From The Dentist's Chair to El Kah Brohn

August 11, 2011

About a year ago, I was sitting in a dentist's chair staring out the window at a pale gray sky while the scraping sounds of the ever present suction tube forced me to pay attention to what I was seeing.

I came home that day and attempted to capture that sky. Laid down a subtle wash, holding back and trying to be extra subtle, then set it aside.

I found that wash last weekend and decided it was time to do something with it. Having just been to Ed Mell's house on Sunday I was inspired by several paintings, most notably a subtle watercolor of the Grand Canyon by master Gunnar Widforss. As I marvelled at the subtle tones, I made a mental note to myself: "Stop overworking washes. Stay SUBTLE, dammit."

This morning, working from an old photograph of model Flint Carny, I boldly laid in the figure of a Mexican bandit without any aids or tracing paper. Got some decent stuff going, but had to quit about 8:40 and head into the office.

Worked on Classic Gunfights (Doc's Deadly Impulse) and a new department, "Artists We Love." Called The Phippen, Dave Powell, Ed Mell and Buckeye Blake to talk about images.

Went home for lunch and pulled out the stops. About half way in, the outlaw spoke to me: "They call me Kah, or, they call me Brohn, but nobody calls me El Kah Brohn to my face."

El Kah Bron It Is

We sent a copy of our latest issue with the cover story on "Cowboys & Aliens: Would the Duke Approve?" to Ron Howard and his handlers rejected it without opening it: the box marked "Unsolicited" was checked on the return. Too bad. I think he would have gotten a giggle from it, assuming he's not despondent about the current box office, which come to think of it. he just might be.

"All changes are more or less tinged with melancholy, for what we are leaving behind is part of ourselves."
—Amelia E. Barr