[Dixielandjazz] Re: Louis Armstrong and more

[Bill Gunter]

Hi all,

Leslie wrote:

>Drummer Barrett Deems referred to Armstrong as Pops and told me it was
>because Armstrong was like a father to him. He worshipped the man and said  
>playing
>in his band was the highlight of his career.

That's all fine . . . but the ongoing argument as to which is correct, 
"Louie" or "Louis," strikes me as essentially meaningless.

I've already posted that "Louie" is the diminutive of "Louis" and 
diminutives are never used as signs of either ignorance or disrespect. They 
are actually terms of affection which indicate warm feelings toward those so 
addressed.

Nobody responded to this earlier posting of mine so I assumed tacit 
agreement.

To say or imply that one is "proper" and the other not is nothing more than 
the imposition of some non-existant "rule."

Furthermore . . . I might even say that to refer to L. Armstrong as "Pops" - 
particularly to his face, if you are not (1) a member of his circle of 
personal friends or (2) in a "show biz" context where such things are done 
all the time, could be a sign of presumptiousness . . . but I wouldn't say 
that.

Additionally, to refer to Armstrong as "Satchmo" (is that a contraction of 
"satchel mouth?) when you have never met the man is even more presumptious.  
I don't care what the media calls him.

But basically, the position that "Louie" is somehow not to be used is really 
carrying the idea of "correctness" to an absurd degree.

Respectfully submitted,

Billy Gunter
jazzboard at hotmail.com