By Bob Yearick
Where Are the Editors?
Lots of close-but-no-cigar entries this month.
• Bryan Alexander, in a USA TODAY review of A Man in Full: “Jeff Daniels knew he was headed to unchartered territory portraying larger-than-life Atlanta real estate mogul Charlie Croker . . .” No, Daniels was headed to uncharted waters. However, he could have chartered a boat for the trip.
• Ignoring the rule about prepositions requiring objective case pronouns – in this case, me – Stephen Borelli wrote in USA TODAY: “To my wife and I, Dana is the ideal sports mom.” The next day, The News Journal reprinted the story without correcting the error.
• Patricia Talorico, in The News Journal: “Downtown Wilmington was abuzz with activity this past Saturday night. The streets were teaming with people . . .” That’s teeming – full of people or things; crowded.
• Reader Luann Haney came across this in TNJ online: “Health care providers and Delaware lawmakers remain divided over a proposal to create a hospital cost review board to help reign in service costs.” That’s rein in. Apparently, editors do not reign at TNJ.
• According to reader John McDermott, The Philadelphia Inquirer described Manatawny Still Works as being “nestled on the banks of the Manatawny Creek, a tribute of the Schuykill River.” The writer meant tributary, of course. Also, the first l is missing from Schuylkill.
• Josh Tolentino, in The Inky (about University of Virginia runner Gary Martin): “Martin hopes his dedicated regiment and improved focus will pay off this weekend when he . . . competes in the 128th Penn Relays.” A regiment is a military unit, typically divided into companies, squadrons, or batteries. Josh should have written regimen or regime. Both refer to a course of life that follows a specific diet, exercise plan, or other health practice.
• Saving the best for last, here’s a trifecta from The Inky’s Bedatri D. Choudhury, writing about late-night talker Seth Meyers: “As a self-confessed ‘biased East Coaster,’ the Philly audience is his favorite kind of audience . . . Meyers’ Miller Theater show is part of a tour that coincides with the 10th anniversary of him joining Late Night as host.” First, “self-confessed” is a tautology. Confessed works fine. Second, the opening phrase creates a misplaced modifier that describes the Philly audience, not Meyers. Finally, it should be his joining Late Night.
Fast…And Big!
Couldn’t resist including this from an online description of legendary pitcher Bob Feller: “Standing a modest 6’ and weighing 185 lbs., Feller’s fastball was variously clocked between 98.6 mph up to 107 mph.” Personally, I wouldn’t call a 6’, 185 lb. fastball “modest.”
Hurts My Ears
Philadelphia Eagles Coach Nick Sirianni was of-ing all over the place in his assessment of first-round draft pick Quinyon Mitchell: “The thing that always kept coming up is how good of a person and how good of a teammate and how hard of a worker [he is].” Once again: of is superfluous and intrusive in such phrases.
Department of Redundancies Dept.
• Reader David Hull submits this from The Sarasota Herald-Tribune: “’Ramblin’ Man’ is the Allman Brothers Band’s first and only Top 10 pop hit, reaching No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and No. 1 on the U.S. Cashbox Top 100.” As David points out, “If it’s the only time, it is, by default, the first time, the last time, and all the times in between.”
• CapitalOne sent this email to me: “Thanks for being such a great customer! To show our appreciation, we’re offering up an exclusive offer just for you.” Wow! They’re not only offering an offer, they’re also offering it up, it’s exclusive, and it’s just for me. I feel so special!
• Subhead in a story in TNJ: “Influential influencers.”
• From a police report on WDEL “The car was traveling at a high rate of speed.” Speed: the rate at which an object moves.
Housekeeping
In the April column, I referred to “SUV” (sport utility vehicle) as an acronym. As reader Angie Martin points out, it isn’t, because it’s not pronounced as a word. It’s an initialism.
Word of the Month
celerity
Pronounced sa-LAR-a-dee, it’s a noun meaning swiftness of movement.
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