In The Shadow Of Fannie Hooe #carrotranch #flashfcition

Posted on Jul 20, 2018 by TanGental

For those of you of a sensitive disposition, this post contains a fair bit of sweary stuff; so if you re easily offended (1) what are you doing here and (2) look away now

Charli Mills prompt this week references a tragic tale from the shores of Lake Superior.

July 19, 2018, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less) write a story about Fannie Hooe. Although she is a legend in the Kewenaw, feel free to go where the prompt leads.

‘You know sweet FA, Logon.’

‘You know what FA means?’

‘FA? Eff All.’

‘Nope, it’s Fanny Adams, an eight year old murdered and dismembered in the 1860s.’

‘You’re a mine of irrelevancies. Why’s a dead girl come to mean Eff All?’

‘Navy slang. A euphemism. Navy introduced tinned meat. Sailors loathed it and said it must be the dead girl. Sweet Fanny Adams became sweet FA which then became another way of saying eff all.’

‘Like that Hungarian director… he said, ‘you think I know f**k nothing when I really know f**k all.’

‘You always lower the tone, Morgan.’

It’s funny, isn’t it, how little memories float to the surface when you read a story from thousands of miles away and wonder at the coincidence. Charli tells the story of Fannie Hooe, lost on the shores of Lake Superior. A girl lost. I remember my mother telling me about ‘sweet’ Fanny Adams, a Victorian girl brutally murdered by a solicitor’s clerk in 1860s Hampshire. The only links are the missing females and the name. And it’s the name that sticks, that brings the threads together. Abductions, murders, dismemberment are, sadly, two a penny while the name is unusual enough to resonate. Maybe that says more about me.

FA, Fannie Adams or Fuck All. A simplistic piece of naval slang that has taken hold. We still hear people saying they ‘know sweet FA’ and probably have no idea where it comes from.

And again my mind makes a link. This time to one of the funniest autobiographies I ever read by the English actor David Niven.

In the Moon’s A Balloon he tells of his time filming the Charge of The Light Brigade with Errol Flynn directed by a Hungarian. In one scene the British forces have unsuccessfully charged and, to emphasize the failure a troop of riderless horse are to be filming galloping away, their riders all slain. The Director looks at the scene: all is set.

‘Bring on the empty horses!’ he cries at which Niven and Flynn and others corpse at his poor English. They have been taking the mickey for weeks. Exasperated the director faces the actors, fury distorting his features. ‘You… you think I know fuck nothing, when really I know fuck all.’

Ah, that magical use of the ‘F’ word. Such a clever little word, so adaptable. Is there a more useful word in English? You think not?

 

About TanGental

My name is Geoff Le Pard. Once I was a lawyer; now I am a writer. I've published several books: a four book series following Harry Spittle as he grows from hapless student to hapless partner in a London law firm; four others in different genres; a book of poetry; four anthologies of short fiction; and a memoir of my mother. I have several more in the pipeline. I have been blogging regularly since 2014, on topic as diverse as: poetry based on famous poems; memories from my life; my garden; my dog; a whole variety of short fiction; my attempts at baking and food; travel and the consequent disasters; theatre, film and book reviews; and the occasional thought piece. Mostly it is whatever takes my fancy. I avoid politics, mostly, and religion, always. I don't mean to upset anyone but if I do, well, sorry and I suggest you go elsewhere. These are my thoughts and no one else is to blame. If you want to nab anything I post, please acknowledge where it came from.
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19 Responses to In The Shadow Of Fannie Hooe #carrotranch #flashfcition

  1. Ritu says:
    Jul 20, 2018 at 10:04 pm

    I really love this His Geoffleship 😁

    Liked by 1 person

  2. thecontentedcrafter says:
    Jul 20, 2018 at 10:38 pm

    I don’t know the programme the scene is from – but it’s brilliantly done. Makes me think I should watch it. Thoroughly enjoyed this article Geoff!

    Liked by 1 person

  3. JT Twissel says:
    Jul 20, 2018 at 10:50 pm

    That must have been a easy script to memorize! David Niven’s book sounds like fun! Thanks for the recommendation.

    Liked by 1 person

  4. robbiesinspiration says:
    Jul 21, 2018 at 2:54 pm

    I really like your 99-word story, Geoff. It is quite dark and scary.

    Liked by 1 person

  5. willowdot21 says:
    Jul 21, 2018 at 5:33 pm

    😱… Great post 💜💜

    Liked by 1 person

  6. Charli Mills says:
    Jul 21, 2018 at 9:25 pm

    What a crazy link between missing Fannys! I feel like I do know eff all now! It’s a useful word, indeed and appreciate the enthusiasm for it. 🙂

    Like

    • TanGental says:
      Jul 22, 2018 at 6:39 pm

      it’s language isn’t it Charli. Have you seen the Hoffman homage to Lenny Bruce in the film Lenny? There’s genius there about the power of language and how we mustn’t let language be conscripted to tyranny. Language is neutral, ideas are political. A lesson the thought police and the politically correct iriates would do well to learn.

      Like

  7. Norah says:
    Jul 22, 2018 at 1:05 pm

    Well done, Geoff. Loved your flash, and the rest of the post. I did read Niven’s autobiography years ago, but remember little. Classic piece you remembered. I think I’ve seen that small scene from The Wire before, but I had to watch it all the way through – just to be sure. 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

  8. Colleen Chesebro says:
    Jul 22, 2018 at 11:41 pm

    So creative! I really had a good laugh with this story, Geoff.

    Liked by 1 person

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