----- Original Message -----

Dear List,

I was one of those who received a scurillous message from "Dr. Anne Cohen" containing vicious attacks against the Nabokovians, mainly against Carolyn Kunin. The author of the paskvil' ("lampoon") wondered, inter alia, who this Dr. Kunin was. "Whether she is the Soviet Professor?" The message was written in such unbelievably bad English that Carolyn, to whom I had forwarded it, at her request, suggested, partly in jest, that it might be a machine translation. Upon looking at the message closer, I realized that it was very probably so: a machine translation from Russian!
  I rather enjoyed George Shimanovich's supposition that Mr. Livry could be the modern incarnation of the immortal Koz'ma Prutkov. But now I see that he is much closer to another invented Russian poet: Ignat Lebyadkin. Perhaps, with a touch of Liputin, another character of that novel (The Possessed) by Dostoevsky.

I hope Mr. Livry won't bother me with messages signed with his real or invented names any more. I'm not a fan of his writings and am not interested in his view of Tragedy which is said to be "on the level of Wilamovitz" (whoever that may be).

I also hope to entertain you soon with my account of a recent Event that has had a great deal more to do with Nabokov than this sad Livry affair.

Alexey