I decided to go home, he told the AP in 2013. Lord instead found a deal for Quotations from Chairman LBJ, a bestselling parody. With rare persistence, he endured the initial unwillingness of publishers to take on Kerouacs unorthodox narrative and was later the longtime agent for poet and playwright Amiri Baraka, novelist Ken Kesey and poet and City Lights bookstore owner Lawrence Ferlinghetti. After years of failed attempts, a filmed version of On the Road was released in 2012. Lord died Saturday in a nursing home in Ocala, Florida, according to his daughter, Rebecca Lord. Duane was born December 16, 1950 in Dixon the son of Maurice and Marcella (Liechty) Scholl Read More, Patricia Ann Van Coillie Born: June 14, 1944 in Colorado Springs, CO Died: January 13, 2023 in Sterling, IL STERLING - Patricia A. Representatives of the former president informed Lord in the late 1960s that Johnson wanted $1 million for the book and that Lord should accept less than his usual commission for the honor of working with him. Mr. Lord, who started his own agency in 1952 and later merged with rival Literistic to form Sterling Lord Literistic, was a failed magazine publisher who became, almost surely, the longest-serving agent in the book business. Mr. Lord oversaw Kerouacs numerous posthumous releases even as he battled the authors family for control of the estate. An editor from Viking Press contacted Mr. Lord, offering an advance of $900. A . Lord would also speak proudly of a project he turned down: a memoir of Lyndon Johnson. Beloved husband of JoAnne and devoted and loving father of Tamara (Raymond). Frankly, I didnt want to deal with the situation at home, he told the Des Moines Register in 2015. He didnt bother to attend a special screening, citing mixed early reviews, and didnt show up for a private party for the film. For more than 60 years he was one of New Yorks most successful and durable literary agents, representing Jimmy Breslin, Art Buchwald, Willie Morris, Doris Kearns Goodwin, Howard Fast, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Gordon Parks, Edward M. Kennedy, Robert S. McNamara and the Berenstain Bears, among many others. Books and tennis were lifelong passions for Lord, who was born in Burlington, Iowa, in 1920. But Mr. Lords On the Road quest would prove bumpier. Lord had met many agents during his years at the magazine and believed that they failed to understand that the American public was becoming increasingly urban and sophisticated. Sterling . He married Marilyn Colson on Read More, Luella Ruth Sheffler Born: June 24, 1926 in Escanaba, MI Died: January 19, 2023 in Sterling, IL Luella Ruth Sheffler, 96 of Sterling, died Thursday, January 19, 2023 at the Citadel of Sterling. Find the right funeral home to guide your family through end-of-life planning. In 1957, the book was released, The New York Times raved and On the Road soon entered the American canon. Representatives for the former president informed Lord in the late 1960s that Johnson wanted $1 million for the book and that Mr. Lord should accept less than his usual commission for the honor of working with him. He represented former US Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara and Judge John Sirica of Watergate fame and often worked with Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis during her tenure as editor of Doubleday and Viking. He had a good death and died peacefully of old age, she told The Associated Press. Twitter. But it took him so long to sell it that a discouraged Kerouac asked him to pull it off the market. She graduated from Ohio Wesleyan Menu. . [3] He died in Ocala, Florida, on September 3, 2022, his 102nd birthday. One early client was Al Hirshberg, who ghostwrote Fear Strikes Out, Jimmy Piersalls memoir of baseball and mental illness. Lord had met many agents during his magazine years and believed they failed to understand that the American public was becoming more urban and sophisticated. In On The Road, Mr. Lord believed that Kerouac had a fresh, distinctive voice that should be heard. But the industry was not in the mood. Lord turned them down, much to their surprise and anger. He also became a tennis star at Grinnell College, and later a good enough player to compete against Don Budge, among others. The legend of Sterling Lord dates back to 1952, when he was just getting started as a literary agent. And third, Ive been able to meet some extraordinarily interesting people.. Sterling Lord was born in Burlington, Iowa, on Sept. 3, 1920. Another was Rowland Barber, who helped the silent Marx brother write Harpo Speaks!. Johnsons The Vantage Point, ultimately published in 1971, was dismissed by critics as bland and uninformative. Representatives for the former president informed Lord in the late 1960s that Johnson wanted $1 million for the book and that Lord should accept less than his usual commission for the honor of working with him. Thanks to his friendship with Theodore Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, Lord helped launch Stan and Jan Berenstains multimillion-selling books about an anthropomorphic bear family. Back in the U.S., he served as an editor at True and Cosmopolitan, from which he was fired, before founding the Sterling Lord Literary Agency. Robert, fondly known as Bob, was born to the late Read More, Terrence L. Batten Born: December 18, 1954 in