Leave it to a writer to create a myth that dogs us to this day. It’s often believed the publication of Bostonian Thomas W. Lawson’s popular novel Friday the 13th in 1907 contributed immensely to the creation of the myth.
Born in Charlestown, Mass., in February of 1857, Lawson was intensely superstitious and made certain – as a promotional move – to not only name his book Friday the Thirteenth but also release it on that day. It's the story of an unscrupulous stockbroker (also a profession he had in addition to writing) who brings down Wall Street on Friday the 13th.
Lawson chose to publish on Dec. 13, 1907, which ironically was the same day the
only 7-masted schooner ever built - the Thomas W. Lawson (in which
Lawson had invested heavily) - was wrecked off the coast of
Sicily. The triumph of his book's launch was quickly tempered
by news that his ship had gone down just hours after the book's
appearance.
The
mystique surrounding that combination of events led to the book becoming
immensely popular and spawning dozens, if not hundreds, of other stories that
led to an ongoing phobia about the day. Up until that day in
1907 there is little, if any, mention of Friday the 13th being
a day of which to beware. By the way, Lawson is said to
have firmly believed in Lucky Number 7. He was the author of 7 books.
P.S.
This is one of those lucky years when Friday the 13th’s comes in
back-to-back months. Friday, March 13th, is just around the corner.
No comments:
Post a Comment