Archive for September, 2008

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It’s amazing how many movies require a mega doze of “disbelief suspension” on the part of the audience. Unless you become a willing “partner in crime,” many thrillers and murder mysteries just plain don’t work.

As a screenwriter I would never have dared to include such “plot devices” for fear that it would be found out immediately and would help my script fly to the waste basket in a hurry. But it actually helped a lot films become frequently discussed and much admired classics in their own time.

CHARADE (1963) — the killer poses as a CIA agent (a totally miscast Walter Matthau) who meets with the heroine Audrey Hepburn in his office within the U.S. Embassy compound in Paris!

How can a guy who is not even a diplomat maintain an office in the Embassy? Well, we learn that “during the lunch hours” the control is so lax anyone can walk in and pretend they are a US Foreign Service official.

Good lord! How did THAT one got written by a consummate professional like Peter Stone and got through the director Stanley Donen? You can drive the whole city of Paris through that hole.

The SIXTH SENSE (1999). Yes, the famous and the brilliant one. One of the best films with the strongest twist I’ve ever seen. But…

How can a ghost that cannot even open a door because he cannot establish contact with matter (obviously) carry a briefcase in the beginning of the movie?

What is the “logical” explanation? None. But it works beautifully as a ruse to divert our attention. And it works, until you walk out of the movie theater and start to think a little bit…
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Ugur Akinci, Ph.D. is a Creative Copywriter, Editor, an experienced and award-winning Technical Communicator specializing in fundraising packages, direct sales copy, web content, press releases and hi-tech documentation.

He has worked as a Technical Writer for Fortune 100 companies for the last 7 years.

You can reach him at writer111@gmail.com for a FREE consultation on all your copywriting needs.

Please visit his official web site http://www.writer111.com for customer testimonials and more information on his multidisciplinary background and career.

The last book he has edited: http://www.lulu.com/content/263630

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A guitar is made to create every kind of music possible. Be it rock, Latin, Spanish, blues, metal, country, and more, it’s really a wonder how the same instrument can produce such a wonderful array of music.

Acoustic guitar are those which are made out of wood. The most important factor is that the wood needs to be dried to get the quality of sound. Be it a natural means of drying or artificial, the dryer the wood is more superior is the sound quality. in earlier days, wood was made to dry for about three years before they were deemed to be fit for use in a guitar.

The bridge unit is an important part of an acoustic guitar as the tones, scales, are created here. The bridge consists of a small wooden structure with ivory toppings to uphold the strings. When the strings are plucked or strummed the vibrations generated in them are transmitted to the bridge unit which is then transmitted to the sound chamber to product the sound.

The body of an acoustic guitar is ideally made of maple wood. There are plenty of acoustic guitars available with plywood body. These are not superior as they lack the superior sound quality. An acoustic guitar is extremely accurate and so should be the quality of wood. Moreover, the two sides of a good acoustic guitar should be exactly equal and this is what shows the craftsmanship involved. It’s a common belief that the acoustic guitar wood changes its shape over playing and that’s the reason why some guitars are left unvarnished.

One thing to look for is the end block of a guitar. The front and back of a guitar is joined using an end block. Try to find yourself a guitar that has dense wooden end block.

The neck of the guitar is also an important feature to take care of. The entire portion consists of a long bridge subdivided into frets. These frets are metallic which when pressed upon with the strings generates a particular note. Check out for rough edges on the frets as they are likely to leave bruised fingers with you.

Pay attention to these details while buying a guitar. Acoustic guitar is a work of art and needs to be made with precision. Do not buy a guitar that does not have the above characteristics because it will never give you the feeling.

Anirban Bhattacharya is an editor with the website http://www.arts-entertainment-world.info, a portal entirely dedicated to art and entertainment and many other informative as well as shopping/ business websites. He has written and published over 500 articles and press releases for various websites, helping the relevant readers to shop / business online with better options and oppertunities. For more information about art, entertainment, trivia, and more and his work, please visit http://www.arts-entertainment-world.info.

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Anyone who has ever been in a position of power will tell you that those who are not always think they can “wag the dog”.

