I have a couple new designs. A nice simple Mr Toast (red for mens and pink for womens) and the crazy Soda Lab Technician done with a retro worn feel. I should have plenty of there for the comic con and I have found out my booth number is 1634 - right near the small press area.
The shirts were printed by Monkey in a Dryer. Go there for all your silk screening needs.
I just started a series of watercolor drawings on old scrapbook pages. Here are a few of the nicer ones.
Today's images all come from a 1948 manual for Merchandising Fresh Fruits & Vegetables put out by A&P markets. This 100 page manual deals with running a produce department and talks about display and care of fruits and vegetables. But the thing that interested me were all the beautiful full color paintings of the produce. This manual is packed with page after page of mostly color images making this one of my favorite references. Oh if only I could paint like this...
Went to see Nacho Libre over the weekend and just had to do this comic as a tribute. The movie was hilarious and fun.
Chucko the Clown was a local Los Angeles TV show host. This menu is from 1961 and says Gourmet Disneyland on the top. My guess is that it was used at the Disneyland Hotel restaurant. Can you imagine a table of kids all wearing their Chucko masks! Truly a piece of classic clownomobilia.
I just bought a collection of over 100 candy bar wrappers. It was all stuff from the late 40's and early 50's but some of them are pretty wild. Enjoy a Big Chief Brittle Bar or a Zion Fig Pie. It is amazing how many candy bars have come and gone through the years.
In the new issue of the New Yorker, there is an article about the "New Bazooka Joe." It seems that the Bazooka brand "had lost its cache." So Topps went to their consumer base and asked focus groups of gum chewing kids what Joe should be like. The kids wanted him to be fun & free spirited but goofy like Ashton Kutcher. Well the artists at Topps went right to work and voila the New Bazooka Joe was born. The new Joe has tousled hair, his cap is turned backwards (the sign of rebellion) and torn jeans and sneakers. His gang was updated with Pesty and Butch gone and in were Cindy Lewis (environmentalist), DJ Chang (I think you can guess his interest) and Wolfgang Spreckles (foreign exchange student and lover of McDonald's ?!?!?!).
This whole thing reminds me of the Simpsons episode where Poochie was created to revitialize the languishing Itchy and Scratchy Show. The kids of Springfield are brought in to tell the animation studio what they wanted to see. Thus was created Poochie, a dog with tousled hair, turned back hat and attitude (are you beginning to see the parallels). Poochie of course turns out to be the worst character ever and has to be be given the axe when kids realize how lame and boring he is.
With all the great talent at Topps, past and present, it makes you wonder why this very boring and predictable tact was taken. Topps has given kids some of the most memorable gum related items from Mars Attacks to the Garbage Pail Kids. These card issues were made by real artists with original ideas. So why not give Joe some real attitude and visual character. That is the only way he will ever stand out again and be popular.
So in honor of the old Joe, I have assembled a few items showing the classic Joe in all his glory. The first item may be the first comic appearance of Joe from 1953. Enjoy.
Well it is summertime again and that means San Diego Comic Con. Just a little over a month away and I have few new things for the show. First off the incomparable Jess Hutchison was cool enough to take the above promo photo of Mr Toast. Well actually a whole troop of Mr Toasts marching trough the forest. I took the image and made it into a poster which will be available at the show.
I also had some extra foam and material laying around so I made the worlds biggest Mr Toast doll. He is about 24" tall and ready for fun. He will be in San Diego with me and meeting and greeting all his fans.
