# Why Was I Not Informed Of This?: Works You Wish You'd Discovered Earlier **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 16, 2007, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-i-not-informed-of-this-works-you-wish-youd-discovered-earlier/412047 "2007-07-16T23:21:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Knorf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/58956e/32.png) [@Knorf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knorf)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2007, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-i-not-informed-of-this-works-you-wish-youd-discovered-earlier/412047/41 "2007-07-17T20:14:33Z")
A big one for me was _ **Winesburg, Ohio** _ by Sherwood Anderson. I first read it about 2 and a half years ago, and my immediate reaction was: how the frack did I reach my mid-thirties knowing nothing whatsoever about this stunningly great work of American fiction??? ---
**Author:** ![pepperlandgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f17d59/32.png) [@pepperlandgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pepperlandgirl)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2007, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-i-not-informed-of-this-works-you-wish-youd-discovered-earlier/412047/42 "2007-07-17T20:30:05Z")
I didn’t watch **Six Feet Under** until Bravo began to air it last fall. I really loved it, but of course, by then, everybody was done talking about it. **Simon Pegg**. My sister took me to see **Hot Fuzz** , and I loved it so, so, _so_ much. So I watched **Shaun of the Dead**. And **Spaced**. And I’m working on **Big Train** right now. I can’t wait for **Run Fat Boy Run** and **How to Lose Friends and Alienate People**. I just think he’s one of the funniest, most talented performers I’ve ever come across. Just contrast his performance as Shaun to Inspector Nicholas Angel to see that he’s actually got some serious range as an actor. ---
**Author:** ![Scissorjack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c67d28/32.png) [@Scissorjack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scissorjack)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2007, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-i-not-informed-of-this-works-you-wish-youd-discovered-earlier/412047/43 "2007-07-17T20:50:43Z")
[QUOTE=Annie-Xmas] Hugh Laurie. [/QUOTE] All this love for Hugh Laurie as a brooding, tormented sarcastic genius is kind of funny for those who remember him as a lovable thicko back in the 80’s in **Blackadder** and **Jeeves and Wooster** : I can’t watch **House** without expecting Stephen Fry to glide in, cock half an eyebrow and enquire loftily, “Do you think that’s wise, sir?” ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2007, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-i-not-informed-of-this-works-you-wish-youd-discovered-earlier/412047/44 "2007-07-17T21:10:17Z")
[QUOTE=pepperlandgirl] I didn’t watch **Six Feet Under** until Bravo began to air it last fall. I really loved it, but of course, by then, everybody was done talking about it. **Simon Pegg**. My sister took me to see **Hot Fuzz** , and I loved it so, so, _so_ much. So I watched **Shaun of the Dead**. And **Spaced**. And I’m working on **Big Train** right now. I can’t wait for **Run Fat Boy Run** and **How to Lose Friends and Alienate People**. I just think he’s one of the funniest, most talented performers I’ve ever come across. Just contrast his performance as Shaun to Inspector Nicholas Angel to see that he’s actually got some serious range as an actor. [/QUOTE] I watched _Spaced_ at my brother’s place in London; wonderful stuff. Any clues as to how to get ahold of it in North America? ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2007, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-i-not-informed-of-this-works-you-wish-youd-discovered-earlier/412047/45 "2007-07-17T21:12:19Z")
[QUOTE=Millit the Frail] My husband and I just started watching Lost about 3 weeks ago. We’re halfway through Season 2, and we’re hooked. We’ve heard that it goes downhill, but hey, we’re not waiting long periods between episodes, and it’s better than watching tons of summer reruns. And I don’t think either of us really cares about solving all of the mysteries anyway, we just really enjoy the character interactions and the dire situations. [/QUOTE] It takes a dip in season three, but picks up towards the end. I remember on my re-watch-a-thon (Season 1 and 2) thinking about how _little_ had happened by the end of Season 1. ---
**Author:** ![pepperlandgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f17d59/32.png) [@pepperlandgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pepperlandgirl)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2007, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-i-not-informed-of-this-works-you-wish-youd-discovered-earlier/412047/46 "2007-07-17T21:47:52Z")
[QUOTE=Malthus] I watched _Spaced_ at my brother’s place in London; wonderful stuff. Any clues as to how to get ahold of it in North America? [/QUOTE] Send me a PM or an email and I’ll let you know how I got my **Spaced** fix. ---
