The title of the book referred to a spectacular occurrence of the Leonid meteor shower that was observed in Alabama on November 12–13, 1833. Duffus of The New York Times praised the book and said Carmer had a gift for "extracting from what he sees, hears and feels an essence which is fundamentally poetic." The book has been subsequently republished a number of times, most recently in 2000 with a new introduction by Howell Raines. įirst published in 1934, Stars Fell on Alabama hit the bestseller lists and established Carmer's reputation. He credited folklorist Ruby Pickens Tartt with providing some of the folklore and songs for this book, and he based the character Mary Louise on her. Ĭarmer also wrote about the myths, legends, and local superstitions of what he called "Conjure Country" (which was his nickname for southeast Alabama). All in a moment the constant beat took hold. Crowds were huddled outside each window singing lustily.there were surely more than two thousand people.Hard blows of sound beat upon the walls and rafters with inexorable regularity. People stood along the walls and the doorway was packed. One example of the book's prose was this description of a Sacred Harp singing: He wrote about the people, places, and events he witnessed, such as a Ku Klux Klan rally and interactions with ordinary Alabama men and women. In the book, Carmer recounted the time he spent traveling throughout the state. Carmer, however, stayed at the University for six years, taking notes and writing what would become his most famous book, Stars Fell on Alabama. When Carmer arrived in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, one of his new colleagues warned him, ".if I knew you well enough to advise you, I'd say, 'For God's sake, get out of here before it's too late.'" This reference was evidently about the state of Alabama's racial relations at the time. He died on September 11, 1976, in Bronxville, New York. In his later years, Carmer would work as a folklore consultant for Walt Disney Productions and produce a folklore radio series called "Your Neck o' the Woods." He also produced four albums of regional songs. He also became an assistant editor at Vanity Fair. After six years in Alabama, he returned to New York and married artist Elizabeth Black. He taught briefly at Syracuse University before accepting a position at the University of Alabama in 1921, where he taught until 1927. He subsequently received a master's degree from Harvard. He graduated from Albion High School in 1910 and entered his father's alma mater, Hamilton College, where he earned his undergraduate degree. When he was five his father became principal of Albion High School in Albion, New York, which is in western New York. His mother, Mary Lamson Carmer, grew up on a farm in Dryden, New York. His father, Willis Griswold Carmer, was the principal of Dansville High School. He was considered one of America's most popular writers during the 1940s and 1950s.Ĭarmer was born in Cortland, New York. His most famous book, Stars Fell on Alabama, was an autobiographical story of the time he spent living in Alabama. Carl Lamson Carmer (Octo– September 11, 1976) was an American writer of nonfiction books, memoirs, and novels, many of which focused on American myths, folklore, and tales.
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