men-oo-she-a

Sad News

2007-09-28T21:18:00.000-07:00

For all of Joe Riley's friends and fans,

It is with overwhelming sadness that I have to relay the following information. Joe Riley, a great pal and talented artist passed away on thursday, September 27, 2007. Please check back here for a longer post on this subject.

At this time we are trying to relay the information regarding his funeral to everyone who might be interested.

Joe's funeral is Monday Oct. 1st at 2:00 pm at Laurel Land in Dallas, Texas. The viewing is Sunday September 30 from 6:00 to 8:00 pm. You may contact Joe's fiance April at 940-594-4792 if you have any questions.

If you were a friend please be there and pay your respects to a great and rare guy.

-David

Tremendous Force

2007-09-25T12:18:00.000-07:00

We missed going to the Nationals on Sunday...don't ask why..don't get me started. Never the less, we missed insane top feul drag racing and John Force's amazing crash and WIN! Yes..he wiped out but won anyway!
Here's the whole shootin' match...

Tiki Fireplace

2007-09-16T14:30:00.000-07:00

I wished I had a fireplace, so's I can build this awesome Tiki facade on the front of it!
(Thanks to Make magazine)

Gumby Moon Trilogy

2007-09-12T08:34:00.000-07:00

My favorite Gumby episodes have always been the Moon Trilogy. So surreal and basic. The sounds..the voice delivery, etc.
Presented here is the trilogy in order. The first, "Moon Trip" is in black and white, probably because it came from an old 16 mm TV print.

Several things haunt me about these particular episodes. Gumby's complete desolation and loneliness on the moon is rather creepy for a child's show..especially from the 60's. It shows the effect that stop motion can achieve, when you're building scenes one frame at a time.
I love the Fleischer like cartoon concept that dad can reach to the moon via his fireman's ladder. He's suited up for the cold, but the lack of air doesn't effect him.
My favorite bit is when Gumby is snatched from the jaws of death via an Iron Lung (?!) and calmly, flatley states, "I was on the Moon mother".

Yea..we all were.

It's My Process

2007-09-09T13:49:00.001-07:00

I love the use of the blog as a recording device for procedures. I've done some pretty extensive step by step blog posts (like this one) which are fun to share, but mostly, I enjoy reading other peoples tutorials on the different projects they find themselves doing.
I like popping over to Coop's blog and seeing him give up his secrets...or seeing my buddy Ken work on stuff...there's just all sorts of vital insights on people's blogs!
So, in this post, I'm going to show how I do my funny cartoon monster paintings, step by step.
One of myspace buddies, Dirk, invited me to be a part of a showing at his Atlanta gallery after seeing my paintings. The theme is Robots (kewl) and I came up with two ideas.
The first one came to me while thinking of tattoos, (Dirk's a tattoo artist) and robots. The likely conclusion is giving a robot a tattoo. What would it be...what kind of robot..how would it be visualized..?
I did a thumbnail or two trying to capture a retro robot and the Tattoo world at hand in one image...
The thumbnails are rough, crude...just enough info to remind me of the concept later. Sometimes just putting it on paper in a rough form, shows me other possibilities. Other themes come to light. For me, it also helps to talk about the idea out loud. Sometimes other angles pop into my head.
So,I finally ended up with our friend from the Rock'em Sock'em Robots game..the Blue Bomber..

...and the title came easily. Sometimes, very much like the old days of American International Pictures, one comes up with a grabber of a title, THEN makes the picture. I've done that a few times.
I scan the sketch into Photoshop at about 300 dpi, and tweak it on the Wacon tablet...

..I add lines, define areas..even erase areas. And yes, my Wacom tablet is pinstriped and kustomed. (It's a Graphire 3 with the clear surface plate removed for more sensitivity. The pinstripes are baby blue One Shot. Cost off'a Ebay...$60.)
After I get the basic image the way I want it, I enlarge the "canvas" in Photoshop to 12" x 12"...my actual canvas size. I then bring in guide lines and measure off a 8 & 1/2" x 11" inch section and make a lasso in that area. Copy, then paste as another layer. I do that until all of the image is broken up and all areas are represented by 8 & 1/2" x 11" sections in different layers. (see pic)

I then go to each layer and tell the printer to print that section out. I now have the sketch, measured to 12" x 12", in sections of 8.5 x 11. I tape those together, overlapping them on a light table for perfect registration, then compare it to my canvas...

