The Babe with the Power
I've been making a bunch of t-shirts!
Inspired by the cult classic, Jim Henson monster-filled 80's movie, Labyrinth, this design is available at my TeePublic shop on apparel and other ostentatious articles of amazingness.
Inspired by the cult classic, Jim Henson monster-filled 80's movie, Labyrinth, this design is available at my TeePublic shop on apparel and other ostentatious articles of amazingness.
George Newman, Director of Channel U-62
I recently painted this portrait for Gallery 1988's Crazy4Cult show. UHF is one of my favorite movies of all time. I knew as soon as I saw the list for the show's eligible movies that I couldn't resist painting Weird Al Yankovic as George Newman.
The painting sold on opening night of the show and as a ridiculously fun and mind-blowingly cool bonus, Al retweeted the painting as well as reposting the picture on his own Instagram! I had to take a moment to breathe...
So here is George Newman, Director of Channel U-62:
The painting sold on opening night of the show and as a ridiculously fun and mind-blowingly cool bonus, Al retweeted the painting as well as reposting the picture on his own Instagram! I had to take a moment to breathe...
So here is George Newman, Director of Channel U-62:
After a lot of coercion by my Twitter friends (I'm @itsbillmain on Twitter) I'm releasing this painting as a print as well through my TeePublic shop. So if you want Al on your wall, on your shirt, your kid's shirt or even on your phone, I'd say this is probably the safest way to do it.
Check it out HERE
One week webcomic - Lil' Squirt
Hey everybody! Here's a little shorty webcomic I recently made and published online through the
. I switched over to a style that was going to let me produce this puppy really quickly as we had just had our first baby (who is now 3 months old!!!!) and time was definitely of the essence. It still is, but by God's grace I've been able to stay on top of my other projects. Anywho, please enjoy Lil' Squirt. If you do like it, feel free to leave me feedback either here or Twitter! I love hearing from you guys. Thanks!
Well, well, well...Lil' Squirt saved the day! Sometimes, we aren't the ones who change much in our day to day living. However, when we treat others lovingly and with a little respect, we may just change how they act and react with others.
Go be awesome out there folks! Remember, if you liked it, please do drop me a message! Artist types love them some feedback.
Major Tom, the Cat Happily Lost in Space
- Ground control to Major Tom...
He's taken his fish pills and he's put his helmet on. Boy does he look excited to be floating around in the vast unknown of space! Yet, he'd be even MORE excited to be drifting around on your walls at home. Tom would be right as rain if he were cruising on your nursery wall, kicking it in the kitchen or even bumbling around in your bathroom.Here's a small process of how Major Tom came to be. -
I always start with a small sketch in my trusty sketchbook! -
Sometiimes, that sketch is refined into a digital mockup so I can test colors and whatnot... -
The drawing is then transferred to birch plywood and cut out carefully with a jigsaw. -
After being sanded and primed (in this case with clear primer), the paint begins. I guess I wanted to start with the cutest part first this time! -
More refining and painting. Russian cosmonaut style!!! -
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Pop them peepers!
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Buttons and gadgets because....buttons and gadgets. -
What up gurl...?
Buy Major Tom here!
Conan O'Brien and his mad monster party
I posted a little sketch for the Twitter account @sketch_dailies yesterday. The prompt was #CONANHAIR so we had to hook it up with anything and everything as long as it had Conan's famous coif. Here's mine:
Bookmarks!
I've been reading a lot more as of late.
I keep finding myself using little index cards or scraps of paper to hold my places in those books. Although I am probably fighting against the "print is dead" movement, I really find myself in need of a good bookmark. So, uhhh...I just made some.
For one of my bookmarks, I decided to make a Bilbo Baggins because I just love that sweet little hobbit. Everything about him. Everywhere he goes, he just wants to go and eat. He just wants to eat breakfast. I can relate Bilbro.
He's got his Elfen blade, Sting, with him...glowing because there are always goblins around, of course.
