Especial

Especial (pronounced ih-spesh-uhl)

(1) Special; exceptional; outstanding.

(2) Of a particular kind, or peculiar to a particular one; particular.

(3) In commerce (as "special"), whatever an advertiser wishes it to mean.

1350-1375: From the Middle English especial, from the Old and Middle French especial (pre-eminent, important) from the Latin speciālis (pertaining to a particular kind or species) from species (appearance, form, beauty), from specere (to look).  In French, the forms differed: Latin words with initial sp-, st- and sc- usually acquired an e- when borrowed by Old French whereas Modern French has restored the word to spécial.  The adverb especially emerged in the late fourteenth century, shortly after the adjective.  Especial is an adjective and (in commerce with an initial capital) a proper noun, the rare especialness is a noun and especially is an adverb; the proper noun plural is Especials.

Meanings of special and especial are essentially the same yet usage differs.  Special is common, especial rare, specially is rare, especially common.  Most dictionaries however maintain especial and especially should have a more limited use than special and specially.  Special is always used in preference to especial when the sense is one of being out of the ordinary.  Special is also used when something is referred to as being for a particular purpose.  Where an idea of pre-eminence or individuality is involved, either especial or special may be used,  In informal English however, special is usually preferred in all contexts but especially tends to prevail, probably because it’s a sound which more easily rolls of the tongue.  Special is by far more common than especial; the Corpus of Contemporary American English (COCA) claims special is used some six-hundred times for every time especial is used.  It’s more economical too for unlike especial, special does not demand to be followed by a noun.  However, all of this applies to English and in Spanish the adjective especial is common.  To purists, use of especial should be rare and use confined to particular contexts where it collocates with particular nouns and especially where it avoids conflicts with other specific meanings: An especial interest or an especial value meaning something different than a special interest or special value.  In A Dictionary of Modern English Usage (1926), Henry Fowler (1858–1933) observed the characteristic sense of especial & especially was "pre-eminence of the particular as opposed to the ordinary" whereas special & specially were used to convey the idea of the "particular as opposed to the general".  However, he proceeded to acknowledge modern practice which tended to use such special for all such purposes, leaving it for the recipient to pick up the meaning from the context, something he seemed to concede was "possible" if not "preferable" and he noted the continuing popularity of especially, lamenting only that it appeared to encourage tautology, constructions like "more especially" condemned.      

Special relativity: Being especially special

Holden, the General Motors (GM) Australian subsidiary, for over a decade had it pretty easy, enjoying a fifty-percent market share despite by the early 1960s its products being, whatever their other virtues, outdated and underpowered.  GM would later respond but in the short-term, resorted to a bit of tarting-up (the term "bling" would come later but as early as the 1950s designers described add-on decorative bits as "gorp", creating a noun & verb from the acronym which stood for "granola, oats, raisins, peanuts", a popular nutritional mix carried by hikers, bush-walkers and such (the designers' notion being the adding of a bit of everything).  Holden had for ten years used the Special designation for their up-market offering but in 1962 added a new top of the range model called the Premier, meaning the Special was no longer so special.  Despite this, the name endured another six years before becoming the Kingswood which was no more special and the new name meant nothing in particular.  Confusing things still further, for most of the years it existed, the Special was actually the best-selling Holden, the other models, the Standard and the shorter-lived Business, enjoyed lower sales so in that sense, the Special was the standard model rather than the Standard.

So, by 1968, GM had in Australia ceased to call anything Special though much of their advertising continued to suggest everything they sold was special in some way.  In the US, GM's use of the Special badge started sooner and lasted longer, Buick using it first in 1936, curiously for their lowest-priced model, a placement similar to that seen sometimes in education where it was applied to classes or schools for those with learning difficulties (although that use has ceased, falling foul of the linguistic treadmill).  Buick of course no more wanted their customers to make a connection with "special education" any more than with Albert Einstein's (1879-1955) theory of special relativity which explains how space and time are linked for objects moving at a consistent speed in a straight line.  Buick's interest in relativity was probably limited to that between the models in its line-up and Special really meant nothing other than being a word thought to have generally positive associations.