**Author:** ![NAF1138](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/naf1138/32/3245_2.png) [@NAF1138](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NAF1138)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2007, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-i-not-informed-of-this-works-you-wish-youd-discovered-earlier/412047/47 "2007-07-17T22:00:29Z")
[QUOTE=Malacandra] _Eccentrica_ Gallumbits, the triple-breasted whore from Eroticon Three. Ah, another geek for me to out-geek. 😃 [/QUOTE] Ahem, Eroticon Six. 😛 eta: I seem to have been beaten to the punch. Still 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Scissorjack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c67d28/32.png) [@Scissorjack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scissorjack)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2007, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-i-not-informed-of-this-works-you-wish-youd-discovered-earlier/412047/48 "2007-07-17T23:27:22Z")
[QUOTE=Eleanor of Aquitaine] …I learned about Bernard Cornwell’s Sharpe books after I rented one of the BBC videos in order to see Sean Bean. [/QUOTE] The great thing about Bernard Cornwell is that he’s so damned prolific - I worked out that he’s written a book every nine months for the last 25 years or so - and that it’s almost all great: the Grail Quest trilogy is fantastic, the stand alone **Gallows Thief** is a wonderful detective story, and his latest series about King Alfred and the Danes is excellent. There’s just so _much_ great Cornwell: even his missteps, like his Civil War series, are interesting failures. As far as **Firefly** goes, I have to admit that I resisted it for a long time because the fanboys are so damned annoying, before finally succumbing and picking up a DVD to finally see what all the fuss was about: the first one I caught was “Out Of Gas”, and after 15 minutes I thought, “Hot damn, this is good stuff.” I still think the fanboys are annoying, however. ---
**Author:** ![Boulter\_s\_Canary](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e79b87/32.png) [@Boulter\_s\_Canary](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boulter_s_Canary)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2007, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-i-not-informed-of-this-works-you-wish-youd-discovered-earlier/412047/49 "2007-07-17T23:44:30Z")
The Singing Loins - local folk band (TrashFolk, they call themselves). Imagine Ian Dury fronting The Pogues. ---
**Author:** ![Superfreaknduper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6de8d8/32.png) [@Superfreaknduper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superfreaknduper)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2007, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-i-not-informed-of-this-works-you-wish-youd-discovered-earlier/412047/50 "2007-07-18T00:15:53Z")
Chuck Palahniuk. After seeing Fight Club, I got Choke. And now frequently read his essays and other books, and am dieing to see one of his speaking engagements… he is a little out there though. As for lost, it runs MUCH better on DVD through its low points… just be careful not to run through it too fast, we have till February(?) for new episodes. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![TimeWinder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bcef8e/32.png) [@TimeWinder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TimeWinder)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2007, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-i-not-informed-of-this-works-you-wish-youd-discovered-earlier/412047/51 "2007-07-18T00:30:11Z")
_Eureka_, a low-budget sci-fi channel series about a top secret town where everybody’s smart and the technology’s decades ahead. The fish-out-of-water is the new local sheriff and his teenaged daughter. It’s well-done campy, the plots are pointless excuses for humorous character development, and the characters are all top-notch. I saw ads for it for ages before it occurred to me to actually watch an episode. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2007, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-i-not-informed-of-this-works-you-wish-youd-discovered-earlier/412047/52 "2007-07-18T04:59:05Z")
Oh yeah, we watch “Eureka” when we catch it, and we like it, too. The guy’s teenaged daughter needs to die, or at least get told to sit down and shut up when she mouths off to her dad, but other than that, a solid effort. I also like “The 4400.” I don’t know how popular it is, but I love it. It seems like a much smaller show than a lot of the big sci-fi, and I am rarely shouting at the tv because of people doing stupid stuff - the characters and the writing seems very grounded to me. ---
**Author:** ![Ximenean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/aca169/32.png) [@Ximenean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ximenean)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2007, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-i-not-informed-of-this-works-you-wish-youd-discovered-earlier/412047/53 "2007-07-19T17:53:47Z")
I can’t really claim that I was not informed of his brilliance before, but my recent addiction to repeats of _Jeeves and Wooster_ has prompted me to actually get around to reading some P.G. Wodehouse. Although I have started at what is probably a low point - transcripts of his notorious monologues made for German radio in 1940 - because I’m still working through the TV _Jeeves and Wooster_ and I don’t want to spoil the fun by being familiar with the books. But those radio transcripts, they’re screamingly funny, whatever you think of his ignorance/obliviousness/complacency re the Nazis. A real eye-opener to how many of the contemporary humorists I admire are largely Wodehouse copyists. Not least Fry and Laurie themselves, in written form at least. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-i-not-informed-of-this-works-you-wish-youd-discovered-earlier/412047.md?page=2)