Princeton, IL Died: January 19, 2023 in Sterling, IL STERLING - Terrence "Terry" L. Batten, 68, of Sterling, died on Thursday, January 19, 2023 at his home. Inside Kerouacs weather-beaten knapsack and wrapped in a newspaper, Mr. Lord recalled, was a manuscript that Kerouac handed gingerly to him. He also became a tennis star at Grinnell College, and later a good enough player to compete against Don Budge, among others. Al was born November 28, 1942 the son of Charles and Anita (Bane) Wildman. Sterling Lord, who opened his own agency in 1952 and later merged with rival Literistic to form Sterling Lord Literistic Inc., was a failed magazine publisher who became almost certainly the longest-running agent in the book business. But Lord had little involvement in the project, directed by Walter Salles and starring Sam Riley and Kristen Stewart. Kerouac declined, but Lord was so impressed by the book that he ended up representing Kesey for his next work, Sometimes a Great Notion.. His last years with the agency were unhappy, however, as he came to feel that some of his colleagues were undermining him. Sterling Lord (September 3, 1920 - September 3, 2022) was an American literary agent, editor, and author. Lord oversaw Kerouac's numerous posthumous releases even as he battled the authors family for control of the estate.
Sterling Obituaries | Local Obits for Sterling, IL - Legacy.com Lord achieved rapid success by selling the film rights to two popular sports books, Rocky Graziano Somebody Up There Likes Me and Jimmy Pearsella Fear is knocked out. But Lords quest On the Road will prove to be more uneven. Friends may visit family Monday, February 21, 2022 at Lindquist's Bountiful Mortuary, 727 N 400 E. from 6-8 pm and Tues. Feb 22rd from 9:30-10:30 am at the Church prior to services. With rare persistence, he endured the initial unwillingness of publishers to take on Kerouacs unorthodox narrative and was later the longtime agent for poet and playwright Amiri Baraka, novelist Ken Kesey and poet and City Lights bookstore owner Lawrence Ferlinghetti. Celebration of life will be held at a later date. The agent eventually sold excerpts to The Paris Review and the periodical New World Writing.
Sterling Lord, premier literary agent, is dead at 102 Oakfield - Sterling Lawrence, 66, went to be with his Lord on March 27, 2022, in Bangor.
Elijah W. Sterling Obituary - Visitation & Funeral Information He negotiated terms between McGinniss and accused killer Jeffrey MacDonald, later convicted, for the true-crime classic Fatal Vision. He found a publisher for Nicholas Pileggis mob story Wiseguy and helped arrange the deal for its celebrated film adaptation, Goodfellas., In the early 1960s, Viking had asked Mr. Lord to get a blurb from Kerouac for One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest, Keseys first and best-known novel. Sterling Lord, the literary agent who worked for years to find a publisher for Jack Kerouacs On the Road and over the following decades arranged deals for a roster of clients that ranged from true-crime writer Joe McGinniss to the creators of the Berenstain Bears, died Sept. 3 at a nursing home in Ocala, Fla., on his 102nd birthday. Even younger editors who may have related to Kerouacs jazzy celebration of youth and personal freedom turned him down. It began when his mother read to him after dinner; he continued to edit his school newspaper and worked as a sports stringer around the same time for the Des Moines Register. He also prided himself on his sympathy for writers who lived much wilder lives than he did. In 1957, the book was released, The New York Times raved, and On the Road soon entered the American canon. [1][3][4], After graduation, Lord joined the U.S. Army during World War II, and was an editor for a weekly magazine supplement of Stars and Stripes. Mr. Lord was a fledgling Manhattan literary agent in 1952 when, by his account, Kerouac walked timidly into his office, a basement studio on East 36th Street, just off Park Avenue. She was born on December 12, 1928 in Rock Falls, the daughter of Ernesto and Maria (Bologna) Bellini. Even younger editors who may have related to Kerouacs jazzy celebration of youth and personal freedom turned him down. Mr. Lord held out for $1,000. This material may not be published, broadcast, copied or distributed without permission. Interment will be at the Bountiful City . In 1976, his book Returning The Serve Intelligently was included in the United States Tennis Instructional Series published by Doubleday. One author represented by his new agency was Lawrence Ferlinghetti. Frances was born March 20, 1923 in Harmon to John and Lucy (Peters) Read More, Anthony J. Avila Born: November 23, 1987 in Sterling, IL Died: January 15, 2023 in Sterling, IL Anthony J. Thanks to his friendship with Theodore Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, Lord helped launch Stan and Jan Berenstain's multimillion-selling books about an anthropomorphic bear family. An editor from Viking Press contacted Lord, offering an advance of $900. Lord would also speak proudly of a project he declined: Lyndon Johnsons memoir. Johnsons book, The Vantage Point, finally published in 1971, was dismissed by critics as bland and uninformative. A third author on hand that day, the writer Nicholas Pileggi, had been a client for at least 50 years. Lord held out $1,000.
