Over the centuries, there have been many reported cases – especially in Medieval legend – of sexual hauntings involving two specific types of entities: the Incubus (male demon) and the Succubus (female demon).

The Incubus and Succubus usually manifest themselves during the nocturnal hours, preying on the victim when they are sleeping, although there have been some cases where females have actually been sexually assaulted whilst fully awake. One such experience was covered in the book and subsequent movie, The Entity.

Any female who undergoes an incubus sexual assault will not awaken, although she may experience it in a dream. If she becomes pregnant, the child will grow inside her as any normal child, except that it will possess supernatural powers. Usually the child grows into a person of evil character or a powerful wizard. According to legend, it is said that the magician Merlin was the result of physical contact between an incubus and a nun.

A succubus is the female version, and she seduces men. According to one legend, the incubus and the succubus were fallen angels. The word incubus is Latin for “nightmare”. Succubus – In medieval European folklore, a female demon (or evil spirit) who visits men in their sleep to lie with them in ghostly sexual intercourse. The man who falls victim to a succubus will not awaken, although may experience it whilst in the dream state. The biblical Lilith, the first wife to Adam before Eve, is said to also have been the very first succubus on earth. There is a version of the Lilith myth in EVERY religion in the world. Many of these creatures have different names, such as Marilith or Lilitu, but all of them have one common theme: a demon woman, often with wings, who seduces – and sometimes murders – men. A succubus.

Just as is the case with the succubus, there are also many legends about incubi (singular: incubus), but these are not be confused with succubi (which is the plural of succubus). The incubi are said to be fallen angels in Judeo-Christianity who fell to earth because they had sex with mortal women. Since then incubi have stalked the earth, seducing women in their dreams and impregnating them. The children of incubi are said to grow up to become rapists.

An evil person who raped and murdered in real life may pass on, but may not move on to Heaven or Hell. Instead, they remain on the earth plane as a spiritual being with the same personality as they had in life. They are therefore free to indulge in sexual intercourse with whoever they chose, so it’s not surprising that a spirit of such a nature may be called an Incubus or a Succubus.

There are many variations of this sexual demonic legend all over the world. For instance, in Zanzibar, an entity known as the “Popo Bawa” generally preys on men as they sleep in their beds. In the Chilo’ Province of Chile, a pathetic little dwarf, known as El Trauco, woos young naive women and then seduces them. In Hungary, a Liderc is a demonic sexual predator that operates under the cover of darkness, and will appear as little more than a wispy apparition or a fiery light. Any one of these two succubus’s can be blamed for unexpected or unwanted pregnancies, especially in unmarried women, though you could argue that it might just be a convenient fabrication to avoid vicious gossip!

Some confuse the incubus with the legendary “Old Hag” syndrome, but it is not. The Old Hag episode is usually confined to a feeling of intense pressure on the chest and, as such, not an actual ghostly sexual encounter. Another difference that separates the incubus/succubus experience from the Old Hag is that the former is not always unpleasant while the Old Hag is mostly accompanied by a feeling of death, suffocation and the horrific feeling of fighting for your life.

Because the incubus and succubus are generally experienced during the sleep state or in between it, most experts feel that it is an imaginary experience and not a real one. However, telling this to the person who has just had this eerily erotic experience, they may find that hard to believe, as to them it feels as real as actual sexual intercourse itself.

Nobody can really say for sure if these events are real or imagined, but until you’ve experienced an actual sexual assault by an incubus or succubus yourself, it’s quite hard to form a solid opinion one way or the other.

As legend has it, in Germany parents decorate their Tannenbaums on Christmas Eve. The last ornament hung is die Weinachtsgurke-a delicate glass ornament in the shape of a pickle. This is a significant ornament, for the next morning the children will rush in to open their gifts from St. Nicholas. But the festivities can not begin until one of the children locates the elusive gherkin. The one who finds it gets to open the first gift, and may even receive an extra treat for his or her effort. So the story is told here in America. Glass Christmas Pickles are a popular ornament, and usually come with the curious legend tucked or printed on the box.

The oddest part about this legend is that it is virtually unknown in Germany. Nobody knows where it came from, or who started it. Well known is the fact that the decorating of Christmas Trees with lights, ornaments, and tinsel originated in Germany, but unless the Pickle Tradition was practiced in a remote region of the fatherland, it is likely that the legend was created at least in part by Americans, perhaps of German descent. There are several stories floating around about how the tradition may have started.

