The Big Idea

It was born in 1857. Its two most prominent people were an Oxford professor and a Civil War Veteran. It took 70 years to complete, and when it was, it literally defined the English Language.

The Professor and the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity, and the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary, by Simon Winchester, is the true story of how two men from vastly different backgrounds came together and, along with many others, put together the most important dictionary ever created.

The Professor

Born in February 1837, James Murray would grow up to become not the first or last editor of the OED's first edition, but he would be forever known as the most important.

Coming from the Scottish Borderland with an "unpromising, unmoneyed, unsophisticated" start at life, he very quickly proved himself to be an adept student, becoming a lecturer, joining all manner of philosophical societies,  eventually taking a professorship at Oxford.

Later, he would become the editor of the OED, and he fully took charge of the project, which at that point was nearly 20 years old. He instituted a full scale overhaul of procedures. The new plan: have volunteer readers carefully comb through books going back to the 1200's and pick out every interesting word, make precise notes as to the book and page, and cite the sentence the word appears in; then simply send them in. Every reader was given preprinted slips to fill out accordingly.

Murray and his staff would then go through all the slips, which eventually numbered in the millions, categorize them alphabetically, double check citations, write definitions based on the citations and common knowledge,  and send them to Murray himself, who would do the final edits on pronunciation and definitions.

The Madman

William Chester Minor was born in 1834 in the island of Ceylon (Sri Lanka) to missionaries of the Congregationalist Church. There he lived until he was 14 when he was sent to live with relatives in New Haven, Connecticut. He graduated Yale in 1863 as a medical doctor.

He joined the Union Army, but after the horrors of war, he moved to London, England, when, in 1871, he shot a man to death. The British authorities diagnosed him with what today we would call paranoia and schizophrenia (most likely brought on by the war) and sentenced him to life at the Broadmoore Criminal Lunatic Asylum.

There he stayed (late in life he was allowed to go home to his brother in CT), a brilliant man with nothing to do...until the OED came along. He was allowed to work on the project, and for nearly 30 years, he combed his books and became one of the most prolific contributors to the work.

The Oxford English Dictionary (OED)

Now we come the the final major character in Winchester's tale: the Dictionary itself. There have been dictionaries before; the idea goes back to the ancient Greeks. And there were earlier English dictionaries. But none of these earlier projects were bold enough to take on every single word --scientific and common, vulgar and sophisticated; every noun, verb (in all tenses), pronoun, article---- everything in the English language.

When all was said and done, the OED's first edition:

Defined 414,825 words
Had over 1.8 million quotations
One complete set (12 volumes) had 127 miles of paper, and over 200 million letters, numbers, punctuation marks and spaces, all hand set and letter-pressed.


Winchester's book, known in Britain as The Surgeon of Crowethorne, is a mere 242 pages long, but it is an epic tale which is gripping and well written. It is fascinating how two men with such different backgrounds and experiences would come together, and not only be colleagues from afar--Oxford was only about an hour away by train, but it would take Minor and Murray almost 20 years before they meet--but the close friendship they forge when they do finally meet.

Each chapter starts with the OED's complete entry for a word that describes the theme or events of the chapter. This is a very interesting device, and you learn some vocabulary along the way.

I had been eyeing this book for years, and I'm glad I finally took the time to read it. As William Safire said at the time it came out, "The linguistic detective story of the decade." Indeed it is.

A Launch Letter

"Launch Letter".  A few weeks ago, I had never heard that term. Now, I have one of my own.

A launch letter is something a new business sends out to friends, family, and prospective clients with the purpose of introducing the business and some relevant background on the people and industry.  In this case, the business is me, and what better way to start sending it out than a blog post.

So, with no further delay, here it is.

