I climb wooden stairs to the trailer house office of a mobile home dealer on Admiral Boulevard. Standing on the cedar deck outside the glass door I see myself looking back at me, the sport coat I bought for 3 dollars at the Goodwill store, the briefcase I carry to look educated. Behind me is the […]

Forty-seven months later, I remember this class like it was yesterday. – Indy

First things first: If you can’t imagine yourself tearing up the streets in this whip without feeling embarrassed, then get out. Your ancestral bloodline is anemic, and you are dismissed. The Spectra does not tolerate weakness. As for the rest of you — put your helmets on, because I’ve got a metaphysical bomb to drop. […]

Click this link to visit Marcel_Pajot.com

Click this link to visit Marcel_Pajot.com

Click this link to visit Marcel_Pajot.com

Click this link to visit Marcel_Pajot.com

Click this link to visit Marcel_Pajot.com

Click this link to visit Marcel_Pajot.com

Click this link to visit Marcel_Pajot.com

Click this link to visit Marcel_Pajot.com

Click this link to visit Marcel_Pajot.com

Movie posters are how I go PeopleWatching.

Click this link to visit Marcel_Pajot.com

The Breakfast Club, Stand by Me, The Big Chill, Dead Poets Society . . . Do you like movies that are character-driven rather than action-driven? If so, you’ll want to find a theater that’s showing Captain Fantastic. Vigo Mortensen (Lord of the Rings) plays a modern-day Quixote. I liked it.

Click this link to see 15 pages of detailed book recommendations made by your fellow rabbit-holers. We are a small tribe (about 4 percent of MMMemo readers) but a brilliant one. – Indy

The funniest thing about this video is the dancing of the white guys.          Heh, heh, heh. – Indy  

Do you remember the Robert Lawson illustrations from last week? (below) The illustration you saw above this week’s MMMemo was Lawson again. It’s called Mediterranean Evening. Robert Lawson lived from 1892 to 1957, so he was 18 when Teddy Roosevelt spoke at the Sorbonne in Paris.

The Lenape, or Delaware Indians, weren’t the only ones driven out by the arrival of the traders. You gotta love the mind of Robert Lawson. You gotta. – Indy

Artist Robert Lawson lived from 1892 to 1957. Do you suppose any of the people on that Dutch ship imagined the future of that island? Peter Minuit, appointed director-general of New Netherland by the Dutch West India Company, purchased Manhattan from the Lenape, or Delaware Indians, for $24-worth of trade goods in 1626.

This is the link to investigate Loewy

This was my first gig as a secret service beagle. It was painted by a dude named Gentile da Fabriano 69 years before Chris Columbus went looking for America . Luckily, everyone is looking at the baby so they haven’t noticed my shades. Heh, heh, heh. – Indy

Most people associate The Power of Myth with the 1988 PBS television series with Bill Moyers and Joseph Campbell, or with the accompanying book of that name. But it was John F. Kennedy who spoke of the power of myth with the greatest clarity and insight. The occasion was his 1962 Commencement Address to the graduates […]

This was my first gig as a secret service beagle. It was painted by a dude named Gentile da Fabriano 69 years before Chris Columbus went looking for America . Luckily, everyone is looking at the baby so they haven’t noticed my shades. Heh, heh, heh. – Indy

Aaron Sorkin is, in my opinion, the greatest living writer of dialog for film and television. His TV shows include The West Wing, The Newsroom, Sports Night, and Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip. Excellent shows, all of them. His film scripts include A Few Good Men, The American President, Charlie Wilson’s War, The Social Network, Moneyball, and Steve Jobs. – Indy

This excerpt was taken from a  New York Times feature, WRITERS ON WRITING; May 20, 2002 When Inspiration Stared Stoically From an Old Photograph.

Okay, Maxwell, the rabbit hole tribe came to the rescue. Here is the master list.

14 years ago, long before we had a cool campus, roving reporter Rotbart (far left) taught Public Relations to Wizard Academy students at the old Wizard of Ads offices. Not one of us ever dreamed the Academy would be where it is now! Thank you! Aroooooo – Indy   (Click the image to make it bigger.)

Likewise, you need to read vivid books that are NOT famous for their complex plots, colorful characters or page-turning action if you want to become a better writer. If you are enthralled with the story, as in The Lord of the Rings by Tolkien or The DaVinci Code by Dan Brown, you will be less likely to […]

PS  – Here’s a link to last week’s MMMemo if you want to read it again.

To move to the next page, click the Wizard Academy banner. Click my Saturday Morning Dogs strip (twice,) to make it bigger. – Indy  

 

 

This painting sold at auction in New Orleans on Sunday, July 24, 2016 for $57,500

Last Friday at the Toad and Ostrich… click it to see it bigger  

When you’re ready to vote, please list your 1st, 2nd, and 3rd favorites in an email to Daniel@WizardAcademy.org Please refer to each story by its number, below, as all names have been removed for the purposes of judging. And THANK YOU for making this effort! DialogOfTheDogs01 DialogOfTheDogs02 DialogOfTheDogs03 DialogOfTheDogs04 DialogOfTheDogs05 DialogOfTheDogs06 DialogOfTheDogs07 DialogOfTheDogs08 DialogOfTheDogs09 DialogOfTheDogs10 DialogOfTheDogs11 DialogOfTheDogs12 DialogOfTheDogs13 DialogOfTheDogs14 DialogOfTheDogs15 […]

Sure, you’ve seen it before. But you’ll enjoy seeing it again, I promise.

Did you notice the line that says he “seemed to know what there was on the other side of things?” Did you look to see what was on “the other side” of those words? Did you look beyond the words at the image beneath? You’re glimpsing 2 of the items that kept the gypsy Melquiades […]

Have you got a book in mind that illustrates great writing? Email me the title and the author and your thoughts about the writing skills you feel the book displays. I am Indy@WizardOfAds.com.  Remember, we’re not looking for great storytelling – narrative arc and character arc – we’re looking for great writing.

Have you got a book in mind that illustrates great writing? Email me the title and the author and your thoughts about the writing skills you feel the book displays. I am Indy@WizardOfAds.com.  Remember, we’re not looking for great storytelling – narrative arc and character arc – we’re looking for great writing.

“What giants?” said Sancho Panza. “Those you see there,” answered his master, “with the long arms, and some have them nearly two leagues long.” “Look, your worship,” said Sancho. “What we see there are not giants but windmills, and what seem to be their arms are the vanes that turn by the wind and make […]

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