Real story of hoarders basis for new novel
Sue Blechl, Special to The Gazette
Friday, September 11, 2009
“Homer and Langley,” by E.L. Doctorow, Random House, 2009.
Special to The Gazette
The Collyer Brothers, Homer and Langley, are fictionalized in this new novel by E.L. Doctorow, author of many bestsellers and award winners, including “Ragtime,” “Billy Bathgate” and “The March.”
The Collyers were a well-to-do family in New York City in the early years of the 20th century. When their parents died, the brothers were left with a mansion and total independence. Neither brother wed and both were talented and eccentric. The world did not know how eccentric until 1947, when an anonymous tip brought the authorities to find Homer’s dead body in the home.
But they found much much more — over 100 tons of stuff — garbage, newspapers, 14 pianos, a Model T Ford and finally, a second body, that of Langley, being eaten by rats.
The tabloids of the time had a field day with the story. Even today the brothers give their name to the Collyer Brothers Syndrome, a hoarding compulsion known as disposophobia.
Doctorow fashions his story taking significant liberties with the facts. He switches the birth order of the men, has Homer’s blindness begin as a young man, and shifts the story to end more than 20 years after the actual deaths. This does not interfere, however, with the engaging narrative, written from Homer’s perspective.
The brothers encounter many pivotal events of the time, including speakeasies and gangsters, the Second World War, the Cold War and even hippies and the moon landing in the 1960s. Langley’s long-term project of combing through dozens of newspapers weekly to assemble a generic paper of timeless happenings might explain his need to collect and store the huge stacks of yellowed papers that filled the home.
When the utilities are shut off, the brothers must cope with other tactics to obtain water, heat and light (the windows had long ago been boarded up). The true story is surely curious, and Doctorow’s version does not easily answer the major question — why?
A&E Television and other channels are airing documentaries on hoarding and obsessions. It seems that these symptoms of stress and mental illness are more prevalent than we might think. This novel fits right into the fascination we have with extreme lifestyles and the foibles of our fellow man.
For more information on the Collyer Brothers, a Google search will yield both informational and photographic background. Right now, it’s time to get the recycling ready — and out of the house.
On the Shelf is written by staff and volunteers of the Emporia Public Library.