Sterling Lord, uniquely enduring literary agent, dies at 102 Subscribe to receive the latest local obituaries delivered to your inbox. Kerouac was a rough-hewed, hard-drinking New Englander who hung around with the Beats. NEW YORK (AP) Sterling Lord, the uniquely enduring literary agent who worked for years to find a publisher for Jack Kerouac's "On the Road" and over the following decades arranged deals for everyone from true crime writer Joe McGinniss to the creators of the Berenstain Bears, has died. Dodgers announcer Vin Scully, Queen Elizabeth II, NBA great Bill Russell and country icon Loretta Lynn are among the notable deaths of 2022. He edited his high school newspaper and was a sports stringer around the same time for the Des Moines Register. She was born on November 1, 1926 in Sterling IL to Olive (Cassell) Read More, Charlotte Stern Born: March 12, 1945 in Chilhowie, VA Died: January 24, 2023 in Rockford, IL Charlotte L. Stern, 77, of Rockford passed peacefully on January 24, 2023 while holding Duane and Todd's hand. Sterling Lords roster of clients produced works about sports, politics, murder and the travails of illustrated animals.
Sterling Lord, Jack Kerouac's Literary Agent, Dies at 102 Some of the great sports books of the 20th century, including North Dallas Forty and Secretariat, were written by his clients. Theodore Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss. But he was alert to new trends and an early ambassador for a revolutionary cultural movement: the Beats. He became a tennis star at Grinnell College in Iowa and later was a good enough player to compete against Don Budge, among others. His father, a furniture executive, was also an amateur bookbinder and nourished in his son a love of books. Sterling Lawrence.
Sterling Lord, uniquely enduring literary agent, dies at 102 Dining with him, Mr. Greenfield recalled in another 2013 email, you felt as if you were in a different time as if Maxwell Perkins might show up for coffee.. When, how and why music should be incorporated into a funeral service, Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, J.P. Richardson "The Big Bopper" and Roger Peterson, Making the holiday season bearable during grief. Sterling Lord, the uniquely enduring literary agent who worked for years to find a publisher for Jack Kerouacs On the Road and arranged deals for everyone from true crime writer Joe McGinniss to the creators of the Berenstain Bears, has died. He represented former U.S. Defense Secretary Robert McNamara and Judge John Sirica of Watergate fame and worked often with Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis during her time as an editor with Doubleday and Viking. His old-fashioned ways extended even to his letterhead, which listed his telephone number as Plaza 1-2533. If you didnt know New York City was 212, he really didnt want to hear from you, said Stuart Krichevsky, a fellow agent who worked with Mr. Lord for 16 years. After serving in the U.S. Army Air Forces during World War II, Mr. Lord co-owned the Germany-based magazine Weekend, which soon folded. After serving in the Army Air Force during World War II, Lord co-owned the Germany-based magazine Weekend, which soon folded. His first marriage, he would acknowledge, helped inspire him to go into business for himself. After serving in the Army Air Force during World War II, Lord co-owned the Germany-based magazine Weekend, which soon folded. Over the next few years he either worked on or edited several magazines, including True and Cosmopolitan. Sterling Lord, who represented Jimmy Breslin, Art Buchwald, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Gordon Parks and most famously, Jack Kerouac, died Saturday in Ocala, FL. Carla was born December 11, 1965 in Elizabethtown, KY, the daughter Read More, Judy A. Gonzalez Born: May 13, 1948 in Dixon, IL Died: February 12, 2023 in Sterling, IL Judy Ann Gonzalez, 74 of Sterling died Sunday February 12, 2023 at CGH Medical Center in Sterling. It was for his association with another writer, Jack Kerouac, and Kerouacs book On the Road, that Mr. Lord will most likely be remembered most, though his claim there is disputed. Mr. Lords long string of successes began with Jack Kerouacs novel On the