This is my make shift easel until I get a new one...just some 1 x 2's on the garage wall. The background is already painted a yellow to contrast the aqua of the robot, and to mimic the box art from the original toys of the 60's.

I then lay down some graphite on the back of the sections with an Ebony pencil and effectively make a carbon on the back. They make carbon graphite paper for this, but I just wanted to knock it out.

Sometimes you can run the graphite over the areas where you need it, then smear it with a tissue soaked in lighter fluid to enrich the transfer quality.
I lay my sectioned design where I want it on the canvas, tape it down, then run over the sketch lines with a ball point pen, pressing hard to ensure a transfer from the graphite to the canvas.

Since it's taped into place, I check as I go..sometimes.

Eventually, the entire design is lightly transfered to the canvas...

Now, I take it in the garage and start laying in the colors. I always start with a darker shade of the mid tones first..

...then work my way up to the highlights. I go back and forth darkening areas, then pushing highlights..always trying to keep the colors bright and not muddy. Since acrylic dries fast, I can do this back and forth process very quickly and get my shapes and effects worked out fast.
Eventually, the top highlights are a pure white, and the darkest areas, are black or something damn near black.
I decided the tattoo should be pinstriped, and with actual pinstripe materials. I think a robot sporting pinstripes as a tattoo is so obvious...surely I'm not the first to come up with this idea.
I whip out the One Shot...

..and take out my striper brush from it's special protective tin case..

..this is a Big Daddy Roth edition dagger from Mack, given to me by a great friend...

I love this brush. Someday I'm going to figure out how to use it.
I laid in the lines like I would any other stripe work, (forming the name "Mom" in there which was April's amazing idea) and called it done.

With acrylic, I give it a coat of Mod Podge to deepen the contrast and to pop the high lites. Giving acrylic a clear coat of anything, enriches the colors and pushes the contrast as some of the paints are matte and flat.
Done.

Louis Prima

2007-09-05T08:11:00.000-07:00

You Tube is finally showing some class. Yeaah.

Paper Obsession

2007-08-30T20:44:00.000-07:00

I'm glad I'm not the only one scouting for cool paper craft stuff and linking to it. (that would be creepy) Check out Matt Hawkins kewl stuff here...and here.

Earth VS the Paper Robots 3

2007-08-25T18:22:00.000-07:00

More robots..more paper crafts...more time wasting...let's get it on!
Robot on a Bike
MOGERA!
Daleks! (and their instructions)
Martian War Machine!
Deathborg Omega!
This is a repost of an older post, of sorts...whatever, it's MAZINGAAHH!
Mmmmm..not sure, but they look cool!Get'em!
HRP 2 01
Awesome stuff from HEDKASE!
Destroy-a-Tron and Robot from Lou Lou Illustrations!
Ready Mech again.
MECACHICO!
SF Paper Craft Gallery! Amazing!
Pino and Ifbot..and others.
ROBOTS....the movie!
Mad Cat Mech
Desmond...the Nerfect Robot!

That outta' be enough to keep you busy for a while.

Earth VS the Paper Robots part 2

2007-08-22T21:03:00.000-07:00

Woo hoo! I found this link HERE on someone's site. I had found this link almost 2 years ago, but lost it moving from computer to computer.! Many cool paper robots!

Earth VS the Paper Robots

2007-08-21T11:15:00.000-07:00

As in these past posts...here...here..etc..I've linked you to some of the coolest paper craft on the web. Go here..HERE..and download amazing robot pdfs!

New GR robot..GIANT ROBO GR8!

Drive In Movie Food

2007-08-18T15:08:00.000-07:00

I eat pretty good these days. I'm fed well. Like, healthy food, not junk..or over eating.
One thing I miss is that crappy Drive In movie food. Man, I miss that junk...back when our bodies could process that garbage.
And boy, they were proud of it. They made tons of commercials and everything.

Blow Me Down!.."The Dragon Lives Again!"

