Went home for lunch just in time to catch this female saguaro in the front yard blooming like crazy. Really gorgeous with her white blooming flowers. The Palo Verde trees bloom in April and the saguaros and the ocotillos usually follow in May:
Tuesday, May 08, 2007
May 8, 2007
Received a packet via "Royal Mail" yesterday. Inside I found three issues of Illustration magazine, a high gloss pub from England. The latest issue features a four-page piece on my artwork, with special notice going to my "scraperboard" work. The Brits call scratchboard scraperboard. The piece was written by David Ashford.
You can check them out at www.illustration-mag.com
Last week I glanced through a CGII looking for an image we needed for the magazine, and I was taken with how the scraperboard, I mean scratchboard, pieces worked much better than the gouache (opaque watercolor) stuff. And the irony is I haven't touched a scratchboard in several months. So even when I do six sketches a day, I still have a tendency to get rusty on one of my fave mediums. Oh, well.
Our Features Editor Mark Boardman flew in on Sunday night and is here all week, helping us get July out the door. He's also working on August stories which helps Meghan get a leg up.
Yesterday, Abby finished the full page Hugh O'Brian ad for The Cowboy Chronicle. I named the painting "Hugh O'Brian: Long May His Story Be Told," and the ad came out rather nice.
I also spent most of yesterday tweaking the Gage Train Robbery shootout for July's Classic Gunfights. Need to do several pieces of art to finish. Deadline is Thursday.
Onion Headline de Jour: Special Boomer Edition
Son, You'll Always Remember Your First Time, Because I'm Going To Film It
"The greatest thing in this world is not so much where we stand, as in what direction we are moving."
—Goethe
Received a packet via "Royal Mail" yesterday. Inside I found three issues of Illustration magazine, a high gloss pub from England. The latest issue features a four-page piece on my artwork, with special notice going to my "scraperboard" work. The Brits call scratchboard scraperboard. The piece was written by David Ashford.
You can check them out at www.illustration-mag.com
Last week I glanced through a CGII looking for an image we needed for the magazine, and I was taken with how the scraperboard, I mean scratchboard, pieces worked much better than the gouache (opaque watercolor) stuff. And the irony is I haven't touched a scratchboard in several months. So even when I do six sketches a day, I still have a tendency to get rusty on one of my fave mediums. Oh, well.
Our Features Editor Mark Boardman flew in on Sunday night and is here all week, helping us get July out the door. He's also working on August stories which helps Meghan get a leg up.
Yesterday, Abby finished the full page Hugh O'Brian ad for The Cowboy Chronicle. I named the painting "Hugh O'Brian: Long May His Story Be Told," and the ad came out rather nice.
I also spent most of yesterday tweaking the Gage Train Robbery shootout for July's Classic Gunfights. Need to do several pieces of art to finish. Deadline is Thursday.
Onion Headline de Jour: Special Boomer Edition
Son, You'll Always Remember Your First Time, Because I'm Going To Film It
"The greatest thing in this world is not so much where we stand, as in what direction we are moving."
—Goethe
Monday, May 07, 2007
May 7, 2007
The Deena Bean is 27 today. Doesn't seem possible. Big week. Lots of deadlines to meet. Flying to Albuquerque on Friday, then Wichita on Monday.
Worked all weekend on the Hugh O'Brian painting. Really slogged and bogged down. Started four different paintings, moving back and forth, trying to get something going. Here's one of them with all of my reference materials scattered around.
Yes, that's a small Bill the Kid portrait in the back. I have been noodling on it and keep adding a few passages when I get stuck on the big assignment (which was quite often)
Finally got a likeness of Hugh late on Saturday night. Worked all day Sunday until around four. Tweaked it this morning. Here it is in the truck, ready to take to the office for shooting. We need to get it in a house ad, and mag goes out this Thursday.
Just heard that Peter Aleshire, editor of Arizona Highways has resigned. Not sure why, but I'm sure I'll soon know.
Onion Headliner de Jour
Two Publicists, Stylist, Personal Assistant Injured As Nicole Kidman Turns On Handlers
"Liberty exists in proportion to wholesome restraint."
—Daniel Webster
The Deena Bean is 27 today. Doesn't seem possible. Big week. Lots of deadlines to meet. Flying to Albuquerque on Friday, then Wichita on Monday.
Worked all weekend on the Hugh O'Brian painting. Really slogged and bogged down. Started four different paintings, moving back and forth, trying to get something going. Here's one of them with all of my reference materials scattered around.
Yes, that's a small Bill the Kid portrait in the back. I have been noodling on it and keep adding a few passages when I get stuck on the big assignment (which was quite often)
Finally got a likeness of Hugh late on Saturday night. Worked all day Sunday until around four. Tweaked it this morning. Here it is in the truck, ready to take to the office for shooting. We need to get it in a house ad, and mag goes out this Thursday.
Just heard that Peter Aleshire, editor of Arizona Highways has resigned. Not sure why, but I'm sure I'll soon know.
Onion Headliner de Jour
Two Publicists, Stylist, Personal Assistant Injured As Nicole Kidman Turns On Handlers
"Liberty exists in proportion to wholesome restraint."
—Daniel Webster
Friday, May 04, 2007
May 4, 2007 Bonus Blog
Went home for lunch and whipped out the first "First Minnesota Charge" study. Had an old explosion board, that I was trying to develope for the Daltons raiding Coffeyville CG several years ago, but it never worked. Seems to work just fine, right here. Wanted to capture that exploding shell, screaming shrapnel moment, of the First Minnesota charging the center of the Confederate line:
Yes, I poached these flying dudes from Gettysburg which had some pretty spectacular stunts, although the charging scenes with the thousands of reenactors looked great in the long shots as the troops stretched from horizon to horizon, but the closeups were riddled with fat guys who were laughing and looking at the camera (the main problem with using reenactors). And speaking of the movie:
"I finished up on 'National Treasure 2:Book of Secrets' [Nicholas Cage] yesterday and I'm getting back into my routine...including spending time reading your blog. I read that you rented Gettysburg yesterday. I appear in that film more than all the others put together. I worked for the First AD doing the 'crosses' during the filming.....that is I would ride a horse on a predetermined path from left to right...right to left, maybe stop and talk to somebody....hand them a message...salute the officers as I rode by...all that kind of business.This normally occurs when actors are having dialog and balances out the guys on foot doing the same thing! ( I think we had 15 guys in total...North and South!) I do have one 'Hi mom' shot: When General Hancock first appears I play one of his Staff Officers. We rode up to the 'Irish Brigade' as Mass was being said and with out a word we all take off our hats. I'm on the far left riding a white horse. I borrowed it just before the scene off a guy from Illinois that owned a traveling Circus. He told me as I'm riding off...'Whatever you do, don't cue the horse as it is trained to fall down.' I was afraid I might accidently have an unpaid 'stunt' on the show....and I look preoccupied on film. I never rode that horse again."
—Jim Hatzell
Funny Jim should mention that. I was checking out random scenes last night (the film is over four hours long) and saw a pre-Pickett's Charge Confederate officers' conference and one of the horses, a white one, in the background takes a bullet and goes down. I wondered if that was a trick horse, or the horse just stumbled and they left it in. A circus horse, eh?
If I find the scene of Jim, I'll run it right here.
“The balls were whizzing so thick, that it looked like a man could hold out a hat and catch it full.”
—A Texas Confederate at Gettysburg
Went home for lunch and whipped out the first "First Minnesota Charge" study. Had an old explosion board, that I was trying to develope for the Daltons raiding Coffeyville CG several years ago, but it never worked. Seems to work just fine, right here. Wanted to capture that exploding shell, screaming shrapnel moment, of the First Minnesota charging the center of the Confederate line:
Yes, I poached these flying dudes from Gettysburg which had some pretty spectacular stunts, although the charging scenes with the thousands of reenactors looked great in the long shots as the troops stretched from horizon to horizon, but the closeups were riddled with fat guys who were laughing and looking at the camera (the main problem with using reenactors). And speaking of the movie:
"I finished up on 'National Treasure 2:Book of Secrets' [Nicholas Cage] yesterday and I'm getting back into my routine...including spending time reading your blog. I read that you rented Gettysburg yesterday. I appear in that film more than all the others put together. I worked for the First AD doing the 'crosses' during the filming.....that is I would ride a horse on a predetermined path from left to right...right to left, maybe stop and talk to somebody....hand them a message...salute the officers as I rode by...all that kind of business.This normally occurs when actors are having dialog and balances out the guys on foot doing the same thing! ( I think we had 15 guys in total...North and South!) I do have one 'Hi mom' shot: When General Hancock first appears I play one of his Staff Officers. We rode up to the 'Irish Brigade' as Mass was being said and with out a word we all take off our hats. I'm on the far left riding a white horse. I borrowed it just before the scene off a guy from Illinois that owned a traveling Circus. He told me as I'm riding off...'Whatever you do, don't cue the horse as it is trained to fall down.' I was afraid I might accidently have an unpaid 'stunt' on the show....and I look preoccupied on film. I never rode that horse again."
