Her name is Dot McDougah. Originally Dorothy Jean McCreed. Do NOT EVER call her Dottie; there’s a story there and should you hang around long enough, you’ll hear all about how Hamish Darragh Cavanaugh regretted being the first to try.
She seems to know everything. Some people know a lot about a little and some people know a little about a lot. From a time before perpetual attachment to an information superhighway conduit in a pocket or pocketbook, Dot McDougah seems to know a lot about everything.
It seems like she’s lived in Manhattan longer than The Emberlaine. She’s tough on the outside and soft DEEP inside. She’s gorgeous and strong, built like an olympic rugby player. She’s a sharply dressed dame with fashion appropriate for today just as much as it would have been in 1920s Ireland. She’s automatically kind and doesn’t forget the unkindness she sees or receives.
She’s preparing for a walk around the neighborhood this morning while the weather is still a delight. She enjoys seeing families bustle about getting kids to school and themselves to work. As she rides the gilded elevator to Tammany (the residents’ nickname for the primary entryway hall of The Emberlaine), she prepares her trivia for Boss, the doorman.
As the elevator doors open, she loudly announces, “Film: Plane Crazy. 1928. Why’s it special?”
“Well, I’m sure I don’t know. And I’m sure you know I don’t know. Saying something about Charlie Chaplin seems a little too obvious for you, so just give it to me straight,” Boss said.
“Before Steamboat Willie was released, your boy Disney screened, but did not distribute until ’29, a little diddy of a film about Mickey building a plane for his hopeful sweetheart Minerva Mouse,” said Dot as she strode from the elevator, past the desk, and toward the revolving door. Dot deeply appreciated the utility of the revolving door in maintaining the consistency of Tammany’s climate and so endeavored to always use it.
Observing Dot’s expeditious stride past the desk, he chuckled and waved, wishing her a pleasant morning. She waved without looking back and turned left out the glass drum. He wondered where she was headed and settled himself in the knowledge that wherever it was she was going, it was quite likely to be an adventure with a tale to tell upon her return.
Sparks 