When I was a film student at Syracuse University in the 1970s, I was lucky enough to be matched with a mentor; a working professional with TV, theatre and movie credits going back to Playhouse 90. He mentored me as I worked on an original…

Why insert college here? What a great question. It sounds so humble (Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, why do you want to pay $60,000 to walk into mine?) But if you listen carefully, there’s a hint of King Lear: Which of you shall we say doth love us most?

The winter I was five, my parents and I drove to Connecticut to buy a puppy my mother had found in the newspaper. The dog seemed fine to me, but what really got my attention was the family’s Christmas tree. Smothered with tinsel and lights and smelling like heaven, it dominated their cozy…