—Jim Hatzell
Funny Jim should mention that. I was checking out random scenes last night (the film is over four hours long) and saw a pre-Pickett's Charge Confederate officers' conference and one of the horses, a white one, in the background takes a bullet and goes down. I wondered if that was a trick horse, or the horse just stumbled and they left it in. A circus horse, eh?
If I find the scene of Jim, I'll run it right here.
“The balls were whizzing so thick, that it looked like a man could hold out a hat and catch it full.”
—A Texas Confederate at Gettysburg
May 4, 2007
Worked until 8:30 last night. Got a big, flashback sequence going on the Top Secret Project. One of the main characters in our story was at Gettysburg on July 2, 1863 and was badly wounded as his unit, The First Minnesota, charged the center of the Confederate line, sustaining the highest casualty rate of any unit in the war. I got this info from Wayne Jorgenson, who is from Minneapolis, and he found me online, came out last week and took me to El Encanto to talk about Al Sieber and the First Minnesota.
Of course, I immediately became intrigued (and obsessed) by the Gettysburg episode and pulled out all of my books on the Civil War and even put Gettysburg, the four hour movie, 1993, on my Netlix queue, got it yesterday and put the disk in my computer after work, isolating scenes I wanted to poach from. Got some good stuff, printing out a dozen stills and took them home to start my drawings. Did my six and finished at about 8:30. Long day, but my kind of fun.
Lew Jones, of Tara's Mineshaft fame, came in a few minutes ago and handed me my pocket watch in a truncated sock with a bread tie around the neck. This is the classic silver Waltham pocket watch presented to me as a gift from my staff several years ago, and it has never worked properly (someone in my house knocked it off the night stand onto a cement floor). Mike Melrose sent it to a watch guy in Iowa and he did an overhaul on it, which didn't take, then Kathy found a guy up in Carefree who took a run at fixing it, but to no avail. When Lew and Tara came to our house for dinner a couple months ago, Lew said, "Let me take that to New Mexico. I know a guy. . ."
The guy is in Alma, New Mexico, just down the road from Lew's cabin and it took him some time, but the damn watch is right here on my desk and it's still working an hour later ($60 cash).
I told Lew about the Kit Joy gunfight I'm working on and how the outlaw ended up hiding in the mountains northeast of Alma and how the law dogs couldn't get any cooperation from the locals in Catron County. We both laughed because the law still can't get any cooperation in that country. The lawmen up there know who all the drug dealers are, but they can't get a conviction because everyone is related, in love, or former neighbors. Lew told the story of a gas inspector he knows who visited a ranch and inspected the gas heater connections on the exterior of the house. The rancher rode up and said in a drawl, "You better get in your pickup and go back to where you come." He did. Ha.
Nice to know some things never change. That country around Reserve is rough, rough, rough. I'm going over to stay with Lew on my way to End of Trail in June. I offered to take the watch repairman to dinner, but Lew said, "Nah, we'll eat at my cabin. Food over there is awful."
It's a priveledge to know guys like that.
Onion Headline de Jour
Slowly Rotating Pie A Metaphor For Trucker's Failing Marriage
"Success is a lousy teacher. It seduces smart people into thinking they can't lose."
—Bill Gates
Worked until 8:30 last night. Got a big, flashback sequence going on the Top Secret Project. One of the main characters in our story was at Gettysburg on July 2, 1863 and was badly wounded as his unit, The First Minnesota, charged the center of the Confederate line, sustaining the highest casualty rate of any unit in the war. I got this info from Wayne Jorgenson, who is from Minneapolis, and he found me online, came out last week and took me to El Encanto to talk about Al Sieber and the First Minnesota.
Of course, I immediately became intrigued (and obsessed) by the Gettysburg episode and pulled out all of my books on the Civil War and even put Gettysburg, the four hour movie, 1993, on my Netlix queue, got it yesterday and put the disk in my computer after work, isolating scenes I wanted to poach from. Got some good stuff, printing out a dozen stills and took them home to start my drawings. Did my six and finished at about 8:30. Long day, but my kind of fun.
Lew Jones, of Tara's Mineshaft fame, came in a few minutes ago and handed me my pocket watch in a truncated sock with a bread tie around the neck. This is the classic silver Waltham pocket watch presented to me as a gift from my staff several years ago, and it has never worked properly (someone in my house knocked it off the night stand onto a cement floor). Mike Melrose sent it to a watch guy in Iowa and he did an overhaul on it, which didn't take, then Kathy found a guy up in Carefree who took a run at fixing it, but to no avail. When Lew and Tara came to our house for dinner a couple months ago, Lew said, "Let me take that to New Mexico. I know a guy. . ."
The guy is in Alma, New Mexico, just down the road from Lew's cabin and it took him some time, but the damn watch is right here on my desk and it's still working an hour later ($60 cash).
I told Lew about the Kit Joy gunfight I'm working on and how the outlaw ended up hiding in the mountains northeast of Alma and how the law dogs couldn't get any cooperation from the locals in Catron County. We both laughed because the law still can't get any cooperation in that country. The lawmen up there know who all the drug dealers are, but they can't get a conviction because everyone is related, in love, or former neighbors. Lew told the story of a gas inspector he knows who visited a ranch and inspected the gas heater connections on the exterior of the house. The rancher rode up and said in a drawl, "You better get in your pickup and go back to where you come." He did. Ha.
Nice to know some things never change. That country around Reserve is rough, rough, rough. I'm going over to stay with Lew on my way to End of Trail in June. I offered to take the watch repairman to dinner, but Lew said, "Nah, we'll eat at my cabin. Food over there is awful."
It's a priveledge to know guys like that.
Onion Headline de Jour
Slowly Rotating Pie A Metaphor For Trucker's Failing Marriage
"Success is a lousy teacher. It seduces smart people into thinking they can't lose."
—Bill Gates
Thursday, May 03, 2007
May 3, 2007 Bonus Blog
True West magazine has always had a very strong attraction to one of America's largest legends. Johnny Cash loved our magazine and even named an album after it (Johnny Cash Sings The Ballads of The True West, 1965), complete with accurate lyrics, like: "Right through the swinging doors John Selman/Came with a blazing gun/Wes Hardin chug-aluggin' red-eye/Got him in the back of the head/John Wesley Hardin fell dead/Hardin wouldn't run."
So it was a thrill today to receive a personal letter from Mr. Gene Ferguson, of Lewisburg, Tennessee, who wrote me the following:
"Thought this might be of interest. I retired from CBS in Nashville. I was with Johnny Cash for 30 years. I considered Joe Small a friend. Enclosed are pictures of a dinner we had in San Antonio after a Johnny Cash concert."
In the first picture, the founder and publisher of True West, Joe Small, is at left. Next to him is June Carter Cash, Mrs. Elizabeth Small, Johnny Cash, and Gene Ferguson (lighting up in background).
In the second photo, June (bottom, left) is taking a bite of what looks to be prime rib, or a filet, and Johnny is scratching his head, with Joe Small, center, and Gene Ferguson at right. The photos were taken in April of 1971.
Gene also told me Joe featured "my daughter & myself on the cover of True West, a painting, as a Christmas present. Joe sent me the original."
Pretty danged cool.
"I bought up every issue of True West, a successful magazine published in Texas and sold coast to coast."
—Johnny Cash
True West magazine has always had a very strong attraction to one of America's largest legends. Johnny Cash loved our magazine and even named an album after it (Johnny Cash Sings The Ballads of The True West, 1965), complete with accurate lyrics, like: "Right through the swinging doors John Selman/Came with a blazing gun/Wes Hardin chug-aluggin' red-eye/Got him in the back of the head/John Wesley Hardin fell dead/Hardin wouldn't run."
So it was a thrill today to receive a personal letter from Mr. Gene Ferguson, of Lewisburg, Tennessee, who wrote me the following:
"Thought this might be of interest. I retired from CBS in Nashville. I was with Johnny Cash for 30 years. I considered Joe Small a friend. Enclosed are pictures of a dinner we had in San Antonio after a Johnny Cash concert."
In the first picture, the founder and publisher of True West, Joe Small, is at left. Next to him is June Carter Cash, Mrs. Elizabeth Small, Johnny Cash, and Gene Ferguson (lighting up in background).
In the second photo, June (bottom, left) is taking a bite of what looks to be prime rib, or a filet, and Johnny is scratching his head, with Joe Small, center, and Gene Ferguson at right. The photos were taken in April of 1971.
Gene also told me Joe featured "my daughter & myself on the cover of True West, a painting, as a Christmas present. Joe sent me the original."
