day 34

beach blanket babylon 1

No, Beach Blanket Babylon (BBB) isn't California. But almost. BBB was the hors d'oeuvres at the recently held Silicon Valley Business and Leadership conference held in the Amphitheater at Mountain View, California. The main course was Rich Little (a kind of Comedian), Henry Kissinger (a kind of Nobel Laureate), Jack Kemp (the next Vice President?), Ann Richards (Ex-Governor of Texas), Richard Dreyfuss (Oscar Winner and Failing Movie Star), Rosabeth Moss Kanter (Harvard Business School Author), John Naisbitt (Author and Futurist), Larry King (Schlock Interviewer for CNN), Ed McCracken (Head Cheese at SGI), Becky Morgan (Head Cheese of Joint Venture Silicon Valley), and Gilbert Amelio (New Cheese at Apple Computer). But, first, the music. BBB is SV's fab stunt-music group, a kind of San Francisco version of Manhattan Transfer but with a sharper wit. Their trademark is big hats. Dressed in Planter's Peanut suits or "Best Little Whore House in Texas" outfits, the BBB does renditions of Dolly Parton, Aretha Franklin, Minnie Perl, and Willie Nelson. When they belt out "R.E.S.P.E.C.T." it's better than the original. Getting up at 4am to beat the freeway traffic, I arrived at the amphitheater just as 2,000 business and education leaders were elbowing each other through the gate. Dressed in business-samurai garb, eager to find out what the great thinkers of our time have to say about technology, most came from SGI, Sun, and other companies within a stone's throw of the Amphitheater. There it is: a genuine SV happening. SV leaders, hungry for feedback. How are we doing? What do Henry Kissinger and Richard Dreyfuss think about computers? Tomorrow I reveal some hi-tech thoughts from the best minds of the country. Dial in and find out what they said.

Daily Dose Index