The late and great Judge Jerome Frank (2d Cir.) is credited with the quip that “a court’s decision might turn on what the judge had for breakfast.” It’s often cited as a neat shorthand for the legal-realist view of judicial decisionmaking.

So, what did the judge have for breakfast? We may know the answer, at least in the case of Justice Clarence Thomas. Check out this clever project, reported in Radar:

In the late ’90s, pop-culture historian Bill Geerhart had a little too much time on his hands and a surfeit of stamps. So, for his own entertainment, the then-unemployed thirtysomething launched a letter-writing campaign to some of the most powerful and infamous figures in the country, posing as a curious 10-year-old named Billy.

To his surprise, replies soon started pouring in. Everyone from Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld (on tree-fort diplomacy) to Oprah Winfrey, Mister Rogers, Janet Reno, and members of the Supreme Court had words of wisdom for Billy.

To wit, Justice Thomas. When “Billy” asked him for his favorite McDonald’s food, CT responded: “I like the Egg McMuffin. Actually, I like almost everything there.”

Perhaps that explains the post-SCOTUS weight gain of Justice Thomas (a former marathoner, as he recounts in his memoir, who was noticeably well-built at the time of his nomination to the Court). It seems that law firm associates aren’t the only folks putting on the pounds.

The handwritten letter from “Billy,” and Justice Thomas’s response — a typewritten letter, but with a handwritten note at the bottom confessing a weakness for McDonald’s fare — are pretty cool to look at. Check them out by clicking here.

The Billy Letters: Introduction [Radar]
The Billy Letters: Justice Clarence Thomas [Radar]