On Its' Eve, I Give You Three Words ... In Five Different Sizes

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Happy New Year

Happy New Year

 

Happy New Year

 

Happy New Year

 

Happy New Year

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Photoverio #700: Hyperlinks Under A Microscope

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***

© Oliverio

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Photoverio #699: Let There Be Water

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***

© Oliverio

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Three Men Approaching The Peak Of MOUNT JETTY

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Their names are Manny, Mo, and Jackson

© Photoverio #698.5

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Francis Scott Fitzgerald To Frances Scott Fitzgerald ... FSFs #2

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F. Scott Fitzgerald's book,

The Crack-Up

was published post-humously

and contains numerous letters

written to his daughter

 

This Letter 

—from "Scott" to "Scottie"—

was written 

August 24, 1940

_____________________________

 

Advertising is a racket

like the movies 

and the brokerage business.

You cannot be honest 

without admitting

that its constructive

contribution to society

is exactly minus zero.

It is simply a means 

of making dubious promises

to a credulous public.

_____________________________

  

***

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HOODA HELAMI's Last Poem Of The Year

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The Emperor

wore no clothes

because the Empress

gave them to 

her love slave

who traded them in

for three packs

of cigaretttes

and 

a ham sandwich

on rye

***

© HOODA HELAMI ©

Alter Ego #142857

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The 194th Bullet: How To Enslave People

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 To enslave people,

the first thing you do

is convince them

the EXACT OPPOSITE

is true.

 

Then give them

all the marajuana

that will fit

into their heads

and just sit back

while they 

joyously and 

voluminously

celebrate their 

heaven-sent

"freedom"

***

 

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Footnote

THE 194th BULLET

is the copyrighted property

of LCSoL

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One Word/One Line = 100% Boldly Vertical Poem = © Oliverio ©

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When

Cupid

in 

Life

becomes

Stupid

in 

Death

You

have

a

Meme

or

a

Need

for

a

smarter

Rhyme

 *

 

©©©

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Photoverio #698: Regarding EVERY COUNTRY WITH A FLAG

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© Oliverio

 

God Bless America

and

(more importantly)

EVERY COUNTRY WITH A FLAG

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Francis Scott Fitzgerald To Frances Scott Fitzgerald ... FSFs #1

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F. Scott Fitzgerald's book,

The Crack-Up

was published post-humously

and contains numerous letters

written to his daughter

 

This Letter 

—from "Scott" to "Scottie"—

was written 

May 7, 1940

_____________________________

 

You asked me whether in the Arts

I thought it was better to originate

a new form or to perfect it.

The best answer is the one

Picasso made rather bitterly

to Gertrude Stein:

 

YOU DO SOMETHING FIRST

AND THEN SOMEONE

COMES ALONG

AND DOES IT PRETTY

***

 

 

The next page in

this series

is  here

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Did Richard Nixon Say This About The Smothers Brothers?

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Tom + Dick Smothers

Is it possible that a

President of the USA

made the following comment

about the image 

on this page:

 

This horrible photogaph

is menacingly Red enough

to put those alleged brothers

on my  ENEMY LIST

 

 

Maybe he said it, maybe he didn't

but the following information

is based on pure fact:

 

 

The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour

has the most dubious Trifecta

in television history:

 

1. It is named on a Presidential "Enemy List."

 

2. A cast member  (Pat Paulsen) 

became a Presidential candidate.

3. Despite vast popularity, the show was cancelled

after its third season on CBS.

________________________________ 

 

 

4. I speak on behalf of a gazillion people 

when I say  Rest in Peace, Tom Smothers,

you entertained us beyond measure

and we are fortunate enough

to still have one Smother Brother:

Grief will smother Dick Smothers

but we love him equally.

 

5. To describe your television show as ground-breaking

is as valid as saying the sky is blue.

Without it, there might never have been

David Letterman or Stephen Colbert.

 

6. The image on this page is from

a Smothers Brothers appearance

on the  Tonight Show with Johnny Carson.

 

7. Tom Smothers was born on February 2, 1937

and died on December 26, 2023.          ________________________________________________________________________________________________

McCarthy-ism ... With Deleteable Advert

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© MARY McCARTHY

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Introducing Dubious Guitarist BUGGY PIXILATO ... ©©©

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Having done every drug, I'm snug in a rug

Buggy knows the gimmicks and the tricks

of one thousand three-chord guitar licks

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Time-Sensitive Bad Poetry ... For NFL Fans Only

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Published     12/26/23   12:44PM

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Dr. Rorschach ... When My Car Was De-Iced ... 9 Days Out Of 10

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***

In  2015

I drove my car 3200 miles

to spend 10 days

with the beloved Mrs. CarPeo

in Katonah, NY

9 days out of 10,

blizzard-like snow

had to be shoveled 

and I loved

every minute of it

 ***

 

