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.
This is a Googlewhack. The Aztec mantra "Icksa tonga feen" promises to keep one young forever. Just because this information was published only in the Weekly World News (Jan. 10, 1995) doesn't mean it isn't true.
We're honored that our Magic Words: A Dictionary is cited in "Charms, Talisman and Amulets in Contemporary African Christianity" by Edward Agboada, in The American Journal of Biblical Theology.
A moon spell for summoning a pooka playmate. From the delightful and rare The Unicorn with Silver Shoes by Ella Young and illustrated by Robert Lawson.
It's rare to see a self-opening yearbook, but sure enough, this one was equipped to do so. There's a remarkable explanation of "open sesame" in Magic Words: A Dictionary.
From the State Teacher's College of Virginia's 1927 yearbook.
We're honored that Cyril the Sorcerercalligraphized a line of ours about magic words and chocolate: "Delight in the magic word as you speak or sing it, as you might savor a morsel of fine chocolate. —Craig Conley"