Dear Friend & Subscriber,
 
June 12th should be called International Copywriters' Day
because it is Gary Halbert's birthday.

As with most great copywriters, my father loved stories. He
had an incredible appetite for books and movies which helped
make it easy for him to find the interesting story behind
products and services.

He would take in 4 or 5 movies a week and while growing up,
Kevin and I were always tagging along.

Pop would just grab the paper and scan it for a movie he had
not already seen.

The movies were always playing in Westwood or up on
Hollywood Blvd. and we would immediately head out to
wherever the movie was playing next.

If there was time to kill, we would head to a bookstore
where he could spend hours on end if need be.

To encourage reading, he bought us any book we wanted as
long as we read it and I do the same for my kids.

If there was no time to hit up the bookstore, we would go
right afterward.

So as you can imagine, my simple ritual is to take in a
movie and go to the bookstore on his birthday which reminds
me of how he taught us to enjoy life.

This year, his birthday falls on a Sunday and like me and
my dad, you may not like crowded movie theaters, so here are
a few other ways to properly celebrate the birth of The
Prince of Print.

   1. Write about him. He loved to write and he wrote a ton
      about himself so writing about Gary and spreading the
      word of his newsletter is always a great way to pay
      tribute. We'd love to read any stories about how he
      affected your life.

   2. Help somebody. My father always helped a lot of people
      around him and some of his proudest moments were when
      he raised money for charity. His favorite charities
      were children's hospitals and family abuse shelters.
      You could also simply help a stranger in some form or
      fashion and just let them know you are paying back
      Gary Halbert.

   3. Forgive someone. He loved the phrase, "everyone is
      just doing the best they can" and he is right. He
      certainly wouldn't forgive anyone for anything,  but
      he forgave a lot of trespasses and if you are
      harboring resentment for someone's bad behavior you
      know wasn't mean spirited but just a case of being
      very lame, see if you can let it go.

   4. Share some raw honesty. One of Sir Gary's greatest
      gifts to the world was his brutal honesty which cut
      through all the BS and told people what they needed
      to know. Share with someone a simple trick which
      really helped make your life or business better.

   5. Write a letter to your kids. No father ever gave their
      son a greater gift than The Boron Letters. When you
      write letters to your kids explaining things to them
      they won't learn in school, you end up sharing
      yourself in a very profound way your kids will learn
      to cherish more and more as they get older. They will
      truly come to understand that you love them and see
      that you have put time, energy and thought into them,
      even when they were not around. Trust me on this.

So, if you are not near a good movie house and bookshop, any
of the above suggestions is a perfectly fine way to
celebrate the birth of the baby genius Gary C. Halbert.

With much affection,

Sir Bond of Halbert