Pretty danged cool.
"I bought up every issue of True West, a successful magazine published in Texas and sold coast to coast."
—Johnny Cash
May 3, 2007
Working hard on finishing up the Silver City Shootout copy for the June issue. Also working on scripts for the next True West Moments, and the Hugh O'Brian painting still looms and needs to be finished this weekend.
Meanwhile, I got my lip in the wringer, over comments I made in last Sunday's Arizona Republic. I usually knock out these mini-editorials in about ten minutes and I needed a punchline, made a bad joke, and shades of the Imus Virus, I received the smackdown. Here's the first two responses:
“Hey Bob...I'm one of those ‘cadavers’ you mentioned in your Plugged In blurb yesterday! We might be one of the best kept secrets in town, but we have a lot of alive, active members and volunteers at PMOH. Why don't you consider becoming a member and a volunteer, too? Maybe you can help bring in some of the folks who should see it. We get a lot of out-of-town visitors, and they appreciate us. That was really a nasty, uncalled for dig! Don't make remarks like that when you don't know anything about us."
—Darlys zumBrunnen, a still living member and volunteer of PMOH!
"As another museum and history buff, I appreciate your mention of the Phoenix Museum of History, one of the best kept secrets in Phoenix, in the Sunday paper. And, as one of the retiree volunteers whom you've christened 'cadaver', I can only say we do our best - with the support of our walkers and hearing aids and without much support from businesses and foundations - to supplement the skeleton staff (no pun intended) in order to keep the doors open.
"History, with the exception of your magazine of course, isn't sexy or controversial enough, it sems, to glean much local support.
"They say there's no such thing as bad publicity as long as you spell the names right; so I thank you. Any other mention or help you can give us would be much appreciated by this cadaver."
—Jeanine Starrett
The Actual Plugged In Commentary
As one who loves museums, I was bummed to read that the Mesa Museum may close because of politics and lack of funding. If you're like me you may have thought, "Mesa actually has a museum?" I'm only half joking, but even those of us who love museums sometimes don't know about them, until it's too late. Last weekend my family attended the Body Worlds III Show at the Phoenix Science Museum and the place was mobbed. Of course it didn't hurt that they used actual cadavers, which gave everything a creepy realism which I personally enjoy. Afterwards we walked out into the sun to see, lo and behold, The Phoenix Museum of History, right next door, which I had never heard of. We went in and took a look, but the place was sadly empty. I think they need some cadavers, besides the ones who work there.
End of commentary and beginning of remorseful blabbing: I felt bad about the cadaver joke and apologized to three volunteers who were offended. The actual point I was making is, how do we learn from the Body Worlds phenom? The place was slammed with people of all ages when I was there and I truly wish that every museum could learn from this and be just as packed. And so, in order to talk about that I had to make a joke and, unfortunately, it came down to what I wrote. By the way, I wanted the title to be "Working Stiffs Work," which is the real lesson from the phenom if you ask me.
My managing editor, Meghan Saar and I just had a short meeting to discuss this dynamic. What is the main thing to be learned? Would the exhibit be mobbed if the bodies were models, and not cadavers? I don't think so. There is a perverse curiosity at work here. Either way it's genius.
So I apologized to the miffed employees and assured them I was trying to draw attention to their plight with a bad joke (a defense that sounds very Imus-like I must say). Yesterday, I received this email:
"Hi Bob, thank you for your apologies to some of our volunteers at PMOH. Just so this message doesn't get confusing let me introduce myself. I am president of the Board of Directors of the Phoenix Museum of History and also Curator of the Wells Fargo History Museum. Did you know Wells Fargo had a museum downtown? I'm sure you must Jana Boomersbach did an article in your magazine a few years ago about the Wells Fargo Museum.
"Sadly it takes something like your comments to get in print. We have been striving over the last several years to get PMOH to the point where we can start revamping and building new exhibits and we are at that point now. The current and future of museums is the 'Experience' factor, which also seems to cost more then static exhibits. How do you incorporate the "Experiential Experience" in history? I'm sure you have the opportunity to see many museums throughout the west. We would welcome your constructive criticism and ideas on how we can make the experience at PMOH more engaging. Let me know if you would like to get involved.
Connie J. Whalen
Curator, AVP
Wells Fargo History Museum
145 W. Adams St.
Phoenix, AZ
So I am going to join their museum. And so, they will have another cadaver aboard. Ha.
"All's well, that ends well."
—Old Vaquero Saying
Working hard on finishing up the Silver City Shootout copy for the June issue. Also working on scripts for the next True West Moments, and the Hugh O'Brian painting still looms and needs to be finished this weekend.
Meanwhile, I got my lip in the wringer, over comments I made in last Sunday's Arizona Republic. I usually knock out these mini-editorials in about ten minutes and I needed a punchline, made a bad joke, and shades of the Imus Virus, I received the smackdown. Here's the first two responses:
“Hey Bob...I'm one of those ‘cadavers’ you mentioned in your Plugged In blurb yesterday! We might be one of the best kept secrets in town, but we have a lot of alive, active members and volunteers at PMOH. Why don't you consider becoming a member and a volunteer, too? Maybe you can help bring in some of the folks who should see it. We get a lot of out-of-town visitors, and they appreciate us. That was really a nasty, uncalled for dig! Don't make remarks like that when you don't know anything about us."
—Darlys zumBrunnen, a still living member and volunteer of PMOH!
"As another museum and history buff, I appreciate your mention of the Phoenix Museum of History, one of the best kept secrets in Phoenix, in the Sunday paper. And, as one of the retiree volunteers whom you've christened 'cadaver', I can only say we do our best - with the support of our walkers and hearing aids and without much support from businesses and foundations - to supplement the skeleton staff (no pun intended) in order to keep the doors open.
"History, with the exception of your magazine of course, isn't sexy or controversial enough, it sems, to glean much local support.
"They say there's no such thing as bad publicity as long as you spell the names right; so I thank you. Any other mention or help you can give us would be much appreciated by this cadaver."
—Jeanine Starrett
The Actual Plugged In Commentary
As one who loves museums, I was bummed to read that the Mesa Museum may close because of politics and lack of funding. If you're like me you may have thought, "Mesa actually has a museum?" I'm only half joking, but even those of us who love museums sometimes don't know about them, until it's too late. Last weekend my family attended the Body Worlds III Show at the Phoenix Science Museum and the place was mobbed. Of course it didn't hurt that they used actual cadavers, which gave everything a creepy realism which I personally enjoy. Afterwards we walked out into the sun to see, lo and behold, The Phoenix Museum of History, right next door, which I had never heard of. We went in and took a look, but the place was sadly empty. I think they need some cadavers, besides the ones who work there.
End of commentary and beginning of remorseful blabbing: I felt bad about the cadaver joke and apologized to three volunteers who were offended. The actual point I was making is, how do we learn from the Body Worlds phenom? The place was slammed with people of all ages when I was there and I truly wish that every museum could learn from this and be just as packed. And so, in order to talk about that I had to make a joke and, unfortunately, it came down to what I wrote. By the way, I wanted the title to be "Working Stiffs Work," which is the real lesson from the phenom if you ask me.
My managing editor, Meghan Saar and I just had a short meeting to discuss this dynamic. What is the main thing to be learned? Would the exhibit be mobbed if the bodies were models, and not cadavers? I don't think so. There is a perverse curiosity at work here. Either way it's genius.
So I apologized to the miffed employees and assured them I was trying to draw attention to their plight with a bad joke (a defense that sounds very Imus-like I must say). Yesterday, I received this email:
"Hi Bob, thank you for your apologies to some of our volunteers at PMOH. Just so this message doesn't get confusing let me introduce myself. I am president of the Board of Directors of the Phoenix Museum of History and also Curator of the Wells Fargo History Museum. Did you know Wells Fargo had a museum downtown? I'm sure you must Jana Boomersbach did an article in your magazine a few years ago about the Wells Fargo Museum.
"Sadly it takes something like your comments to get in print. We have been striving over the last several years to get PMOH to the point where we can start revamping and building new exhibits and we are at that point now. The current and future of museums is the 'Experience' factor, which also seems to cost more then static exhibits. How do you incorporate the "Experiential Experience" in history? I'm sure you have the opportunity to see many museums throughout the west. We would welcome your constructive criticism and ideas on how we can make the experience at PMOH more engaging. Let me know if you would like to get involved.
Connie J. Whalen
Curator, AVP
Wells Fargo History Museum
145 W. Adams St.
Phoenix, AZ
So I am going to join their museum. And so, they will have another cadaver aboard. Ha.
"All's well, that ends well."
—Old Vaquero Saying
Wednesday, May 02, 2007
May 2, 2007 Bonus Blog
As promised, here's the only known photo of outlaw Kit Joy. I have always assumed he was African-American because of his facial features, but evidently he was not. Can't vouch for the gayness, but he does seem a tad prissy.
