Robert K. Murray (3)

Trapped! is a surprise. It's an academic press book from 1979 which doesn't bode well for readability but is actually a page turner. The 1925 incident, which I'd never heard of, was the third largest "media event" (circus) between the two World Wars (the other two being Lindbergh's solo flight, and also the baby kidnapping). The authors do an excellent job of conveying 1920s Kentucky, the "cave wars" which I'd never heard of, and an hour by hour account of poor Floyd Collins' ordeal and the events subsequent history. A media circus is a strange phenomenon, this one can be seen as a forerunner of the "person trapped underground" (well / pipe / mine) that mass media makes so captivating. The event impacted many lives, including a Pulitzer for one reporter, even helping to establish the Mammoth Cave National Park. Collins was a complete unknown backwoodsman propelled into national conscious for a few winter weeks in 1925 as he struggled to be reborn. Hard to imagine a better book on the topic, and as the event recedes in time I doubt there will be one.… (mais)