If you would like a Bilbo for yourself, or a bookworm friend, you can find him here.
Fat Elvis bookmarks are a multi-tasker- they are perfect for cookbooks and rock n' roll biographies.
Then again I literally have this fat tub-o-lard bookmark sitting in my bible. I giggle every time I look at it.
Literally singing his heart out, Elvis is shaking what his mama gave him. Thanks Mama Elvis.
If you are interested in picking up this bookmark for yourself of your friends, you can find them here.
Her Eyes Can Be So Cruel
Hey!
This piece up at the Say Hi To the Bad Guy show at Gallery 1988 West. The show is covering the love of the bad guys in cult classic film. Opening night is Friday, October 18th, 7-10 PM
This piece up at the Say Hi To the Bad Guy show at Gallery 1988 West. The show is covering the love of the bad guys in cult classic film. Opening night is Friday, October 18th, 7-10 PM
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| Her Eyes Can Be So Cruel Acrylic on panel 8.5" x11.25" x 3" |
I felt it necessary to paint Jareth from Jim Henson's Labyrinth as a total creepster. Here he is doing a little research on his super inappropriate love interest Sarah. Look, if it makes you feel any better, it seems like Jareth, although actually super old, is really a tween at heart. From his super cool hamburger phone to his constant need to create angsty prose and art in his dream journal, Jareth is developmentally arrested. Give the guy a break, all he has to hang out with is goblins.
Show up and I'll say,"Oh hello there..."
Getting Frustrated
Oh hello there!
I really have no witty segue into this so I'll just jump right in.
I have a couple close friends who have been battling terminal cancer this year. In both cases, the disease came on really quickly and has been super aggressive. With multiple treatments, diet changes etc, the cancer just seems to keep coming.
Our one friend, Stephanie, who's husband I worked with at Trader Joe's and became fast friends with, just passed over the weekend. Their battle with this disease was at once painful and really encouraging. They were always hopeful, never blaming God for their trouble and always being the ones encouraging others to see things the right way. It's been a real testimony to what real faith does in crappy circumstances.
These are the times when our dependence on Christ (for those who identify as Christians) becomes either stronger or tossed to the wayside. I've see awesome things go on in my friends' lives by way of God's faithfulness. Their faith and endurance has been on total display to my wife and I. They've just displayed a real selfless commitment to each other and the people around them. Their hearts have been joyful in the midst of terrible pain. Humor hasn't left them either.
I'm still feeling frustrated at the actual disease even though I've seen such a clearly good way of going through it displayed by my friends. I know there are better ways to deal with my frustration, but in a way, this still seemed appropriate:
I really have no witty segue into this so I'll just jump right in.
I have a couple close friends who have been battling terminal cancer this year. In both cases, the disease came on really quickly and has been super aggressive. With multiple treatments, diet changes etc, the cancer just seems to keep coming.
Our one friend, Stephanie, who's husband I worked with at Trader Joe's and became fast friends with, just passed over the weekend. Their battle with this disease was at once painful and really encouraging. They were always hopeful, never blaming God for their trouble and always being the ones encouraging others to see things the right way. It's been a real testimony to what real faith does in crappy circumstances.
These are the times when our dependence on Christ (for those who identify as Christians) becomes either stronger or tossed to the wayside. I've see awesome things go on in my friends' lives by way of God's faithfulness. Their faith and endurance has been on total display to my wife and I. They've just displayed a real selfless commitment to each other and the people around them. Their hearts have been joyful in the midst of terrible pain. Humor hasn't left them either.
I'm still feeling frustrated at the actual disease even though I've seen such a clearly good way of going through it displayed by my friends. I know there are better ways to deal with my frustration, but in a way, this still seemed appropriate:
Kindergarten Cop Father's Day Greeting Card Now Available!
I'm just talking to a blinking cursor now. ...Kind of like Doogie Howser M.D. Ooooo NPH.
The one main difference between good ol' Doogie and I, is that he liked to make some kind of prolific statement about what he learned in that episode and all I'm going to do is talk about an abusive detective. An abusive detective that goes deep undercover as a kindergarten teacher to find a bad guy.
