In 1812, Charles Redheffer devised a machine he claimed could keep moving forever without ever being touched or otherwise aided. His machine had a gravity-driven pendulum with a large horizontal gear on the bottom. A smaller gear interlocked with the larger one. Both the large gear and the shaft were able to rotate separately. Placed […]

“On September 11, 1660, Samuel Pepys tried a new hot beverage for the first time, recording in his diary: ‘And afterwards I did send for a cup of tee (a China drink), of which I never had drank before.’ Whether he liked it or not Pepys didn’t say, which is a shame, as it is […]

Cezanne’s Card Players sold for $274 million in 2011, making it the most expensive painting ever sold, a record that held until the sale of Salvator Mundi, which was supposedly painted by Leonardo da Vinci. Cezanne’s Bouilloire et Fruits sold for $52 million at Christie’s in 2019.  Cezanne’s Nature Morte de Peches et Poires brought $28.2 million at Christie’s in […]

Picasso referred to Cézanne as “the father of us all” and claimed him as “my one and only master!” Other painters such as Edgar Degas, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Paul Gauguin, Kasimir Malevich, Georges Rouault, Paul Klee, and Henri Matisse acknowledged Cézanne’s genius. – WIKIPEDIA

The idea that children are passive repositories to be shaped by their parents has been massively overstated. A child’s peer group is a far greater determinant of its development and achievements than parental aspiration.

See and hear it for yourself at https://goodmeat.co

Wizard of Ads partner Paul Boomer offers some sage advice about what to do when you get stuck on a goal. What triggered Paul’s flash of brilliance was the wizard’s Monday Morning Memo and my Rabbit Hole for July 12, 2021. – Indy Beagle

Indy, we’ve come to that time where I call upon you for a favor, knowing full well that it means I’ll probably have to help you bury a body someday, no questions asked. I’m willing to make that bargain. Today is the day my book comes out: Los Angeles is Hideous: Poems About An Ugly […]

<a href=”https://bradwhittington.bandcamp.com/album/wunderfool-kids-stuff”>Wunderfool Kid's Stuff by Brad Whittington</a>

“Is that ham processed?If it’s processed, I don’t want it.” “Ma’am, that is an eleven pound whole slab of deli ham. It has no bones, fat, or connective tissue.  It is an amalgamation of the meat of several pigs, emulsified, liquified, strained, and ultimately inexorably joined in an unholy meat obelisk. God had no hand […]

Meet Michele Miller-Nelson and increase your sales to female customers.

Read about Gunner, Bootsie’s Grandpa, at War History Online

STEP ONE: Distribute these 2 sheets. STEP TWO: Deliver the speech below: Ted Leonsis was on a little commuter airplane that lost the ability to use its wing flaps and landing gear. Faced with death, Ted wrote a bucket list of 101 things that he promised himself he would do if he lived. Start to […]

Mandy Hale isn’t a business writer, but she may have written the best piece of business advice, ever. “To make a difference in someone’s life, you don’t have to be brilliant, rich, beautiful, or perfect. You just have to care.” Your employees need to know you care. Something that makes me happy every time I […]

Meet Jay Mistry!

A Unique Application of Personas George Packer believes the people of the United States see Four Different Americas. Each of these Americas is a “persona” crafted to fit personal values and beliefs. According to George…   “Free America” believes the purpose of government is to secure individual rights and little else. Consumer capitalism and the elevation […]

“Nations, like individuals, tell stories in order to understand what they are, where they come from, and what they want to be. National narratives, like personal ones, are prone to sentimentality, grievance, pride, shame, self-blindness. There is never just one – they compete and constantly change. The most durable narratives are not the ones that […]

You and I decide to wander around Cambridge in 1609, the year that George Herbert entered Trinity College and came to the attention of King James. Indy Beagle, upon hearing of our journey, decides to go with us. We wander first into The Eagle and the Child, a pub in Cambridge that William Shakespeare was known […]

You and I decide to wander around Cambridge in 1609, the year that George Herbert entered Trinity College and came to the attention of King James. Indy Beagle, upon hearing of our journey, decides to go with us. We wander first into The Eagle and the Child, a pub in Cambridge that William Shakespeare was known […]

You and I decide to wander around Cambridge in 1609, the year that George Herbert entered Trinity College and came to the attention of King James. Indy Beagle, upon hearing of our journey, decides to go with us. We wander first into The Eagle and the Child, a pub in Cambridge that William Shakespeare was known […]

You and I decide to wander around Cambridge in 1609, the year that George Herbert entered Trinity College and came to the attention of King James. Indy Beagle, upon hearing of our journey, decides to go with us. We wander first into The Eagle and the Child, a pub in Cambridge that William Shakespeare was known […]

The slosh of the remnants being thrown out. The annoying clanking of the mugs being unceremoniously placed in their starting lineup for the coming evening’s encore performance. Through blurry eyes, Shakespeare considers. What happened? One thought leads to another. More importantly, what will happen?  What stories are there yet untold, yet undiscovered?  As he gently […]

Good evening to you my dear friend,  You asked in your recent letter whether I remembered what happened that night we met Shakespeare and I certainly do, since only a small cup of the Italian was left when I arrived.  However, I considered it my great honour to be a part of such a historic […]

Indy & Elroy discover later that morning, when they stumble back to the Bird & Baby for some meat pie and a mug of mead, that the gent, who they presumed was William Shakespeare, was actually his cousin Wally Shakespeare.  A notoriously bad playwright but a delightful conversationalist and noted for plagiarizing others quotes.  They […]

