Some stories are better watched than read

These recordings bring memories to life with the advantage of hindsight and a slightly improved sense of humor.

Included here are autobiographical stories about business, survival, changing times, unexpected interruptions, and the strange timing of history.

THE WORLD CHANGED ANYWAY

Chapter 1: The Early Spark

I took to business at the age of seven, which is younger than most fellows take to sense but about the same time they take to trouble. Mine happened to pay a little.

It began with comic books. Not the reading of them that’s a harmless vice but the copying. There were contests, you see, where a boy could send in a drawing and, if the judges were feeling charitable or inattentive, he might win something for it.

THE WORLD CHANGED ANYWAY

Chapter 2: MASTERING THE ART OF SIGNAGE


It came to me at an age when most boys are still deciding whether to climb trees or fall out of them that a man might earn an honest living telling other people when they were open for business and when they were not. It struck me as a respectable line of work, requiring very little lifting and even less explaining.

With the knowledge I had gathered from the old man’s shop, I began producing “Open” and “Closed” signs for the local merchants.

THE WORLD CHANGED ANYWAY

Chapter 3: The Fast Lane to Customization

By the age of fifteen, I had acquired both a car and a willingness to go wherever it might carry me, which is a dangerous combination in a young man and an excellent one in a businessman.

I took to visiting paint and body shops, the kind that specialized in turning ordinary automobiles into something loud enough to be noticed from a distance and admired up close. Southern California in those days was full of such places, each one convinced it was improving the automobile and perhaps the world along with it.

THE WORLD CHANGED ANYWAY

Chapter 4: From Art Class to Scholarships

By the time I reached high school, I had developed a strong and reliable instinct for finding my way into art classes and out of most everything else. This arrangement suited me well, as I had yet to discover any great talent for subjects that required sitting still and agreeing with the teacher.

My art teacher, however, took a different view of me. He seemed to think I had ability, which was encouraging, though a little suspicious. Instead of leaving me to my own devices, he put me to work.

THE WORLD CHANGED ANYWAY

Chapter 5: Unexpected Twists and Turns

At eighteen years old, I believed I had life reasonably well figured out. I owned a Porsche Speedster, was making money with my artistic skills and had little interest in spending my days inside a factory. Unfortunately, my wife and her family had a different vision for my future.

My wife could not drive the Porsche and regarded it as impractical.

THE WORLD CHANGED ANYWAY

Chapters 6 & 7 - THE ROAD TO WIDER HORIZONS

I was a big, strong kid, which in those days was considered a qualification for quite a few occupations.

I managed to get a job with a Richfield Oil distributor, driving both a bulk tank truck and a flatbed-barrel truck.

The distributor didn't pay much, but apparently he thought enough of me that when I turned twenty one.