One rumor tells of a Bavarian-born Union soldier fighting in the Civil War named John Lower (or perhaps Hans Lauer) who was captured and sent to prison in Georgia. In poor health and starving, the prisoner begged for just one pickle before he died. A merciful guard took pity and found him a pickle. Miraculously, John lived, and after he returned home he began the tradition of the Christmas Pickle, promising good fortune to the one who found the special ornament on Christmas Day.

If this story seems a bit stretched, there is a second story being perpetuated in Berrien Springs, Michigan, where 24% of the population report German ancestry. Residents claim that hundreds of years ago two young Spanish boys, when traveling home from boarding school one Christmas Eve, sought refuge for the night at an inn. Here they encountered a cantankerous inn-keeper who trapped them in a pickle barrel. When St. Nicholas stopped at the inn that evening he sensed their distress and tapped the barrel with his staff, magically freeing them. Whether this story is true or not, Berrien Springs calls itself The Christmas Pickle Capital of the World.

The first ornaments used by Germans to decorate Christmas Trees were fruits, particularly apples, and nuts. These, along with the evergreen tree itself, represented the certainty that life would return in the spring. In the mid-eighteen hundreds, a few enterprising individuals living in the village of Lauscha (in the present-day state of Thuringen) began selling glass ornaments. Using fruit and nut molds at first, they eventually branched out, adding thousands of molds to their repertoire: angels, bells, saints, hearts, stars, and so on. Still, there is no evidence of their having made a pickle, or of the pickle tradition ever being practiced in Lauscha or any other German village.

Wherever the legend came from, the Christmas Pickle Tradition is here to stay. Several German glass ornament makers have capitalized on the story and offer a variety of gherkins, dills and cucumbers (some even donning cheery Santa caps!), perpetuating the myth even as their German neighbors vehemently deny having ever heard of it. Whatever the origin, the tradition is sure to bring a hearty dose of Christmas cheer. And isn’t that the point?

We all know that February has long been a month of romance when candy, flowers, cards, and gifts are exchanged between loved ones. However, the true history of Valentine’s Day — and the saint for whom the day is named –is surrounded with legends and remains a mystery.

Who was this mysterious saint, and why do we celebrate this holiday?

One story suggests that the good Saint Valentine was a Roman priest who served during the third century in Rome in the days of Claudius II. One of his activities was to marry couples.

Emperor Claudius wanted to expand the size of his army. He thought that single men made better soldiers than married men, especially men with families. So, in his way of thinking, if men were not married, they would not mind joining the army. Thus, he outlawed marriage for young men.

After Claudius passed this law, Valentine, realizing the injustice of the decree, kept on performing marriage ceremonies — secretly, of course. When Valentine’s actions were discovered, Claudius ordered that he be put to death. Valentine suffered martyrdom on February 14, about the year 270 A.D. Some believe that Valentine’s Day is celebrated on that day in February to commemorate the anniversary of Valentine’s death.

There’s more to the legend. While Valentine was in jail awaiting execution, many young people came to the jail to visit him. They threw flowers and notes up to his window. They wanted him to know that they, too, believed in love. This perhaps is where the idea of sending Valentine’s flowers originated.

According to the legend, one of these young people was the prison guard’s daughter, whom Valentine befriended. On the day Valentine was to die, he left his friend a farewell message thanking her for her friendship and loyalty. The message was signed, “Love from your Valentine”, an expression that we still use today.

Even though no one knows the true Valentine’s Day history, we do know that February 14 gradually became the date for exchanging symbols of love, and St. Valentine became the patron saint of lovers. The day is celebrated by sending poems and simple gifts such as flowers, chocolates, and cards. Thus the legend of St. Valentine lives on.

Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 features a large 4 inch screen and an 8 megapixel camera. The smartphone was announced in November 2009. It hit the market in March 2010.

Display

The Xperia X10 has a 4 inch display with 480 x 854 pixels. Unlike the Google Nexus One which has a retina-scorching AMOLED display, the Xperia X10 has a plain old TFT display. Still, the display is good. Colors are bright and vivid.