My youth flashed before me

—particularly—

a Long Island blizzard

when my Mother

invited six snow-soaked

teenagers into our home,

feeding us hot chocolate

by the bucket load

 

I loved every minute

of that visit

because I knew

I would end the visit

by driving back

to sun-drenched

Southern California

 

© OLIVERIO ©

 

 

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Multiples Of The Letter ... C ... With Size + Depth Variations

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For

 

Carol CarPeo

 

+

 

Judy Chicago

 

+ 

no hyperlinks

 

©

©

©

 

Photoverio 697.5 

 

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Photoverio #697: Dedicated To JUDY CHICAGO

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***                                                      © Oliverio

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Supposedly Santa Got Here Before Columbus Did

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Comic Relief #5459

GARY LARSON

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A Holiday Wish ... In Black + White

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© Oliverio

I only wish

the city of Long Beach

would admit to having

as many greased palms

as it does

palm trees

 

This is my wish

because sometimes 

I lust for honesty,

being too old

to lust for 

 leg-locking maneuvers

***

 

© Oliverio ©

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Confession Of An Addict

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More than forty-eight hours

since my last purchase

from the BUX

It's giving me the shakes

and I aint talking about

the frappucino kind

 

My world is on tilt

© Oliverio

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In Other Words ... MERRY CHRISTMAS ... W/ Deleteable Advert

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HAPPY HOLIDAYS

+

Holy Hooligans

to anyone

who reads this page

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This Holiday Title Has More Words Than Appear In The Text

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Merry Xmas

(minus one)

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An Oliverio Poem Inspired By NATHANAEL WEST

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If you like fun

don't be one and done

 

And what's more

two is  Either/Or

 

It's easy to see

three is you,

me or We

 

And four is

doubled 

the either/or

 

Five is alive

Six knows all the tricks

Seven loves eleven

 

And eight is

doubled the the double

of either/or

 

Nine is divine

or fine as wine

or sour as pickle brine

 

Ten pulls out

all the stops

for the thieves

and the cops

+++

 

© OLIVERIO ©

 

 

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Education Policy For New York City XXX

________________________________________________________________________________________________

Indeed  a cyclone fence  does separate

the bus from the garbage truck

With any luck, you'll regard that verse

as  a stinky haiku

__________

Be that as it moo,

it is also fact:

Adjacent to a 3-star Hotel

whose primary boast 

is it's location:

Less than one mile from 

JFK International Airport

The address  of 

the Best Western Hotel is

14425 153rd Ln, 

Jamaica, NY 11434

 

For the "stinky haiku"

to precisely become fact,

the singular form 

must be pluralized:

 

 

Cyclone fencing separates

a stockyard 

of school buses

from a stockyard 

of garbage trucks

 

New York City officials

are eminently aware 

of the serious air pollution

within a mile 

of the busiest airport

in the United States...

 

New York City officials 

are also eminently aware 

of needing storage space 

for school buses 

and garbage trucks

 

 

Thus, the officials decreed:

Keep the stench in the same place

 

But school children like colors 

and therefore the school buses

featured on this page 

were not photographed 

in Black and White

***

 

© PAUL OLIVERIO ©

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The Reading Room ( Comic Relief #5452)

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GARY LARSON

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83 Years Ago Today ... A Godfather Of Fiction Met His Maker

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***

 

If birth is the province of angels,

death is the devil's dishwater

 

Those are not the words spoken

on that fatal day

when his car crashed

in the desert

We don't know what he said

but we know his destination:

the funeral of his friend, 

Scott Fitzgerald

Supposedly, he had a eulogy 

prepared for his friend

with the words

Death casts

the final  shadow

***

NATHANAEL WEST

Born: October 17, 1903

Died: December 22, 1940

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Linear Functions

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Parallels + Perpendiculars + Diagonals = Photoverio 696.5

________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

Exactly 83 Years Ago Today ... The Godfather Of Fiction Left Us

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There's only work 

to make you forget

there's nothing 

to work for

***

F. SCOTT FITZGERALD

Three Comrades

 

 

Born: September 24, 1896

Died: December 21, 1940

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Photoverio #696: Street Photography

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5 AM

© Oliverio

________________________________________________________________________________________________

Collage Featuring Slightly More Famous Name With Two OO's

________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

[upper right]

The album held 

by a student

named Rebecca

inspired her

to dye her hair blonde

[lower right]

The concert ticket

enabled me to view  the Rolling Stones from twenty feet away

but since there were no chairs on the field, this 5'6'' tall OliveriO

saw more swaying shoulders than Rolling Stones

 

[left]

Christmas of 1989 was one of six times I was as close [or closer]

to the Hollywood Sign than I was to the stage 

at the Los Angeles Coliseum 

 

[middle right]

Above the ticket receipt, is the legendary Jefferson High School stage

which had featured performances by Billie Holiday, Nat King Cole,

the Four Tops...before Oliverio hustled enough donuts to produce 

a dozen free concerts for students and teachers with the front row 

earmarked for the Principal and her secretary.

