John Cheever's Elevator Operator Stories
Three More Stories by Cheever (one with a 1950s Marriage)
When John Cheever was writing about elevator operators, he was writing about skilled professionals. These people controlled the speed, doors, and stops. When the NYC elevator operators went on strike, they shut down the city. They also doomed their jobs. Within a few years, almost every building installed automatic elevators. Consequently, these stories can confuse modern readers who hear “elevator operator” and see someone who pushes buttons.
John Cheever’s first elevator story is about an obnoxious elevator operator who is too familiar with his riders. I wrote this article assuming that an elevator operator pushes the buttons and that’s it, but upon reflection, the elevator was complicated, so the operator had the same proprietary attitude towards is elevator that a cab driver has to his car. So he feels entitled to talk at people, get to know them, refuse service if he disapproves.
"Clancy in the Tower of Babel" (The Stories of John Cheever)
Where do you get your ideas? Everywhere. But in the case of “Clancy in the Tower of Babel” there are two very compelling possibilities.
I didn’t like that story. I hated Clancy. By contrast, I LOVED John Cheever’s second elevator operator story. Clancy is a hard working scold who thinks that he’s righteous. Charlie of “Christmas is a Sad Season for the Poor” is a manipulative drunk who realizes that he can use Xmas as a way to guilt luxury apartment dwellers into giving him gifts. Consider it the cynical flip side of “A Christmas Carol” from the perspective of one of the beneficiaries of Scrooge’s new attitude. Only there are dozens of repenting Scrooges in this apartment building and they have alligator skin wallets.
"Christmas is a Sad Season for the Poor" (The Stories of John Cheever)
Before I talk about the story itself I need to recommend Malachy McCourt's performance. He mines the text for all the humor and pathos. This is one of Cheever's funniest stories and you owe it to yourself to hear the best version.
Finally, we have one of Cheever’s minor efforts where the title is doing the heavy lifting. No one gets divorced in “The Season for Divorce,” but one feels like they should be getting divorced. Certainly, they aren’t experiencing any joy or comfort from the marriage. The characters are flat - the clueless husband, the unhappy wife, the infatuated friend - but that works since it’s hard to go through live and not play out at least one of these roles (if not all three).
"The Season of Divorce" (The Stories of John Cheever)
“A man comes home and finds his best friend in bed with his wife. That man throws up his hands in disbelief and says, ‘Joe, I have to—but you?’ - attributed to Milton Berle, stolen from Philogelos
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John Cheever’s daughter wrote a book about him, so check that out.
For more Cheever, he wrote a few novels including The Wapshot Chronicles.