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Angels in the architecture

Posted by Brian from Shawnee on May 04, 2008 at 02:17:

In Reply to: Angels in the architecture posted by ESC on May 03, 2008 at 04:02:

: : Does anyone know the meaning and/or origin of the phrase "angels in the architecture"?

: : It's used in the Paul Simon song "Call Me Al", but does it predate it?

: He looks around around
: He sees angels in the architecture
: Spinning in infinity
: He says Amen and Hallelujah

: I thought it might be a play on the phrase "angel in the house" -- en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/The_Angel_in_the_House But then I found that it is a design term: "This maintains wiggle room as projects advance toward completion, often creating 'an angel in the architecture' to serve as a countermeasure for situations in which 'the devil is in the details.'" rfdesign.com/ mag/radio_flexibility_designers_best/ "The consequences of Performance Plus far outweigh the consequences of No Child Left Behind and at a faster rate," he said. "Performance Plus is No Child Left Behind on steroids. We need to look at the consequences because the devil's in the details and the angel's in the architecture." www.kimberlyswygert.com/ archives/cat_nclb.html

I wonder if Paul Simon was thinking of the 1951 baseball movie Angels in the Outfield (remade in 1994). Simon would have been 10 at the time of the original movie's release. He is apparently a baseball fan, having included a line about "Joltin' Joe" DiMaggio in Mrs. Robinson, and is rumored to have proposed to actress Carrie Fisher at a Yankees game.

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