Had lunch with Buckeye Blake at El Encanto (he bought). Evidently, his Billy's Golden Slumbers sculpture has hit another Kid snag. The piece, which was supposed to be in the big Dreamscape Desperado Show opening next week, ran into insurance problems regarding kids jumping on The Kid's head. Buckeye is bummed and feels as if he has entered the Kid Kurse Twilight Zone and I assured him he has.
Also working up scripts for the next batch of Westerns Channel True West Moments to be filmed in Wichita in two weeks.
Onion Headline de Jour
Report: More Kids Being Home Churched
"I learned very early in my life never to take counsel of my fears."
—George Patton
As promised, here's the only known photo of outlaw Kit Joy. I have always assumed he was African-American because of his facial features, but evidently he was not. Can't vouch for the gayness, but he does seem a tad prissy.
Had lunch with Buckeye Blake at El Encanto (he bought). Evidently, his Billy's Golden Slumbers sculpture has hit another Kid snag. The piece, which was supposed to be in the big Dreamscape Desperado Show opening next week, ran into insurance problems regarding kids jumping on The Kid's head. Buckeye is bummed and feels as if he has entered the Kid Kurse Twilight Zone and I assured him he has.
Also working up scripts for the next batch of Westerns Channel True West Moments to be filmed in Wichita in two weeks.
Onion Headline de Jour
Report: More Kids Being Home Churched
"I learned very early in my life never to take counsel of my fears."
—George Patton
May 2, 2007
Working on several things, including the next Classic Gunfight on the Silver City, New Mexico jailbreak by the Gage train robbers. Really a spectacular fight. I mentioned in this space that I thought Kit Joy was African American and someone read that, contacted Bob Alexander in Texas, and he called me this morning to correct the mistake. I'll run his photo later today and I think you'll see why I thought he was black. I also got a heads up from a reader who swears he is "gay looking," so you'll have a chance to try out your own Gaydar.
I took the opportunity to ask Bob about Kit's last years and he told me that Karen Holliday Tanner and John D. Tanner had written an article on this, published in WOLA several years ago. He told me if I could wait he would dig through his papers and get back to me in a day or two. I hung up, put "Kit Joy outlaw" in the Google window and within five seconds had the following info:
Mitch Lee and Frank Taggart were almost immediately strung up with Mitch Lee finally confessing to the shooting of the train engineer: “Well, by God! I did kill him.”
Kit Joy escaped but did not leave the neighborhood. Ten days after the jailbreak, a trap was set at Rackety Smith’s cabin, high in the Mogollons northeast of Alma, New Mexico, but the wiley outlaw didn’t show. Not long after, Smith and several neighbors went hunting Joy and found his concealed camp. Rackety Smith yelled out for Joy to surrender but the outlaw replied, “I’ll die first.” Armed with a .45X60 Winchester rifle, Smith fired two shots, the second shattering two bones in Joy’s left leg below the knee (his lower leg was subsequently amputated) . The outlaw was brought back to Silver City on March 22 and put back in the Grant County jail. On November 17, 1884, he was tried and sentenced to life at the Santa Fe Penetentiary. After pleading letters and model behavior, Joy was pardoned in 1896, living out his life in the Fort Huachuca, Arizona area where he worked as a tailer. He died, at age 76, in Douglas, April 14, 1936 and is buried in the Bisbee-Lowell cemetery.
Just astounding, and in five seconds. More later. I'm meeting Buckeye Blake for lunch at El Encanto.
Working on several things, including the next Classic Gunfight on the Silver City, New Mexico jailbreak by the Gage train robbers. Really a spectacular fight. I mentioned in this space that I thought Kit Joy was African American and someone read that, contacted Bob Alexander in Texas, and he called me this morning to correct the mistake. I'll run his photo later today and I think you'll see why I thought he was black. I also got a heads up from a reader who swears he is "gay looking," so you'll have a chance to try out your own Gaydar.
I took the opportunity to ask Bob about Kit's last years and he told me that Karen Holliday Tanner and John D. Tanner had written an article on this, published in WOLA several years ago. He told me if I could wait he would dig through his papers and get back to me in a day or two. I hung up, put "Kit Joy outlaw" in the Google window and within five seconds had the following info:
Mitch Lee and Frank Taggart were almost immediately strung up with Mitch Lee finally confessing to the shooting of the train engineer: “Well, by God! I did kill him.”
Kit Joy escaped but did not leave the neighborhood. Ten days after the jailbreak, a trap was set at Rackety Smith’s cabin, high in the Mogollons northeast of Alma, New Mexico, but the wiley outlaw didn’t show. Not long after, Smith and several neighbors went hunting Joy and found his concealed camp. Rackety Smith yelled out for Joy to surrender but the outlaw replied, “I’ll die first.” Armed with a .45X60 Winchester rifle, Smith fired two shots, the second shattering two bones in Joy’s left leg below the knee (his lower leg was subsequently amputated) . The outlaw was brought back to Silver City on March 22 and put back in the Grant County jail. On November 17, 1884, he was tried and sentenced to life at the Santa Fe Penetentiary. After pleading letters and model behavior, Joy was pardoned in 1896, living out his life in the Fort Huachuca, Arizona area where he worked as a tailer. He died, at age 76, in Douglas, April 14, 1936 and is buried in the Bisbee-Lowell cemetery.
Just astounding, and in five seconds. More later. I'm meeting Buckeye Blake for lunch at El Encanto.
Tuesday, May 01, 2007
May 1, 2007 Bonus Blog
Several mail bag ditties to feature and answer:
"Trivia dept: Hugh O'Brian played Billy the Kid in a May 8th, 1955 episode of Stage 7. The show, titled 'Billy and the Bride' also featured Angela Lansbury and Dick Foran."
—Paul Hutton, curator of the upcoming Dreamscape Desperado show at the Albuquerque Museum of Art and History, opening the weekend of May 13
"Just out of curiosity, on BBB'S daily blog, why does he list the cost of his expenses? i.e. meals, etc. Is this a legal thing, due to being a corporate expense? I've always wondered this."
—Duke Wayne
I started a daytimer log of my expenses and activities in 1994 and have done it daily ever since. When I started my blog several years ago, I naturally utilized my daily log. At first I thought I would edit out the costs of meals, art supplies and gas, but then realized I always have enjoyed it in old diaries, like George Parsons' classic Tombstone journal, when the cost of items are listed. Also, I have given it my best to make the blog as honest as I can, and most Americans have an aversion to talking about money made and spent (if you don't believe me, ask the next person you meet how much money they make). So I decided I would go right into the teeth of that taboo. By the way, time spent away from working on The Top Secret Project to write this up (ten minutes, @ $75, minus fica).
True West Yodel Worthy Praise
Chinook, Montana, April 27, 2007—Montana has become the first State in the nation to have an official lullaby. Ken Overcast performed his song Montana Lullaby, the nation's first "Official Lullaby" on the floor of the Montana Senate at the opening of their session Wednesday. It's also perhaps the only official State song containing a yodel.
It's just a wonderful tune that typifies Montana. Written by Overcast and fellow Montanan, Wylie Gustafson, Montana Lullaby became "The Official Lullaby" of the State of Montana" when Governor Brian Schweitzer signed HB594 at a well attended ceremony in his office. The legislation was introduced by Republican Representative Wayne Stahl, and carried in the Montana Senate by Democratic Senator Ken Hansen.
"What an honor," remarked Overcast after receiving a standing ovation for his Senate floor performance. "To have one of my songs elevated to this level has got to be the highest form of compliment."
The original tune was merely a yodel containing no lyrics, and was written by Conrad, Montana native Wylie Gustafson in the 1990s. Overcast heard the haunting melody and collaborated with Gustafson to rework the melody and add the lyrics he had recently written. Montana Lullaby was born. Ken Overcast recorded and released it on Bear Valley Records in 2000 on his album entitled Montana Cowboy, which was awarded the "Best of the West Cowboy CD" by True West magazine.
For a free MP3 download, click here.
"A man can only do what he can do. But if he does that each day he can sleep at night and do it again the next day."
—Albert Schweitzer
Several mail bag ditties to feature and answer:
"Trivia dept: Hugh O'Brian played Billy the Kid in a May 8th, 1955 episode of Stage 7. The show, titled 'Billy and the Bride' also featured Angela Lansbury and Dick Foran."
—Paul Hutton, curator of the upcoming Dreamscape Desperado show at the Albuquerque Museum of Art and History, opening the weekend of May 13
"Just out of curiosity, on BBB'S daily blog, why does he list the cost of his expenses? i.e. meals, etc. Is this a legal thing, due to being a corporate expense? I've always wondered this."