Dear,

My name is Bill Georato, Voice-Over Artist. Why voice-over? Well, I have always had an interest in entertainment, I had one line in my middle school production of A Christmas Carol, but it really started in college. As a DJ on college radio, first at WUMF 100.5FM (University of Maine-Farmington) co-hosting Bill and Matt’s Excellent Radio Show, then at WWLR 92FM (Lyndon State College, Lyndonville, VT) hosting my own show, Bill’s Basement, I learned how to use my voice. Over time, working in education as a middle school science teacher, and later as a health insurance  member service representative and finally volunteer presenter at the Museum of Science-Boston, I honed my voice and presentation skills teaching students and  visitors scientific principles through demonstrations and discussion. These aspects of my career- formal and informal education, and customer care- all have one thing in common: voice and presentation. This brings us to the final piece of the puzzle--formal voice-over training. One day, I was leafing through the local Adult Education brochure and saw a one night seminar being presented by Such A Voice out of Vermont. I took the class and decided that I wanted to pursue this as a career.

The voice-over industry is no longer simply radio and TV. These are still part of it, of course--Mike Rowe’s narration on Deadliest Catch, or Bob Saget on  How I Met Your Mother, for example--but there is so much more. Video games, audiobooks, GPS systems, talking greeting cards, home phone answering machines, and the recorded announcements at the airport are all voice-over. There are all kinds of voice-over in business and education too: E-learning programs, PSA’s, HR orientation videos, and IVR/Corporate voice-mail systems. Even Siri herself.

If you are in need of a voice talent, or know of someone who does, please send me their contact information. It will be kept in good hands. Thank you for your time and consideration, and looking forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,

Bill Georato

tinyurl.com/williamgvoice

The 1st Annual Spring Sprint Duathlon

As you know, I'm not much of a sports person, but I do enjoy running a little. I've done 5K's, a couple of half-marathons, and even finished the San Francisco Marathon.

This last Sunday, May 4th, 2014, I added a new event to my athletic career: the Spring Sprint Duathlon at Smolak Farms, North Andover, Ma. 

What is a duathlon? In this case, it's  a 5K  (3.1 mile) road run, a 13.3 mile bike race, and a 1.5 mile trail run. Add this up, and you get a nearly 18 mile race--just a little more than a half-marathon. And you do the whole thing, one right into the next. 

It all started at work about a month ago. Team Blue--Blue Cross Blue Shield MA's (BCBSMA) fitness and community involvement group--had put out the calender for upcoming events. I thought about doing this for a few days--after all, the location's convenient  for me, and I do also enjoy bike riding--so I signed up. There were only 10 spots available, and in the end there were only three of us. This gave us the option to race as a relay, but we are individualists, so while we started together, we ran our own race.

But there's one other thing......I volunteered, and was accepted to be, team leader/captain. In this, it was my job to take the team photo, make sure my team-mates had all the information they need, and take attendance on race day.  Not too difficult, but kind of funny that I was captain of an athletic team. 

Race day. I arrive about 6:30 am. Registration opens at 6:45, there is a mandatory meeting at 8:15, and the start is at 8:30. I've got my bike in the back of the truck, my Team Blue shirt, and ready to go. At registration, I pick up my bib for my self and my bike, and meet up with my team-mates, Christine and Angela.

Team Blue: From L--Angela, Christine, myself

The 5K

There were  about 120 competitors, and according to the Athlete's Guide, there were to be two waves: first all the men, then all the women and the relay starters. But in reality, we all started together, and right at 8:30, we were off. Heading down the main road through the farm and out the back gate,we wind our way through the back streets of  North Andover. The road is open to traffic, but we have half the road and there are plenty of volunteers and police to keep things safe. At the half way point, we literally turn around and head back. Once back on the farm, we head into the transition area to switch to the bike race. 

The Bike Race

In a duathlon, just like a triathlon, time in transition counts to your total time. You want to spend as little time as possible there. This is why everything has to be ready and perfectly positioned. 

Every competitor has their own spot in the transition area according to their bib number. I was very lucky with bib # 40; this put my bike in the front row of transition, and I could just run in, strap my helmet on (helmets are required in official USAT events such as this; I would wear one anyway), and get right back out. 

