Date: Sat, 20 Jul 2002 13:42:34 EDT
Subject: PUPT: THE PUPPETRY STORE is DEAD! (Well, almost)



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This post is in reference to recent posts under: Re: PUPT: P of A book review 
submissions.......

What Ms. Larsen's post did not mention is that not only is the person Mr. 
Brose mailed his book to, gone from the organization. But the NEXT person 
that was appointed to the position also abruptly quit. The entire Puppetry 
Store concept is finally being called into question....

Mr Brose: I am embarrassed as a POA member that your book has gone missing 
and that you have not received any communication. In addition, I am 
embarassed for all of you POA members that are not being kept informed by 
your officers.

In the meantime, Mr. DaSilva has announced in his post the he is selling your 
"in demand" book, ("in demand" according to Mr. Axtell, the Puptcrit's 
tireless self-promotion guru, in a recent post).

I would highly recommend that the author find a way to get his book listed on 
Internet search engines, and he will find the same readership and beyond that 
the Puppetry Store could never ever offer. Amazon will likely accept a few 
copies and list your book. Set up a site so that anyone who does a search on 
Yahoo, Google, or Lycos will find your book and the ordering details. And 
forget about the POA Puppetry Store.

(What is the title of Mike Brose's book? He deserves a plug, for having lost 
a copy of his book in all of this POA mess).

It seems that PUPPETHEAD's ominous words of many months ago (August 2001) 
predicting the imminent extinction of the PUPPETRY STORE are finally being 
taken seriously. 

My point at the time (which received little support on this list, and 
elicited vehement denial, as I recall) is pasted at the end of this e-mail in 
case anyone cares to review it.

What PUPPETHEAD has learned: Secret meetings have been held and are being 
held this summer at Regional Festivals in order to discuss other available 
options for a Puppetry Store concept amongst the POA leaders and assorted 
elite leaders in the field of book merchandising... and the current move of 
The Puppetry Store to Arizona, as mentioned by Ms. Larsen, is being viewed by 
many as a temporary fix at best.

The option of the Puppetry Store selling off it's current inventory and then 
serving as a referral service is being discussed. It seems there are a dozen 
or so titles that are virtually exclusive to the Puppetry Store and these 
would need to be farmed out to a few dealers, (or a volunteer Puppetry Store 
Director could manage this small exclusive supply out of their cellar).

PUPPETHEAD must now return to the wings, as the orchestra is already playing 
my entr 'act. All is well here. I hope all is well with my friends in North 
America.

Sincerely Yours,
PUPPETHEAD

.... the folly of the Puppeteers of America (POA) 
Board in trying to find new Directors in order to continue  their Puppetry 
Store. The current PLAYBOARD includes a top line plea for new Applicants for 
that position. 

With all the dot coms out there in the world with powerful search engines and 

discounts: ABEBooks, BarnesandNoble, Amazon, 
and private sellers as mentioned in a recent post; and Auction sites such as 
eBay and Yahoo Auctions; and the proliferation of other Book Discounters out 
on the street...And the fact that  specialty bookstores are shuttered weekly 
all across the country, dealing with subject matter (TheaterArts bookstores, 
Gay&Lesbian bookstores, New Age bookstores, etc) appealing to a much larger 
population then "Puppeteers"... 

The fact is: No one pays full price for books anymore. And finding a title is 

relatively easy in today's technolgical age. 

If the POA liquidated their inventory, stopped buying more inventory, and 
saved the "Honorarium" paid to the Directors-- perhaps the money saved could 
be better spent on increasing the quality and frequency of  The Puppetry 
Journal, and  paying Journal writers and contributors to raise the quality of 

the Journalism therein to a truly professional level (rather than the current 

unpaid, amateur, method which encourages only that people arrange to toot 
their own horns either directly or indirectly). 

An alternate suggestion would be: formation of a  "Puppet Book Search 
committee" to provide a FREE service to POA Members in directing them to 
locations where they can purchase Puppet books from third parties. And 
Advertising revenue could be accepted from Dealers who have an interest in 
appealing to our Membership though ads in the Journal.   

A sincere questioning letter such as mine (i.e. this post) has no home in 
POA. They don't have a forum for Letters to the Editor, or any open 
discussions that smell of any sort of controversy or questioning of the 
status quo. 

I implore the POA Board to re-examine the figures and all the options before 
they walk into repeating The Puppetry Store concept simply because "it's 
always been that way."  And perhaps an explanation to the Membership 
explaining their thinking, would be appreciated. 

Times have changed. Is the POA changing to keep pace? 

In a message dated 7/20/02 12:40:16 AM Eastern Daylight Time, 
propworks-AT-juno.com writes:


> I was just wondering if someone could tell me what the guidelines are for
> submission of a puppetry book (or related publication) for review to the
> P of A. I sent a free copy (back in November of 2001) of a publication
> (that I am the author of) to be reviewed (for the P of A Bookstore) and
> have heard nothing back after 9 months. Several months after I sent it
> in, I emailed the individual that the book was sent to, to see if it had
> been reviewed or at least looked at, and have had no reply.  Just
> wondering what other peoples experience or knowledge of this has been and
> if this is a normal situation? Thanks in advance for any input or help
> you might be able to give on this.
> 
> Thanks!
> 
> Mike Brose
> 
> 
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