Edward G Pettit

Although I have in the past urged Philly to forget Franklin and embrace Poe as their icon, I am pleased to see an event that brings them together:

Historical re-enactors Bill Roebling and Paul Campbell will represent Benjamin Franklin and Edgar Allan Poe as hosts for a screening of the 1928 silent film, The Fall of the House of Usher, which addresses many themes of Poe’s literature and makes reference to other famed Poe stories . Well-known glass armonicaist, Carolinn Skyler, will accompany the movie on the instrument invented by Benjamin Franklin . Following the film, National Park Service rangers will lead a discussion and field questions from the audience. Literature anthologies, biographies and novelty items will be available for purchase from Eastern National, the park’s non-profit cooperating association, to support education and interpretive programs. Portions of the event will be filmed for web based education outreach. For more information, please visit www.nps.gov/edal or call the Edgar Allan Poe National Historic Site at 215-597-8780. (Poe House Open W-S 9-5 )

Note this event is not at the Philly Poe House, but rather the Franklin Courtbehind Market Street between 3rd and 4th Sts. 

This sounds like a really great event and I'm very much looking forward to it.  The silent film of Usher is outstanding.  And to see it with live musical on an armonica?  That will be awesome. 

On Saturday, Jan 15, at 1PM there will be a talk on "Publishing in Philadelphia" at the Visitors Center at 6th and Market Streets.

And the fun doesn't end there, at the Edgar Allan Poe National Historic Site (the Philly Poe House) on Sunday, Jan 16 at 1PM, following a house tour, there will be a rousing fame of JePOEdy, in which you can test your Poe knowledge. 

More info about all the Poe events plus more Franklin events.