Bob Boze Bell's Blog – May 2012 Archive (23)

May 31, 2012

Going to be a scorcher today (109). Got up at 4:30 and did my walk in the cool.

On the home stretch for a big James-Younger Gang painting "They Took The Whole Road." Here's the painting as it looked this morning before yoga class:

That's…

May 30, 2012

Getting ready for a big road trip this weekend. Heading first to the Navajo Res and the Monument Valley area. Got a new book in the office about the Wetherill Trading Post in Kayenta, "Shadows On The Mesa: Artists of the Painted Desert and Beyond," by Gary Fillmore, who has a gallery—Blue Coyote Gallery—in Cave Creek. In fact, I drive by his gallery every day on my way to work. It's next to Big Earl's Greasy Eats (the old Jim's Full Serve gas…

May 29, 2012

Worked this weekend on new images of the James Gang in Minnesota. Working on a big sucker called "They Took The Whole Road," portraying the James-Younger crew riding into Mankato (their original target for a bank raid). Here it is, a work in progress:

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May 25, 2012

I know some have been talking about this, but we just got official word that Tom Cruise is interested in doing a remake of "The Magnificent Seven." The article quotes our very own Henry Cabot Lodge as suggesting Cruise should play Calvera, the bad guy who Eli Wallach played in the 1960 version.

Here's the actual paragraph, written by Graham Fuller:

One assumes Cruise would play Vin (the Steve McQueen character) or Chris (Yul…

May 25, 2012

Working this morning on several fronts. In the middle of a James Gang painting that I need to deliver to Iowa next month. Also angling to complete the Wyatt Earp time travel.

Just approved Dan The Man's new cover for August. Dan pitched us on the idea of Photoshopping the heads of the real Butch and Sundance onto the bodies of Paul Newman and Robert Redford in their iconic death charge. I told him I thought it would never work and for good…

May 24, 2012

Working on finishing our train issue. I have a pet peeve about horseback riders attacking a train, as they invariably do in the movies (think Shanghai Noon where Owen Wilson channels Led Zeppelin and rides down a hill with other outlaws to rob a train). Most horses hate trains and want nothing to do with riding up next to them, EVEN when they're standing still! Think about it: the train is made of metal. The engineer can duck down. They don't…

May 23, 2012

One of the reasons I considered myself the director at the shoot on Monday is because I drew the storyboards for the sequences. Here's the one for the George Warren horse race:

The cell phone videos I posted yesterday were depicting the last three…

May 22, 2012

It was a scorcher yesterday, and me and my crazy friends, spent the day shooting video out at Pioneer, Arizona. Thanks to Dr. Buck Montgomery and friends we had some good looks and good actors to choose from. It was a very ambitious shoot with a shot list that topped more than a dozen set ups.

We started at eight sharp and shot in doors without AC in the morning, so we wanted to get those done and "in the can" first. Taped Jana…

May 20, 2012

Got a big video shoot in the morning. Getting prepped for that.

Meanwhile, we had 2000 fires last year (a record) and it appears we are off to a roaring start this year. We've got a big one burning not far from Cave Creek, in the Bradshaws, threatening Crown King, the tiny town with the mining past. I believe it's part of the same fire that's decimated Battle Flat (site of a famous 1860s gunfight we just covered in True West). This one is…

May 18, 2012

Gave a history talk to the Rotary Club at the Anthem Country Club this morning. great group. Very funny crowd, lots of laughs all around.

Last week, Ken Amorosano and I motored up to Prescott Valley to see the new bronze "Not-So-Gentle Tamer" at Bronzesmith. And speaking of the sculpture and the inspiration for it, here is my grandmother Louise Guess with her husband Robert Guess and their first born, Sadie Pearl. Photo taken in 1915…

May 17, 2012

Got up this morning and whipped out another take on "Last Light On Morningstar". This is number 98:
 Dan The Man Harshberger came out at ten and we had a design review for our next issue. At 11:30 we broke up the meeting and gathered at Robert Ray's computer to discuss train…

May16, 2012

Just got back from the dentist. Got beat up pretty bad (both in my mouth and about my head by the dental hygienist Delea).

My daughter is marrying a guy who loves Triumph motorcycles (I probably don't need to tell you he gets major points for this). Last week Deena and Mike asked me to draw a picture of the two of them riding away on a Tiger 500 to place on a map that will be sent out to show where the wedding is. Here's my rough…

May 15, 2012

Sometimes I get sideways on projects. Need to write four scripts for a shoot on Monday. Whipped out 500 words on George Warren, another 500 on Tombstone and 380 on Goyathlay. Need to write another one tomorrow on Red Ghost:

 
 Also, did some facial work on O.K.…

May 14, 2012

Been working on a new True West Moment featuring Climax Jim, a notorious outlaw from Northern Arizona. He once escaped custody during a bath in a horse trough, jumped on a nearby horse, totally nude (him, not the horse) and rode through Springerville AND Eager. Didi this rough sketch last Friday.

 
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May 11, 2012

One of the reasons I moved to Cave Creek is because of the amazing amount of saguaros in the area. I'm looking at no less than a dozen outside my office window as i type this. Got a few big bad boys on my property. Here's one of them:

Here's a photo…

May 10, 2012

Had a speech up at the Carefree Conference Resort at noon today. Spoke at the grand finale luncheon for the Desert Foothills Woman's Club in the Mesquite Room. Susan Vanik introduced me. Talked about Wild Women of the Wild West. Told them the story of Diltche, Ma'am Jones of the Pecos, Martha Summerhayes, Louise "Guessie" Swafford, and Minnie Hauan Bell. Told them the genesis of the "Not-So-Gentle Tamer" sculpture, which is shaping up to be a very big…

May 9, 2012

Ken Amorosano and I were in Prescott last night at a dinner with the director of the Sharlot Hall Museum, John Langellier when we smelled smoke. People started running by the front of the restaurant, El Gato Azule, just around the corner from Whiskey Row. Then we heard the sirens.

Running up to the corner we saw this scene:
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May 7, 2012

The Deena Bean turns 32 today. Happy Birthday California Girl! Seems like about two minutes ago you looked like this:

Spent much of the weekend seeking out the secrets of "Last Light On Morningstar". Even went up the road with my watercolor…

May 4, 2012

Before I came into work, I whipped out another study of a subject matter I can't let go of. I call this "Last Light On Morningstar #87".

Also working on a set piece: Wyatt Earp Stands In Dust.

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May 3, 2012

Sometimes I draw things in my studio. And if you've seen pics of my studio you know it's crowded with stuff I love, like this Hopalong Cassidy clock (from the back, by the way):

I call this series "Artifacts of Dementia," as it goes along with the new time…