Imporv* (for Improve, etc.)

New Year's Day is traditionally a day of self-recrimination quickly followed by optimistic resolve to improve oneself and give up bad habits. Dale Carnegie, who was born in 1888 in Maryville, Missouri, was a titan of self-help and self-promotion. His philosophy is neatly summed up in the title of his best-selling book How to Win Friends and Influence People. It might bear mentioning that Carnegie was keenly attuned to the importance of letters and their placement within words. According to Wikpedia: "Perhaps one of Carnegie’s most successful marketing moves was to change the spelling of his last name from 'Carnegey' to Carnegie, at a time when Andrew Carnegie (unrelated) was a widely revered and recognized name." There are 24 records in OhioLINK that contain the typo Imporv* (although five of them are for improvisation, etc.) and probably at least a few in your own OPACs that could use some improvement.

(From the old Missouri Wall of Fame mural on the Mississippi River in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, from flickr.)

Carol Reid