February 27, 2007
Scrambling to catch up on the May issue which goes out the door on Thursday. The Top Secret Project has totally consumed my time for the past three weeks and now I need to get back in harness. Feels good. Worked on the Joe Grant vs. Billy the Kid shooting this morning. Need to do several pieces of art.

And speaking of Billy the Kid, the big Paul Hutton curated Billy show in Albuquerque is coming up in May and I got in the mail a release form for my 30-some pieces, this morning.

When I was doing the True Grit voice commentary for the DVD a couple months ago, the producer gave me copies of Hal Wallis' hand written production notes and I got to looking at them last night, and it is pretty amazing. For example, Robert Duvall got $4,500 for his work in the movie and Dennis Hopper got $1,500. Jay Sliverheels (note says, "Indian @ hanging") got $850 for a week's work. Jeremy Slate got $15,000 (triple Duvall's fee and double what Darby and Campbell got!!). Of the three big stars, John Wayne got $75K (and the note says "+%"), Glen Campbell got $6,250 as did Kim Darby.

The building of the rocks for the snake pit that Darby falls into at the end cost $400 which included the mold and cast. According to the Wallis notes, bad weather cost them $49,137 and the crew evidently consisted of "71 men—4 Sundays @ 11 hours" plus "2 regular days at 11 hours" came to $40,115, for a LOC total of $171,840, with the Hal Wallis notation next to it, "$86 under bud." Ha. Really some low numbers, but it was, after all, 1968.

Another Larry Gonick gem from New York. When he heard we were doing a graphic novel he said, "I've got three words for you: Fourteen-point-type." Ha. He's referring to the large type needed for the reading ability of the average graphic novel reader. I think he meant it as hyperbole, but it is true that comic readers prefer larger type. Most magazines are at 9 or 10 point, so 14 point is pretty large.

Plus, two elevator stories from New York. On Wednesday I was riding down the elevator at the New York Athletic Club and we stopped on one floor and a very New York style woman got on, took one look at me and remarked, "We have Canadian Mounties now?" My reply, looking straight ahead: "No ma'am, Arizona Rangers." She had no idea what I was talking about, but it made me happy.

On another descent, a haughty, patrician of a gent got on and I said, "Good morning," and he looked at me like I was complete pond scum and turned his back to me, his neck bristling with contempt all the way down. I have to say, I don't miss that "class" aspect to the Big Apple. At least when people look at me with contempt out here on the desert, I know who they are and can respond in kind, "Honey, now stop it. Kids, I know you're kidding."

Onion Headline de Jour
Motley Crue Signs Sexual-Harrassment Guarantee

"Forgiveness is the fragrance the violet sheds on the heel that has crushed it."
—Mark Twain