Road, which he sold for $1,000. He was born on May 14, 1995 in Sterling, the son of Kelly G. and Stephanie L. (Hicks) Schultz. Sterling Lord, who started his own agency in 1952 and later merged with rival Literistic to form Sterling Lord Literistic Inc., was a failed magazine publisher who became, almost surely, the longest-serving agent in the book business. Honestly, I didnt want to deal with the situation at home, he told the Des Moines Register in 2015. After an influential career in publishing books for young readers,. With a rare tenacity, he endured the initial reluctance of the publishers embrace Kerouacs unconventional narrative and later was a longtime agent for a poet and playwright Amiri Baraka, a novelist Ken Kesey poet and owner of the Lights of the City bookstore. Back in the United States, he served as an editor at True and Cosmopolitan, from which he was fired, before founding the Sterling Lord Literary Agency. As a matter of longevity, at least, . He negotiated terms between McGinniss and accused killer Jeffrey MacDonald, later convicted, for the true crime classic Fatal Vision. He found a publisher for Nicholas Pileggis mob story Wiseguy and helped arrange the deal for its celebrated film adaptation, Goodfellas., In the early 1960s, Viking had asked Lord to get a blurb from Kerouac for One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest, Keseys first and most famous novel. Theodor Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, Americans are spending money on beauty despite a pullback elsewhere | Ways of life, Police: 2 dead, 5 injured in Norfolk, Virginia. He didnt bother to attend a special screening, citing mixed early reviews, and didnt show up for a private party for the film. After years of failed attempts, a filmed version of On the Road was released in 2012. It began when his mother would read to him after dinner; he went on to edit his high school newspaper and work as a sports stringer around the same time for the Des Moines Register.
James Lord Obituary (2003) - Miami, FL - the Miami Herald - Legacy.com Kerouac declined, but Lord was so impressed by the book that he ended up representing Kesey for his next work, Sometimes a Great Notion.. About 10 years ago Sterling Lord invited four long-term clients of his for lunch at the Regency Hotel in New York. (He was married four times in all and had one child, Rebecca.).
Obituary Note: Sterling Lord | Shelf Awareness Carrie was born July 28, 1937 the daughter of Carl and Roda (McPherson) Blankenship. He stayed with the company he founded until almost 100 years old, and then decided to open a new one. And third, Ive been able to meet some extraordinarily interesting people.. Americans, including millions of former G.I.s, were suddenly more mobile, less provincial and less interested in escapist fiction than they were in understanding the world around them. Lord attended the author's funeral alongside fellow Beat Poet, Allen Ginsberg. Lord would also speak proudly of a project he declined: Lyndon Johnsons memoir. On September 3, 2022, star literary agent and book enthusiast, Sterling Lord, passed away at the age of 102 in Ocala, . Van Coillie, age 78 died Friday, January 13th 2023 at Rock River Hospice and Home, Sterling. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, file) NEW YORK (AP) Sterling Lord, the uniquely enduring literary agent who worked for years to find a publisher for Jack Kerouac's "On the Road" and over the following . Charlotte was born March 12, 1945 in Chilhowie VA the daughter of Marvin Read More, Robert Lee Marsh Born: April 6, 1946 in Sterling, Illinois Died: January 10, 2023 in Sterling, Illinois Robert (Bob) Lee Marsh, 76, of Sterling, Illinois, peacefully passed away on January 10, 2023, at Heritage Woods of Sterling. He died on Saturday in Ocala, Florida. His first marriage, he would acknowledge, helped inspire him to go into business for himself. Published Sept. 5, 2022 6:11 a.m. PDT. Thanks to his friendship with Theodor Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, Lord helped launch Stan and Jan Berenstains multimillion-selling books about an anthropomorphic bear family. But this is not a well-made novel, nor a saleable one nor even, I think, a good one..
