Is genius born or created?  By now everyone has read, or at least heard, about how Steve Jobs dropped out of Reed College and went on to become the cofounder of Apple and one of the most important entrepreneurs of our time.  Perhaps less known is the fact that Jobs continued to audit classes at Reed.  He actually credited a calligraphy course he took as having a major impact on the Mac.  When I was taking a shuttle from the San Francisco airport to my hotel out in Walnut Creek, I had a midnight conversation with a businessman who had read the biography on Jobs and told me about how the computer genius’ interest in art was fundamental to his vision for building a successful brand.

Back in September, Flavorwire posted an article called “10 Famous Authors Who Dropped Out of School.”  This is what they wrote about Jack Kerouac:

Sometimes you can just wake up in the mood for some Beatnik poetry.

We want to hear that wa-dee-ya cry from that broken saxophone on the dusty radio . . .the wisha-wish-washish from the pipe in my basement sink . . . that shining reverie from that crusty Madonna posing as some telephone operator on the other end of this plastic cup. . .

Something like that, right? But even better (though I’m gonna give it up for myself on that one)!

Check out this clip from the classic not to be forgotten 1958 film “High School Confidential” starring Russ Tamblyn, John Drew Barrymore and Mamie Van Doren (to name a few). The film was meant to be an expose on the horrifying beat generation and their libertine ways infiltrating every dark corner of the American Dream! And GASP! Your children ! ! ! EEK!

{Mamie Van Doren…