Brain Snacks: Tasty Tidbits of Knowledge
Something Happened was Heller's pride and joy, taking him nearly thirteen years to complete. The author was so certain he had created a masterpiece that he kept copies of the manuscript in various locations in Manhattan—you know, in the event that his apartment accidentally burned down. (Hmm, he sounds just as irrationally paranoid as Slocum.) When it finally came time to hand off the completed draft to his publisher, he had his daughter accompany him just in case he was struck by a vehicle on his way. (Source)
Kurt Vonnegut believed Something Happened was quite ahead of its time. He also described it as "one of the unhappiest books ever written," which only makes us want to read it even more. (Source)
Perhaps Something Happened is such a work of genius that it outshines Catch-22. Though it doesn't have a place in the literary canon the same way that Catch-22 does, it's a contender for the title of "Best Book You've Never Read." (Source)
Heller's Something Happened served as a template for the hit AMC show Mad Men. Are we all truly mad here? (Source)