Henrietta Lord Obituary (2002) - Cleveland, OH - The Plain Dealer Sterling Lord, who started his own agency in 1952 and later merged with rival Literistic to form Sterling Lord Literistic Inc., was a failed magazine publisher who became, almost surely, the longest-serving agent in the book business. He not only continued to represent Kerouac but became his friend Kerouac came to call the guest quarters of the home he shared with his mother in Florida the Sterling Room.. Mr. Lord ignored him. He had just turned 102. Search by Name. Johnsons The Vantage Point, ultimately published in 1971, was dismissed by critics as bland and uninformative. Into his basement-level office on Park Avenue walked a young man wearing "a light weather . Lord died Saturday in a nursing home in Ocala, Florida, according to his daughter, Rebecca. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, file). Lorde even hired a doctor who unsuccessfully tried to get Kerouac to come clean, but the businessman eventually refused because he was his literary, not life agent., Lord attended Kerouacs funeral, riding with him in a limousine his client Jimmy Breslin and standing by the grave next to Allen Ginsberg, sunlight filtering through the trees, the leaves turning brown after losing their autumn color.. Gordon married Read More, Maurice Sweitzer Born: November 20, 1939 in Freeport, IL Died: January 21, 2023 in Sterling, IL Maurice E. Sweitzer, 83 of Sterling died Saturday January 21, 2023 at CGH Medical Center in Sterling. Some of the great sports books of the 20th century, from North Dallas Forty to Secretariat, were written by his clients. His daughter, Rebecca Lord, confirmed the death but did not provide a specific cause. And thirdly, I managed to get acquainted with unusually interesting people.. And they prized his equilibrium, which reassured them when things seemed to be flying apart. His clients included Jack Kerouac, Ken Kesey, Howard Fast, Jimmy Breslin, and Doris Kearns Goodwin. NEW YORK (AP) Sterling Lord, the uniquely enduring literary agent who worked for years to find a publisher for Jack Kerouac's "On the Road" and over the following decades arranged deals for everyone from true crime writer Joe McGinniss to the creators of the Berenstain Bears, has died. It was a passion that Mr. Lord sated vicariously, for he was no writer: For years, his only book was on tennis, Returning the Serve Intelligently. (His own tennis serve was said to resemble a knuckleball, and to be just as hard to hit.) He also became a tennis singles champ in 1937 and 1938 and was ranked nationally in both the Boys and Juniors Divisions. Sterling Lord, the uniquely enduring literary agent who worked for years to find a publisher for Jack Kerouac's "On the Road" and over the following . By 1955, Kerouac was ready to give up but Lord was not.
Sterling Lord Dead: Agent For Jack Kerouac's 'On The Road' Was 102 He was well-spoken and athletic, a most able negotiator who dressed in tweed and avoided most vices. A native of Miami, FL. . Beulah was born on May 3rd, 1934 in Sterling Illinois, Read More, Loren W. Ekquist Born: September 16, 1933 in Drakesville, IA Died: January 26, 2023 in Sterling, IL Loren W. Ekquist, 89 of Sterling, died Thursday, January 26, 2023 at Rock River Hospice and Home in Sterling. Lord was married four times, and had one child, Rebecca. [3] His father, also named Sterling, was an executive at the Leopold Desk Company in Burlington who also worked as a bookbinder. His full roster of clients produced works about sports, politics, murder and the travails of illustrated animals. Preston-Schilling Funeral Home, Ltd. - Dixon, Chapel Hill Memorial Gardens and Funeral Home.