2007-08-17T19:44:00.000-07:00

I thought this was a myth. I heard about this film back in my early days of Kung Fu fanaticism in mags like Martial Arts Movie Associates.
Apparently someone with no sense actually released "the Dragon Lives Again" (1976) on DVD and what I thought was tall talk, is true. Bruce goes to hell and it seems that the he is facing a possible coup by a variety of ‘60s and ‘70s pop culture icons who want to take over The Underworld. This gang includes James Bond (a bushy haired white guy in a cheap tuxedo), Clint Eastwood (a Chinese guy with a beard, wearing the poncho costume from the Leone westerns), the Exorcist (another Chinese guy, wearing a black Nehru jacket), Zaitoichi the Blind Swordsman (who simulates his ocular disability by fluttering his eyelids) and Emmanuelle (the happy hedonist of French soft-core porn). There is also a Chinese Dracula, who seems to have overcome his Transylvanian counterpart's aversion to sunlight.
Bruce Lee, however, recruits his own gang of good-guys to fight this evil band. Part of the heroic team is the fabled One-Armed Boxer (whom Bruce casually refers to as "One-Armed") and Popeye the Sailor. Yes, Popeye the Sailor is here...at least in the form of a Chinese guy with a shaved head, a large corncob pipe and the Popeye costume.
See the truth and gawk in amazment...

What's with the hat?

Link Link

2007-08-14T07:55:00.000-07:00

More sharities...I found this some place online, but I can't remember where. Link Wray stuff is kind'a hard to find on vinyl and I have little or none these days. I swiped this as soon as I saw it.
Someone ripped this from good 'ol Sundazed records and so I must pass it on.

Link Wray and his Ray Men-White Lightening,The Lost Cadence Sessions (1958)
"This is the fantastic and fiery album that was supposed to have been released as a follow-up to one of the all-time great, instrumental classics, “Rumble.” But faster than you can say “Drag Race,” everyone was talking about the new threat to the morals of American youth — Cadence label-owner Archie Bleyer included. That’s why Link and his boys were off the imprint, and this album of his prime-era, distorto-guitar-crunch cool remained unreleased for nearly 50 years! At long last, here it is, and it’s every bit as dirty and dangerous as you would expect!"

Kool, dad!

Up and At'em!!

2007-07-21T18:40:00.000-07:00

The incredibly groovy blog, Children's Records and More was up and kicking butt-ox in the kiddie file sharing arena. For some reason, most of it's files are unavailable, except the one I was hoping would be up...
Hanna Barbera's Atom Ant LP!
Supposedly Dave will have more so keep watch on this 'mazing blog!

Hawaii Five-Oh Yeah!

2007-07-21T18:13:00.000-07:00

I came across this MP3 post on someone's blog the other day, so I nabbed 'em! Finally!! The actual Soundtrack to Hawaii 5-0!
Book'em, Baby!

My God I NEVER missed this as a kid! Hip, island, tiki crime drama!

7-7-7 Savage Intimacies

2007-07-08T16:56:00.001-07:00

Yesterday was the 60th anniversary of the Roswell Incident and my second gallery opening. As posted back in Sept of 06, my first real gallery showing went off well, selling 3 of the 4 pieces shown. This showing at the Mighty Fine Arts Gallery is for a full month, so I didn't expect to see anything flying out the doors that night. It was with other artists like Robert Moore, Polly Perez, Val Curry, Donna Huanca, Brooke Slane, Pedro Velez and Michael Wynne.

(Steve Cruz, owner of Mighty Fine Arts Gallery)

The curator was Randall Garrett who kicked off the festivities by performing a "make it or break it" performance piece with old vinyl records.

While playing a track or two from a particular LP, Randall would show the cover to everyone, ask them to listen, then after the tracks were over, ask them to make it or break it by a thumbs up or thumbs down.

Quite a few LPs bit the fat one, but you'll be happy to know that the Space 1999 soundtrack survived by a unanimous thumbs up vote.

Inside, art glowed from the walls.

(Work by Robert Moore}

(the latest work from Polly Perez)

(a couple of my pieces, better viewed on Myspace ...)

(pieces by Brooke Slane)

(April basks in the glow of audio cassettes...)

(...yes, audio cassettes!)

(..and Kim and Mike were there as well! Yeah!)

I'm hoping to get a one man show, but I'll have to paint my butt off to do that. It's going to happen. More later on news of other shows I'm involved with.

Nothin' Up My Sleeve...

2007-07-02T11:12:00.000-07:00

Tony over at Way Out Junk is sharing this hard to find LP with the world via four convenient locations!

