Ignatius
John McConnell is a local stage actor best known for portraying Huey Long, Earl Long, and Ignatius J. Reilly from A Confederacy of Dunces. In an interview with Chris Rose, he comments: "I'm wondering if every city shouldn't have its own Confederacy of Dunces that expertly, precisely, and concisely defines the character and characters of that city." I don't know if this is possible, because it has never seemed to me that other cities are as intensely self-aware and insistent upon their own cultures, but then I've never been truly immersed in any other city's culture, so I don't know. What I do feel certain of is that there are few if any other cities where an Ignatius Reilly would be not just tolerated, but taken more or less in stride. I've always assumed that if he and Myrna Minkoff ever made it to New York, he was murdered by New Yorkers out of sheer irritation within minutes of his arrival.