Operating system

At the moment, the X10 runs an old version of Android (1.6 or Donut). An update to the newest version is expected later this year.

Camera

Sony Ericsson smartphones have always had great cameras. The X10 is no different. It has an 8 megapixel snapper that offers excellent picture quality. Smile detection works well, but face recognition is more miss than hit. There is no Xenon flash and due to the limitations of Android 1.6, the LED photo light doesn’t work as a proper flash.

Processor

The Xperia X10 has the same 1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor as the Google Nexus One. But since the Android 1.6 doesn’t support hardware acceleration, it doesn’t feel very snappy.

User Interface and browser

The Xperia X10 offers a whole new user experience, thanks to the Timescape and Mediascape interfaces. Timescape is a killer feature. It is basically an animated pile of 3D tiles. Each tile represents a particular event in your life such as a Facebook update, a tweet, an email or a photo. These tiles are arranged in the order in which they took place. Timescape lets you have your social life all in one place, but it runs a little slowly at times.

Mediascape is X10’s media player. Judging by Android standards, it is a very good application. Mediascape allows you to quickly access music, movies and photos stored on the phone or online. Right now PlayNow is the only online music service supported by Mediascape. But more plugins should arrive soon.

Connectivity

The Xperia X10 supports a range of connectivity options including quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE, Wi-Fi b/g and Bluetooth 2.1 with A2DP and file transfers. There is a microUSB port for connecting the phone to your PC. There is a also microSD memory card slot but it is not hot swappable, as you have to remove the battery to access the slot.

Other useful features include built-in A-GPS and Google Maps for local search. The smartphone also has a trial version of Wisepilot pre-installed for satellite navigation.

Verdict

The Xperia X10 has got the right hardware, but it runs a slightly outdated operating system. An update to the newest version of Android will give the phone a better chance against Nexus One and HTC Legend.

Xperia X10 specs:

Display: 4 inch TFT display with 480 x 854 pixels

Processor: 1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor

Camera: 8 megapixel camera with LED photo light

Connectivity: A-GPS, Bluetooth 2.0, WiFi, HSDPA

Battery life: 8hours talk time on 3G, 425 hours standby

There is an urban legend, or martial art myth, that seems to never go away. Even though there are those of us who write about it being a myth, or urban legend, it still pops up in various forms in different novels, movies, and television shows. I even remember it being told in one of the newer martial art documentary shows with two martial artists traveling the world to experience martial arts from many cultures. (There were two such shows, I like them both, and forget witch one added to the spread of the myth.)

So, what myth am I talking about? The famous legend that if you punch someone in the nose hard enough, you’ll drive the bones of the nose into the brain and kill the person. Sometimes it’s told with a punch, others like to say you use the palm heel smash to drive the bones up into the brain. I’ve also seen it told that you must use an upward directed blow for maximum effect and to ensure the bones go up into the brain. Another version requires two strikes, the first slam into your opponent’s nose is to break the bones, and the second blow to drive the bones into the brain.

Regardless of the way it is described, the end result is always nose bones into the brain resulting in the death of the person at the end of such a devastating technique. Unfortunately, it is a myth and it is not possible for a blow to the nose to drive bone fragments into the brain. The nose contains mostly cartilage, not bone, and there’s no direct way for this cartilage, or any small nasal bones that fracture into pieces from blunt trauma, to penetrate into the brain. It just can’t happen.

So what perpetuates this martial myth? It may be the fact that any sufficiently hard enough blow to the head can be fatal. This does not have to be to the nose, but to anywhere on the head. This is one of the reasons martial artists are instructed to protect the head at all costs when falling and when being struck at. The brain is located in the head, and it doesn’t take bone matter being driven into it to cause serious damage and even death. Any sufficiently hard blow to the head can cause brain damage and death, and it varies from individual to individual as to what makes a blow sufficiently hard enough.

So the next time you hear the martial myth of driving the nose bones into the brain, remember that it is not the bones being driven into the brain that causes death, but the fact that any significant blow can cause serious consequences to the individual being struck.

Cherokee elder and wisdom keeper, John Red Hat Duke, passed away on December 30th, 2003. He was a great spiritual leader, a man of mystery and legend, but was he Pahana?