The bartender doesn’t flinch. “Barkeep!” bellowed Shakespeare, “the good Italian, I say”. Annoyed the bartender looks up and stops. Eyes on us, he slowly reaches under the counter, bringing forth a rather large, ornate jug.  A big man, he waddles over to the table. He starts to set the jug down but hesitates.  “I don’t […]

You and I decide to wander around Cambridge in 1609, the year that George Herbert entered Trinity College and came to the attention of King James. Indy Beagle, upon hearing of our journey, decides to go with us. We wander first into The Eagle and the Child, a pub in Cambridge that William Shakespeare was known […]

The wizard said, “Before I begin, I want to make sure the mic is working.” I walked over to the stand, looked out at the crowd, and said, “If your name is Michael, please stand up.” Two dudes stood up. I announced, “That concludes the mike check.” And then I looked at the wizard and gave […]

Back in the days when the wizard was dating the Princess in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, about 45 years ago, some guys made a really bad movie about a guy on a buffalo. Then in 2011, some awesome guys in Austin took some clips from that now-copyright-expired movie and wrote 4 short songs to go with […]

The book will be available for sale in August. If you’d like a signed first edition (at no additional cost), this is your secret spot.  

The book will be available for sale in August. If you’d like a signed first edition (at no additional cost), this is your secret spot.  

It began with a question from a student during the most recent monthly Q & A webcast of Wizard Academy: Hey Guys- I’ve got a tough commercial to write and could use some direction. I have been working with our local Health Department on writing Covid Commercials.  I’m stuck on the latest commercial because of […]

“I think of books as islands, but Rebecca Solnit thinks of them as sheet music, or as seeds. I followed that trail of thought until I realized that she and I had simply discovered different metaphors to describe how books are literary portals of escape into alternate realities.” – MondayMorningMemo for October 12, 2020

Two weeks ago, one of my clients asked me to explain our marketing strategy to a guy from a private equity firm that is hoping to buy a chunk of my client’s company for a few hundred million dollars. When we were retained 7 years ago, the company was bringing in barely $9m a year. […]

“Anthony Fidget was a twitchy little bastard. I’m glad he was the first to go,” said Billy. ‘He just couldn’t keep his head down, had to see what was goin’ on.” Billy angled the mirror to look over the sill. A stricken look came over his face. “How many out there?” Maurice inquired. “Lotssss,” Billy […]

Roy, Day one of the radio campaign and we get this call from an old radio writer complimenting the ad.  Always awesome to hear this so soon in a campaign.  I can’t tell you how proud I am of Mick for his professional creativity and Kyle for his ridiculously strong media buys.  Many thanks, Ryan 

Hi Indy, I told a few coworkers this morning that the world’s best marketing professional says that “The risk of insult is the price of clarity.”  About ten minutes later, one of those coworkers emailed this to me. – Glen 

Hi Indy,Going to the classes at Wizard Academy gave me the courage to push the button today on my latest “Studio Notes.” Sharing my most embarrassing moment with 300-plus people was not easy but you and Roy teach about how much our self-talk matters. I needed to change my self-talk. Turning this embarrassing memory that […]

Greetings from Tulsa, Oklahoma! Many years ago a friend of mine heard Roy speak in Tulsa and bought me his first book. I’ve been reading the MMM for years and even though I’m not in advertising, I’ve picked up a few tips and used what I’ve learned in my self-employed hair business. A few months ago my daughter, Ali Kern, got into bourbon […]

Thank You to alert rabbit-holer Johnny Molson for sending this to our attention. – Indy

And then I turned 90 degrees counter-clockwise and took this photo and made it his new home screen and gave his phone back to him. He took me to lunch at my favorite place as a reward. Do you want interesting photographs? Give your phone to your dog. – Indy

Wizard of ads partner Stephen Semple often takes walks around the lake near his home north of Toronto. On a recent walk, Stephen took this photo of The Heart of the Forest Cool, huh? And he has photos of Sunset and Early Morning on the next two pages. Thanks, Stephen! – Indy

Vignesh Sundaresan, the buyer of the $69 million NFT by the artist Beeple, said he was prepared to bid even higher since it will be seen by history as the starting point of a new age of digital art. In his first television interview, Vignesh Sundaresan, also known as MetaKovan, told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” that […]

He was savaged on social media and Fox News (below) made him a laughingstock. But I think Salvatore Garau’s mistake is that he issued a certificate of authenticity. If he had added a name and a story and a photo of the location of “the empty space” to the blockchain, he could have sold a […]

Now it exists and will remain in this space forever. APHRODITE CRYING You don’t see me but I exist, right above this white round shape. I’m Aphrodite, an intangible sculpture made of air and spirit. Feel my absence which is a true existence. Still don’t see me? And yet I am here, in front of you, and I cry […]

We read fiction books because they take us to imaginary worlds where we meet imaginary people and feel sad for them when they are hurting and glad for them when they win. We like to visit these imaginary people in their imaginary worlds. But the imaginary worlds are not theirs, they are our own. And […]

To see the subtitles in ENGLISH, move your cursor over the video and click the button marked CC – Indy

Thomas Jefferson founded the University of Virginia in 1819, a deed that meant so much to him that he had it carved on his tombstone when he died. No mention of his having been President, or of sending Lewis and Clark westward, or of doubling the size of our fledgling nation with his “Louisiana Purchase.” […]