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.
In this ad, the woman is remembered for the wrong thing. Can you guess what it is? [The answer is in black text with a black background; highlight to view.] The odor of perspiration. From Sunset magazine, 1935.
An illustration from a 1904 issue of Metropolitan magazine. The caption reads: "I walked through the wall before his amazed eyes, and walked back again."
An illustration of a spirit double from an 1889 issue of Frank Leslie's Popular Monthly magazine. The caption reads: "It seemed almost like a luminous mist floating in through the window—and out of that mist slowly grew my own face and form."