Has Pahana of Hopi legend returned? Many believe he has, but you are invited to read the following and judge for yourself.

The Hopi have awaited three people for many, many years–for centuries. Were these three people Cherokee elder John Red Hat, his partner Dorothy (Dottie) Daigle (The Lady in White), and an anthropologist friend? Chief Mike of Oraibi accepted these three as carrying the Pahana anointing, although there is one more prophecy to be fulfilled that will validate Pahana–the small piece of sacred tablet that the White Brother took with him when he left. When he returns, it is prophesied he will bring it back with him. Hopefully, the complete write-up in the book “Red Hat’s Wisdom” will help clear up some questions, and also reveal why Elder Red Hat told me the angels wept!

Creator’s plans often seem to be complex, multi-threaded. Were the three that the Hopi have been waiting for actually just three people, or could they also be three forces? In any case, the three are identified by symbols, and legend has it that they will help the Hopi people survive when all appears hopeless, and this will occur prior to the time of the Great Purification.

These three legendary symbols are the Sun symbol, the Moha symbol (swastika), and the Red symbol. Dottie believes the Sun symbol is symbolic of Creator, the Moha symbol is symbolic of the four forces of nature which will be set in motion, air, water, earth, and fire, and the Red symbol is the Walking the Red Road spiritual path which the ancestors directed her to write. Walking the Red Road is included in the book currently available, “Red Hat Speaks.” These three forces will purify humble people and the earth, and will finally bring us to a new age of peace and harmony.

The LEGEND speaks of how it is valued at over $350,000 or probably more given the recent spike in the price of gold and it mentions how Native Americans knew of the tale of the “Cross on the Rock” as handed down by their elders. Also known as the lost treasure of Borie it is conjectured to be one of the little known caches of hidden wealth yet to be found in America in the center of a woodland paradise known as God’s Country, Potter County, USA.

Could this treasure still exist?

Intrigued by the legend I embarked upon a journey of discovery searching for the source of tale; determined that if it existed it was to be mine.

When this treasure was hidden, America was yet a vast wilderness in the 1600’s. Few other than the hardiest explorers and fur trappers had ventured further inland than the coastal colonies. However when Louis Frontenac arrived in 1672 Canada was no longer the infant colony it had been when Richelieu founded the Company of One Hundred Associates. Through the efforts of Louis XIV and Colbert it had assumed the form of an organized province and Frontenac as the new governor sought to create regulated parishes and trade opportunities from Montreal to New Orleans in “New France”. Through armed conflict Frontenac expelled English Colonists and subdued the Native Americans claiming a vast territory for France which was later marked by lead plates buried in the ground as identified by Celoron de Beinville and mapped by Father Pierre Bonnecamps, a “Jesuit Mathematician. The fur trade in particular flourished creating the wealth that Frontenac sought and the expansion of “New France” was progressing rapidly.

My research yielded that mid in the 1680’s, almost a full century before white settlers began to permanently occupy what is now Potter County, a small party of French Canadians from the fur trading establishment that belonged to Louis Frontenac and Robert Cavelier left New Orleans by boat, for the return trip to Montreal. I quickly discovered errors in the legend as recorded by others. I had been deceived in the details of the trip; most deliberately by someone desirous of keeping the secret of this treasure cache to themselves.

The original tale states [The planned route was up the Mississippi to the junction of the Ohio and then up the Beautiful River, as the Indians call it, to the Allegheny and then northward to the mouth of the Conewango near present day Warren. From that point, a short run would bring the expedition to Chautauqua Lake near the present day Jamestown, New York. From this point, the party could practically roll down hill by the way of Prendergrast Creek and then home free by the way of Lake Erie into Lake Ontario and Northward to Montreal. Nearly the entire trip would be made by water, without the danger of long overland, backbreaking portages.]

I soon came to learn that a trip down the Mississippi was a one way ticket in the late 1600’s. A folly to think that one could pull rafts or paddle canoes counter current for over 3000 miles back to Montreal in an expeditious manner through a hostile and unsettled wilderness! The return trips were always accomplished by means of sailing ships from the port of New Orleans to the port of Baltimore and then by ascending the Susquehanna River in canoe to the West Branch and Sinnemahonning Rivers and onward to Jamestown N.Y., up the Great Lakes to Montreal. The rivers were the highways of the 1600-1700’s with the only trails being those of the Native Americans; roads had yet to be created in any of the interior colonies.