But before we could actually get on the bike, we ran/walked them up the hill to the main gate, and jumped on as we hit the road. From here, it was a 13.1 mile loop around the towns of North Andover and Boxford. Again, the road was open to traffic, but being Sunday morning, there wasn't really much. Volunteers and police were at every turn so it was very safe. There weren't many people out, so it was a quiet ride, and as we came up to another rider to pass, we'd say hello and good job. 

Since I have no odometer on my bike, and there were no mile markers on the road, it was hard to tell where on the course I was.  But I did have my Timex in chronometer mode; since it took about half an hour to finish the 5K,  at the 1 1/2 hour mark I figured I was getting close to the end of the ride (more on my times later.) And that was about right. Off the bike, and back to transition for the trail run. 

The U.S.S Sheldon Cooper ready for launch.

The Trail Run

The final section of the race took me into the apple and peach orchards on the farm. Weaving in and out through the rows of trees--and up and down the hill--I walked most of this course. I was tired, despite taking my Goo and water. Also, I had studied the course maps, including the changes in topology, but you never really know what you're getting into until you actually see it. 

Of course, you do have to run through the finish line, so once out of the orchard, I ran back on to the road and through the finish.

Post race

After running through the finish, I caught up with Angela, and later Christine. While I was the last to finish in our group, we all had a great race, especially since this was the first time any of us had done something like this. We were all happy with our times, and most importantly had a lot of fun in a great setting,  and would do it again. 

Time for food now.  The folks at Smolak Farms put out a nice spread: water, coconut water (which I quickly learned I didn't like), bananas, apples, ham and cheese quiche, broccoli and cheese quiche, and freshly baked banana nut muffins and Smolak's famous apple-cinnamon donuts. So good.

The Times and Placement

Here's my stats for the race:

111th place overall, out of 120 finishers
30:21 on 5K run
0:48 in 1st Transition
1:04:49 on 13.3 mile bike
0:36 in 2nd Transition
22:22 on 1.5 mile trail run

Total time: 1:58:54

13th in age group, 63rd in gender.

All in all, it was a great morning out, and looking forward to next year! 


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Disclaimer: The opinions stated here are solely those of the author, and do not  reflect those of BCBSMA, or its management or staff.

Movie Review: Muppets Most Wanted

There are two kinds of bad films. First is the type that is truly terrible, one with little to no redeeming features at all. For example, the cinematic atrocity that is Grease 2. There is an OK idea for a plot--Frenchie takes Teen Angel's advice and goes back to high school--but overall it is a horrid film: writing, acting, and music. I regret that I'm simply aware if this movie's existence. I double regret actually watching it.

The other kind is a film that is so bad that you actually like it, maybe even enjoy it enough for multiple viewings. For example, Dennis Quaid's Jerry Lee Lewis biopic Great Balls of Fire, or Johnny Depp's 2013 take on The Lone Ranger. These films also aren't good,  Depp's turn as Tonto is nothing short of cringe-worthy, and Quaid's Lewis is way over the top, but there is just something about them that you like. They clearly tried, but obviously missed the mark.

Relative to the rest of the Muppetverse,  Muppets Most Wanted, the latest film in the franchise, is in the second category. Starting literally the second the previous movie ended--in fact the first shot of this film is the "The End" of the last-- The Muppets are back together, with the addition of Walter, and are discussing what to do next. Enter Ricky Gervais  as Dominic Badguy, who offers to work with Kermit and the others on promoting a world tour. But Badguy has a secret, he is the number two criminal mastermind. Who is number one? None other than Russian Kermit doppelganger Constantine, "the world's most dangerous frog". After escaping from a Siberian Gulag, Constantine joins Badguy, and they hatch their plan to steal Britain's Crown Jewels.

This is the main plot to the film. Key to this is that the Muppets believe  Constantine is really Kermit; Badguy manages to convince them that Constantine's Russian accent is really Kermit with a cold. And they buy it. The exception here is Animal, who knows right away something is wrong. "Bad frog," he says, "Bad frog. Bad frog." Meanwhile, Kermit has been captured by the authorities thinking he is Constantine, and has been sent "back" to the Gulag, where  Commandant Nadya, played by Tina Fey, recruits him to stage the Gulag talent show.