Honestly, I'm not even going to talk too much about the movie. If you haven't already seen Kindergarten Cop, words just won't do it justice. Seriously though, you should throw this on your Netflix, and get ready for some early '90s action-comedy featuring Arnold Schwarzenegger at his (some say) finest. It's also directed by Ivan Reitman, who made Ghostbusters!
There's a ton of sayings that would have worked well for this card, but for some reason my wife and I constantly say, "Who is your daddy, and what does he do?" to each other...in the most random situations possible. So, it just felt right. Also in the running were, "It's not a tumor!" and "I'm a cop, you idiot!" but I felt like the first one was too insensitive for a get well card and the second phrase would only pander to rude police officers. Sooooo...
Wait, maybe I'm missing a market here.
Anyway, Father's Day is coming up and since our beloved phrase involves the word "daddy", I figured this was a good fit. Plus, it's hilarious.
You can purchase this card for you dad here! I can also make 8x10" prints, but those are available upon custom request.
Love Cat
Oh hello there.
Sooooooo...my wife goes through this pretty much every day.
Sooooooo...my wife goes through this pretty much every day.
I hear about how the cat is constantly up in her business constantly so I thought I'd document it for posterity. Check out and follow my wife's blog to see what she was trying to work on!
Hey I've got a new blog!
Hello there fine friends, welcome to the new hub of my online existence!
As of now I have just transferred some of my older blog entries over here from but I'll soon be creating a bunch of new content. So be sure to follow me here by bookmarking, using the subscribe feature or even by mailing yourself a reminder to check my blog every week. I recommend USPS First Class mail for the latter. You won't be sorry.
Double the Dragon, Double the Fun
Double Dragon.
This is a game with so much awesomeness going for it that its hard not to love it. I grew up playing the arcade version of the game at a local neighborhood convenience store. This was one of those places where they had maybe two or three fluttering flourescent lights and what must have been 20 year old pickles in jars on the counter filled with Reanimator bright green pickle juice. Tucked away in the front corner of the store was a line of literally the cream of the crop arcade stand up machines. It really puzzles me, looking back, to understand how this store had such great games. I doubt that the crotchety older gentleman who owned the place knew what he was doing when he was picking which games to put in his store. Maybe he was a time traveller, knowing that his proper selection of grade A game choices would set up a lifetime of illustration fodder for me. Yeah, thats it. Thank you, you space-time continuum tripping sourpuss. Thank you.
Ah, but I digress. The home version of Double Dragon on the Nintendo, as well as the arcade, was perfect in its simplicity. The main difference being the one player aspect of the NES port (but I’ll go on about that later.) The game is perfectly simple; it tells you all you need to know about your motivation for the coming beat down that will be laid to the evil Shadow Warrior gang in the first couple seconds of gameplay. There is no long written out intro, there is this:
WHHHHHHHHAAAAAAT??!!
Those dudes just gut punched your girl and walk away with her like an evil marching band! It’s on like Donkey Kong.
And so you travel through this relatively short yet ridiculously difficult game learning new moves, fighting new enemies and getting closer to rescuing your girlfriend.
As I said, the main difference between the home NES version and the arcade game was the number of players. The arcade game, which came out first, offered two player, simultaneous beat em up action. The players would work side by side, as brothers Billy and Jimmy Lee. The storyline was to rescue their uh, collective girlfriend from this rival gang. So kids around the world got used to fighting side by side with their primary color clad brother in a display of brotherly love that was downright sickening.
On the other hand, the NES port of the game disposed of the two player together aspect entirely. I’ve read online that this was because programmers had problems making the NES work well with the simultaneous fighting but I offer you a different reason. I think that the way Jimmy Lee is revealed in this game offers a bit more exitement to the storyline. In the arcade game, you work your way through the gang until you meet machine gun toting Willy. He is the boss of the gang and when you defeat him, you save your girl. In the home port, after defeating Willy, it is revealed that the until now invisible Jimmy Lee was behind the capture of your beautiful girlfriend. WHAT?! Bro come on, really?
