Orange and Magenta

Davy Crockett convinced me that I’m a writer.

I was in the fifth grade and the Disney series about the raccoon-capped hero was the hottest thing going. I thought it would be a good idea to create a theatrical work about “the king of the wild frontier” for my class to perform. With some help from a neighbor, my family, and the fifth grade teacher and undoubtedly with some plagiarism as well, The Story of Davy Crockett by Tommy Jones debuted in the school auditorium.

And with Davy attesting to my creative instincts, what choice did I have but to follow the path he’d inspired?

Everything else seemed to follow logically. Advanced placement English in high school, contributions to the college literary magazine, junior copywriting jobs at Newsweek and Time-Life Books, and eventually a career-long position at Forbes as Director of Special Projects; the job description included, among other things, serving as editor and publisher of the Social Register, creating and introducing a small-circulation lifestyle magazine, and regularly reviewing New York restaurants.

Along the way, I’ve met some incredible people, visited a lot of fascinating places, and chalked up some unique experiences—all of which I hope to keep doing and some of which seem to be worth sharing.

My whole career has centered around putting thoughts and ideas into the pages of magazines, and now I look to the web as my new platform. The site is divided into five sections:

So welcome to Orange and Magenta. The avant-garde colors of my generation serve as the banner of a site which aims, modestly, to share my thoughts, observations, and memories and to link yesterday, today, and even tomorrow.