With the introduction in 1962 of the Premier, Holden’s Special had ceased to be the most expensive of the line but as competition increased and rising prosperity overtook the land, it was clear “more special” names had to be concocted to convince the middle-class they were buying something for the “upper middle-class” and during the 1960s and 1970s Holden added “Brougham”, “Statesman” and “Caprice”, suffixes like “De Ville” & “SL/E” sometimes appended to versions a bit more special.  In 1971, when advertising the first Statesman De Ville, the company even neglected to include the “Holden” name anywhere in the copy, the corporate logo instead surrounded by a Cadillacesque wreath.  The approach didn’t last and between 1974 and the end of production in 2017, it was the “Holden Caprice” (sometimes as “Holden Statesman Caprice”) which was top-of the-range.

1953 Buick Special's 263 cubic inch straight-eight.  Although it didn't exactly live up to the implications in the "Fireball" name, the characteristics suited the profile of Buick buyers.

Then as now, Buick buyers didn’t like change but sometimes progress meant it was forced upon them.  The 1953 Buick Special was the last of the Buick overhead valve (OHV) straight-eights after a two decade run of legendary reliability and smoothness, and it existed to ensure the last stocks of the old engine were used, the new 322 cubic inch (5.3 litre) OHV "nailhead" V8 introduced that year for the rest of the range; the 1953 Special is a footnote also for the last appearance of 6-volt electrics in a Buick.  The straight-eight’s swansong was a bit low key because the big 320 (5.2) unit was dropped after 1952 so the 1953 Specials left the line with a the 263 (4.3) version which although labelled “Fireball”, was renowned for unobtrusive smoothness rather than high-performance and in that spirit Chrysler later adopted the name for V8s equally polite.  The technology of the time required two editions of the Special’s straight-eight, the one using the “Dynaflow” two-speed (semi) automatic transmission rated at 130 horsepower (HP) while the one coupled with the three-speed manual made 125, the only difference between the two the head gasket and valve lifters, the Dynaflow-equipped fitted with a thinner steel shim gasket & hydraulic lifters.  The thinner gasket raised the compression ratio from 7:1 to 7:6 although the additional HP wasn’t enough to compensate for what was consumed by the Dynaflow’s operations.

The 1969 Buick GS Sport Wagon was much more special than that year’s rather mundane Special Deluxe.  Like the similar model from Oldsmobile, the Sport Wagon was notable for the roof-mounted skylights.

After a brief hiatus, the Buick Special returned in 1938, its run in cars of various sizes almost uninterrupted until 1970.  In 1968 however, Buick must have had a moment of doubt that the Special may no longer be special enough and the range was renamed Special Deluxe, a change that lasted but two years.  In the 1970s and 1990s, there would be two half-decade long revivals but in 1996, the Special finally went extinct, not even Buick's entry into the Chinese market enough to encourage a revival, even though consumers in the Far-East respond famously well to bling.  Historically, Buick used the "Special" name in the sense a supermarket labels goods being sold at a reduced price (at least apparently although retailers have many tricks which render this often illusory) in that the Buick Special was almost always the lowest-cost line although mechanical specifications often matched more expensive models.  This approach differed from that used by Holden which (in pre-Premier days) used "Special" to designate "more expensive".

Ferrari and the Speciale    

1966 Ferrari 365 P Berlinetta Speciale.  That translates as "special coupé" and probably everything sounds better in Italian than English.  To the ears of English-speakers, a reading in Italian from a lawn-mower repair-manual sounds like the words of a lyric poet.