The tour travels across Europe as Constantine and Badguy uncover one clue after another--Da Vinci Code style--as to how to get to the Crown Jewels. The plan culminates with the long-awaited lavish London wedding of Miss Piggy and "Kermit", which  Real Kermit, after escaping from the Gulag, crashes. After the expected "Which One Is The Real Kermit?" scene, Piggy finally realizes the Constantine has duped them all.

In the end, the Crown Jewels are recovered, and Badguy and Constantine are taken into custody by Ty Burell's Interpol agent Jean Pierre Napoleon and Muppet CIA agent Sam The Eagle.

This relationship between Napoleon and Sam is probably the thing that makes the most sense in the whole movie. Starting the moment they meet, they are arguing over who has the biggest badge. This is one of the biggest laughs in the film, as each in turn comes up with bigger and bigger badges. From then on, they have their disagreements--"European slacker" versus "Hard-working American"--which makes for some good scenes, and when it's all over, they realize they work well together and have become good friends.

As far as the story goes, Muppets Most Wanted is OK at best. It is an interesting take on a more "adult" subject. Being rated PG limits the filmmakers on what they can do--it is the Muppets after all, but all the explosions and threat of death seem a bit out of place here.

Finally, let me mention the music. It is rather uninspiring. The opening song--a self-deprecating riff on how, generally speaking, sequels suck-- was funny. But the rest of the music was not that great. And don't even get me started on the whole Celine Dion thing.

As one who grew up with the Muppets, I can honestly say that they are normally very entertaining. But not this time. And I'm not sure about the kids either. I went with a group that included two eleven year-olds. Didn't hear a single laugh out of them.

Studio Day

It is a cool late winter New England morning. I awake to the sound of the wind blowing through the bare branches of the naked trees. Looking out the window, the sky is still dark but soon the sun will be glistening off the snow. I've had a good nights sleep, and good thing, because the last 14 weeks have all lead to this.

It's February 21st, 2014, and it's Studio Day, the day I record my first professional voice over demos. I'm nervously excited--or excitedly nervous, I can't decide which--but I feel ready. My coach Angela and I have taken the last three weeks going over my scripts, and my best friend Duncan will be joining me (he doesn't know it yet, but I've decided to start introducing him as the founding member of my Entourage.) And last week, I took a  test trip into town to make sure I know where the studio is (thanks to another friend, Bob, for the ride over there.)

7:45 AM. After breakfast and the usual morning getting ready, it's time to leave. I grab my backpack containing the supplies for the day: notebook and pens, water and more water, two sets of scripts--my marked up scripts and  clean copies for the studio--and $200 cash; I have the studio for two hours at $100 each. I am leaving a little earlier than needed, I don't need to be there until about 10:15, but I have a near phobic fear of being late, especially for something really important like this. Besides, I have to pick up Duncan, and we are driving into Boston, and I don't want to take a chance on the Friday morning traffic.

The plan is to park at the Museum of Science-Boston, and take the Green Line C train to the Hynes Convention Center stop. Arriving at the museum around 9, I figure we have a half-hour to 45 minutes to kill, so we wander around the place, then head off to the train.

At the appropriate stop, we get off, walk down  Newbury St, and right to the building--Cybersound Music. Perry Geyer, the owner, who is also my sound engineer this morning, greets us. It's a small studio-reception area, two recording booths and a booth with the engineering equipment. The booth I'll be using is Studio A, the larger and more updated studio. I have a microphone, headphones, and a TelePrompter off of which I can read the copy. There is also a piano and glass window through which I can see Perry and Duncan. Perry will be signaling me that we're rolling.

Sound check, and it's time to start. Angela has called in via Skype, and, as the demo producer, she calls the action. We have 11 scripts to record in two hours, and it takes me 15 minutes to complete the first one. This leaves me just over 10 minutes to complete each of the others. Are we going to make it? But a pattern develops---one take of the complete script, then several takes of each sentence, and a final recording of the whole. It's interesting why we do it this way. Let's say we want a perfect take of the sentence "I like chocolate milk." They can take the "I like" from take one, and put it together with the "chocolate milk" from take three. And you have a perfect recording of that sentence.

