Bob Boze Bell's Blog – March 2012 Archive (19)

March 30, 2012

Although he didn't admit it, I think my "Land of Disenchantment" idea gave Johnny D. Boggs heartburn. I emailed him this morning and told him if he'd give me the weekend I'd get him something less edgy and more history minded. Whipped this out before I came into work:

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March 29, 2012

Went home for lunch and worked on a cover concept for Johnny Boggs and the Western Writers of America who have their convention in Albuquerque on June 15. Since it's the centennial year for both Arizona and New Mexico I suggested a cavalcade of history style cover illustration. I grew up on these collages of historic figures mashed together. However, as I got to going on it, I noticed that everyone looked rather unhappy. So, this is called "The Land of…

March 29, 2012

Working on the next installment of Graphic Cinema where-in we catch up with Wyatt Earp at the so-called Mescal Springs fight in March of 1882. I have a hunch he wore different head gear in the brush than he did in town (you see photographic evidence of this with George Parsons posing in the studio with completely different clothing that he wears out on the trail than what he wears to work in Tombstone).

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March 28, 2012

I have been accused of being anti-Earp. Although I don't see it that way, I do understand the criticism. As I have been developing the latest Graphic Cinema for True West I have been sketching the frontier marshal with, what I would call, an unflinching eye. Some might see it as negative.…

March 27, 2012

Had a small wedding party in our back yard last Saturday night. Here are a couple of photos John Beckett took of the fandango, starting with the newlyweds, Amy Pattarapan Pothong and Thomas Charles Bell:

Here's the latest extension of the Bell…

March 26, 2012

Back from a week in Rocky Point, Mexico. Great beach, great food and great downtime (no internet access for five days!). Spent the time drawing, drinking and napping (in that order).

Worked hard on the story and the characters, especially the main character. Here's a page of graphic cinema pastiche:

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March 17, 2012

My son is getting married today, but I had to finish the Wyatt On The Set opening spread illustration. Worked until about 11 and came up to the office to scan it:

What we have here is Wyatt on the set of "Wild Bill Hickok" (1923) standing next to the…

March 16, 2012

   Worked yesterday on several sketches of Wyatt On The Set, our feature about Earp hanging out in Hollywood. Here's the first:…

March 15, 2012

I did an interview on NPR yesterday. You can hear it right here.

Meanwhile, found a half-finished painting in my morgue this morning, saw some potential and tweaked it to a finish.

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March 14, 2012

After 27 studies, workups and numerous painting attempts, I hit the wall on the Bob Paul assignment last week. My good friend John Boessenecker did not think the last attempt captured Bob Paul's visage like I had on earlier attempts. The problem is, in one of the only known photos of Paul he looks rather bloated and heavy. I wanted to show him a little more trim and fit, in fighting form. John thought that I had nailed Paul's facial appearance in this…

March 13, 2012

I have thought for a long time that our obsession with the eradication of Buscadero gun rigs in movies was a little over the top. Especially when you look at Commodore Perry Owens in his buscadero rig, but this always elicits a snobby, "Yes, but that's the only one." Well, we published another one about five years ago showing a Flagstaff lawman with a buscadero rig and although it was undated, it clearly was before 1900. This led to a theory in the…

March 12, 2012

Back in Arizona after a whirlwind trip to Williamsburg, Virginia and the Williamsburg Film Festival. Had a great time and met some very nice people. All my life I have heard about Southern hospitality and now I know what everyone is talking about.

On Thursday, the first day of the show, one of my hosts, Larry Floyd, took me to Colonial Williamsburg and I finally got to see first hand that incredible living history site that everyone has…

March 10, 2012

Spent some time talking with the actress Terry Moore this morning. She has led a pretty amazing life. She was married to Howard Hughes, she starred in movies with leading men from Burt Lancaster to Tyrone Power to Clark Gable to John Travolta. She knew John Wayne (see quote, below) is in her eighties and feisty as ever. Still walks ten miles on the weekend. She was a jet pilot, she had her own talk show, she's written five or six books. When I asked her…

March 9, 2012

Carole Glenn overnighted more of my books to sell at the Wiliamsburg Film Festival. Lots of books sales. Sold out of Wyatt books for the second day in a row. Gave a talk at 2:30 to a packed house.

Met child actor Mickey Kuhn today, who was in Gone With The Wind and Red River with John Wayne. Lots of great stories. Had dinner with Marlyn Manson (she dated Elvis) and Richard Erdman (Stalag 17)who told me I remind him of…

March 7, 2012

Took off at 5:45 this morning and drove into the Beast. Got to Sky Harbor at 6:50, took off at 8:15, with a layover in Fort Worth airport of an hour, got to Richmond, Virginia at 5:30 this evening.

Met some of the guest stars for the film festival in the shuttle out to Williamsburg (about a 45 minute run), including Richard Erdman ("Twilight Zone", "Dick Van Dyke Show") and Gary Hudson ("Hooper", "Adventures of Brisco County Jr."), Terry…

March 6, 2012

Been working for the past 50 days on my Wyatt Earp time travel project. One of the things that grinds me is when oldtimers, especially certain cowboys, start pontificating on "dudes" in old photos. I have several photography books where some "local expert" labels an 1880s photo of a guy, with his pants tucked in his boots, or some other mortal sin to a 1930s cowboy, as a Dude, and I'd love to pull out an expert from the past, a la Woody Allen in the…

March 5, 2012

 So my son, T. Charles and his lovely bride to be, treated Kathy and I to a U of A-ASU basketball game yesterday and it was a ton of fun. Have to admit I choked up when, the game began and ASU started playing their sexy-rock-soundtrack to introduce their players, and the jaybirds sitting in the nosebleed section (that would be us and a rowdy gaggle of other Cat fans), started chanting U-o-f- A, with each section taking a letter and a vowel. Ruined their…

March 2, 2012

Working this morning on a new True West Moment on Arizona Rough Riders. Whipped out this study this morning before I came into work.

Had some good reference: several Remington paintings and Chris Zimmerman photos which he has shared with me, and, in…

March 1, 2012

It has become almost an annual event that a journalism student from the University of Arizona calls me to interview me on why Tombstone didn't make our Top Ten Towns list. As I understand it, the U of A Journalism School has a deal with the Tombstone Epitaphto give students real life experience of working for a legendary newspaper.

So every year I get the call and I am invariably asked how the Top Ten Towns are chosen. And, then,…