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.
Here's "the genius of the cork," the imp of drunkenness ("angel or devil according to contending moralists") who sits with every solitary drinker, taking not a drop himself but telling stories and singing songs and filling your gaping pockets with ideal gold. (Punch, 1842). This should also be of interest:How to Believe in Your Elf.
There has always been a fine line between stage magic and occultism. Here's a poorly-rehearsed stage magician who mangles his magic words and conjures up a demon, from Punch, 1908. The caption reads, "An unrehearsed effect."
An illustration from a 1907 issue of The Strand magazine. The caption reads: "If you insist on denouncing me, you little know the consequences you will bring upon yourself!"