The Memory Works, LLC

Marion & Roger Johnson- Our Story

 

My love of storytelling began when I was a young girl growing up in Jackson, a small town on the west side of Tennessee. Though my parents and grandparents often told me about their childhoods, I didn't find those stories interesting then. Instead, I preferred yarns about the Civil War relics hidden deep in the well at the back of my grandparents' farm, or stories of the ghost of "Pee-Paw," my legendary great-grandfather, whose screams supposedly echoed through the woods of the family farm in the middle of the night. I loved dramatic stories, like the ones I read in novels and watched on the big screen.

 

Following my heart after graduating from college, I relocated to California and eventually carved out a career in the Hollywood film industry. During my twenty-year film journey, I worked as an editor, script supervisor, and story analyst on major Hollywood feature films and network television shows. I still enjoyed dramas.

 

On the day I buried my father, however, I came to understand the importance of family stories. A physician and surgeon, my father stopped practicing medicine when he was in his late fifties, due to illness. Although he had been away from Jackson more than twenty-five years, 180 townspeople paid their respects at the funeral home, and over fifty attended his funeral. After the service a number of people, many of whom I did not know, told me stories about my father, what a wonderful doctor he had been, how he had cured them of this or that, how much he had loved his young family.

 

Suddenly, I realized how much I had not known about my father, would never know, because I had not taken the time to record his story.

 

Cut to October 1998: While reading the Sunday Los Angeles Times, I came across an article about the Association of Personal Historians (APH), a trade organization of professionals dedicated to the preservation of life stories and family histories in books and on video. The article mentioned the group's next conference would be held in Santa Ana, California, in November.

 

Maybe this is the answer, I thought. I'm signing up. I had grown tired of the long hours and stress of film production by 1996, and I wanted a more manageable career. Believing I would find that by studying what I was most drawn to, I began taking classes in journalism and graphic design at UCLA. I worked as a stringer, meanwhile, writing for a small newspaper in Brentwood and another in Beverly Hills. Journalism didn't seem the right "fit" for me, though.

 

My trip to Santa Ana was a turning point. After three days at the conference, I knew personal storytelling would be my path. I had learned through experience the importance of preserving life-stories. And helping others to do so would enable me to use the best of my talents and skills. I was thrilled!

 

I met many wonderful people at the APH Conference that year. One of them, Lettice Stuart of Portraits in Words, became my mentor. I owe much of my success in the personal history business to Lettice. She has been so supportive and kind.

 

Career changes often beg for a change of scenery. So in 1999, my husband, Roger, and I decided to make a permanent move to Sedona, Arizona, where I founded my personal history business, The Memory Works, later that year. I worked alone those first two years, writing and producing books. By 2001, I convinced Roger to join me in the business, and we added video production to our list of services. The result of that partnership was The Memory Works, LLC.

 

Like-minded in so many ways, Roger and I were immediately drawn to each other when we met on a film set in the late 1980s. A native Californian, Roger was working as a video-technician on feature films, recording takes and doing on-the-set video editing. His film job required extensive technical knowledge of computers, video and film equipment, but Roger was no ordinary "techie". He was an artist through and through. In a previous career, he had been a successful studio musician, a lead guitar player, with Seals & Crofts, the Sanford Townsend Band, and many other artists. When he tired of touring in the early 1980s, Roger began his new career in film production. Today, after twenty years of work in the movie industry, he is an expert visual storyteller.

 

We are a perfect fit. Our combined skills make The Memory Works, LLC, an excellent choice for those who want to preserve their stories. We strive to create a perfect fit with each of our clients as well. Make the smart choice… Contact us now.