Nuclear Sketches

[Bob Boze Bell]

February 12, 2009
I had a stress test for my heart this morning at 7:45 A.M. down on Bell Road. At eight, they inserted an IV with nuclear isotopes into my right arm, then put me in a waiting room for 40 minutes. I used the time to sketch (and glow):

After forty minutes, they came and got me and put me in a nuclear photo imaging deal, like an MRI machine, and took multiple photos of my heart from a variety of positions.

Then they led me back out to the waiting room for another 40 minute wait. I sketched a page of storyboards for the Curly scene I talked about yesterday:

Then they came and got me again and took me into a room with a treadmill and hooked me up with prickly, stickem' wires and got me on a treadmill and kept speeding it up until my heart hit 131, then they slowed it down, ripped off the sticken' wires, and sent me back out to the waiting room for another 40 minutes. I used the time to sketch another page:

Then they took me back into the nuclear imaging room and put me back in the MRI deal and took another batch of photos. Then I went back to the waiting room and did another page of sketches:

Then a nurse came in and said, "Why are you still here? You were supposed to go home after the last test." And I said, "Sorry, need to finish this sketch for the big oil painting I'm doing."

From there, I drove to 52nd St. and Dynamite to monitor a cover shoot for our vaquero package. Lee Anderson rode his fine horse and photographer Allen Patrou and a crew of three shot off a ton of pics. Liked what I saw. Photos tomorrow.

Got into the office at three and dealt with a cover gone south, and a variety of other deadline issues.

"Laugh at yourself, but don't ever aim your doubt at yourself. Be bold. When you embark for strange places, don't leave any of yourself safely on shore. Have the nerve to go into unexplored territory."
—Old Vaquero Saying

[Bob Boze Bell]

Si. No air, must sketch light!

[Kip Coryea]

you're lucky you're so thin I have toget my first scan the day before. I HAVE NO IDEA WHY

[Wade Dillon]

Love the sketches, Bob! Curious, when did you begin work with comics? I really enjoy the final sketch and the use of panels in the 2nd one.

Hope to see some of your Crockett pieces!

All the best,
Wade

[Bob Boze Bell]

My first comic strip, Dick Matric (as in matriculation) ran in the Arizona Daily Wildcat at the University of Arizona in 1967-69. I created The Doper Roper in 1972, which ran in the humor "magazomic" from 1972-76, and I created the character Honkytonk Sue for National Lampoon in 1977, and it ran for several years in the New Times Weekly in Phoenix. These strips were later incorporated into four comic books, and Sue ran in True West for several years as well. In 1983 Columbia Pictures bought the rights to Honkytonk Sue and Goldie Hawn was scheduled to play her in a movie, with a script by Larry McMurtry. The movie never happened, but I was audited by the IRS for several years because I was a lowly cartoonist making $17K a year and I declared a lawyer fee of $15K (for work on the movie contract, although I got $30K for the rights) and I can't prove it but I imagine someone in the IRS saw those numbers and thought, "Drug dealer."

[Wade Dillon]

Oh boy, taxes....something I'm just now trying to get use to! I can only imagine the stress you experienced, Bob. Whew!

Over the past few years, I've really gotten into comics, beginning with doing the comic strip for my high school newspaper. Recently, I became involved with a local comic book studio where I was fortunate to meet many artists from DC & Marvel, in which I've learned plenty about the trade. So, I really appreciate the work you put in and I also enjoyed your Mickey Free graphic novel! Everything from your style and choice of colors, love it!

All the best,
Wade