For the next hour and 45 minutes we complete one script after the next--some I do quickly, others take more time. Finally, the last script--good thing it's a short one, because Angela calls "That's a wrap" with literally 30 seconds to spare.

And with that, the recording is complete. I take off my headphones and rejoin Perry and Duncan. We talk as Perry sends off the files to Such A Voice's post production team (out of the two hours in the studio, there's about  50 minutes of actual recorded material); it will take about 5- 8 weeks or so to get the final edit back from them.  I pay, Perry gives me his card, and the business of the day is done. It's 12:40 PM.

Before leaving the neighborhood, Duncan and I grab lunch, and we take the train back to the museum.

It's a little after 4:00 by the time I get back home after dropping Duncan off, and I just now realize how exhausted I am. It's been a stressful day--in a good way. I have passed an important milestone in starting a new career, and am excited to get the finished product back. I also realize that I have been so focused on the business at hand that I've completely forgotten that I've had a camera with me all day----now I don't have any pictures of the experience!

I have dinner, but by 8:00 I just can't stay awake any longer, so to bed I go, knowing that it's been a good day, and it's only the beginning.

My Favorite Place That I've Never Been

True story. A friend of mine--ok, it was me---was playing around on the net, and, well, you know how it goes: you start looking for one thing and you end up in an entirely different place. And I discovered my new favorite place to which I've never been.

 Medicine Hat is a city located in southern Alberta, Canada about 100 miles from the US border at Harve, Montana, and 190 miles southeast of Calgary. For those who are interested, it is geologically located at 50 N latitude and 110 42 W longitude. The city encompasses an area of roughly 45 square miles and is 2,365 feet above sea level.

The Legend

 But that’s enough statistics for now. Let’s tackle the burning question: Medicine Hat? Where did that come from? Well, like many place names, it came from Indian, or First Nation, history. The name Medicine Hat derives from the native word “saamis”, or medicine man’s hat. Here’s the legend as told on the city’s website:

The legend tells of a winter of great famine and hardship for the Blackfoot nation. The elders of the Council chose a young man to save his tribe from starvation. Setting out with his new wife and favourite wolf dog, he journeyed down the ice-bound South Saskatchewan River. After many arduous days they made their way to the “breathing hole”, an opening in the ice, located on the river between what is now Police point and Strathcona Park in Medicine Hat. This location was a sacred place to the First Nations’ people: a place where the water spirits came to breathe.

They made camp and summoned the spirits to appear. A giant serpent rose from the misty waters and demanded the sacrifice of the woman in exchange for a “Saamis” or “holy bonnet” which would endow the owner with special powers and great hunting prowess. The young man tried to trick the serpent by throwing the body of his dog into the river but the serpent was not fooled, and finally reluctantly, the woman was thrown into the frigid waters.

The man was told to spend the night on the small island (Strathcona) and “in the morning when the sun lights the cut-banks, go to the base of the great cliffs and there you will find your Medicine Hat”. And so aided by the magic of his Saamis, the young hunter located the much needed game, saved his people, and eventually became a great Medicine Man.

A City Is Born

Like many cities of the North American West, Medicine Hat was influenced by and has a history tied to the railroad. When the Canadian Pacific Railway came through the area, the builders had to stop to build a bridge across the South Saskatchewan River, and that’s when it all began. This was in 1883. Eventually the Northwest Mounted Police arrived to maintain law and order among the railroad and First Nations. Finally, in 1905, Alberta was incorporated as a province, and in 1906 Medicine Hat was incorporated as the new province’s largest city. The Railway’s mainline still goes through the city.

