Bruce Gore’s inspiration
Joe Must Go
Every so often, I'll pull this book off my shelf and thumb through it. It was written by my grandfather, Leroy Gore, in 1954. He was a mild-mannered rural Wisconsin newspaper editor, and he became an overnight sensation in the early 1950s by initiating the recall movement of one of the most well-known and widely-feared political figures of his day—Senator Joe McCarthy. It's as close as anyone in my family has ever come to being famous, but for a short period of time in the state of Wisconsin, famous he was.
Every so often, I'll pull this book off my shelf and thumb through it. It was written by my grandfather, Leroy Gore, in 1954. He was a mild-mannered rural Wisconsin newspaper editor, and he became an overnight sensation in the early 1950s by initiating the recall movement of one of the most well-known and widely-feared political figures of his day—Senator Joe McCarthy. It's as close as anyone in my family has ever come to being famous, but for a short period of time in the state of Wisconsin, famous he was.
Thumbing through it always reminds me of the too few visits to Wisconsin to see grandpa, where I'd sit and listen to him for hours telling all kinds of stories. Reminds me too that he and his family suffered dearly as a result of his taking a stand against McCarthy. These things happened long before my time, but looking through this old book and thinking about those time helps keep me focused on something that is core to what I do for a living every day: The idea that books are IMPORTANT. They have a story to tell. They're tough to produce--a whole lot of blood, sweat, and tears goes into their making, so they're taken seriously right from the start. They're also very personal. We carry them around; we sit and hold them for sometimes hours on end; we flip through them page by page, and usually read them cover to cover. And, more so than almost anything else I work on as a designer, they often have a very long shelf life. (I can't think of any annual reports or brochures I've worked on that will still be around fifty years from now.)
So, for me, all these things are important. They are my INSPIRATION. They keep me sane (sort of), and are what prod me out of bed every morning to shuffle into my office and work another day. So, here's to grandpa, and all the people who's stories I've so far had the privilege of working on. And here's to doing it all again tomorrow
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About Me:
- Working on:
All kinds of things, all the time - Listening to:
Art Tatum, local jazz, classic rock - Reading:
Jeffery Deaver - Watching:
Dexter!
