There are some wonderful stories in the world, and unfortunately some of the best of them are false. One such is the world record for the shortest correspondence, attributed to Victor Hugo and his publisher in 1862. Supposedly Hugo, curious about the success or failure of his novel Les Miserables, sent a telegram to his publisher. As telegraph messages charged by the word, Hugo decided to cut corners and sent only a single question mark, assuming his publisher would know what was meant. In return, his publisher sent a similarly brief reply… an exclamation point, to indicate that the first print run of the book had sold through in less than twenty-four hours.
It’s a good story, made better by the fact that Hugo’s novel was extremely lengthy. There’s even a slim chance that it’s true… but the chance seems exceedingly small. Linguistic historians have found cases of similar question mark/exclamation point reports dating back to the early 1850s; the first known published account of the Hugo correspondence dates to the 1890s, thirty years after it was to have happened, and did not involve either of the principals nor even their relatives or associates; and Victor Hugo was known to have retained much of his correspondence and would reasonably have been expected to keep the first confirmation of a runaway bestseller but no such telegram can be found among the catalogue of his papers.
Beyond all of that, Hugo had been a dominant figure on the French literary scene for thirty years, since his blockbuster novel The Hunchback of Notre Dame in 1831. It is exceedingly unlikely that he would be particularly nervous about the early sales of his book as opposed to the critical response and the sales figures a few weeks and months after the initial release.
Still, the story has been told enough times and printed in such a variety of places that it has gained a significant level of credibility. It really is a great story, and it’s become a staple of odd fact books and some games like Trivial Pursuit. The exchange was even listed in the normally scrupulous Guinness Book of World Records for many years.
The novel did spawn a famed musical, though. That’s real. And a number from that musical gave Susan Boyle her start, in an early viral video that showed just how valuable the combination of talent, a dream, and an opportunity can be:
Now, confession time: this Owl came about specifically because of the inclusion of a clip of her from the Christmas Eve open thread two nights ago. It’s an inspirational item that deserves the millions of views it received, even though it does include Piers Morgan.
Debunking, an odd bit of trivia, some music, and a little bit of an uplifting moment… it seems like a good mix for me to present on the final weekend of the year. Have a great night, everyone.
Question of the night: Are there any video clips that cheer you up?