When the railroad first arrived in the area, a happy accident happened which still resonates. In fact, one of the city’s nicknames comes from it—The Gas City (other nicknames are "Canada's sunniest city" and "Oasis of the Prairies"). While drilling for water, the crew discovered a major natural gas deposit, found to be one of the largest in North America. The city leaders decided, in 1903, to form a city-owned utility to provide gas to all residents. This utility still exists today.

Speaking of city government, the leaders consist of a mayor (currently Dr. Keith Clugston), and eight aldermen, or council members. The mayor is also a council member, for a total of nine. Terms run for 3 years, and Mayor Clugston was elected in 2012. There are, of course, various committees within the council.

The People

 A city is only as good as the people who live there, and from what I’ve read, these are a young and vibrant people. According to the 2012 city census, the official population was 61,180 as of June 1st. Out of that, the largest age demographic is the 25 to 44 year old group, with 27 percent of the population, or 16, 681 people, with men in the slight majority. Overall, however, there are more women than men  in Medicine Hat, at 50.4 percent of the population. And it doesn’t cost much to live there. The city has one of the lowest property tax rates in Alberta, thanks in great part to the city gas utility.

What To Do

 According to the census, Medicine Hat has a great quality of life, in part to do the social life of the city. The Esplanade Arts and Heritage Center hosts all manner of concerts and shows. There are 618 acres of parks, and 57 miles of hiking/running/bike trails. The city was also on the Torch Relay for the Vancouver Winter Olympics. The torch passed through town on Saturday, January 16th, 2010. And that is not the only Olympics related event in Medicine Hat. In honor of the 1988 Calgary games, the city built the world's largest teepee.

This is just a little taste of the city. Overall—having obviously never been there—this city seems very interesting and I am looking forward to visiting our cousins to the Northwest.

Diary Of A Voice-Over Artist In Training, Part 3

The third edition of the series. Part 1 is here, Part 2 is here.

Friday December 20, 2013 4:30PM EST--My books came today. Last week I decided to do some extra work and study on my own, so I turned in 40 credit card points and got a $50 Barnes and Noble certificate. With this I bought 2 books.

The  Book of Audacity, by Carla Schroder. Now I can be an Audacity wizard!
Stella Adler-On The Art And Technique Of Acting, compiled by Howard Kissel (with a forward by Marlon Brando). This is  widely considered to be one of the premier books on acting.

Thursday January 2, 2014 6:15PM EST-- Email from SAV, another storm, another delay in the seminar. Now it's Saturday, Jan 18th.

Monday January 13, 2014 2:15PM EST-- During last week's session, Angela and I went over a whole bunch of questions to help finalize the scripts for my demo. We went over my favorite things in all kinds of categories from travel, food, dream jobs and a slew  of other subjects.

I just checked my email and my scripts are in! I have 5 commercials and 4 narrations.

Commercials: "Ellio's Pizza", "Garmin", "Miracle-Gro", "Hyundai Santa Fe", "LL Bean"
Narrations: "Blue Cross Blue Shield MA On-Hold Message", "Identifying Customer Need", "Physics Demonstration", "Iceland"

Saturday January 18, 2014 5:00PM EST-- After 2 postponements, we finally had our seminar. We started with 7 students, but one left after lunch.

It was a long, fun, informative day. We went over many aspects of V.O. from performance to script analysis, to the equipment you need for your home studio and briefly touched on marketing techniques and getting jobs. (Read more about it here.)


Wednesday January 22, 2014 7:00PM EST--  My 11th coaching session. Only 3 more to go. We started going over my demo scripts more in depth. And it's time to start working on my profile.


Wednesday February 12, 2014 7:00PM EST-- My last coaching session. Angela and I run through all the demo scripts and two extras. The extra scripts are one commercial and one narration from the lessons. For my commercial I chose "Disney Cruise Lines" and my narration is "Carteret Islands".

We also finalized my studio time. I'm going into Cyber Sound Studios in Boston (more on this in a later post.) Angela will be the producer of the demo. She has  been a great coach!


The "performance" part of my training is now over. Time to start marketing, and thus enters the second part of my package with SAV, although my training with them is essentially done. It's really all on me now. Time to start setting up my business!