The Ferrari 365 P Berlinetta Speciale was a design by Pininfarina shown in 1966 and was both a test bed for a racing project and an exploration of the possibility of a mid-engined V12 road car, the styling taking cues from the designer’s smaller Dino 206 Berlinetta Speciale, built in 1965.  Reflecting the origin of its race-car chassis, the 365 Speciale was configured with three-abreast seating and a central driving position, a layout seat McLaren would later adopt for their F1 (1992-1998).  In a nod to the seating, the car is sometimes referred to as the 365 Berlinetta Tre-posti (three seater).  Among coupés, the three seat configuration has been done, a handful of the early Lamborghini 350 GTs (1964-1966) having an unusual 2+1 arrangement with a centrally mounted rear bucket seat and the Matra-Simca Bagheera (1973-1980) used three-abreast seating.  Most dubious of the 2+1s was the surprisingly popular option of a transversely mounted rear seat Mercedes-Benz did for a while offer in the W113 Roadster (230, 250 & 280 SL, 1963-1971; the so-called "Pagoda").  Though it could accommodate an adult-sized human, the factory listed it as the Kindetsitz (child's seat, code 565) while German men sometimes preferred Schwiegermutterplatz or Schwiegermuttersitz (mother-in-law seat).  That the factory would offer (in a convertible!) a “child's seat” which sat sideways and was fitted with no restraint system is an indication of how things have changed.  Ferrari still use speciale as a name and over the years there have been some quite distinctive models including Pininfarina's 330 GTC Speciale.

1965 Dino 206 Berlinetta Speciale.

The Dino Speciale would influence the later Dino 206 & 246 road cars, produced by Ferrari between 1967-1974.  The relationship with the 365 is obvious but, being scaled up to accommodate the big V12, the lines aren’t as harmonious as the dainty V6 Dino, reflecting the difficulties stylists had applying the layout when using bulky engines.  Still, the 365 P Speciale provided the factory with valuable experience in the then novel concept and traces of the shape are evident in what did in 1971 emerge as the 365 GT/4 Berlinetta Boxer, the prototype which would become Ferrari’s first mid-engined twelve-cylinder car to achieve series- production.  The Boxer's svelte shape was however made possible by flattening the vee to 180^o, something which proved a more satisfactory solution to the problem than the transverse location of the 60^o V12 Lamborghini used in 1966 for the Miura.  Achingly beautiful though the Miura was, its behaviour at speed could be tricky, exactly the reason Ferrari chose not to make the Stradale.       

1965 Ferrari 250 LM Stradale.

The 365 Speciale was actually the second mid-engined V12 road car Ferrari built; in 1965, the 250 LM Stradale (road) had been displayed at the Geneva Motor Show.  Based on the Le Mans 24 Hour winning 250 LM, it was a prototype for what was planned to be a small batch of road cars but Enzo Ferrari (1898-1988), then anyway dubious about the very idea of mid-engined V12s with all-independent suspension falling into the hands of amateurs, vetoed the project, the Stradale still just too much a racing car to let the unskilled rich unleash one on the streets.  The 250 LM (1963-1965) was a contemporary of the Ford GT40 and the pair were among the last racing cars which, slightly civilized, were sold also as road-going versions.   

Mean Girls Special Collector's Edition (2004) on DVD, Paramount Pictures (part number D341604D).

There’s no defined standard for what is included in “special” editions of commercially released films but unlike “director’s cut” versions which to some extent change the actual content of the original releases (cinema, optical, TV or streaming), “special editions” tend to be the original plus a bundle of “extras”.  Assembled usually as “featurettes”, typically, the additional content will consist of interviews with the cast, director or writers, out-takes, bloopers, deleted scenes, advertising and other promotional material and sometimes commentaries from critics or commentators with expertise in some issue of interest.  For nerds, there’s sometimes even content about technical aspects of production, an addition most often seen with product made with much use of special effects but discussions about matters such as the fashions used might also appear.

The Mean Girls Special Collector's Edition included (1) discussions about casting, (2) an interview with Rosalind Wiseman (b 1969), author of Queen Bees and Wannabes (2002) on which the Mean Girls screenplay was based, (3) commentary by the writers and producers, (4) “Word Vomit” (the Blooper Reel), (5) deleted scenes with commentary, (6) “Plastic Fashion” (a discussion about costume design and the use of clothing as a metaphor for character development), (7) interstitials (advertising material created with original material not used in the final cut) and (8) promotional trailers for other Paramount films.