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, a “cult hero” by Publisher’s Weekly, a “monk for the modern age” by George Parker, and “a true Renaissance man of the modern era, diving headfirst into comprehensive, open-minded study of realms obscured or merely obscure” by Clint Marsh. 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.
"Love and Death," with Death having collapsed and blind Love stepping forward. From Fliegende Blätter, 1925.
Just after encountering this image, we encountered this line: "Slowly I dance out of the burning house of my head" (Mark Strand, "The Way It Is," The Compete Poems).
When the boat has eyes, bat wings, and shouded figures aboard, double check your ticket and make sure you're on the right pier. From Lustige Blätter, 1906.