April 23, 2007

What do Pinky and the Mock Turtle have in Common?

Beautiful Soup, so rich and green,
Waiting in a hot tureen!
Who for such dainties would not stoop?
Soup of the evening, beautiful Soup!
Soup of the evening, beautiful Soup!
Beau--ootiful Soo--oop!
Beau--ootiful Soo--oop!
Soo--oop of the e--e--eveing,
Beautiful, beautiful Soup!

"Beautiful Soup" is a parody of "Beautiful Star," a popular song by J. M. Sayles which Dodgson heard the Liddell children sing in August, 1862, after the trip to Godstow during which he began to tell some of the adventures of Alice:

Beautiful star in heav'n so bright
Softly falls thy silv'ry light,
As thou movest from earth so far,
Star of the evening, beautiful star,

Beau--ti-ful star,
Beau--ti-ful star,
Star--of the eve--ning
Beautiful, beautiful star.

Pinky wrote his own version:

Beautiful Pinky so pure and pink
A delight to see—the missing link?
He walks on water and green soup, too.
Beautiful Pinky with his chick tattoo.