—Duke Wayne
I started a daytimer log of my expenses and activities in 1994 and have done it daily ever since. When I started my blog several years ago, I naturally utilized my daily log. At first I thought I would edit out the costs of meals, art supplies and gas, but then realized I always have enjoyed it in old diaries, like George Parsons' classic Tombstone journal, when the cost of items are listed. Also, I have given it my best to make the blog as honest as I can, and most Americans have an aversion to talking about money made and spent (if you don't believe me, ask the next person you meet how much money they make). So I decided I would go right into the teeth of that taboo. By the way, time spent away from working on The Top Secret Project to write this up (ten minutes, @ $75, minus fica).
True West Yodel Worthy Praise
Chinook, Montana, April 27, 2007—Montana has become the first State in the nation to have an official lullaby. Ken Overcast performed his song Montana Lullaby, the nation's first "Official Lullaby" on the floor of the Montana Senate at the opening of their session Wednesday. It's also perhaps the only official State song containing a yodel.
It's just a wonderful tune that typifies Montana. Written by Overcast and fellow Montanan, Wylie Gustafson, Montana Lullaby became "The Official Lullaby" of the State of Montana" when Governor Brian Schweitzer signed HB594 at a well attended ceremony in his office. The legislation was introduced by Republican Representative Wayne Stahl, and carried in the Montana Senate by Democratic Senator Ken Hansen.
"What an honor," remarked Overcast after receiving a standing ovation for his Senate floor performance. "To have one of my songs elevated to this level has got to be the highest form of compliment."
The original tune was merely a yodel containing no lyrics, and was written by Conrad, Montana native Wylie Gustafson in the 1990s. Overcast heard the haunting melody and collaborated with Gustafson to rework the melody and add the lyrics he had recently written. Montana Lullaby was born. Ken Overcast recorded and released it on Bear Valley Records in 2000 on his album entitled Montana Cowboy, which was awarded the "Best of the West Cowboy CD" by True West magazine.
For a free MP3 download, click here.
"A man can only do what he can do. But if he does that each day he can sleep at night and do it again the next day."
—Albert Schweitzer
May 1, 2007
Thomas Charles, Kathy and I drove out to Peoria last night to have dinner with the Radinas at Earl's Fine Foods. Kathy's sister Debbie is interested in moving to the Dominican Republic, so T. Bell had much advice on where to locate, etc. The world traveler leaves in June for Peru, where he will be for two plus years, serving in the Peace Corp. Had the ribeye special ($9.95, total bill for eight was eighty-something, Kath bought).
News From The Front Lines
"As a True West Maniac (# 767) I just want to express my appreciation for the book reviews and ads for western books in True West. Over the past 10 months I have bought 6 western books solely because I saw them in TW. (I just yesterday ordered Cowtown Wichita from the New Mexico Press because of the ad in this months issue and last month ordered The Greatest Stagecoach Robberies of the old west & Greatest Train Robberies of the old west). I enjoy western reading and I hope you will continue and expand your section on new and old classic western book. Also, because of an ad in a 2003 issue (About the time I found TW and started to read it) I joined Cowboy FastDraw. It is now the hobby of my life and gives me a great reason to travel the west from Kentucky."
—Steve Stinnett, "Kentucky Lawman"
Dave Daiss is up from the ranch and brought me this photo of he and actor William Sanderson (left, holding a True West issue which he had Dave autograph) taken at the Steak Out Grill in Sonoita, Arizona. Mr. Sanderson, who is visiting friends in the area, played the sleazy hotel owner on Deadwood, and also had a part in Lonesome Dove, among numerous other gigs.
Onion Headline de Jour
Cosmopolitan Releases 40 Year Compendium: 812,683 Ways To Please Your Man
I'm worried we have spent too long on the Top Secret Project and, as of today, have little to show for the effort. Woke up this morning and made myself a vow to redouble my efforts. Really is gnawing at me. On the way home last night, Kathy asked T. Bell and I what our biggest fears are, and mine is that I won't live long enough to finish The Top Secret Project!
"Worry is nothing less than the misuse of your imagination."
—Ed Foreman
Thomas Charles, Kathy and I drove out to Peoria last night to have dinner with the Radinas at Earl's Fine Foods. Kathy's sister Debbie is interested in moving to the Dominican Republic, so T. Bell had much advice on where to locate, etc. The world traveler leaves in June for Peru, where he will be for two plus years, serving in the Peace Corp. Had the ribeye special ($9.95, total bill for eight was eighty-something, Kath bought).
News From The Front Lines
"As a True West Maniac (# 767) I just want to express my appreciation for the book reviews and ads for western books in True West. Over the past 10 months I have bought 6 western books solely because I saw them in TW. (I just yesterday ordered Cowtown Wichita from the New Mexico Press because of the ad in this months issue and last month ordered The Greatest Stagecoach Robberies of the old west & Greatest Train Robberies of the old west). I enjoy western reading and I hope you will continue and expand your section on new and old classic western book. Also, because of an ad in a 2003 issue (About the time I found TW and started to read it) I joined Cowboy FastDraw. It is now the hobby of my life and gives me a great reason to travel the west from Kentucky."
—Steve Stinnett, "Kentucky Lawman"
Dave Daiss is up from the ranch and brought me this photo of he and actor William Sanderson (left, holding a True West issue which he had Dave autograph) taken at the Steak Out Grill in Sonoita, Arizona. Mr. Sanderson, who is visiting friends in the area, played the sleazy hotel owner on Deadwood, and also had a part in Lonesome Dove, among numerous other gigs.
Onion Headline de Jour
Cosmopolitan Releases 40 Year Compendium: 812,683 Ways To Please Your Man
I'm worried we have spent too long on the Top Secret Project and, as of today, have little to show for the effort. Woke up this morning and made myself a vow to redouble my efforts. Really is gnawing at me. On the way home last night, Kathy asked T. Bell and I what our biggest fears are, and mine is that I won't live long enough to finish The Top Secret Project!
"Worry is nothing less than the misuse of your imagination."
—Ed Foreman
Monday, April 30, 2007
April 30, 2007
Back in office. Mailed off the Johnny Ringo painting this morning, plus went to the doctor to get a tetanus shot for my upcoming trip to Nicaragua.
Thomas Charles drove in from Cal with two babes yesterday. They all attended the Coachella Music Festival over the weekend. The girls were quite impressed with Bjork, and Tomas even had to admit she was better than he thought she would be. Tomas raved about Interpol, Sonic Youth and Jessica Alba, who he ogled while she danced on the side of the stage during the set by Peaches.
Here are a sampling of the cloud shots I took on the trip up to Pinetop and Hon-dah Resort last Friday. First up is the stunning flat-bottomed clouds poking over the horizon as I approached the rim. Really distinctive clouds:
The countryside is still scarred from the Chediski Fire which ravaged this area several years ago. Part of the Top Secret Project takes place in a burned out area, so I really wanted good reference for the post-fire-ravaged look:
Here's a stunning panorama, looking all the way to the White Mountains (middle, right, distance):
Shot this one out the driver's side window of a mountain meadow, and the dark buildup north towards Winslow and Holbrook:
Ran into Vicent Craig at the Joint History Convention last Friday. Vicent is a Navajo who appeared on our KSLX morning show back about 1987, and who played a song he wrote called "The Candy Bar Song," which was sung in the the dialect of "Boarding School In'din" about a poor Navajo who steals a candy bar from the local trading post and does hard time. Just a hilarious song. I played it so much on our show (daily for weeks on end) that upper management of the company who owned the station sent a vice-president to Phoenix to try and make me stop playinig it. They couldn't. Ha. Vicent told me he has some six volumes of In-din songs now and I'm dying to hear them. Great guy, very zany.
On a sad note, local horse training legend Floyd Brooks passed away on April 22, from cancer. Floyd is the guy who answered the "Endurance of The Horse" question from Paul Boord, who wanted to know how far a horse can run full out, because in the movies they seem to go on forever. Floyd told me a good horse can go flat out about two and a half miles before they "will tie up." I sighted his answer on a Westerns Channel True West Moment (shot in Tombstone on Comstock Hill) and it remains one of the most popular TWMoments we have ever done.
Speaking of which, we are going to Wichita in two weeks to tape another batch.
Onion Headline de Jour
Local Man Gets Cocky With Ladder
"The best companies assume that each individual wants to make a difference in the world and be respected. Is that a surprise?"
—Paul Ames
Back in office. Mailed off the Johnny Ringo painting this morning, plus went to the doctor to get a tetanus shot for my upcoming trip to Nicaragua.
Thomas Charles drove in from Cal with two babes yesterday. They all attended the Coachella Music Festival over the weekend. The girls were quite impressed with Bjork, and Tomas even had to admit she was better than he thought she would be. Tomas raved about Interpol, Sonic Youth and Jessica Alba, who he ogled while she danced on the side of the stage during the set by Peaches.
