[OS X Emacs] Problem with init files

[Robert P. Goldman]

I have just gotten a new error starting up emacs:

Warning (initialization): An error occurred while loading
`/Users/rpg/.emacs':

Invalid read syntax: #

Oddly, when I use the help menu item for debugging my init files, or
when I start Aquamacs from the command line
(/Application/Aquamacs/Contents/MacOS/Aquamacs), using --debug-init, I
get no error message.

emacs-version
"24.3.50.2"
aquamacs-version
"3.0"


No change in aquamacs or my configuration, BUT some new files installed
from Melpa.  None show up with hash marks in them, though (using ack -l
--elisp --literal '#' ~/.emacs.d/)

Any suggestions?

thanks,
r