The RagTime Traveler
Page 31
***
The hum of the airplane engines was hypnotic, but Alan was wide awake, his mind filled with kaleidoscopic passages of Scott Joplin’s music. In the seat next to him, Miriam snored softly. For the umpteenth time, he glanced at the overhead bin where the duffel bag was hidden, folded inside his carry-on suitcase.
From the seats behind him, he heard muffled conversation, punctuated by giggles.
Those kids…would I like to be sixteen again? No. I wouldn’t have missed it for anything, but once was enough. I wouldn’t even want to time-travel to 1951 and see myself then.
Again, his eyes strayed to the overhead bin. Time-travel…I’ll never believe I was hallucinating or dreaming. It was all too real, too consistent, too coherent, both while it was happening and afterward. Maybe I pulled it off because I have some kind of sense that most people don’t have…Tom is so much like me at that age—might he have it too? If I help him develop it, then he could find me after I…What an adventure that would be!
But wherever I was, wherever 1899 Sedalia is, Scott Joplin is there. Alive, talking, writing music—My God, writing music! Maybe death is just a change of location, outside of time.
Forget about personal annihilation, Mr. Chandler. Just keep on composing. Keep on researching.
Keep on playing.
Authors’ Note
Some of the characters in The RagTime Traveler were real people; some were imaginary.
Scott Joplin, Arthur Marshall, Scott Hayden, Otis Saunders, Tom Ireland, and Walker Williams really did exist, and with the help of David Reffkin and various recorded histories of ragtime (most prominently Edward A. Berlin’s definitive biography, King of Ragtime, Scott Joplin and His Era), we have done our best to present them faithfully to reality.
There are two Betty Singers associated with the book. The contributions of the real-life Betty are described in the Acknowledgments section. The fictional Betty, who helped Alan uncover historical information necessary for him to solve the murder and theft, is based directly upon her corporeal counterpart.
Brun Campbell is also both real and fictional. The actual Brun was—briefly—a student of Scott Joplin, and late in his life, a historian of the ragtime era. Larry’s biography, Brun Campbell: The Original Ragtime Kid, is a highly praised account of both parts of Brun’s life. The fictional Brun stars in The Ragtime Kid and The Ragtime Fool, two of Larry’s ragtime-based historical mysteries.
As sixteen-year-olds, the fictional characters Alan and Miriam Chandler played central roles in The Ragtime Fool. Now, some sixty-five years later, they’ve returned in The RagTime Traveler, with their grandson, Tom.
Mickey Potash; Detective David Parks; Rudolph Korotkin and Sylvester Maggione; Jackson “JJ”, Elvira, and “Big Jack” Jackson; Saramae and Charles Blackstone; Lathan and Will Blackstone; Angeline Noland Blackstone; and Abigail Nowlin and the rest of the present-day Kansas City Nowlins are imaginary. No resemblance or relationship to any person, living or dead, is intended or should be inferred.
Then there’s the matter of time-travel. Do the authors believe that Alan did in fact travel back in time, or do they think he was hallucinating? We have our opinions, but will not exercise auctorial fiat on Alan’s experience. That said, we believe Alan was wise to resist making changes to the past. Altering history is likely to be as addictive as eating potato chips.
Acknowledgments
The authors thank three friends who provided critical help with regard to history, geography, and the language of music.
David Reffkin, musician, arranger, historian, and founder/director of the American Ragtime Ensemble, answered innumerable questions having to do with ragtime history and the intricacies of ragtime music, and read the final version of the manuscript to pick up on inconsistencies and errors.
Neither of the authors is familiar with Kansas City, and so they are indebted to the energetic and gracious Margot Sims, who did a thorough job of orienting them to the city, supplementing her verbal descriptions with excellent photographs.
Whenever questions arose in the minds of the authors regarding the history or the geography of Sedalia, Betty Singer (the real one, the inspiration for the fictional Betty) was Betty-on-the-Spot, always providing the necessary answers, usually by return email.
Without the kindness of these three friends, the authors would still be trying to write the book, and no matter how long they might have worked at it, it would never have been satisfactory.
In addition, the authors wish to thank Sharon Kingsford and Deborah Kelch for their fashion advice, especially regarding the awesomely horrific hats.
Sheriff Kevin Bond of Pettis County answered all of our questions about 911 service in Missouri.
Peg Kehret and Stef Maruch read the manuscript and offered helpful suggestions, most of which we accepted with gratitude.
Thanks to Myra and Maggie for their support and encouragement.
For any errors or inaccuracies, the authors take full responsibility.
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