[And so the coureur de bois left New Orleans on rafts loaded with provisions and a number of small kegs, each of which were loaded with gold coins covered with a thin film of gunpowder, and anchored securely to the crude log transports by means of ropes and iron nails. The gold was to be delivered to His Most Gracious Majesty’s Royal Governor in Montreal, (Gov. Frontenac) and the party was instructed to guard the valuable cargo with their lives. Under no circumstances was it to fall into the hands of the English, the Americans nor the hated Senecas, who were always at war with the French. ]

The party made the uneventful trip around the tip of Florida and up the East Coast of America to the Chesapeake Bay and began the second leg and more arduous portion of their journey. The Susquehanna River a relatively shallow body of water snakes languidly through Pennsylvania interspersed with white water and rapids that are known to wreak havoc on Northward voyages depending upon the season. The hazards of ascending rapids, portaging small waterfalls and evading hostile Indians through Pennsylvania’s Wyoming area were well documented. As the rivers narrowed avoiding Indians became increasingly impossible. Greatly outnumbered and pursued through the wilderness the Frenchmen became increasingly wary realizing that they had become the prey in much more than a cat and mouse game along the West Branch River.

With position fixed and mapped by the Jesuits the exasperated Frenchmen buried their treasure for safe keeping near the confluence of two rivers deciding that it was safer to secret it temporarily and return for it with a larger expeditionary force than to risk losing their lives and the treasure to the Seneca war party. The exact spot of the treasure was marked by the Jesuits by chiseling a large cross into the rock beneath which it lay.

The Jesuits led by Étienne da Carheil, well educated as a mathematician, religious scholar and cartographer and Father Ernest Laborde determined to stay behind to decoy and convert the savages to Christianity as the voyagers proceeded under cover of darkness up the Sinnemahoning River and onto New York eluding their enemies and escaping to Montreal.

Louis Frontenac was recalled back to France shortly after his fur trading party arrived in Montreal; unable to get to his money, and Cavelier died in 1687 at one of the trading outposts that he had helped to establish.

Frontenac returned to Quebec in the autumn of 1689, just after the Iroquois massacred the people of Lachine and just before they descended upon those of La Chesnaye. The universal mood was one of terror and despair. Quelling the warring redmen and securing his outposts from English squatters led Frontenac on a military campaign that lasted several years. Upon his victory he immediately sent solders to the Pennsylvania wilds to get his gold. With his health declining Louis Frontenac was unable to accompany his men and on the 28th of November 1698 Frontenac died at the Château St Louis. His fortune now destined to remain in the ground.

Frontenac’s enemies were fond of saying that he used his position to make illicit profits from the fur trade. Beyond question he traded to some extent, but it would be harsh to accuse him of venality or peculation on the strength of such evidence as exists. There is a strong probability that the king appointed him in the expectation that he would augment his income from sources which lay outside his salary. As a member of the King’s Court it was expected that to undertake such a desolate appointment in the new world it would go unsaid that any riches that could be garnered would be one’s to keep. Public opinion varies from age to age regarding the latitude which may be allowed a public servant in such matters. Under a democratic régime the standard is very different from that which has existed, for the most part, under autocracies in past ages. Frontenac was a man of distinction who accepted an important post at a small salary. We may infer that the king was willing to allow him something from perquisites. If so, his profits from the fur trade become a matter of degree. So long as he kept within the bounds of reason and decency, the government raised no objection. Frontenac certainly was not a governor who pillaged the colony to feather his own nest. If he took profits, they were not thought excessive by anyone except Duchesneau who was Frontenac’s rival in the King’s court who had been snubbed for the position of Governor. The king had recalled Frontenac not because he was venal, but because he was quarrelsome and returned him upon realizing that he was precisely the correct man for the job.

Native Americans knew of the rock and conjecturing as to its significance created their legend to explain its existence.

Near Keating until the railroad was built in 1901, could be seen the “Cross on the Rock” a great natural wonder a perfect cross of heroic proportions carved on a rock along the river. Fortunately an excellent photograph of the remarkable natural curiosity is in existence since it since has sloughed away.

