Apostrophes Aren’t Difficult, People
But the mistakes can be hard–rock-hard. Or diamond-hard, as in baseball. [Link changed in October when original link broke.] The Cubs can’t do anything right even on their statuary.
Before the [Ernie] Banks statue went on display at Wrigley Monday, many people had inspected it, and they agreed: Mr. Cub, 7 feet and 300 pounds of bat-swinging bronze, looked great.
Cella, who works at the Fine Art Studio of Rotblatt-Amrany in Highwood, had scrutinized the things that mattered most to him as the sculptor.
How was the patina? Excellent. Was the inscription on the correct side of the granite base? Yes, it was. Right down there on Ernie’s left it said:
LETS PLAY TWO.
Groan.
Katelyn Thrall, a Cubs representative, walked in, brusquely stuck out her hand and didn’t wait for me to explain.
“We’re going to fix it,” she said. “That’s all I can say.”
Fabulous. Will you also fix Harry Caray’s while you’re at it? You can just take his apostrophe off and give it to Banks.
H/t Banks article: J. I saw the Caray myself lo those years ago, last time I was at Wrigley.
Update: That was quick. You can tell there was no space for it to begin with, but we’ll take what we can get, which apparently does not include anybody noticing, commenting on, or fixing Harry Caray’s. H/t J again.
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How does this happen?
Most of my complaints about apostrophe abuse concern overuse, made worse by children who are being named names loaded with apostrophes, but that’s another subject altogether.
What’s your opinion about putting an apostrophe on things I consider plural, such as decades: 1960’s, 1820’s? I think the NYT Stylebook puts them in but I want to argue with somebody about this. Ditto something else I can’t remember right now… I want apostrophe rationing.
Comment by Anne — April 3, 2008 @ 1:21 pm
That’s a matter of editorial debate, unfortunately, as I am entirely with you and an apostrophe is ridiculous there. I think the Chicago Manual of Style is on our side, though I can’t check right now because I don’t have either my own house OR my own Chicago MoS therein, and hey, if Chicago is for us, the NYT can be against us all it wants.
Comment by Anwyn — April 3, 2008 @ 1:30 pm
Ah — but the agency I once worked for used the NYT Stylebook before converting to the AP and I’ve never had to learn the Chicago, though I own it. It’s fatter than the other two put together and I’ve never learned my way around. After a while I just use my own logic, which is freeing but dangerous.
Comment by Anne — April 5, 2008 @ 6:23 pm