diff --git a/configure b/configure
index adf8cf3..b098bac 100755
--- a/configure
+++ b/configure
@@ -626,6 +626,7 @@
 OPENSSL_LDFLAGS
 OPENSSL_LIBS
 OPENSSL_INCLUDES
+PKG_CONFIG
 ENSUREPIP
 SRCDIRS
 THREADHEADERS
@@ -653,9 +654,6 @@
 TCLTK_LIBS
 TCLTK_INCLUDES
 LIBFFI_INCLUDEDIR
-PKG_CONFIG_LIBDIR
-PKG_CONFIG_PATH
-PKG_CONFIG
 SHLIBS
 CFLAGSFORSHARED
 LINKFORSHARED
@@ -808,8 +806,6 @@
 with_universal_archs
 with_framework_name
 enable_framework
-with_gcc
-with_icc
 with_cxx_main
 with_suffix
 enable_shared
@@ -852,10 +848,7 @@
 LDFLAGS
 LIBS
 CPPFLAGS
-CPP
-PKG_CONFIG
-PKG_CONFIG_PATH
-PKG_CONFIG_LIBDIR'
+CPP'
 
 
 # Initialize some variables set by options.
@@ -1506,8 +1499,6 @@
   --with-framework-name=FRAMEWORK
                           specify an alternate name of the framework built
                           with --enable-framework
-  --without-gcc           never use gcc
-  --with-icc              build with icc
   --with-cxx-main=<compiler>
                           compile main() and link python executable with C++
                           compiler
@@ -1568,11 +1559,6 @@
   CPPFLAGS    (Objective) C/C++ preprocessor flags, e.g. -I<include dir> if
               you have headers in a nonstandard directory <include dir>
   CPP         C preprocessor
-  PKG_CONFIG  path to pkg-config utility
-  PKG_CONFIG_PATH
-              directories to add to pkg-config's search path
-  PKG_CONFIG_LIBDIR
-              path overriding pkg-config's built-in search path
 
 Use these variables to override the choices made by `configure' or to help
 it to find libraries and programs with nonstandard names/locations.
@@ -3454,57 +3440,6 @@
 # when running configure or make.  The build should not break if they do.
 # BASECFLAGS should generally not be messed with, however.
 
-# XXX shouldn't some/most/all of this code be merged with the stuff later
-# on that fiddles with OPT and BASECFLAGS?
-{ $as_echo "$as_me:${as_lineno-$LINENO}: checking for --without-gcc" >&5
-$as_echo_n "checking for --without-gcc... " >&6; }
-
-# Check whether --with-gcc was given.
-if test "${with_gcc+set}" = set; then :
-  withval=$with_gcc;
-	case $withval in
-	no)	CC=${CC:-cc}
-		without_gcc=yes;;
-	yes)	CC=gcc
-		without_gcc=no;;
-	*)	CC=$withval
-		without_gcc=$withval;;
-	esac
-else
-
-	case $ac_sys_system in
-	AIX*)   CC=${CC:-xlc_r}
-		without_gcc=;;
-	*)	without_gcc=no;;
-	esac
-fi
-
-{ $as_echo "$as_me:${as_lineno-$LINENO}: result: $without_gcc" >&5
-$as_echo "$without_gcc" >&6; }
-
-{ $as_echo "$as_me:${as_lineno-$LINENO}: checking for --with-icc" >&5
-$as_echo_n "checking for --with-icc... " >&6; }
-
-# Check whether --with-icc was given.
-if test "${with_icc+set}" = set; then :
-  withval=$with_icc;
-	case $withval in
-	no)	CC=${CC:-cc}
-		with_icc=no;;
-	yes)	CC=icc
-		CXX=icpc
-		with_icc=yes;;
-	*)	CC=$withval
-		with_icc=$withval;;
-	esac
-else
-
-	with_icc=no
-fi
-
-{ $as_echo "$as_me:${as_lineno-$LINENO}: result: $with_icc" >&5
-$as_echo "$with_icc" >&6; }
-
 # If the user switches compilers, we can't believe the cache
 if test ! -z "$ac_cv_prog_CC" -a ! -z "$CC" -a "$CC" != "$ac_cv_prog_CC"
 then
@@ -7216,7 +7151,6 @@
 	    BASECFLAGS="$BASECFLAGS -m486 -DSCO5"
 	    ;;
 
-    # is there any other compiler on Darwin besides gcc?
     Darwin*)
         # -Wno-long-double, -no-cpp-precomp, and -mno-fused-madd
         # used to be here, but non-Apple gcc doesn't accept them.
@@ -9969,126 +9903,7 @@
 fi
 