For those of you who don’t know what the term “wag the dog” means here’s a definition. A dog has a tail. The dog, being the ruler of the dog body, wags its tail. You see the tail which may distract from the dog since it is the tail that is moving. It’s also apparent that the tail is important. After all, it’s putting on a show.

However, the tail is still part of (and subservient to) the dog. It is totally foolish for the tail to think that it can wag the dog. So the dog needs the tail to put on the show but without the dog, the tail wouldn’t exist at all.

Would the dog die without the tail? No. But many times “tails” get overly caught up in their show. They forget what their power depends on. They forget where they came from. They think that they can wag the dog. And so it is with Pixar.

I love Pixar. I love Disney.

Pixar needs to take serious heed to their position. The Disney marketing machine is perhaps the most formidable entertainment marketing machine to ever exist. As a veteran and natural marketer, I routinely marvel at its power and comprehensiveness. It is truly a thing of beauty. An ideal example to any marketer no matter how experienced.

Now you may be familiar with the expression “If you build a better mousetrap, the world will beat a path to your door.” As one who markets and sells many products I can tell you that statement is completely false.

People care more about your marketing and your delivery system than the quality of your product. Don’t believe me? Check this out then.

Think of the best hamburger you have ever had in your life. Now ask yourself if it was better than a McDonald’s hamburger. I’ll bet you it was.

Now ask yourself if the place you had that great hamburger sells more hamburgers than McDonald’s. I’ll bet you they don’t.

So why does McDonald’s sell more hamburgers than a thousand places that make a better hamburger? Answer: they have a marketing and delivery machine second to none.

And so does Disney.

Consider the Disney machine if you’re not familiar with it:

Television – The Disney Channel (1 & 2); ESPN; ABC; Toon Disney;

Radio Disney – nationwide radio network

Theme Parks – Disney World; Disneyland; Disneyland Paris; Disneyland Tokyo

Disney Cruise Line

The Disney Store – chain in every major mall in the US and the world

Every product or event that Disney wants to promote is disseminated continually throughout this entire network with no holes barred.

And all these Disney marketing machine parts have the Disney brand, known, loved & followed by billions around the world.

So Mr. Jobs, put your pride & greed aside and consider what you would really be giving up if you left Disney. If you need more ammunition for your stockholders note the following:

Even the mighty Steven Spielberg, David Geffen & former Disney chief Jeffery Katzenberg have not been able to beat the Disney machine. This despite the fact that Steven Spielberg is perhaps one of the greatest creative talents to ever walk the face of the earth and has a genuine Midas touch with films. Even with this superior talent, the SKG combo has not been able to beat the Disney machine.

And let’s not forget the tanking of the Antz and Chicken Run movies, their spectacular casts notwithstanding (Mel Gibson, Jennifer Lopez, Sharon Stone, Danny Glover). Plus their merchandising (area of great and essential profits) performed even worse.

So to all our readers out there, don’t ever make the mistake of thinking that because your product is great, you’ll sell tons and be a marketing success. The key to success is having a comprehensive marketing machine and a consistent delivery machine. These parts need to work cohesively and cover as many avenues as possible.

And for those of you who have a strong partner, owner or the like, don’t try to wag the dog.

Toli Cefail

Toli Cefail has been a marketing professional for more than 20 years in addition to having a strong administrative and regulatory background. She has overseen the marketing, growth, legal and regulatory affairs for a $25 million telecommunications firm that became a top provider of specialized telecommunications services against competitors such as AT&T, MCI, Sprint and the Baby Bells.

This involved establishing, coordinating and managing regulatory affairs and marketing efforts in 600 counties spanning 41 states. Ms. Cefail was also responsible for obtaining favorable groundbreaking legislation for this company in a number of states as well as creating the firm’s administrative structure and procedures from the ground up.

Ms. Cefail has also assisted in the marketing & web development for the boutique investment banking firm The RC&A Group as well as performed marketing consulting for such prominent entertainers as Doug E. Fresh.

Currently she is a principle of the major online marketing firm In Touch Media Group providing marketing services to businesses.

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