So the game takes on this underlying sibling rivalry that wasn’t really present in the original. I like it, you can do what you will with it.
SO anyway, whew! On to the illustration. This game always makes me think of the Warriors film. Gosh I love that movie. Can you dig it? The costumes, the feel of the atmosphere and the ridiculous attitudes of the characters just made it so fun. In a way, this illustration is dedicated to the fun of that film as well as Double Dragon. In my mind, they go hand in hand.
The characters, Abobo and Chin Tamei even make an appearance in this illustration because what fanboy doesn’t remember the sheer terror when an Abobo appeared or the utter frustration that was fighting Chin?
This is an original illustration made for the bros at PaletteSwap. I was honored to be able to choose the theme for January for the video game cover art blog. My theme: Double Dragon of course!
So, if you’d like to hang this guy on your wall and remember the good ‘ol days with a couple of spiteful, angry brothers, you can go and order a print at my shop.
Weird Al print over at the Etsy...
That’s what the kids call it right? The Etsy? Ok, good.
If you’ve been following this here blog, then you may remember that I painted a painting of the incredibly talented and super hilarious “Weird” Al Yankovic a little while ago. If you wanted to, you could see that here. If not, that’s ok…I won’t judge you.
I reworked the image a bit and I am now offering it as a print in my Etsy shop!
I chose to give Al his vintage look back in the new image. This decision is coming partly from my overwhelming obsession with the movie UHF and partly because it just makes the image more “Weird Al-ish.”
At any rate, here it is!
If you are so inclined, and I do recommend it, you can go and purchase a print of this here painting here.
Ron Swanson Approves of This Message
What can I possibly say about Ronald Ulysses Swanson that hasn’t been said more eloquently in the hallowed halls of the Interwebs before? Nick Offerman’s portrayal of manly man Ron Swanson is just great to my wife and I. There aren’t many TV shows we watch now that we don’t serve the cable gods anymore. However, we do Hulu the proverbial crap out of Parks and Recreation.
Perhaps I can’t say it in words but I sure can try with some paint. I kept looking at this blank spot on our dining room wall and I decided that we needed some food related art.
Undoubtedly, Ron Swanson’s culinary leanings tend toward the meaty side of life. Whether its meat burgers made of meat, Meat Tornado burritos, or just a good old fashioned cookout, Duke Silver is a carnivore to the core. I thought it fitting to have him grace our walls with his semi-inspirational slogan for his signature dish, theTurf & Turf. It consists of one 16 oz. Rib-eye steak, one 24 oz. Porterhouse, a cigar and a glass of whiskey. By the way, although commonly thought to be the same, Rib-eyes and Porterhouse steaksare different. I did some research. I’d tell you the specifics but you should really look into the matter for yourself. You know, teach a man to fish…(for sport only, fish meat is practically a vegetable.)
Perhaps I can’t say it in words but I sure can try with some paint. I kept looking at this blank spot on our dining room wall and I decided that we needed some food related art.
Undoubtedly, Ron Swanson’s culinary leanings tend toward the meaty side of life. Whether its meat burgers made of meat, Meat Tornado burritos, or just a good old fashioned cookout, Duke Silver is a carnivore to the core. I thought it fitting to have him grace our walls with his semi-inspirational slogan for his signature dish, theTurf & Turf. It consists of one 16 oz. Rib-eye steak, one 24 oz. Porterhouse, a cigar and a glass of whiskey. By the way, although commonly thought to be the same, Rib-eyes and Porterhouse steaksare different. I did some research. I’d tell you the specifics but you should really look into the matter for yourself. You know, teach a man to fish…(for sport only, fish meat is practically a vegetable.)
I worked up a little print of this painting over at my Etsy shop. You can buy it here…because you are a free American. Unless you’re not. Then just buy it because you’re awesome.