Here are a sampling of the cloud shots I took on the trip up to Pinetop and Hon-dah Resort last Friday. First up is the stunning flat-bottomed clouds poking over the horizon as I approached the rim. Really distinctive clouds:
The countryside is still scarred from the Chediski Fire which ravaged this area several years ago. Part of the Top Secret Project takes place in a burned out area, so I really wanted good reference for the post-fire-ravaged look:
Here's a stunning panorama, looking all the way to the White Mountains (middle, right, distance):
Shot this one out the driver's side window of a mountain meadow, and the dark buildup north towards Winslow and Holbrook:
Ran into Vicent Craig at the Joint History Convention last Friday. Vicent is a Navajo who appeared on our KSLX morning show back about 1987, and who played a song he wrote called "The Candy Bar Song," which was sung in the the dialect of "Boarding School In'din" about a poor Navajo who steals a candy bar from the local trading post and does hard time. Just a hilarious song. I played it so much on our show (daily for weeks on end) that upper management of the company who owned the station sent a vice-president to Phoenix to try and make me stop playinig it. They couldn't. Ha. Vicent told me he has some six volumes of In-din songs now and I'm dying to hear them. Great guy, very zany.
On a sad note, local horse training legend Floyd Brooks passed away on April 22, from cancer. Floyd is the guy who answered the "Endurance of The Horse" question from Paul Boord, who wanted to know how far a horse can run full out, because in the movies they seem to go on forever. Floyd told me a good horse can go flat out about two and a half miles before they "will tie up." I sighted his answer on a Westerns Channel True West Moment (shot in Tombstone on Comstock Hill) and it remains one of the most popular TWMoments we have ever done.
Speaking of which, we are going to Wichita in two weeks to tape another batch.
Onion Headline de Jour
Local Man Gets Cocky With Ladder
"The best companies assume that each individual wants to make a difference in the world and be respected. Is that a surprise?"
—Paul Ames
Saturday, April 28, 2007
April 28, 2007
Mixed results in the pines. Tried to work yesterday on the Top Secret Project but didn't get nearly enough done. However, I did meet some excellent historians and made several business contacts for True West, so that paid for the trip.
I'm taking off this morning for home. Too much to do on stuff that's due.
"The happiest miser on earth is the man who saves up every friend he can make."
—Robert E. Sherwood
Mixed results in the pines. Tried to work yesterday on the Top Secret Project but didn't get nearly enough done. However, I did meet some excellent historians and made several business contacts for True West, so that paid for the trip.
I'm taking off this morning for home. Too much to do on stuff that's due.
"The happiest miser on earth is the man who saves up every friend he can make."
—Robert E. Sherwood
Friday, April 27, 2007
April 27, 2007
Left Cave Creek yesterday at 11, headed for the Arizona-New Mexico Joint History Convention in The White Mountains. Noticed the price on the Shell gas station had risen to 3.10.9 just since Monday (see photo from yesterday's post). Went the back way through Rio Verde and out across the Fort McDowell Res. Big clouds piling up beyond Four Peaks. Really a beautiful ride.
Stopped in Payson for lunch and remembered a book signing with Margariette Noble (Filaree) when she took me to an old house off the main highway and wondered if I could find it, or if it was still there (that was more than ten years ago). And there it was, The Main Street Bar & Grill. Had a cup of albondigas soup and a small salad and iced tea. ($10.78, includes tip, TW account). Made notes on the convention and items I wanted to cover.
Topped out on the Mogollon Rim and hit rain and fantastic clouds beyond that. Took a couple dozen shots with my digital right out the windshield west of Overgaard. Stopped at Bison Ranch and got a latte ($3.50 plus 50 cent tip), and drove on into Show Low, Lakeside and Pinetop.
Got to the Hon-dah Resort at four (196 mile run) and went right into the conference. Met Larry Ball and his wife Ruth and asked how his much anticipated Tom Horn biography is coming along. He regaled me with his views and theories but it's the punchline to his book so I don't want to give it away.
Book dealer Bob Pugh showed me a new book that contains a never-before-published interview with Billy the Kid, "Dirty Dave" Rudabaugh and Billy Wilson, in the Santa Fe jail. A postal inspector investigating mail robberies interviewed the Boys and gave a short report, giving their ages, where they are from (Billy claimed New York City, so that is another vote for the legend).
Also saw Bob McCubbin and asked if he had any extra True West magazines for our table (I forgot a box of Billy issues at the office). Bob had some and put them out.
Paul Hutton gave a rousing speech in the main banquet hall to a full house. Of course it was on Billy the Kid, and he plugged his big Billy show that launches in two weeks.
After the speech I drove back down to Pinetop and checked into the Holiday Inn Express (Hon-dah Resort was sold out).
Back at the Hon-dah Resort for the big opening night banquet. An Apache girl was supposed to sing the National Anthem but she was a no-show (evidently on In-din time), then there was a snafu on dinner when it turned out certain local politicos crashed the dinner without tickets and they didn't have enough meals to go around. The director of the event, who sat next to me, had a very rough time working it all out, but he did, getting the kitchen to turn out another dozen dinners. One member came over to complain about me getting served because I didn't buy a raffle ticket (Paul did and I told her we'd split it). Good meal. Ended up down at Charlie Clark's Steakhouse in Pinetop for a nightcap. Talked over The Top Secret Project and how to finally bring it to completion. Going to work on that today.
"You have brains in your head, and feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose."
—Dr. Seuss
Left Cave Creek yesterday at 11, headed for the Arizona-New Mexico Joint History Convention in The White Mountains. Noticed the price on the Shell gas station had risen to 3.10.9 just since Monday (see photo from yesterday's post). Went the back way through Rio Verde and out across the Fort McDowell Res. Big clouds piling up beyond Four Peaks. Really a beautiful ride.
Stopped in Payson for lunch and remembered a book signing with Margariette Noble (Filaree) when she took me to an old house off the main highway and wondered if I could find it, or if it was still there (that was more than ten years ago). And there it was, The Main Street Bar & Grill. Had a cup of albondigas soup and a small salad and iced tea. ($10.78, includes tip, TW account). Made notes on the convention and items I wanted to cover.
Topped out on the Mogollon Rim and hit rain and fantastic clouds beyond that. Took a couple dozen shots with my digital right out the windshield west of Overgaard. Stopped at Bison Ranch and got a latte ($3.50 plus 50 cent tip), and drove on into Show Low, Lakeside and Pinetop.
Got to the Hon-dah Resort at four (196 mile run) and went right into the conference. Met Larry Ball and his wife Ruth and asked how his much anticipated Tom Horn biography is coming along. He regaled me with his views and theories but it's the punchline to his book so I don't want to give it away.
Book dealer Bob Pugh showed me a new book that contains a never-before-published interview with Billy the Kid, "Dirty Dave" Rudabaugh and Billy Wilson, in the Santa Fe jail. A postal inspector investigating mail robberies interviewed the Boys and gave a short report, giving their ages, where they are from (Billy claimed New York City, so that is another vote for the legend).
Also saw Bob McCubbin and asked if he had any extra True West magazines for our table (I forgot a box of Billy issues at the office). Bob had some and put them out.
Paul Hutton gave a rousing speech in the main banquet hall to a full house. Of course it was on Billy the Kid, and he plugged his big Billy show that launches in two weeks.
After the speech I drove back down to Pinetop and checked into the Holiday Inn Express (Hon-dah Resort was sold out).
Back at the Hon-dah Resort for the big opening night banquet. An Apache girl was supposed to sing the National Anthem but she was a no-show (evidently on In-din time), then there was a snafu on dinner when it turned out certain local politicos crashed the dinner without tickets and they didn't have enough meals to go around. The director of the event, who sat next to me, had a very rough time working it all out, but he did, getting the kitchen to turn out another dozen dinners. One member came over to complain about me getting served because I didn't buy a raffle ticket (Paul did and I told her we'd split it). Good meal. Ended up down at Charlie Clark's Steakhouse in Pinetop for a nightcap. Talked over The Top Secret Project and how to finally bring it to completion. Going to work on that today.
"You have brains in your head, and feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose."
—Dr. Seuss
Thursday, April 26, 2007
April 26, 2007
Worked all of yesterday afternoon on Hugh O'Brian studies. But first I want to share a photo I took on the way back from the bank on Monday. We got a freak rainstorm and as I approached Cave Creek Road on Tom Darlington (a fancy name for Scottsdale Road, which they insist on using in Carefree), I saw this dramatic cloud jutting just over the horizon near Desert Mountain. Took two shots, this one right out the windshield. When I downloaded them I liked this one because it shows the price of gas in Carefree (3.01.9).
