Bostonist is All About the Benjamin, Baby

Just as you're coming down from the high of celebrating the birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr., along comes the birth date of another great American, and this time it's one of Boston's own. Benjamin Franklin was born on January 17, 1706 - 300 years ago! - on what is now Milk Street, right here in the Hub (although the man who would give Boston that nickname wouldn't be born for another 103 years). Philly can crow all it wants about how Franklin did, like, everything that made him famous in that other Commonwealth, but what really matters is that he got his start here: He attended Boston Latin till he dropped out at the age of ten (which doesn't stop the school from happily claiming him as an alum) and first got into publishing as an apprentice to his older brother, who ran the famous New England Courant newspaper. There, Franklin engaged in a craft especially near and dear to Bostonist's heart: snarky, pseudonymous writing. (Is it presumptuous of us to even draw a comparison between our humble endeavor and the writings of a Founding Father? Maybe, but remember, we're not talking about John Adams here; Franklin was a political genius, but he wrote a lot of low-brow crap.) So basically, all that stuff that he did after leaving town at the age of 17 was an outgrowth of his fine beginning here in our fair city.

Bostonist could spend all day regaling you with facts about old Ben, but that's what the interweb is for. If you are in the mood for a more in-depth look not just at Franklin's life, but at how he has been mythologized in our civic culture, let us recommend The Americanization of Benjamin Franklin. For a lighter approach to Franklin's birthday, you could check out "Benjamin Franklin, Printer, Etc.," a one-man show running throughout this month at Jimmy Tingle's Off Broadway theatre in Davis Square, or do like Bostonist and engage in some of Franklin's favorite activities: This year, we intend to charm French people, play with electricity, and dally with women of low character.