Steven was born January 3, 1956 in Dixon, IL, the son of Alvin and Mary (Davis) Moeller. Read More, Duane Scholl Born: December 16, 1950 in Dixon, Illinois Died: January 14, 2023 in Polo, Illinois Duane Scholl, 72, of Polo died Saturday January 14, 2023 at his farm surrounded by family. He married Donna Smith on June Read More, Carla Ullrich Born: December 11, 1965 in Elizabethtown, KY Died: February 13, 2023 in Sterling, IL Carla Ullrich, age 57, of Loretto, KY, died Monday, February 13, 2023 at Rock River Hospice and Home in Sterling. He had just turned 102. He didnt bother to attend a special screening, citing mixed early reviews, and didnt show up for a private party for the film. After years of failed attempts, a filmed version of On the Road was released in 2012.
GEORGE NICHOLSON Obituary (2015) - New York, NY - New York Times But at last count, On the Road has sold five million copies and burned just as many gallons of gas as generations of young people have set out in search of either the America Kerouac saw or the ones that have taken its place. Patricia was born on June 14, 1944 in Colorado Springs Read More, June Alber Born: January 11, 1936 Died: January 10, 2023 in Sterling, IL June Aline Alber passed away January 10, 2023 the day before her 87th birthday at Rock River Hospice and Home in Sterling, IL after a brief illness.
Mr. Lords tennis skills he had played since he was 5 years old, was nationally ranked as a teenager and in 1949 took the French national champion Marcel Bernard to five sets proved a great asset, bestowing on a small-town Iowan a confidence that he might otherwise have lacked.
In his 2013 memoir Lord of Publishing, Lord remembered first meeting Kerouac in 1952. But Kerouac was a shy and fragile man, Lord wrote. Mr. Lord even recruited a doctor who unsuccessfully attempted to get Kerouac to clean up, but the businessman eventually backed away since he was his literary agent, not his life agent.. Back in the U.S., he served as an editor at True and Cosmopolitan, from which he was fired, before founding the Sterling Lord Literary Agency. Lord died Saturday in a nursing home in Ocala, Fla.,his daughter, Rebecca Lord, said. Anne was born July 26, 1927 in Gary, IN. Sterling Lord, the uniquely enduring literary agent who worked for years to find a publisher for Jack Kerouac's "On the Road" and arranged deals for everyone from true crime writer Joe. Some of the great sports books of the 20th century, from North Dallas Forty to Secretariat, were written by his clients. But Kerouac was a shy and fragile man, Lord wrote. Johnsons The Vantage Point, ultimately published in 1971, was dismissed by critics as bland and uninformative. Books and tennis were lifelong passions. He had one daughter. "Tony" Avila, 35 of Sterling died Sunday January 15, 2023.
Sterling Lord, uniquely enduring literary agent, dead at 102 Sterling Lord | Obituary | Beyond the Dash The literary agent Sterling Lord in his office in Manhattan in 2016, surrounded by books whose authors he represented. The Plain Dealer Homepage . Lord died Saturday, Sept 3, 2022 in a Skilled Nursing home in Ocala, Florida, according to his daughter, Rebecca Lord. A memorial service will take place at 11AM Tuesday February 7, 2023 Read More, Sarah E. Orrender Born: March 13, 1932 in Chilhowie, VA Died: February 1, 2023 in Sterling, IL Sarah E. Orrender, 90 died Wednesday February 1, 2023 at Rock River Hospice & Home in Sterling, IL Sarah (Porter) Orrender was born March 13,1932 in Chilhowie, Virginia to Coy And Read More, Patricia Simester Born: February 17, 1943 in Sterling, IL Died: February 1, 2023 in Rock Falls, IL Patricia S. Simester, 79, of Rock Falls died Wednesday February 1, 2023 at her home surrounded by family. ATLANTA Former U.S. Sen. Zell Miller, a lifelong Democrat and the father of Georgia's lottery-funded HOPE scholarship while serving as governor, died Friday. When Kerouac died in October 1969, Mr. Lord was at his funeral, both incongruous natty as ever in his blue shirt with the white collar and a dark necktie, as the Beat writer and historian John Clellon Holmes later wrote and at home amid the aging Beats, youthful acolytes and assorted locals gathered at a Roman Catholic church in Lowell, Mass. He stayed with the company he founded until he was nearly 100 and then decided to launch a new one.
Sterling Lord, uniquely enduring literary agent, dies at 102 They can walk down the street, and tell that the little old lady with the shopping cart is a cop. What was your name before you changed it? a friend once asked Sterling Lord.