Several years ago, Scottsdale publicist Pierre O'Roarke got a photo of himself taken with Hugh O'Brian holding my Wyatt Earp book (looks like a rare second edition). That's Pierre on the right. Hugh also gave me a quote for the back of my Wyatt tome, "Your book is fascinating, coupling your powerful illustrations with your unique chronological tracking. . .from birth, to Tombstone, to the legend he has become, I think even Wyatt would approve."
So, naturally, I want to do right by the Hugh Man. The painting of Hugh and Wyatt was technically due yesterday, but I'm just not there yet. Here is a sketch from yesterday proving my point:
Actually, this is one in a series of warmup images I did to get loosey goosey. I have taken to doing loose washes with no attempt at anything approaching accuracy. Here's a vague background that I like because it has integrity. Don't ask me why, I can't prove it, but I just think it does.
Here's another one (I did about a dozen) that speaks to the inner-fiber of human DNA, perhaps inspired by going to see the Body Worlds 3 show at the Arizona Science Center last Saturday. That's the wildly popular show from that German guy who turns actual cadavers into plastic. Creepy, but intriguing:
And here's my six sketches for yesterday, proving I have Hugh on the brain. I may use that image of Wyatt Earp, bottom center (actually poached from Kurt Russell as Wyatt in Tombstone), and put the real Wyatt behind Hugh and call the painting, "Twin Towers." How 'bout them apples?
Late yesterday, I tried to do a study of Hugh from a publicity still, utilizing one of those "Integrity backgrounds" I created recently. Not bad. Still not there, though, and I don't see him sitting down in the final.
Ran out of time. Need to leave for Hon-dah and the Arizona History Conference. Starts today and the Top Secret Writer speaks at 4:30. I'll be back Saturday night.
"I do the very best I know how—the very best I know I can; and I mean to keep doing so until the end."
—Abraham Lincoln
Worked all of yesterday afternoon on Hugh O'Brian studies. But first I want to share a photo I took on the way back from the bank on Monday. We got a freak rainstorm and as I approached Cave Creek Road on Tom Darlington (a fancy name for Scottsdale Road, which they insist on using in Carefree), I saw this dramatic cloud jutting just over the horizon near Desert Mountain. Took two shots, this one right out the windshield. When I downloaded them I liked this one because it shows the price of gas in Carefree (3.01.9).
Several years ago, Scottsdale publicist Pierre O'Roarke got a photo of himself taken with Hugh O'Brian holding my Wyatt Earp book (looks like a rare second edition). That's Pierre on the right. Hugh also gave me a quote for the back of my Wyatt tome, "Your book is fascinating, coupling your powerful illustrations with your unique chronological tracking. . .from birth, to Tombstone, to the legend he has become, I think even Wyatt would approve."
So, naturally, I want to do right by the Hugh Man. The painting of Hugh and Wyatt was technically due yesterday, but I'm just not there yet. Here is a sketch from yesterday proving my point:
Actually, this is one in a series of warmup images I did to get loosey goosey. I have taken to doing loose washes with no attempt at anything approaching accuracy. Here's a vague background that I like because it has integrity. Don't ask me why, I can't prove it, but I just think it does.
Here's another one (I did about a dozen) that speaks to the inner-fiber of human DNA, perhaps inspired by going to see the Body Worlds 3 show at the Arizona Science Center last Saturday. That's the wildly popular show from that German guy who turns actual cadavers into plastic. Creepy, but intriguing:
And here's my six sketches for yesterday, proving I have Hugh on the brain. I may use that image of Wyatt Earp, bottom center (actually poached from Kurt Russell as Wyatt in Tombstone), and put the real Wyatt behind Hugh and call the painting, "Twin Towers." How 'bout them apples?
Late yesterday, I tried to do a study of Hugh from a publicity still, utilizing one of those "Integrity backgrounds" I created recently. Not bad. Still not there, though, and I don't see him sitting down in the final.
Ran out of time. Need to leave for Hon-dah and the Arizona History Conference. Starts today and the Top Secret Writer speaks at 4:30. I'll be back Saturday night.
"I do the very best I know how—the very best I know I can; and I mean to keep doing so until the end."
—Abraham Lincoln
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
April 25, 2007
Worked late on Hugh O'Brian studies. We're going to unveil the painting at End of Trail in June and I want to make sure it's worthy of a veil. Ha. Never had that cliche experience of the veiled painting and then a hush and a gasp as a bikini-clad model steps forward and pulls off the blanket, I mean veil. May have to do an oil on this one. Kind of rusty, but the SASS head honcho, Ken Amiriasano, wants it to bring in some big bucks for HOBY, the youth group O'Brian runs.
Went through and inventoried all 25+ paintings for the End of Trail Art Show. Some good ones, including my recent Jeff Milton, and classic Wild Bill paintings, Wyatt Earp, Billy the Kid, Jesse James, The Youngers, Charlie Pitts, Doc Holliday, Johnny Ringo, plus Mattie Silks (shooting in her underwear).
Just got off the phone with Bob Alexander, an all around good guy and old West author. The next Classic Gunfight for the magazine is going to be the Gage Robbery and jail escape shootout at Silver City, New Mexico. Features an African-American outlaw named Kit Joy. Great name and cool photo, which Bob is sending me.
Good Question
"If I were to take as fact everything I see in Westerns, (and I watch them every chance I get) I would have to assume that every male, with the exception of a few doctors and preachers, carried a side arm at all times. What would be a more likely percentage of western men folk that carried side arms?"
—Larry Nerison
Larry,
The main point is this: virtually anyone who travelled out West, went armed. But when they got to town, they usually put their guns away. There are exceptions to this: when Tombstone, and Dodge and Deadwood were brand new, everyone went armed because the towns were too dangerous, but as they developed, usually within a year, there were statutes demanding that citizens not go about armed.
There are examples of famous gunmen being unarmed at the oddest times. When Wyatt Earp and his brothers hear shooting on the cold night of October 28, 1880, they are running towards the gunfire and Wyatt tries to borrow a gun. He's been in a saloon and he's not heeled! Amazing.
Wyatt is not alone. There are numerous examples of dangerous men, not having guns on in saloons and other dangerous places.
Still, most dangerous men had a hideout pistol, or something to defend themselves. I would put the number of armed men in Tombstone in 1881 at under 10 percent. That is just a guess, but even at that number, in a town of 6,000 that's a lot of heat and hardware!
Well, that's just my guess. It may be too low. I'd like to hear other estimates.
"Whenever you trace the origin of a skill or practice that played a crucial role in the ascent of man, you usually reach the realm of play."
—Eric Hoffer
Worked late on Hugh O'Brian studies. We're going to unveil the painting at End of Trail in June and I want to make sure it's worthy of a veil. Ha. Never had that cliche experience of the veiled painting and then a hush and a gasp as a bikini-clad model steps forward and pulls off the blanket, I mean veil. May have to do an oil on this one. Kind of rusty, but the SASS head honcho, Ken Amiriasano, wants it to bring in some big bucks for HOBY, the youth group O'Brian runs.
Went through and inventoried all 25+ paintings for the End of Trail Art Show. Some good ones, including my recent Jeff Milton, and classic Wild Bill paintings, Wyatt Earp, Billy the Kid, Jesse James, The Youngers, Charlie Pitts, Doc Holliday, Johnny Ringo, plus Mattie Silks (shooting in her underwear).
Just got off the phone with Bob Alexander, an all around good guy and old West author. The next Classic Gunfight for the magazine is going to be the Gage Robbery and jail escape shootout at Silver City, New Mexico. Features an African-American outlaw named Kit Joy. Great name and cool photo, which Bob is sending me.
Good Question
"If I were to take as fact everything I see in Westerns, (and I watch them every chance I get) I would have to assume that every male, with the exception of a few doctors and preachers, carried a side arm at all times. What would be a more likely percentage of western men folk that carried side arms?"
—Larry Nerison
Larry,
The main point is this: virtually anyone who travelled out West, went armed. But when they got to town, they usually put their guns away. There are exceptions to this: when Tombstone, and Dodge and Deadwood were brand new, everyone went armed because the towns were too dangerous, but as they developed, usually within a year, there were statutes demanding that citizens not go about armed.
There are examples of famous gunmen being unarmed at the oddest times. When Wyatt Earp and his brothers hear shooting on the cold night of October 28, 1880, they are running towards the gunfire and Wyatt tries to borrow a gun. He's been in a saloon and he's not heeled! Amazing.
Wyatt is not alone. There are numerous examples of dangerous men, not having guns on in saloons and other dangerous places.
Still, most dangerous men had a hideout pistol, or something to defend themselves. I would put the number of armed men in Tombstone in 1881 at under 10 percent. That is just a guess, but even at that number, in a town of 6,000 that's a lot of heat and hardware!
Well, that's just my guess. It may be too low. I'd like to hear other estimates.
"Whenever you trace the origin of a skill or practice that played a crucial role in the ascent of man, you usually reach the realm of play."
