Ye Olde Businesse Carde...

Actually this is my NEW business card that I designed today. 

I'll be working like a madwoman in my studio this week to churn out fresh merch for an upcoming art fair. More "deets" about that later in the week.  So stay tuned!

 

What you should do in your kitchen...

Film Pick...All About Eve

I saw this film for the first time this year and loved it. It's a wonderfully entertaining story about a worshipful theatre fan, Eve Harrington, played by Anne Baxter. I don't want to give away any more of the plot because it's full of little twists and turns - you should just see it for yourself. And Bette Davis is fantastic as Margo Channing, the fiery but vulnerable actress who's afraid she may be over the hill. I find her fascinating to watch in general. She always seems so at ease in her skin and completely natural, like she's not acting at all. 

Black Friday Board Game...

Hey look! It's your favorite Black Friday Board Game!

Class Struggle!!

But according to the box, if you're over 80 years old, forget it. 

SORRY! 

I bought this game at a flea market. I thought it would be a hilarious thing to have lying around the house. I tried to figure out how to play it once, but gave up while reading the instructions, which are 24 pages long, single spaced. 

It looks like fun in a bun though.

Don't it?

A Pilgrim's Invitation...

My Turkey Pinata

I finally finished it!! 

My turkey pinata is done and I filled it with...  stuffing, mashed potatoes, and gravy!!! So what if it makes a huge mess. That's part of the fun. 

Happy Thanksgiving!

Minicomic gem...'Magic Johnson' by Nick Sumida

I bought this one a while ago, at the now-closed and much-missed 'Happy Birthday Mike Leslie' store in Worcester, MA. 

The cover is a work of art, literally. It's silkscreened on heavy print stock. I really like Nick Sumida's drawing style. There's a sense of freedom and a slightly crazed, childlike quality to it, while at the same time it's obvious that he's a highly skilled artist. Plus the writing's great. I especially enjoyed the comic documentary, "Imelda Marcos, A Short History." Check it out!

Pick your favorite monkey!

What are you waiting for??? See survey to the right!

Do it today!!

Minicomics!

Yay!!

I'm not sure what I love most about minicomics...probably the homespun, indpendent spirit that goes into them. 

Plus they're beautiful objects. You can usually find a colorful pile of them in any corner of my house. 

I'm going to start reviewing minicomics as a regular feature on this blog. So if you or someone you know has a minicomic they'd like me to cover, send 'em my way!

Gettin' Buttons...

I'm going to be making some buttons soon and rather than invest in a button-maker at this time, I'm planning to use a company that I've used in the past, Busy Beaver Button Co. They do a great job and the instructions and templates on their website make it very easy to design custom buttons. 

I also want one of their button-o-matic button vending machines. 

I'm thinking that I could invest in a button-maker, install a button-o-matic on my front lawn, and then sit back and rake in the millions from all the sales (when I'm on break from all the button-making). 

The Busy Beaver Button Co. often hosts button contests, which they announce on their blog.

Check it out!

I Hate Thanksgiving...

Minicomic 

Preview!!

My "I Hate Thanksgiving" minicomic is a delightfully vehement rant that injects some much-needed spice into this bland holiday.

Available on this blog soon.

So stay tuned!

Richard O'Sullivan, the actor...

Yesterday's blog post was a hoax...

It was actor, Richard O'Sullivan, in disguise, the whole time. 

I regret to inform you that there is no such recording artist as 'Blake.'  

Both Richard and Blake wish to apologize for all of the phoney CD's they sold as a result of this hoax. 

Blake's new album...

The CD is available EXCLUSIVELY on this website!!

Only $13.74

Includes shipping and tax.

Place your orders now!

Don't take this special offer for granted!

Pushing the envelope...

This is another gem from my archive of 1960's greeting cards. If you can believe it, I actually had to erase the greeting that was originally there because it was too racy for this "PG" blog, and write "Hi there!" in its place. This card makes me laugh because it's so stupid and I can't help but wonder the following:

1) Why would someone create a card with this hideous character on it and then pair it with a racy greeting? Did they think it was funny because the guy is hideous? Or did they think he was actually attractive in a nontraditional way?

