Not the Same Old Song and Dance
Paul O'Rourke was a huge fan of Peter Spencer and of his op-ed column, Fearless Leader, in The Norwood Post. After Peter's death in 1999, Paul wanted to compile these columns into a book form as a tribute to this great man and former mayor of Telluride, Colorado. The result is Not The Same Old Song And Dance.
- Published
- 2004
- ISBN
- 1-932738-03-7
- Pages
- 200
- Place
- Telluride
- Publisher
- Western Reflections Pub. Co.
- Listed at
- $14.95
Publication details from Open Library. The price shown is the last one on record and is historic, not a current offer.
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About this book
Not the Same Old Song and Dance gathers the newspaper columns of Peter Spencer, a former mayor of Telluride, Colorado. Spencer wrote an op-ed column called Fearless Leader for The Norwood Post. After he died in 1999, his admirer Paul O'Rourke set out to compile the columns into a book as a tribute.
The Telluride Daily Planet's tribute adds some color. It remembered Spencer as a prolific and hilarious writer whose editorials appeared in The Norwood Post, a paper he also published. It says the collection features Spencer in his ubiquitous top hat on the cover, and that its publisher wrote one of the chapter introductions.
The book is a collection of opinion writing, not a history or a biography in the usual sense. Open Library lists the subjects as Politics and government and Social conditions, which fits columns about life and public affairs in a small Colorado town.
Who it is for
This is a book for people who knew Telluride, Norwood or Peter Spencer himself, and for readers who like collected newspaper columns. It records the voice of one small-town mayor and publisher. Anyone studying local politics on Colorado's western slope in the 1990s may find the columns a useful window onto how the community talked about itself.
Ways to use this book
Reading columns with a map of the valley
Opinion pieces assume the reader knows the place. Before or after you read, skim the Colorado Encyclopedia article on Telluride and the Norwood history page so the two towns and their neighbors have shape.
Giving it to someone who lived there
If a friend or relative knew Telluride in the 1990s, a collection of local columns can start conversation. Ask what they remember about Peter Spencer and write the answers down.
Spending a day in Telluride
Pair a walk down Main Street with a visit to the museum. Check its website for the season's schedule first, since small mountain museums often close between seasons.
Go deeper
Peter Spencer's columns came out of Telluride and the Norwood area on Colorado's western slope. Three places can help you picture the towns and their past around the time he wrote.
Telluride Historical Museum
According to its website, the museum has ten themed rooms covering the region's Ute heritage, mining history, and ski and festival history, plus a historic walking tour.
Telluride in the Colorado Encyclopedia
A reference article saying the town began as a mining center in 1878 under the name Columbia, then grew through silver, gold and early electric power.
History of Wright's Mesa and Norwood
A town page on how the mesa west of Telluride was first used by the Utes and later settled by ranchers and farmers, useful background for readers of The Norwood Post.
Good to know
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