CRAIG CONLEY (Prof. Oddfellow) is recognized by Encarta as “America’s most creative and diligent scholar of letters, words and punctuation.” He has been called a “language fanatic” by Page Six gossip columnist Cindy Adams, and a “cult hero” by Publisher’s Weekly. An eccentric scholar, Conley’s ideas are often decades ahead of their time. He invented the concept of the “virtual pet” in 1980, fifteen years before the debut of the popular “Tamagotchi” in Japan. His virtual pet, actually a rare flower, still thrives and has reached an incomprehensible size. Conley’s website is OneLetterWords.com.
Answer:39. “The age jokes ... didn’t start until he was 55, and a nurse in a sketch asked him his age; he paused and said 36. It got a big laugh, so he remained 36 for the rest of the season. The following year, he was 37; in the next, 38. He decided to freeze at 39, because it’s a funnier number than 40.” (The answer is in black text on the black background. Highlight it to view.)
Citation: Garry Giddins, Natural Selection (2006), p. 33
