2,794
edits
The Odyssey of the Oom Paul: Difference between revisions
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
no edit summary
(Created page with "<center>'''The Odyssey of the Oom Paul:''' ''A Hungarian ... Really?''<br> '''Ben Rapaport'''</center> == The Back Story == Rummaging around the Internet in spring 2014, I di...") |
No edit summary |
||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
<center>'''The Odyssey of the Oom Paul:''' ''A Hungarian ... Really?''<br> | <center>'''The Odyssey of the Oom Paul:''' ''A Hungarian ... Really?''<br>[[Ben Rapaport]]</center> | ||
== The Back Story == | == The Back Story == | ||
| Line 26: | Line 25: | ||
== Today’s British Experts Chime In == | == Today’s British Experts Chime In == | ||
Now, something about the controversy between the Oom Paul and the Hungarian. | Now, something about the controversy between the Oom Paul and the Hungarian. | ||
| Line 41: | Line 39: | ||
Jim (Sandpiper), the Peterson Pipe Connoisseur & Collector, has this to say on his website: “Many prefer the term Hungarian over Oom Paul, since the pipe’s history is more appealing than the history of the man, with it’s [sic] connotations of racism and association with apartheid.” | Jim (Sandpiper), the Peterson Pipe Connoisseur & Collector, has this to say on his website: “Many prefer the term Hungarian over Oom Paul, since the pipe’s history is more appealing than the history of the man, with it’s [sic] connotations of racism and association with apartheid.” | ||
“It has always been an Oom Paul to me. Dunhill, GBD, and several others use the Hungarian designation for political reasons. Most makers stick to accepted convention on the popular shapes, but they can call them what they want. There are no ‘official’ shapes, as far as I know. The Hungarian designation is just petty silliness to me, but they made the pipe, and can stamp on there whatever they want” | “It has always been an Oom Paul to me. Dunhill, GBD, and several others use the Hungarian designation for political reasons. Most makers stick to accepted convention on the popular shapes, but they can call them what they want. There are no ‘official’ shapes, as far as I know. The Hungarian designation is just petty silliness to me, but they made the pipe, and can stamp on there whatever they want”.<ref>http://pipechat.info/index.php?topic=5058.0</ref> | ||
On the Brothers of Briar website: “Today while collecting information on the Hungarian pipe shape, it cane [sic] to my attention that two of the largest pipe manufactors [sic] in the world, do not use the name Oom Paul in their pipe charts, (Dunhill & Peterson).” Perhaps this is true today, but as late as 1950, one of the Dunhill ODA 800 Series was Number 818, an Oom Paul, not a Hungarian! | On the Brothers of Briar website: “Today while collecting information on the Hungarian pipe shape, it cane [sic] to my attention that two of the largest pipe manufactors [sic] in the world, do not use the name Oom Paul in their pipe charts, (Dunhill & Peterson).” Perhaps this is true today, but as late as 1950, one of the Dunhill ODA 800 Series was Number 818, an Oom Paul, not a Hungarian! | ||
| Line 50: | Line 48: | ||
The genesis of the confusion between Oom Paul and Hungarian shapes isn’t clear, but reportedly, it was instigated by Dunhill. As the story goes, being ‘good Englishmen’, they weren’t about to concede anything to ‘Uncle’ Paul (Oom Paul) Kruger, who had been Britain’s principal antagonist in the Boer Wars, after whom the cylindrical Oom Paul shape was named. Hence, Dunhill ascribed the moniker ‘Hungarian’ to both shapes so as not to provide any politically incorrect recognition of Mr. Kruger. </blockquote> | The genesis of the confusion between Oom Paul and Hungarian shapes isn’t clear, but reportedly, it was instigated by Dunhill. As the story goes, being ‘good Englishmen’, they weren’t about to concede anything to ‘Uncle’ Paul (Oom Paul) Kruger, who had been Britain’s principal antagonist in the Boer Wars, after whom the cylindrical Oom Paul shape was named. Hence, Dunhill ascribed the moniker ‘Hungarian’ to both shapes so as not to provide any politically incorrect recognition of Mr. Kruger. </blockquote> | ||
Jim Lilley of the International Peterson Pipe Club opines: “To explain the ‘Oom Paul’ label, it was a designation given to a 19th century South African politician named Paul Kruger, their first President. He smoked a pipe shaped similar to what’s called the Oom Paul or Hungarian today” | Jim Lilley of the International Peterson Pipe Club opines: “To explain the ‘Oom Paul’ label, it was a designation given to a 19th century South African politician named Paul Kruger, their first President. He smoked a pipe shaped similar to what’s called the Oom Paul or Hungarian today”.<ref>http://btheinternationalpetersonpipeclub.runboard.com/t1530</ref> | ||
Last, Pipedia.org illustrates a pipe labeled “Oom Paul/Hungarian.” | Last, Pipedia.org illustrates a pipe labeled “Oom Paul/Hungarian.” | ||
| Line 71: | Line 69: | ||
== Conclusion == | == Conclusion == | ||
What to make of this jumble? To anyone bent (no pun intended) on getting to ground truth, good luck! Whether it’s called an Oom Paul, a Hungarian, or something else again, I am convinced that it’s not worth any additional effort to dispute or disclaim it, or to dissect it further. It’s just a proverbial rose by another name. For me, the words of the 1970 Beatles hit still ring true: “Let it be!” | What to make of this jumble? To anyone bent (no pun intended) on getting to ground truth, good luck! Whether it’s called an Oom Paul, a Hungarian, or something else again, I am convinced that it’s not worth any additional effort to dispute or disclaim it, or to dissect it further. It’s just a proverbial rose by another name. For me, the words of the 1970 Beatles hit still ring true: “Let it be!” | ||
== References == | |||
<references /> | |||