 
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-if test "x$ac_cv_env_PKG_CONFIG_set" != "xset"; then
-	if test -n "$ac_tool_prefix"; then
-  # Extract the first word of "${ac_tool_prefix}pkg-config", so it can be a program name with args.
-set dummy ${ac_tool_prefix}pkg-config; ac_word=$2
-{ $as_echo "$as_me:${as_lineno-$LINENO}: checking for $ac_word" >&5
-$as_echo_n "checking for $ac_word... " >&6; }
-if ${ac_cv_path_PKG_CONFIG+:} false; then :
-  $as_echo_n "(cached) " >&6
-else
-  case $PKG_CONFIG in
-  [\\/]* | ?:[\\/]*)
-  ac_cv_path_PKG_CONFIG="$PKG_CONFIG" # Let the user override the test with a path.
-  ;;
-  *)
-  as_save_IFS=$IFS; IFS=$PATH_SEPARATOR
-for as_dir in $PATH
-do
-  IFS=$as_save_IFS
-  test -z "$as_dir" && as_dir=.
-    for ac_exec_ext in '' $ac_executable_extensions; do
-  if as_fn_executable_p "$as_dir/$ac_word$ac_exec_ext"; then
-    ac_cv_path_PKG_CONFIG="$as_dir/$ac_word$ac_exec_ext"
-    $as_echo "$as_me:${as_lineno-$LINENO}: found $as_dir/$ac_word$ac_exec_ext" >&5
-    break 2
-  fi
-done
-  done
-IFS=$as_save_IFS
-
-  ;;
-esac
-fi
-PKG_CONFIG=$ac_cv_path_PKG_CONFIG
-if test -n "$PKG_CONFIG"; then
-  { $as_echo "$as_me:${as_lineno-$LINENO}: result: $PKG_CONFIG" >&5
-$as_echo "$PKG_CONFIG" >&6; }
-else
-  { $as_echo "$as_me:${as_lineno-$LINENO}: result: no" >&5
-$as_echo "no" >&6; }
-fi
-
-
-fi
-if test -z "$ac_cv_path_PKG_CONFIG"; then
-  ac_pt_PKG_CONFIG=$PKG_CONFIG
-  # Extract the first word of "pkg-config", so it can be a program name with args.
-set dummy pkg-config; ac_word=$2
-{ $as_echo "$as_me:${as_lineno-$LINENO}: checking for $ac_word" >&5
-$as_echo_n "checking for $ac_word... " >&6; }
-if ${ac_cv_path_ac_pt_PKG_CONFIG+:} false; then :
-  $as_echo_n "(cached) " >&6
-else
-  case $ac_pt_PKG_CONFIG in
-  [\\/]* | ?:[\\/]*)
-  ac_cv_path_ac_pt_PKG_CONFIG="$ac_pt_PKG_CONFIG" # Let the user override the test with a path.
-  ;;
-  *)
-  as_save_IFS=$IFS; IFS=$PATH_SEPARATOR
-for as_dir in $PATH
-do
-  IFS=$as_save_IFS
-  test -z "$as_dir" && as_dir=.
-    for ac_exec_ext in '' $ac_executable_extensions; do
-  if as_fn_executable_p "$as_dir/$ac_word$ac_exec_ext"; then
-    ac_cv_path_ac_pt_PKG_CONFIG="$as_dir/$ac_word$ac_exec_ext"
-    $as_echo "$as_me:${as_lineno-$LINENO}: found $as_dir/$ac_word$ac_exec_ext" >&5
-    break 2
-  fi
-done
-  done
-IFS=$as_save_IFS
-
-  ;;
-esac
-fi
-ac_pt_PKG_CONFIG=$ac_cv_path_ac_pt_PKG_CONFIG
-if test -n "$ac_pt_PKG_CONFIG"; then
-  { $as_echo "$as_me:${as_lineno-$LINENO}: result: $ac_pt_PKG_CONFIG" >&5
-$as_echo "$ac_pt_PKG_CONFIG" >&6; }
-else
-  { $as_echo "$as_me:${as_lineno-$LINENO}: result: no" >&5
-$as_echo "no" >&6; }
-fi
-
-  if test "x$ac_pt_PKG_CONFIG" = x; then
-    PKG_CONFIG=""
-  else
-    case $cross_compiling:$ac_tool_warned in
-yes:)
-{ $as_echo "$as_me:${as_lineno-$LINENO}: WARNING: using cross tools not prefixed with host triplet" >&5
-$as_echo "$as_me: WARNING: using cross tools not prefixed with host triplet" >&2;}
-ac_tool_warned=yes ;;
-esac
-    PKG_CONFIG=$ac_pt_PKG_CONFIG
-  fi
-else
-  PKG_CONFIG="$ac_cv_path_PKG_CONFIG"
-fi
-
-fi
-if test -n "$PKG_CONFIG"; then
-	_pkg_min_version=0.9.0
-	{ $as_echo "$as_me:${as_lineno-$LINENO}: checking pkg-config is at least version $_pkg_min_version" >&5
-$as_echo_n "checking pkg-config is at least version $_pkg_min_version... " >&6; }
-	if $PKG_CONFIG --atleast-pkgconfig-version $_pkg_min_version; then
-		{ $as_echo "$as_me:${as_lineno-$LINENO}: result: yes" >&5
-$as_echo "yes" >&6; }
-	else
-		{ $as_echo "$as_me:${as_lineno-$LINENO}: result: no" >&5
-$as_echo "no" >&6; }
-		PKG_CONFIG=""
-	fi
-fi
+PKG_PROG_PKG_CONFIG
 
 # Check for use of the system expat library
 { $as_echo "$as_me:${as_lineno-$LINENO}: checking for --with-system-expat" >&5