11 more months until october

Halloween has come and gone. Now time for Christmas (ugh).

October is without a doubt my favorite month of the year and Halloween my favorite holiday. It is also the only time of the year where horror films and television shows dealing with the macabre get any time in the spotlight. The AMC channel in particular has their month long Fright Fest which is basically horror films or horror related documentaries 24/7. (This must be a big boner kill for all the 60 year old guys that are used to watching The Great Escape every day on AMC. Is it just me, or does AMC show that film all the time?)

But now it's over. No more horror films, and if you wear a costume after the 31st, people think you're a nut.

I took a few minutes last night and sketched Oliver Reed as he appeared in the film The Curse of the Werewolf. The colors were added rather quickly in Photoshop. I used my Kuretake pen on this and finally found something I dislike about the pen. The ink used in these pens IS NOT water proof ink. If you use a Kuretake and then try to use some dye or watercolor over it, you will be very disappointed as you watch your work smear away. Here's another interesting note, if you type in Oliver Reed on youtube.com, the word drunk usually pops up next to his name. He did quite a few interviews and talk show gigs completely hammered. There is a really good one in particular where he is being interviewed on Late Night during the Letterman era.

Stanley Kubrick and The Shining

I wish I could have been a fly on the wall when this scene was discussed. If you have not seen The Shining, then you're probably wondering what this sketch has to do with. I have found a clip of the scene on youtube to help if needed. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7aLNa1RfkIY

Rocky Chuck Taylor Ad

Every time I watch the movie Rocky I always marvel over the fact that the title character does all of his training with Chuck Taylors. I am a huge fan of this particular style of shoe, but they really are crap for things like running. If the events in Rocky were true, I could only imagine the blisters and calluses he would get as a result of running with Chucks every day.

Anyways... I thought this idea of Rocky running with Chucks could inspire a new ad campaign. Suck it Nike.

Congratulations Where the Wild Things Are

Last night for the second time in my entire life, I walked out of a movie at the theater. Way to go Where the Wild Things Are. You now join the 2000 film Traffic as being the only two movies I have ever skipped out on.

Life's Metaphor

I Believe this gentleman is confused

I must be real un-American because I totally forgot the "significance" of todays date. But trust me... I live in Indiana, so after about the fifth pick-up truck with a "Never fergit" bumper sticker I thought," oh yeah. That is today................ what to get for lunch?" And then there are guys like the one illustrated that always seem to look forward to reminding us about their mass confusion... I mean their patriotism. BLAH BLAH BLAH.

ALSO... after seeing guys like this I have been inspired to create a series of bumper stickers and mesh trucker hats that say,"NEVER FORGET:8-24-1814" There will be a bald eagle amongst an American flag with about fifteen stars I think. Here's a history lesson if you don't get the significance of my date: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burning_of_Washington

Avoid Guitar Center on Weekends

The Guitar Center is a pretty nice joint with a lot of selection. They have everything from guitars to percussion instruments to recording equipment. Basically, anything you could want. If you ever have the feeling to go to one, I suggest you go at about 2 in the afternoon on a Monday or Tuesday during the school year. You and one other person will basically be the only customers in there. You can try out everything, you can get assistants from the workers with no hassle and if you're fairly new to playing, you can try stuff out with out the intimidating feeling of a bunch of strangers watching you. Weekends are a whole other story. The Guitar Center sucks on weekends. Every time I have ever gone to a Guitar Center on a weekend I have thought to myself, " Why? Why did I do this?" There are a ton of people there, you get no privacy to try out gear. You get the sense that the guy to your left is looking at the same guitar you're looking at so it becomes a mental chess match of who's going to go for it first without seeming too desperate. And the people, the customers, they annoy me to no end... well maybe not all of them. Anyways, a trip to Guitar Center this past Saturday inspired me to sketch some of the stereotypical people you will see in there on a weekend. Note, I used to hit up the Guitar Center a lot on Saturdays a few years ago to buy strings before our gigs, so these people I sketched weren't just a one time thing I saw this past weekend. I am willing to bet anything that if you go to a Guitar Center on a weekend, you will see at least one of these people. I guarantee.