Men

.. of many talents.

I've always thought pretty highly of myself. For good reason too. I'd like to think of myself as a multi-talented individual, someone who can keep your accounts then discuss the cultural importance of Justin Bieber. No frills office worker by day, super-hero by night. Individuals meeting these kind of 'jack-of-all-trade' type descriptions are known as polymaths, or more commonly as a Renaissance man. These are the people that I most admire.

James Franco could certainly be categorised in such a way. Man, I just want to be him. Coolest guy ever? I think so. Not only is he a ridiculously good actor - playing everything from Spiderman's best friend to James Dean and just about everything in between - he's also terrific at just about everything else. 

I'll give you the quick version. He was talented in high-school at mathematics and interned at aerospace company Lockheed and Martin. Using his natural charm, wit, intelligence and good looks he makes his way successfully in the film industry, becoming a star in his own right. Unhappy with being a one-trick-pony, he enrolled at UCLA in 2006 and finished his accelerated BA in English within 2 years with a GPA of 3.5 all while acting. He then moved to New York to simultaneously complete his MFA at Columbia University, attend NYU's school for filmmaking, Brooklyn College for fictional writing and Warren Wilson College for poetry. He received his MFA from Columbia in 2010 and enrolled at Yale University to study his Ph.D in English while also attending Rhode Island School of Design. As of the 15th of April this year, he was also accepted into the University of Houston's Ph.D program in literature and creative writing in 2012. While doing all this, he's also been teaching at NYU among several other colleges. To go with this, he's an accomplished painter with his first European exhibit being held in January, he released his first book (a collection of short stories) earlier this year, face of Gucci's men's fragrance line, presenting at the Academy Awards and voted Sexiest Man Living by Salon.com. Imagine what he could accomplish if he wasn't stoned out of his mind 50% of the time. I'll say it again. Coolest guy ever. EVER.

I was supposed to talk about Ben Stein as well.. but he can wait for another day.