Preface: ‘Temples and places of pilgrimage in India have a rich legacy of myriad stories and legends associated with them,’ wrote Colonel James Todd in his tome, ‘Annals and antiquities of Rajasthan’.

Since this temple is in Rajasthan’s Sikar district, the aforementioned quote assumes greater relevance. Todd wrote exclusively on and about Rajasthan, the erstwhile Rajputana.

This temple is dedicated to Barbareek- grandson of Bhim (one of the five Pandavas) and son of Ghatotkach. He was invincible (Ajey/Aparajey). He’d the blessing/boon that none on earth could defeat him.

He gifted away his head when Krishna asked for it. Then Krishna gave him the boon that he (Barbareek) would be known in Kaliyug with the prefix of His (Lord Krishna) name. Therefore, it’s Khatushyam. The cut head of Barbareek witnessed the Kurukshetra from a vantage point.

After the battle of Kurukshetra, his head was buried and later found near Sikar in Rajasthan.

It’s said that ‘SHEESH KA DAANI’ (because he gave away his head gleefully) Khatushyam grants every wish of his devotees.

People come to have his darshan from all corners of the country. Years ago, Kadambini, a HT publication, carried an article based on the importance of Khatushyam temple and how devotees return home fully satisfied after taking the darshan of this deity.

One old lady was suffering from an inoperable brain tumour. She was from Mathura. Her son and daughter-in-law came to have a darshan along with that old lady and they prayed aloud that the old woman be cured of her inoperable brain tumour. The other devotees were witness to that spectacle. She began to feel relieved from that very day and within a month her tumour disappeared. Her name was Shyamlata and she gave interviews to Dharmyug and Saptahik Hindustan (both defunct) about this miracle.

One more chamatkar took place when a poor mother prayed for her child suffering from bone TB. He too got cured within a fortnight.

Those suffering from incurable diseases, often visit this temple and the miracles happen in their lives.

But it’s said that Khatushyam grants only genuine wishes and punishes those who want harm to befall someone/others.

Since Barbareek was a great warrior and full of valour and he was grandson of Mahabali Bhim and son of Ghatotkach, the wrestlers visit this temple to seek Khatushyam’s blessings. They get more power and strength of muscles. Some even call him ‘Pahalvaanon ke isht dev.’

Khatushyam ji is also known as ‘God of Rain’. Since Rajasthan experiences relatively less and little rains esp. in that region where the temple is situated, invoking his name often brings welcome showers.

In a nutshell, Khatushyam has a great following all across the country and the temple attracts scores of devotees every day. Khatu Shyam mandir timings for devotees at Khatu Shyam Ji Temple are between 5:30 to 21:00 in winter and in summer from 4:30 to 22:00.

Sikar is not very far from Jaipur and the temple is pretty accessible to the devotees and pilgrims. Those visiting Rajasthan, should earmark it as a place to visit on their trip.

He was born in Lagos state, but grew up in Abeokuta, Ogun state. He came from a poor home and at the age of five he was sent to their family compound at Abeokuta where he grew up with his paternal Grand father “The Balogun of Ijaiye” at that time. He attended Okeona United primary school and Abeokuta Grammar school. He was a beneficiary of the free primary education propelled by the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo. and also a UAC scholarship. He grew up in an environment where he haunted in the bush, caught crabs and fish from the streams, and ate fruits. There was tolerance in the community where he grew up despite the religious differences. He took part in all the festivals and grew up with the Yoruba culture.

The only thing that kept him company were literary books and he found almost everything he needed in D.O.Fagunwa’s “The Hunter saga”, having also read “Forest of a thousand demons” by the same author. The “Yoruba Travelling Theatre” thrived during that period and he watched the original cast of the “Palmwine drinkard” at Orisesan Hall in Ibadan. He believes that adopting a foreign language and culture puts you at a disadvantage since you can’t be better in another person’s language. He attended the London Film school between 1976 and 1978 where he learnt the “Art and Technique of Film making”.