Funny Face Commercials

2007-06-29T11:36:00.000-07:00

My buddy Dave gave me an idea about seraching for Funny Face spots on YouTube. Here's what they got loaded up so far..in order of appearance...

Big Deal

2007-06-11T20:50:00.001-07:00

A while back I got an email from Dave Deal asking me if he could use an image of my "Van" model for his letterhead n such. I called him and we had a good chat and he thanked me for the use of the image by sending me these...

...signed on the acetate..

..and one signed on the box...

..one to build

...hmmm.."orangey"..

..and build it I will.

If I'm not mistaken, Dave told me that the art work for the zzzzz-28 was the first gauche painting he ever did. Pretty "flippin' sweet". As a kid, it had us guys staring longingly at the box.

Thanks Dave!

Resinating Roar

2007-06-08T12:54:00.000-07:00

Check out the kick buttocks resin at Speed City Resin

Hell yeah!

War Thread

2007-06-06T08:20:00.000-07:00

OMG! Check out this thread on War Comics at Collectors Society.com.
Joe Kubert in the HOW-OSE! Booya!

True History of Superman

2007-06-05T10:31:00.000-07:00

Here's an excelent post (as usual) over at Dial B for Blog about the true origins of Superman.

Mystery of the Green Hornet

2007-06-02T08:34:00.001-07:00

I have many friends that are huge fans of the 1960's TV show, the Green Hornet.
My buddy Paul has spent many an hour and dollar trying to find all the episodes of this hip spin off of the Batman series. (In truth, Green Hornet is actually a spin off of the Lone Ranger)
April asked me about the release on DVD, so I did some hunting on the subject of why this classic show has not yet been released.
I knew that Fox had the rights to it (as they do the Batman series), but I couldn't figure out why...after practically everything in syndication is on DVD...why, Fox couldn't release this series. I mean, the 40th anniversary has come and gone, and all we have "officially" is this pastiche (which is the 74' theatrical).
After reading around I found out that the owner* of the Green Hornet franchise, George W. Trendle's estate, wouldn't allow Fox to release anything on DVD because of the rights which went south many years ago. It seems that Trendle never liked the "campy" connection with Batman, and was annoyed with Fox's treatment of "his" classic back in the 60's.
Trendle is gone, but his estate and heirs still won't budge on the releases. It comes down to money as usual, and isn't about the quality of the show. Fox has the product, but the Trendle estate owns the rights. People love the show, but some old fart can't loosen his grip...same old story.

(*Trendle only bought the scripts and produced radio shows from his station in Detroit back in the 30's. Fran Striker invented the characters for the Green Hornet, the Lone Ranger, and Sgt. Preston of the Yukon. I think if any estate should recieve money from these creatons, it should be the artist himself.)

Rat Fink Roundup

2007-05-26T18:39:00.000-07:00

This Rat Fink Roundup is not to be confused with the up coming Rat Fink Reunion in Manti, Utah. This "happening" is at Outlaw Accessories in Keller, TX..just on "that side of the tracks". The whole shooting match is run by Frank.

Two paint slingers hosted this pinstriping party, and laid lines & Finks of all kinds on bikes and cars this weekend.
The two no accounts responsible for this outburst of One Shot are Ken "Mitch" Mitchroney...

..and Greg "Coop" Cooper.

..both are certified paint draggers and carry the Ed "Big Daddy" Roth seal of approval.
These guys laid lines, Finks, and all sorts of stripes down on all kinds of bikes and cars. While Coop worked on one end of a Harley...

...Ken worked on the other end...

..and sometimes they crossed lines....

An Emperial got some lines on it's trunk...

..and this Buell got it's fender tender...

Coop brought his bike for Frank to look at...

(..the bright green one..)

..Coop's kustom Fink bike up close...

..which he trailered with his van...

Coop also brought some of his latest creations...the Friki Tiki striper brushes.. (which I can only assume were produced by Mack)

Ken designed the Outlaw club t-shirt, which was ready just in time for this event. Ken's original ink job...

..which I took to my job, did the seperations in a day, and then in turn was screened and inked by my buddy Ed...

...all in one day!

Despite the rain, and the slow drying One Shot...

..everybody had a good time...

...even "Outlaw".

Your Lack of Imagination Disturbs Me

2007-05-25T11:03:00.000-07:00

Check out the toy site/blog Vinyl Pulse. Keep up on the latest on art and toy haps.