Most of us are considered, I believe, to be unhappy combinations of Poe and Erskine Caldwell." Thirty-odd years later, despite the sparkling research centers, black Congressmen, skyscrapers galore and designer water by the
barrelful, Southern writers are still haunted by these eccentric archetypes.
Despite dominating, despite creating chances by the
barrelful, despite doing practically everything right - they failed to do the thing that matters most: score.
Then there are Sandy Powell's colorfully eccentric and exaggerated but somehow convincing costumes, the
barrelful of source music that dominates a soundtrack filled out by Howard Shore's mostly effective but occasionally intrusive score, the blessed scarcity of CGI shots and the energetic mobility of Michael Ballhaus' cinematography.
Fergie must have been producing adrenalin by the
barrelful in a week when he watched United come from behind to beat Marseille at Old Trafford on Wednesday and his promising two-year-old Zentsov Street scrape home in a Newmarket maiden the following day.
"He could drink a
barrelful of lager and still be standing, not throw up or suffer a hangover.
Asked by the admiring Trevor how he got them, he refuses to answer, and it becomes increasingly clear that this is a man whose orderly manner and professional confidence cork a
barrelful of hurt and anguish.
But, worryingly for Ferguson, one or two of his players have lost their sharpness, notably Andy Cole, who has received plaudits by the
barrelful this season but has given a couple of no-shows recently.
On the other hand, fragility at the back has cost Bolton a
barrelful of points and for the 10th time this season they were unable to hang on to a lead when drawing 2-2 at home to Tranmere last week.