I forgot which one was the better dancer.

But most students said Oliverio did his best dancing 

to jazz bands rather than to rock, R&B, or salsa bands.

 

"Not better", said Oliverio, "just weirder."

________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

The Head Of An OLIVERIO

________________________________________________________________________________________________

🙏

Monsignor Francis Oliverio

To me, he will always be Father Frank

________________________________________________________________________________________________

Post THURSDAY = 83 yers dead

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

There's only work 

to make you forget

there's nothing 

to work for

***

F. SCOTT FITZGERALD

Three Comrades

 

 

Born: September 24, 1896

Died: December 21, 1940 

________________________________________________________________________________________________

Sent To Me In Response To A DULCIMER Riff I Sent Him

________________________________________________________________________________________________

When granted 3 wishes l wished for more

( l ‘d used the first 2 in a candy store)

The Genie said  "l’ve seen this scam"

I said  "l wish l wasn’t who you think l am."

***

 

JACK McCARTHY

 

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Pembletonian Quotation ... Another ANDRE BRAUGHER Page

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!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

"Homicide" Episode = GONE FOR GOODE (1993)

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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HOODA HELAMI Segues Into Billie Holiday

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Time can turn 

joy into grief

or

pain into relief

Either way,

Time is a thief

***

© HOODA HELAMI ©

Alter Ego #142857

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SUNFLOWER ... By John Updike

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SUNFLOWER

Sunflower, of flowers

the most lonely,

yardstick of hours,

long-term stander

in empty spaces,

shunner of bowers,

indolent bender

seldom, in only

the sharpest of showers:

tell us why

is it your face is

a snarl of jet swirls

and gold arrows, a burning

old lion face high

in a cornflower sky,

yet by turning

your head we find

you wear a girl's

bonnet  behind?

***

 

JOHN UPDIKE

Collected Poems

1953-1993

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3,000,000 Mile/Hours Talking About Homicide + Andre Braugher

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Once upon a time,

contact with other people

required speaking

into a thing

that required you

to sit or stand

directly in front of it

[unless you trusted the post office]

[or remember the art of eye-to-eye contact]

 

If you were lucky,

this thing was attached

to an insulated cord 

longer than than any room

in your home—

and you talked into it

while comfortably relaxing

on a couch or a cozy chair

The longer you talked

into that thing,

the greater the profits 

for a company called

American Telephone and Telegraph

  ***

Moving 3,000 miles

from east coast

to west coast

in 1981,

 writing letters

to friends and family

back home

was my preference

to telephoning

 

I couldn't afford to make  

American Telephone &Telegraph

wealthier than words can describe

 

 I didn't trust the Post Office

but I trusted

the Xerox Company

 

Each letter was photocopied

and addressed

to as many as 

twenty people

 

I am grateful

only three legal actions 

were taken against me

as a result of those letters

 

However,

I am more grateful

 that this prelude

to another Braugher page

 has ended

***

Forty-two years

of being a transplanted

New Yorker,

I still have a dozen

 friends and family members

with whom I regularly 

correspond via text,

e-mail, blog page

or phone call

 

But with 

one and only one friend

was all of the correspondence

about

one and only one subject

 

That friend is 

Robert Louthan

and the one subject was

Homicide: A Life On The Streets

 

Somewhere around the turn

of the century,

I became the proud owner

of a twenty-five dollar book

itemizing and detailing

every episode

of HOMICIDE

from 1993 through 1999

Andre Brougher

was an original cast member

of Homicide,

along with twenty other

extraordinarily talented

actors

But he was the only one

who sounded like

William Shakespeare

was his kith and kin

 

Braugher's detective character

was named

Frank Pembleton 

I don't recall

which episode

from which season

but it resulted in a 

three-hour 

phone call

with me quoting extensively

from my $25 guide book

Louthan quoted 

Tom Shales

and John Donne

 

Mr. Shales

was a well-respected

Washington Post 

columnist

 

Mr. Donne

was a British poet

good enough

to have given

Shakespeare

"a run for the money"

 

A scholarly text

about John Donne

was written by

the father

of Mr. Louthan 

 

Oh crap:

ninety minutes was

—more times than not—

the minimum length

of chatter and analysis

between

Louthan and Oliverio

 

 The latter of whom

—of course—

gets the last words

on this page:

This Andre Braugher

obituary page

is dedicated to

his widow,

AMI BRABSON

 

The next Braugher page

is  here 

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