Fusaro and Mr. B blame the just released film "Here Comes the Boom" starring Kevin James for inspiring them to continue to be the teachers they wish they had.  Mr. B, aka Edward Biagiotti, Inclusion Specialist at Culver City Unified School District, and his friend, artist Darrell Fusaro, who volunteers his time, seem to act more like kids than teachers and yet the results they are having with the school's hardest cases have been miraculous.  School therapists fascinated at the students' progress have inquired as to their methods, but Fusaro and Mr. B don't have any tricks up their sleeves.  They are just a couple of fun loving guys who haven't forgotten how smart and cunning they were as kids.  With that understanding and their desire to inspire they happened to create a unique lunch time class they call the "Culver City Cartoon College" where these kids feel free to be themselves without having to act out.

"When clothes shopping with your parents always ask for black underwear." was Fusaro's parting advice to the little ruffians.

When one asked, "Why?" 

Fusaro and Mr. B went right into a chorus of "Accidents Will Happen" by Elvis Costello as the students filed out laughing.

anthropomorphism
|anTHrəpəˈmôrˌfizəm|
noun
the attribution of human characteristics or behavior to
a god, animal, or object.

Have fun!

I went from unknown to well-known with this ridiculous photo of me standing waist deep in the Pacific Ocean.

In 1993, while on vacation in Carmel, CA a good friend suggested I try to break into the art scene there.  Still a young artist I had only a few exhibits under my belt and they were in New York and New Jersey.  In other words, I was a nobody as far as Carmel was concerned.  What I did have was a large body of work ready for exhibition.  From experience I can tell you that submitting slides of your work with query letters to agents and galleries is a waste of time, don't bother. 

But by this time I knew the best way to break in is not by a headlong assault.  What works is much easier and more fun.  The key: don't be afraid of silly ideas.  They are the ONLY ones that get noticed.

So I purchased a sport coat, dress shirt, and tie at the Monterey, CA thrift shop which had the best of Pebble Beach resident's hand me downs.  Then with my girlfriend Lori, (now my wife) we drove to the beach where I got dressed, waded out waist deep into the ocean and held up a framed abstract painting of mine.  Lori took a picture.

I sent copies of this photo with a press release titled "East Coast Artist Washed Up in Carmel."  Within three days there were feature stories about me in every publication in the area, I was even interviewed on the respected KRML Carmel's world class Jazz Radio station.  The end result: I had a solo exhibition at the historic Pine Inn and before our vacation was over I was offered gallery representation by a local gallery.

3 Tips on creating a press release that gets published:

1) The title better be attention grabbing and generate curiosity.  TITLE SHOULD NOT BE LITERAL.  That is the mistake hired PR people make.  I know because I've worked with some of the best.  If my titled was "East Coast Artist Looking for Gallery Representation," it would have been tossed in the garbage, right where it belonged.

2) Include a photo that is attention grabbing and generates curiosity.  My silly snapshot proved to be much more compelling than a professionally photographed picture of my artwork would have been.  I know because it was included with every write up.

3) Write exactly what you want them to print in three hundred words or less - because that's exactly what they'll print.  Editors and staff writers are on a deadline and don't have time to wade through agonizing bios and descriptions of your work in an effort turn it into a story; they want to be able to cut and paste.  Another mistake hired PR people tend to do is feel the need to oversell the client in the press release loading it with a long list of accomplishments.  Don't do it.  If it's long and dense it WILL NOT GET READ.

So have fun and don't be afraid of silly ideas.  They are the only ones that get noticed.