2) Then, why would someone actually BUY this card? And yes, someone apparently did buy it, but never gave it away, and it eventually found its way to an auction, in a large box of cards that I then bought. So it may be a relief to know that the person who bought it never actually gave it to anyone, but then you have to wonder, 

3) Did that person always have in the back of their mind, "AAAAH!!! WHEN AM I GOING TO FIND THE PERFECT OCCASION IN WHICH TO PRESENT THAT BEAUTIFUL CARD WITH THE SEXY GUY ON IT??!! THE ONE WHERE HE'S WINKING AND HIS HAT IS JAUNTILY ON AND HE'S SAYING SOMETHING SUGGESTIVE!!??" (and yes, they would be shouting it in their head).

Film Pick...Juliet of the Spirits

Don't watch this film for the plot (a woman struggles with her husband's infidelity and her own inner demons) - because the plot is secondary to the wonderfully bizarre imagery in this Fellini film. It's creepy but I wouldn't say it's particularly scary, although you may not want to watch it alone, really late at night, when you're really tired (like I did). Check out some clips...

Enjoy!

Friday Wild Card..."Carry on Teacher"

I've never seen this film so I don't know if it's any good (is it?). I just love the deranged children in this cover illustration...

             Check out this apparently drunk one...ADORABLE!!

...and what's the deal with this sunken-eyed, possessed looking one?

Am I going to have to buy the DVD just for this? I may have to, as it's difficult to see the detail in these images pulled from the web. 

Riding in circles...

WAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!

I've been running in circles lately so I was thinking that a merry-go-round would really come in handy. I could go a bit faster. And the circling would be that much merrier. 

I took these photos in Paris this Spring. 

Hop on!!

Supreme NTM concert poster...

I decided to throw an international flavor into the mix with this French band...

New addition...

...to my art collection...

It's "Space Ape" 

by Andy Fish!

I love it! 

Film Pick...Network

I can't believe I only saw this 1976 film for the first time last year. What took me so long?? It's now one of my favorites. 

Written by Paddy Chayefsky, directed by Sidney Lumet, starring Faye Dunaway, Peter Finch, Robert Duvall, and William Holden. The plot is hilarious. Peter Finch's Howard Beale plays a news anchor that gets laid off due to poor ratings. With two weeks left, he announces on air that he will be leaving and then threatens to shoot himself in the head (which he doesn't do). The network asks him to apologize to viewers for this outburst, which he does, but then he snaps and starts going off on a crazed, impromptu tirade about how life is "bullshit." Funnily enough, this tirade strikes a nerve with viewers and rating soar, so the network gives him a show where he just goes off on these crazed, but honest and at times very insightful rants.  

"I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore!!"

Peter Finch is brilliant in this film. I wanted to see more of his work, but I seem to recall that, oddly, very few of his films are available on Netflix. 

Press "1" to Rage Against the Machine

Well, I finished it. 

Now I will go to sleep, 

against the machine 

(coffee). 

Custom Formal Dinnerware Set...

Just in time for Thanksgiving!

A full set of 24 "Alan" place settings is now only $638.47. This includes a gravy boat!

Place your orders NOW and avoid the rush!

Alan is one of the main characters in my web-based comic parody of the TV show, The Wire. This comic is currently in hiatus but I hope to return it to this blog sometime in the next century.

Rage Against the Machine...

Rough draft design idea for a poster for the musical group, Rage Against the Machine. This would only be a portion of the poster. I'm thinking of doing it as a small run of silkscreen prints.

This band has special meaning for me. My mother used to sing me their songs in a high falsetto, to lull me to sleep when I was an infant.

A New Day...

For me, Summer ends October 31st. I'm always  a little sad on November 1st because I don't really care for winter, although the short, cold days are good for hunkering down at the drawing table. I sometimes wonder if I'd be a cartoonist if I lived in Hawaii. My guess is no. I'd probably be too busy surfing, hula dancing, making leis... 

Goodbye beautiful flowers and sunshine. I already miss you...

Photos from my various travels.