,000 Speaker 1: this episode is out of the archive. If you heard 494 00:27:41,000 --> 00:27:43,840 Speaker 1: an email address or a Facebook RL or something similar 495 00:27:43,880 --> 00:27:46,760 Speaker 1: over the course of the show, that could be obsolete now. 496 00:27:47,200 --> 00:27:52,920 Speaker 1: Our current email address is History podcast at iHeartRadio dot com. 497 00:27:53,320 --> 00:27:55,879 Speaker 1: You can find us all over social media at missed 498 00:27:55,920 --> 00:27:58,920 Speaker 1: in History, and you can subscribe to our show on 499 00:27:59,000 --> 00:28:03,200 Speaker 1: Apple podcasts, Google podcasts, the iHeartRadio app, and wherever else 500 00:28:03,280 --> 00:28:08,600 Speaker 1: you listen to podcasts. Stuff you Missed in History Class 501 00:28:08,640 --> 00:28:12,680 Speaker 1: is a production of iHeartRadio. 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