Subj : The Professor and the Madman
To   : All
From : Bob Roberts
Date : Thu Dec 24 2020 10:44:46

Posting here in English Tutor because this is the best place I can think to discuss English language matters of interest.

For those of you who have Netflix in the USA, they've made "The Professor and the Madman" available for streaming.  The movie tells the story of how the Oxford English Dictionary was created in the late 1800's.  The OED is something I've always been fascinated with, and the story of its creation is quite dramatic.  

Acted by Mel Gibson, and Sean Penn, the production was filmed in 2016, but not released until 2019 due to legal issues between Mel Gibson, the Director (both of which have disavowed the film) and the production company.  Even thou Mel seems to hate this move, it's pretty darn good, and the acting of Gibson and Penn is excellent as usual. 

The task of collecting every word in the English language and charting its path from first published usage was daunting and took nearly 50 years.  20 volumes were released and continue to be revised.  

You can buy the printed volumes for around $850 USD, or get access to the OED via the Web at www.oed.com.  They're actually running a special right now, a year of access is only $90 USD as opposed to the regular $250 USD price.

For word lovers the OED can't be beat.  For historial entertainment "The Professor and the Madmen" is a decent watch.

Bob Roberts
--- SBBSecho 3.11-Linux
 * Origin: Halls of Valhalla =-= Happy Holidays (1:218/840)

.