—Eric Hoffer
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
April 24, 2007 Bonus Blog
Robert Ray just gave me a lesson on the new scanner. Different controls, different buttons, same idea. Here's my weekend efforts at a certain rider sprung from an errant lightning bolt:
And here's my sketches of Hugh O'Brian as Wyatt Earp. The first pass is a typical image of him as the TV Wyatt, then my perverse-cartoonist mind kicks in and I think, "Hmmmm, didn't Hugh beat the bad guys over the head with his Buntline Special almost every week? And what if you had Hugh 'Buffaloing' an old man, who looked like a certain part time lawman. Hmmmmm."
I've got a more traditional composite in mind and need to go home early to get it executed.
Onion Headline de Jour
Food-Court Taco Bell Not As Good, Area Man Reports
"He that waits upon fortune, is never sure of a dinner."
—Benjamin Franklin
Robert Ray just gave me a lesson on the new scanner. Different controls, different buttons, same idea. Here's my weekend efforts at a certain rider sprung from an errant lightning bolt:
And here's my sketches of Hugh O'Brian as Wyatt Earp. The first pass is a typical image of him as the TV Wyatt, then my perverse-cartoonist mind kicks in and I think, "Hmmmm, didn't Hugh beat the bad guys over the head with his Buntline Special almost every week? And what if you had Hugh 'Buffaloing' an old man, who looked like a certain part time lawman. Hmmmmm."
I've got a more traditional composite in mind and need to go home early to get it executed.
Onion Headline de Jour
Food-Court Taco Bell Not As Good, Area Man Reports
"He that waits upon fortune, is never sure of a dinner."
—Benjamin Franklin
April 24, 2007
Working on the Hugh O'Brian painting. Finished sketches yesterday afternoon, and of course, gravitated to an outrageous satire on the assigned theme of O'Brian as Wyatt Earp. I'll post that sketch later. Robert Ray is still struggling with linking all of the computers in our office and the scanner is not hooked up yet.
Balloon Feedback
"Though I'm one of the guys encouraging you to experiment, I'll add a note of caution: When artists start messing around with type, they can forget that the most important thing about lettering is being able to read it. So think high contrast, and don't rule out dark type on a light background. But if you're loving the white letters, that's cool. It is striking.
" One suggestion for the current examples: Rectangular word balloons seem wrong to me. One old convention you might keep is having rectangles for narration and ovals or rounded corners for dialogue. In any case, the page looks great!"
—Will Shetterly
"You might not agree, but I found that dialogue coming from an unopened mouth unbelievable. The box instead of a balloon is fine."
—Steve Lodge
Working on the Hugh O'Brian painting. Finished sketches yesterday afternoon, and of course, gravitated to an outrageous satire on the assigned theme of O'Brian as Wyatt Earp. I'll post that sketch later. Robert Ray is still struggling with linking all of the computers in our office and the scanner is not hooked up yet.
Balloon Feedback
"Though I'm one of the guys encouraging you to experiment, I'll add a note of caution: When artists start messing around with type, they can forget that the most important thing about lettering is being able to read it. So think high contrast, and don't rule out dark type on a light background. But if you're loving the white letters, that's cool. It is striking.
" One suggestion for the current examples: Rectangular word balloons seem wrong to me. One old convention you might keep is having rectangles for narration and ovals or rounded corners for dialogue. In any case, the page looks great!"
—Will Shetterly
"You might not agree, but I found that dialogue coming from an unopened mouth unbelievable. The box instead of a balloon is fine."
—Steve Lodge
Monday, April 23, 2007
April 23, 2007 Bonus Blog
A couple weeks ago I gave our art director, Daniel Harshberger, the assignment of coming up with an alternative to the same ol' word balloons that comic strips have utilized for the last 125 years. This irritates the Top Secret Writer. He argues that perhaps there is a reason for this tradition, or utility, and that the world agrees en masse that block lettering done by hand (or computerized to look like it) is the way to go. "When in Rome. . ." Or, "Why fight Rome, when everybody is there doing it the same way."
Well, I don't buy that. Comic word balloons look ancient to me—antiquated, out of style. There has to be a better way to communicate graphically. Fortunately, Dan The Man agrees and he has spent the last couple days noodling with one of my TSP illustrations. Here are the two versions for your perusal:
I'm not sure this is where we'll end up, but I'm excited about the possibilities. The Harsh is thinking out of the box, or, in this case, the balloon, and I like that. Do you?
We've got a new poll up: Would you switch to an online subscription of True West?
I sold a Johnny Ringo painting today. A guy from Santa Barbara bought it for his wife. They own Ed Boreins and Remingtons, so I took that as a good sign.
Had a long phone conversation with Hugh O'Brian (Wyatt Earp) this morning. He's a feisty guy for 82. Dogs barking in the background. He took several other calls while we chatted, then asked if the painting I'm doing will be on the cover of True West. I told him I hadn't thought of that, but he sure knows how to ask for the order. So did Royal Wade Kimes, and you saw what that got him.
The cover of the April issue.
Someone asked Dolly Parton early in her career why she had never been on the Tonight Show and she replied, "No one asked me." That is the problem with most of us. We have been taught to wait until someone asks us, for a raise, for a new job, for a cover story. The people who land those, usually asked for it.
End of sermon.
Onion Headline de Jour
Offended Customer's Huffy Walkout Goes Unnoticed
"I was particularly proud of my performance as the Joker. I considered it a piece of pop art."
— Jack Nicholson
A couple weeks ago I gave our art director, Daniel Harshberger, the assignment of coming up with an alternative to the same ol' word balloons that comic strips have utilized for the last 125 years. This irritates the Top Secret Writer. He argues that perhaps there is a reason for this tradition, or utility, and that the world agrees en masse that block lettering done by hand (or computerized to look like it) is the way to go. "When in Rome. . ." Or, "Why fight Rome, when everybody is there doing it the same way."
Well, I don't buy that. Comic word balloons look ancient to me—antiquated, out of style. There has to be a better way to communicate graphically. Fortunately, Dan The Man agrees and he has spent the last couple days noodling with one of my TSP illustrations. Here are the two versions for your perusal:
I'm not sure this is where we'll end up, but I'm excited about the possibilities. The Harsh is thinking out of the box, or, in this case, the balloon, and I like that. Do you?
We've got a new poll up: Would you switch to an online subscription of True West?
I sold a Johnny Ringo painting today. A guy from Santa Barbara bought it for his wife. They own Ed Boreins and Remingtons, so I took that as a good sign.
Had a long phone conversation with Hugh O'Brian (Wyatt Earp) this morning. He's a feisty guy for 82. Dogs barking in the background. He took several other calls while we chatted, then asked if the painting I'm doing will be on the cover of True West. I told him I hadn't thought of that, but he sure knows how to ask for the order. So did Royal Wade Kimes, and you saw what that got him.
The cover of the April issue.
Someone asked Dolly Parton early in her career why she had never been on the Tonight Show and she replied, "No one asked me." That is the problem with most of us. We have been taught to wait until someone asks us, for a raise, for a new job, for a cover story. The people who land those, usually asked for it.
End of sermon.
Onion Headline de Jour
Offended Customer's Huffy Walkout Goes Unnoticed
"I was particularly proud of my performance as the Joker. I considered it a piece of pop art."
— Jack Nicholson
April 23, 2007
Worked all weekend on paintings and illustrations for the Top Secret Project. Haven't been able to even think about it for the past two months because of CGIII.
More and more, I've been getting manuscripts and books from struggling authors sent to me. They want me to "take a look" and make a pronouncement. Are they any good? Is there a place for them in the biz? This makes me very uncomfortable. And as I responded to one this morning:
"While I like to encourage anyone who is attempting to keep history and the Wild West alive, I'm not real comfortable judging your efforts. I'm not much of a writer (seeing myself more as a cartoonist-illustrator who only developed writing out of self-defense).
"You can send me the book, but I won't promise that I'll have anything constructive to say. I don't mean to sound negative, but I don't want to give you false hope, either."
—BBB
"The naked truth is always better than the best dressed lie."
—Ann Landers
Worked all weekend on paintings and illustrations for the Top Secret Project. Haven't been able to even think about it for the past two months because of CGIII.
More and more, I've been getting manuscripts and books from struggling authors sent to me. They want me to "take a look" and make a pronouncement. Are they any good? Is there a place for them in the biz? This makes me very uncomfortable. And as I responded to one this morning:
"While I like to encourage anyone who is attempting to keep history and the Wild West alive, I'm not real comfortable judging your efforts. I'm not much of a writer (seeing myself more as a cartoonist-illustrator who only developed writing out of self-defense).
"You can send me the book, but I won't promise that I'll have anything constructive to say. I don't mean to sound negative, but I don't want to give you false hope, either."
—BBB
"The naked truth is always better than the best dressed lie."
—Ann Landers
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