Talk:John Basinger

Did you know nomination

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• ... that John Basinger is believed to be the only person to have memorized all twelve books of Paradise Lost by John Milton?

• Source: NY Times

• • Reviewed: Template:Did you know nominations/John Greenewald Jr., Template:Did you know nominations/Siege of Ravenna (539–540)

Created by Thriley (talk) and Mwinog2777 (talk). Number of QPQs required: 2. DYK is currently in unreviewed backlog mode and nominator has 215 past nominations.

Thriley (talk) 19:25, 19 June 2026 (UTC).

• Hook is cited and interesting, prose length looks good, and no issues with copyvio spotted. I don't know the specifics for licensing on those photos. If they are indeed allowed on Commons, I would think one of those could be used for the Main Page. APK hi :-) (talk) 07:39, 22 June 2026 (UTC)
• I might recommend Template:Infobox person. APK hi :-) (talk) 08:18, 22 June 2026 (UTC)
• @Thriley and APK: The New York Times is obviously a generally reliable source but I do not know how even the Times can be considered authoritative on the question of whether someone is believed to be the only person to have memorized a 360-year-old poem. That is unknowable. Perhaps someone will promote this hook as is, but what do you think about offering a non-superlative as an option for promoters wary of this fairly extraordinary claim? Dclemens1971 (talk) 03:44, 21 July 2026 (UTC)
  • I'm fine with the current hook, but what is your suggested wording? APK hi :-) (talk) 04:25, 21 July 2026 (UTC)

ALT1...that John Basinger, who memorized all twelve books of Paradise Lost, described the work as "a cathedral I carry around in my mind"? Thriley (talk) 04:39, 21 July 2026 (UTC)

I trimmed out Milton's name (I think unnecessary here) and am giving the stamp of approval to ALT1 should promoters consider this claim more defensible. Dclemens1971 (talk) 14:35, 22 July 2026 (UTC)

I linked Paradise Lost. I don't mind if it takes away clicks from the bolded article. Thriley (talk) 22:58, 22 July 2026 (UTC)