Having returned from London he wanted to produce an adaptation of Adebayo Faliti’s “Father Michael’s dilemma” and therefore partnered with the author with a budget of N85,000. The money was raised but the movie failed to make the desired impact. He remained undeterred and forged on ahead to produce more movies which subsequently culminated in to hit movies. He worked on various projects with late Herbert Ogunde, Ola Balogun, and Bruce Beresford who directed “Mister Johnson”, (which was partly shot in Nigeria). He operates a Mobile cinema project in partnership with Unicef and runs Mainframe productions which he founded in 1992. The company operates to document our oral traditions via movies before it disappears forever in the face of modern adversity.

He was once in Holland and in an interview he was asked to select from six things ranging from books, videos to music and others, something that he thought was really exceptional. He chose Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s opera “Jesus Christ super star” because he couldn’t get it out of his head how some people could tell the story of the last seven days of Jesus Christ on earth in an opera which comprised of all the musical genre.

He has produced commercials (First bank, Bagco super sack, Equitorial trust bank, Amstel malta, lotus body cream, sunola, satis, walls ice cream and a lot more), documentaries on festivals (Mbaise new yam festival, the Kano Durbar, Okosi festival, Olojo festival, Argungu festival). He has certainly carved a niche for himself and has become a household name. When i once asked him what advice he had for “want to be celebrities” in acting, directing and other spheres of movie production he simply said

“Just stay true to your dreams once you’ve decided that is what you want to do in life. Make sure you have a good education and you have passion and desperation for what you want to do. Forget the glamour, it’s going to be a lot of hard work. Only the most desperate will be successful. acquire skills, remain focused. Let your passion and dedication drive you.”

He’s been involved in various movie productions as the cinematographer/director such as: Ireke onibudo, Efunsetan, Vigilanter, Iya ni wura, Ogun Ajaye, Mosebolatan, kannakanna, Eri okan, Ti oluwa nile, Ayo ni mo fe, koseegbe, Oleku, A place called home, The White handkerchief, Twins of the rain forest, Saworoide, Thunderbolt, A barber’s wisdom, Agogoeewo, The Campus queen, The Narrow path, Abeni, Arugba.

J. Earl Shoaff is truly has an inspirational story of rags-to-riches. Nicknamed The Millionaire Maker, J. Earl Shoaff created an empire called the Nutri-Bio Corporation and became a millionaire in only four short years.

Born March 21, 1916, J. Earl Shoaff came from a poor farming family. During the Great Depression while he was in the ninth grade, he decided to drop out of school so he could work and contribute financial support to his family. Shoaff was born with a heart condition and when he became old enough his service was denied by the military during World War II. Instead J. Earl Shoaff decided to become a medical volunteer with the American Field Services. His role was an ambulance driver and medical corpsmen; positions that required him to be in constant combat duty. Unfortunately, these roles would cause permanent damage that would lead to his premature death later in his life.

From the day he was born, he was not expected to survive because of his heart troubles. As he settled into adulthood he decided to adopt a personal motto: “Earl, live each day as though it were your last due to the fact inside your condition, currently might be all you have!” And Earl did just that. Starting out as an “average joe” he took into business what he learned in his former life on the farm: weeds, reaping, sowing and tending gardens. Before his death at the age of 49, J. Earl Shoaff was the head of several corporations and was an inspirational speaker that changed countless of lives.

Not a whole lot more is known about the life of Shoaff, The Millionaire Maker. However, anyone who has studied the success of Shoaff has heard of Jim Rohn. J. Earl Shoaff was a personal mentor to Rohn, who is now very wealthy and successful himself. Rohn has made it his mission to share with the world just how much Shoaff changed his life. Just like Shoaff, Rohn also came from a humble background. So what was the secret that made J. Earl Shoaff and Jim Rohn millionaires?

Shoaff being a public speaker shared his message with millions. And thankfully one of those speeches was recorded and discovered in California. The audio is called How to Become a Millionaire by J. Earl Shoaff. The How to Become a Millionaire CD is the only recording from The Millionaire Maker himself. Even though the speech is from 1962, it is still changing lives today. Everyone wants wealth. Struggling year after year to make ends meet isn’t living – it’s surviving. If you want stop surviving and finally live, you need the How to Become Millionaire audio. The actual words, message and voice from Millionaire Maker – who made it, despite all the odds against him; this can be your life too. If you want success, then you must follow those who have been successful. For over four decades, the words of J. Earl Shoaff still hold true today and after four decades, he is still changing lives.